Huskers Look to Snare Bears

On Tap: The Nebraska baseball team wraps up the 2009 season this weekend, as the Huskers welcome the Baylor Bears to Hawks Field. The three-game series commences Friday evening at 6:05 p.m. with afternoon games set for Saturday (2:05 p.m.) and Sunday (1:05 p.m.).

Saturday’s game is not only Parent’s Day as the parents of the 2009 Huskers are honored, but also Military Appreciation Day, as all active and retired military personnel will receive free admission to the game with a government-issued military ID. On Sunday, the Husker senior class of Erik Bird, Jake Mort, Cody Neer, Nick Sullivan and Jeff Tezak will be honored in pregame ceremonies.

Radio: Fans across Nebraska can listen to Greg Sharpe and Lane Grindle call the action on the Husker Sports Network, including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln, KFAB 1110 AM in Omaha and KRVN 880 AM in Lexington and on Huskers.com.

TV: Saturday’s game will be televised across Nebraska on NET (Ch. 12 and Ch. 112 in HD) with Kevin Kugler and Adrian Fiala. It is the sixth and final televised game for the 2009 season.

Tickets: General admission tickets are $7 (adults) and $5 (youth and seniors) and can be purchased at Hawks Field beginning 90 minutes before first pitch. NU students get in free with a valid N-Card.

Weekend preview: The Huskers were scheduled to play Creighton Tuesday night at Rosenblatt Stadium, but the game was canceled because of rain in Omaha. It marked the first time since the 1998 season that a matchup between the Huskers and Bluejays was canceled by weather.
The Bears, who are still looking to earn a spot in next week’s Big 12 Championship in Oklahoma City, came off a break for final exams with a 12-2 victory over Stephen F. Austin Tuesday evening to snap a three-game losing streak.

4 Things to Watch
1.  Jake Mort brings a career-long nine-game hitting streak into Friday’s contest.  Mort is hitting .333 with nine RBIs in his streak, while he has not had an error in 13 games.
2.  Nick Sullivan is hitting .450 (9-for-20) with four homers and seven RBIs over NU’s last eight contests.
3.  Sunday’s start for Erik Bird will be his first in Big 12 play. The senior has made 29 relief appearances in conference action over his career.
4. With a .374 batting average in Big 12 action, Tyler Farst is bidding  to become the first Husker to hit .350 or better in the league since the 2006 season. Farst’s older brother (Travis) played football at Baylor from 2002 until 2006.

Lifter of the Year Announced Friday
Husker Power will announce its 2009 Baseball Lifter of the Year prior to Friday’s series opener. The three finalists are pitcher Erik Bird and outfielders Nick Sullivan and Adam Bailey. This is the third time Sullivan has been a finalist and the first time that Bird and Bailey have been nominated by their teammates.

Military Appreciation Day on Saturday
In honor of Armed Forces Day on Saturday, the Husker baseball program is honoring the military on Saturday. All military members can attend Saturday’s game for free if they present their government-issued military ID at Hawks Field gate. In addition, all other family members can purchase discounted tickets by calling the Nebraska Athletic Ticket Office by calling 1-800-8-BIGRED. Families are encouraged to call in advance for the discount rate, as they can only be purchased prior to Saturday.

Scouting Baylor
Baylor enters the final weekend of the season with a 27-20 record and in a battle for one of the final spots for next week’s Big 12 Championship in Oklahoma City. The Bears need one win this weekend or a Texas Tech win against Oklahoma State to lock up a spot for next week.  The Bears snapped a three-game losing streak with a win over Stephen F. Austin on Tuesday night, as the Bears had not played since May 3 because of final exams. Under longtime coach Steve Smith ( 559-357-1 in 15 seasons),  Baylor has been an annual contender for postseason play, including a 2005 CWS appearance, but missed the NCAA Tournament in 2008.

The Bears are one of the league’s top offensive clubs, hitting .302 as a team and ranking third in the Big 12 with 67 homers. Junior Dustin Dickerson paces the Bears’ attack with a .378 average 10 homers and 36 RBIs. Fellow junior Aaron Miller is one of the league’s top two-way performers, hitting .354 with 11 homers and 43 RBIs, while also going 3-3 with a 4.95 ERA in 10 appearances on the  mound.  Shaver Hansen is one of the Big 12’s top power hitters, belting 15 homers and driving in 49 runs.

