Sept. 15, 2008

Fall Schedule

FORT WORTH, Texas -¬ The 2009 edition of TCU Baseball will kick-off fall workouts on Tuesday at Lupton Stadium. The Frogs return 21 members from last season¹s 44-19 squad. In addition, TCU welcomes 11 newcomers, including 10 freshmen and one junior college transfer. Fall practice will run through Oct. 26.

A new twist to the fall schedule will be the Purple/White season series that will replace the Purple/White World Series. The team will be divided into two squads for the entire fall season and will compete in 15 games throughout the course of the season. Additionally, TCU will square off against UT-Arlington on Oct. 4 at 11 a.m.

"We're excited about the beginning of fall practice," said Head Coach Jim Schlossnagle. "This is a talented team on paper but they have a high standard to live up to with regard to the way last year's team practiced and competed. We are going to try and make everything as competitive as possible, especially the Purple-White season series."

TCU is coming off a third consecutive season that saw it claim the regular season and tournament titles in the Mountain West. The Frogs also made their fifth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, putting them in elite company as one of just 18 schools to accomplish the feat.

The Frogs placed eight members on the all-conference squad and return six of them. The bulk of a record-setting infield returns, while only one regular in the outfield comes back. Seniors Matt Carpenter, Ben Carruthers and Matt Vern, along with junior catcher Bryan Holaday will anchor the infield, while Chris Ellington is the lone-returning outfielder who saw regular action.

A pitching staff that was young a year ago is deep in experience this season. The added boost of the healthy return of Steven Maxwell and a crop of talented freshmen makes this a strength of the 2009 baseball team.

Sean Hoelscher and Greg Holle each spent gained valuable experience, spending their freshmen campaigns in the rotation and first-team all-conference performer Tyler Lockwood proved more than capable as the No. 1 starter. Middle relief is in good shape with the return of senior Taylor Cragin and sophomore Trent Appleby, who ate up a lot of innings in relief. The closing role will be up for grabs with the departure of first-round draft pick Andrew Cashner.

The 11 newcomers are comprised of five pitchers, four infielders, one outfielder and one utility player, all of whom expect to heavily compete for regular playing time.

All practices and games are free and open to the public. Times are tentative and fans can feel free to call 817-257-5155 to verify times.