On the mound, Baylor features one of the Big 12’s top pitchers in junior Kendal Volz, who is 3-5 with a 4.00 ERA over a team-high 74 innings. He is among the Big 12 strikeout leaders with 71, and is joined by freshman Logan Verrett, who is 7-1 with three saves in 16 outings. Sophomore Shawn Tolleson (1-1, 4.68 ERA) and Willie Kempf (4-3, 5.62 ERA) round out the weekend rotation this week.

Series History: Baylor leads the all-time series history, 30-22-1 in a series that dates back to 1983. The  Huskers are 10-7 against the Bears in Lincoln, including series wins in Hawks Field in 2003 (2-1), 2005 (2-1) and 2007 (2-1). This is the third time in the last four meetings with the Bears that NU has closed out its home slate against Baylor. Last year, Nebraska picked up its first-ever series win in Waco, winning 2-of-3 matchups, but dropped a 10-4 decision to the Bears in Oklahoma City.

Last Time Out
Sunday (CSU Bakersfield 8, Nebraska 7): Nick Sullivan continued to swing a hot stick, going 2-for-3 with a homer and two RBIs, as Nebraska nearly overcame a six-run deficit in falling to CSU Bakersfield, 8-7. Sullivan belted his sixth homer of the year and second in as many days, while true freshman Khiry Cooper homered and drove in a pair of runs in the setback. A five-run fourth inning by CSU Bakersfield was too much to overcome, although Nebraska gave it run late, leaving the tying run in scoring position in each of the final two frames.  Leading 1-0 after a second-inning homer by Jeremy Rodriguez, the Roadrunners chased Husker starter Sean Yost with five runs in the fourth, as the freshman took the loss.

Saturday (CSU Bakersfield 10, Nebraska 8): Nebraska belted four homers, including a pair by Adam Bailey, but Ryan McIntyre’s RBI triple in the top of the ninth broke an 8-all deadlock and lifted CSU Bakersfield to a 10-8 victory. The Huskers led 8-7 heading into the ninth, but could not close the door as the Roadrunners scored three times to pull out the victory.  Kyle Richardson tied the game with a solo homer before McIntyre plated the go-ahead run two batters later with an RBI triple.  Nebraska fought back, loading the bases in the bottom of the ninth against reliever Mickey Jannis, but could not get the tying hit, as Sullivan grounded into a game-ending double play.  Cade Thompson went 3-for-4, while Kiser had two hits, including his second homer of the year, and three RBIs for the Huskers. Sullivan had two hits, including his fifth homer of the season.

Friday (Nebraska 9, CSU Bakersfield 6): Mike Nesseth overcame a rocky start to earn his first win since March 18, as Nebraska topped CSU Bakersfield, 9-6, Friday night. Nesseth allowed five runs over the first two innings, but settled down and held the Roadrunners in check over his final 5.1 innings of work. He fanned seven and retired nine of the final 11 hitters he faced. Cory Burleson paced the 10-hit attack for Nebraska, going 2-for-3 with his first career homer and scoring three times. Jake Mort drove in pair of runs, as eight of the nine Huskers starters had hits on the night.  Trailing 5-0, the Huskers struck for six runs in the bottom of the second, including a two-run double by Jake Mort and an RBI single by Adam Bailey and added a pair of runs, including Burleson’s first round tripper of the season.

Leading Off
?-The weekend series between the Huskers and Bears also features family bragging rights, as NU volunteer assistant coach Nate Thompson squares off with his older brother, Baylor assistant coach Mitch Thompson.
?-Nebraska’s 11 straight years of being above .500 was the second-longest streak in the Big 12. Only Oklahoma State, which had not had a losing record since a 16-28 mark in 1977, had a longer streak among Big 12 schools. The Cowboys are the only program in the Big 12 to never have an under .500 mark since the Big 12 was formed in 1997.
?-Nebraska has shown the ability to score runs in bunches. The Huskers have already plated five runs in an inning 14 times in 2009. Here is a look at the Huskers’ biggest innings in 2009.
?-Nebraska has 14 come-from-behind wins among its 22 victories, including eight wins where the Huskers had to overcome at least a three-run deficit. The seven-run comeback against Northern Colorado on March 24 equaled the Huskers’ largest comeback since the 2000 season, when NU overcame a 10-0 deficit against Iowa State. NU has 112 come-from-behind wins under Mike Anderson since 2003.
?-Reaching double figures in hits is a key for the Huskers in 2009. When they have at least 10 hits in a game, the Huskers are 20-9-1, but just 2-19 when they are held to fewer than 10 hits.
?-Nebraska started a season-high six freshmen against Missouri on May 3, including Cory Burleson (C), Boomer Collins (LF), Khiry Cooper (RF), Cody Asche (3B), Kale Kiser (2B) and Sean Yost (P). Burleson has now started 23 games at catcher, which is the most by a Husker freshman catcher since Patrick Johnson started 23 games in 1994.
?-Senior Erik Bird has thrown at least 9.0 innings in each of his last two starts. The last Husker to do that was All-American Joba Chamberlain, who threw 9.0 innings against Texas (4/8/05) and Texas A&M (4/15/05).
?-Tyler Farst’s four-hit day against Missouri on May 3 marked the sixth time the Huskers have had a four-hit day this season. The setback to the Tigers was the Huskers’ first loss in six games where a player had at least four hits.
?-Casey Hauptman has been the Huskers’ workhorse out of the bullpen. He has made three appearances of 5.1 innings this season, including one against CSU Bakersfield on Sunday, where he allowed no earned runs. He also threw 5.1 innings at Kansas on April 24 to earn the win and at UL-Lafayette in the season opener on Feb. 20.
?-Erik Bird’s 9.1 inning effort at Creighton on April 21 was the longest pitching performance in the Big 12 this season and the longest effort by a Husker since Tony Watson threw 10 innings against Missouri on March 23, 2007. Ironically, none of the four ended up picking up the victory in those games, and Bird’s was the only one that Nebraska won.
?-When a Husker starting pitcher has left with a lead, the Huskers are 14-2-1 on the season.
?-Saturday’s loss to CSU Bakersfield was the first in 138 games where the Huskers took a lead into the ninth inning and lost. Prior to that, NU was 136-0-1 dating back to 2005 when taking a lead to the ninth. The Huskers are 231-4-1 (.981) when leading after eight innings under Mike Anderson.
?-Adam Bailey’s two-homer day against CSU Bakersfield was the second of the season by a Husker, as Jeff Tezak hit a pair of homers against Oklahoma on March 29.
?-The Huskers are 52-6 dating back to last season when they out-hit an opponent and have won nearly 90 percent of their games since 2003 when out-hitting an opponent.
?-One area that senior Jeff Tezak has excelled in this season is plate discipline. Tezak not only leads the Huskers in walks, but has struck out just 15 times to rank third among all Big 12 players in fewest strikeouts per at-bat.  Tezak is second among all Big 12 hitters in walk-to-strikeout ratio entering the final week of the regular season. He is bidding to become the first Husker position player since 2003 to strike out less than 20 times with a minimum of 150 at-bats.
?-NU hitters have taken a beating this season, as the Huskers have been hit by 68 pitches to rank fourth in the Big 12.  DJ Belfonte has been hit 42 times in his career, including a team-high 12 times in 2009. Three current Huskers are now among the top five in school history.
?-Nebraska has won five games in its last at-bat this spring, including four runs in the bottom of the eighth in a 14-13 win over Northern Colorado on March 24.
?-The Huskers have reached double figures in runs 11 times this season and are  93-1 under Mike Anderson when reaching double figures in runs, including 65-0 since the start of the 2005 season.
?-Nebraska is 15-3-1 when allowing five runs or less and has won 83 percent of its games since 2003 when allowing five runs or less.
?-Nebraska set a school and Big 12 record in the opener against UL-Lafayette, as five Husker pitchers combined for 22 strikeouts, breaking the school and conference mark of 21 set at Iowa State on April 18, 1999. Three of the top five strikeout performances have been under pitching coach Eric Newman over the past two seasons.
?-Nebraska is the only Big 12 program to win at least 40 games in eight of the past 10 years, including three 50-win seasons (2000, 2001 and 2005)
?-Since the NCAA Championship went to the 64-team format in 1999, Nebraska has made nine NCAA Tournament appearances, which ties for seventh nationally in that time period. The only teams to earn more bids than Nebraska in that span are Cal State Fullerton, Florida State, Miami, Oral Roberts, Rice and Texas.

Sullivan Named Male Student-Athlete of the Year
Senior outfielder Nick Sullivan received one of the highest honors a Husker student-athlete can receive, as he was chosen as the 2008-09 NU Male Student-Athlete of the Year on April 26.

Sullivan is a two-time academic All-Big 12 selection who carries a 3.78 GPA in finance. A first-team Academic All-District VII selection in 2008, he has been on the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll in all nine semesters at Nebraska and was a nominee for the 2009 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award.

On the diamond, Sullivan is hitting .265 with six homers and 22 RBIs, as he is second on the team in homers, on-base percentage (.416), walks (25) and hit-by-pitches (11). He is just the third baseball player to receive the award since it was created in 1991.

All-Time NU Male Student-Athletes of the Year in Baseball
Player  Year
Jeff Leise 2003
Daniel Bruce 2005
Nick Sullivan 2009

Sullivan, Mort Receive Degrees
Last Saturday was a busy day for Husker baseball seniors Jake Mort and Nick Sullivan, as they both participated in graduation ceremonies prior to NU’s game with Cal State Bakersfield.
Sullivan, who was named NU Male Student-Athlete of the Year, received his degree in finance, as he carries a 3.78 GPA. A two-time Academic All-Big 12 pick and first-team Academic All-District VII honoree in 2008, Sullivan has appeared in 166 games for the Huskers and is a career .275 hitter with 11 homers and 69 RBIs. This season, he is hitting .265 with six homers and 22 RBIs, ranking second on the team in homers and walks (25) and is third in on-base percentage (.416).
Mort has also enjoyed his share of academic success, receiving his degree in Spanish while carrying better than a 3.0 GPA. A two-time Academic All-Big 12 selection, Mort has been on the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll on four occasions. One of the best defensive third basemen in school history, Mort has a .953 fielding percentage over 180 career appearances. This season, he is hitting .260 with four homers and 22 RBIs, while also topping the Huskers with eight sacrifices.
They joined fellow senior Jeff Tezak, who earned his degree in political science in December and is currently in graduate school.

Bird Soars Down the Stretch
Senior right-hander Erik Bird has been one of the Huskers’ most consistent hurlers in recent weeks. Since March 31, Bird is 2-1 with a 3.12 ERA over his last 12 outings, holding hitters to a .250 average over 40.1 innings. Bird pitched a scoreless inning of relief in Saturday’s loss to CSU Bakersfield and was slated to pitch at Creighton on Tuesday before the rainout.
He tossed the first complete game of his career against New Mexico on April 28, scattering seven hits and allowing two runs. His effort was the second-best effort of the year against a New Mexico team that led the country in hitting.
Only projected No. 1 pick Stephen Strasburg of San Diego State held the Lobos to fewer runs than Bird. One week earlier, Bird was even better, going 9.1 innings in a no-decision against Creighton. He allowed one run on six hits and matched his career best with five strikeouts in a game that went 12 innings before NU won 4-3.
The only senior pitcher on the 2009 staff, Bird enters the final weekend of his career with 77 appearances to rank fourth on NU’s career charts. He will match Jeff Anderson (1981-84) for third place with his next appearance, while only Steve Hale (87, 1999-03) and Brett Jensen (80, 2004-06) have pitched more times as a Husker than Bird has over the past four years.

Tezak Returns Better than Ever
After being limited to just seven games with a torn ACL in his knee, Jeff Tezak has come back better than ever in 2009. The senior from San Diego is hitting .310 with two homers and 26 RBIs, leading the Huskers in both walks (29) and on-base percentage (.422). Tezak had committed just one error in his first 35 games before having two at Texas A&M on April 18. He still has a .983 fielding percentage in 173 chances at second base this spring.
Tezak has been even better in league play, hitting .313 with two homers and 11 RBIs in 20 contests while ranking third in the league with 16 walks and striking out just twice in 83 at-bats.

Tezak Named to Academic All-District Team
Nebraska senior infielder Jeff Tezak was honored on May 7. as he was named first-team ESPN The Magazine Academic All- District VII. Tezak, who carries a 3.55 GPA in political science, is in his first semester of graduate school after graduating in December of 2008. He now advances to the national ballot in hopes of earning Academic All-America honors.
On the season, Tezak is hitting .310 with two homers and 26 RBIs in 48 games for the Huskers after missing nearly all of the 2008 season following knee surgery. He leads NU in walks (29) and on-base percentage (.422) and has struck out just 15 times In 171 at-bats. Defensively, he has a .983 fielding percentage at second base, committing just three errors in 173 chances.

Bashing with Bailey
Junior college transfer Adam Bailey has been a consistent run producer in the middle of the Husker lineup this spring. He enters the week with a .315 batting average with team bests in both homers (11) and RBIs (46). The Scottsdale, Ariz., product is 10th in the league in homers and RBIs.
Bailey has shown the ability to drive in runs in bunches, pacing the Huskers with 10 multi-RBI efforts, including seven games with at least three RBIs. Bailey’s most recent multi-RBI effort came in Saturday’s loss to CSU Bakersfield, when he went 3-for-5 with two homers and four RBIs.
He now has 16 multi-hit games to tie for second on the squad and enjoyed a 13-game hitting streak from Feb. 28 until March 22, where he hit .406 with six homers and 23 RBIs.

What a Difference a Year Makes
After struggling to get at-bats for most of the 2008 season, first baseman Tyler Farst has been one of the Huskers’ most consistent hitters this spring. Through his first 41 games, he had a .179 average with three RBIs before earning a spot in the lineup after Craig Corriston’s knee surgery. Since then, Farst has been hitting at a .328 clip with five homers and 45 RBIs in his last 64 games dating back to last May.

This season, he is hitting .326 with three homers and 33 RBIs,  as he is among team leaders in doubles (15, first), RBIs, (second), runs (34, first), hits (59, first) and walks (21, third)

Farst, has had a pair of 11-game hit streaks in that stretch. He hit .429 with a homer, five doubles and 14 RBIs during an 11-game streak that was snapped on April 3. He went 7-for-12 with three doubles and three RBIs against No. 11 Oklahoma, including his first career four-hit game on March 29. It was the second time that week he established a personal best as he drove in a career-high five runs, highlighted by his first grand slam, against Northern Colorado on March 24.

Huskers In the Pros
Currently 21 former Huskers are in professional baseball, including Major Leaguers Darin Erstad, Joba Chamberlain and Alex Gordon. Brian Duensing began the 2009 season on the Minnesota Twins roster, but is currently in Triple-A.  Erstad is in his 14th season in the Major Leagues and trails only Stan Bahnsen (1966-82) among Huskers in terms of time in the Major Leagues, while Alex Gordon and Joba Chamberlain are each in their third season in the Majors. In addition, other former Huskers, such as Luke Wertz, have not been assigned to teams yet this season.

Ticket Update
Because of the weather-related postponements this season, four previous game tickets can be used for general admission tickets to any of this weekend’s games against Baylor at Hawks Field.  Those tickets are the following:
 
? South Dakota State (Game 2 on season-ticket sheets)
? Northern Colorado (Game 9)
? Kansas State (Game 13)
? Texas (Game 15)

Twice the Action..
Nebraska fans have been seeing double almost every weekend of the 2009 season. The Huskers have played eight doubleheaders this season, including five of seven weekends in conference action. All five Big 12 doubleheaders have been because of weather, although the Huskers have not lost a conference tilt to inclement weather since 2001, the second-longest streak in the Big 12.

Nesseth Anchors Husker Pitching Staff
Sophomore Mike Nesseth has been dominant at times in 2009. The right-hander is 4-3 with two saves and a 5.15 ERA in 17 appearances. He has a team-high 63 strikeouts over 57.2 innings and is holding foes to a .249 average.  He started the first four weeks of the season before moving into the closer’s role on March 18. He went 1-1 with two saves in that spot and also helped preserve NU’s 11-9 win at Oklahoma on March 29.

Nesseth returned to the rotation on April 26, and picked up  his first win since returning to the rotation on May 8 against CSU Bakersfield. He went 7.1 innings and struck out seven to pick up the win. As a starter, he went at least six innings in five of his seven outings, highlighted by a complete-game victory over Cal State Northridge on March 6, where he fanned seven in a 9-3 win. He was dominant against Sam Houston State on Feb. 28, tossing six shutout innings, scattering three hits and recording a career-high 12 strikeouts. 

Nesseth Ranked Among Top Prospects
Sophomore right-hander Mike Nesseth is rated by Baseball America as one of the top 100 prospects for this June’s Major League Baseball Draft. Nesseth, who went 4-1 with four saves and a 3.58 ERA last season, is rated as the No. 29 college prospect and No. 63 overall prospect by the publication. Nesseth was also ranked as the No. 2 prospect in the Northwoods League over the summer by Baseball America. He was also ranked as the No. 19 sophomore in the country by the publication.  

Huskers at Home at Hawks Field
Nebraska has enjoyed the comforts of Hawks Field since moving into the ballpark in 2002. The Huskers are 186-59-1 (.758) since the ballpark opened in 2002.

Farst and Bailey Receive Big 12 Awards
Adam Bailey and Tyler Farst have both been honored, as the Big 12’s Player of the Week this season.  Bailey received the honor on March 2 after hitting .333 with three homers and 10 RBIs in five games. He drove in a career-high six runs against North Dakota on Feb. 25 while also homering twice at the Sam Houston State Bearkat Classic. Bailey also picked up a save with three innings of relief work against the Bearkats.

Farst received his honor on March 30 after hitting .500 with a homer, nine RBI and six runs scored in a four-game week.  He led the Huskers to their biggest comeback in six seasons against Northern Colorado on March 24, going 2-for-3 with a homer and five RBIs to help erase a 10-3 deficit.  Farst closed the week with his first career four-hit game, posting a 4-for-5 outing with a double, three RBIs and two runs scored in an 11-9 win that snapped OU’s 16-game home win streak.

Double Duty for Bailey
Adam Bailey did something that no other Husker had done in 14 seasons against UL-Lafayette on Feb. 21. He became the first Husker player to earn a victory and hit a homer in the same game since Alvie Shepherd accomplished the feat against Kansas on April 5, 1995.  Bailey entered the game as a reliever in the top of the fourth and fanned three over 2.2 innings of two-hit relief. He moved to right field for the final three innings, going 1-for-2 with a ninth-inning homer that was the final margin of victory in a 9-8 win.

Having a Day
Junior Adam Bailey put together a home debut to remember in Nebraska’s home opener against North Dakota on Feb. 25, going 3-for-5 with a homer and six RBIs. His six RBIs were the second-highest total for a Husker since Mike Anderson took over the Husker program in 2003 and the highest single-game total by a Husker since 2007.

Switching Things Up
One of the things that is evident on the 2009 roster is an abundance of switch hitters. In all, Nebraska has five position players (Kyle Bubak, Cory Burleson, Kale Kiser, Jeff Tezak and Cody Neer) listed as switch hitters, which is believed to be the most in school history. Prior to this year, Nebraska has had only four switch hitters on a roster this decade - and no more than two in any year - since having four in 1985.

Husker Homes
The 2009 Huskers come from 14 states across the nation. Nebraska natives comprise nearly a third of the 33-man roster with 11 spots, while Texas, Missouri and Minnesota also claim at least three Huskers apiece.

Husker Baseball on Television
Nebraska will get plenty of television exposure this year, as six games are scheduled to be televised this spring. NU’s game at Arkansas on March 17 and at Wichita State on March 31 was televised on Cox Sports, while five other contests have been selected by NET.  Tuesday’s game at Creighton was rained out, so Saturday’s telecast against Baylor will be the final televised game in 2009.