Series Preview: As Indiana comes to town, Longhorns new and old making plenty of adjustments
The 2023 Texas Longhorns baseball team features a host of newcomers. Some are transfers via the portal or the junior college ranks. Others were members of the Longhorns’ 2022 class.
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Through four games, a decent number of the at bats for the 2023 Horns have come from players who made their college debut just last week.
Several true freshmen were opening day starters for the Longhorns, including Jared Thomas, Jalin Flores, and Jayden Duplantier. Rylan Galvan joined that trio as a starter at catcher in game two, while Cade O’Hara joined their company playing short in game three. Flores, Thomas, and Duplantier were once again starters on Tuesday in the Longhorns’ first win of the year over Texas A&M – Corpus Christi.
Of 129 total Longhorn at bats this year, 35 belong to true freshmen. Of the 30 hits, only five are from those first-year college players. Thomas and Flores have two apiece, including a Flores homer, and one belongs to Duplantier. All in all, Texas head coach David Pierce has penciled three true freshman position players into his lineup in three of four games.
Throwing players into the crucible that is Division I baseball, especially versus three Southeastern Conference opponents, is quite a way to start a career. Results may be tough to come by in those situations. But what about the processes for those players?
“I think if you go back to Sunday, we didn’t see that coming,” Pierce said Thursday about Texas’ 12-2 loss to Vanderbilt that included five fielding errors. “We felt like their process has been right, and that’s why they earned a chance to play. The game just really sped up on them, much more so than I thought it was going to.
“That’s on me, but at the same time, those guys had proven everything to us they deserved the opportunity to play. It just turned out like that.”
Part of what has made the game “speed up” this season is new rule changes instituted by the NCAA. It’s not what caused the 0-3 start, but it’s been an major adjustment for players old and young alike. Dylan Campbell, the Horns’ regular right fielder, was rung up for strike three over the weekend as a result of a violation.
Via College Baseball Hub, here are the new rules for the 2023 season.
Before the 2020 season, the NCAA introduced a 20-second action clock for the intent of speeding up the pace of play. This meant with runners on base, pitchers had 20 seconds to begin their motion toward home plate or make a pickoff attempt. One caveat to this rule was that pitchers could perform unlimited step-offs or fake throws without penalty to reset that 20-second clock.
Beginning in 2023, pitchers will be allowed one step-off or fake throw per batter to reset the action clock. If a defensive player is granted a timeout, it will also be counted as a step-off and burn the pitcher’s ability to use that for the remainder of the at-bat.
A pitcher will still be allowed unlimited pickoff attempts during an at-bat, but they must deliver the ball to either a base, or home plate, every 20 seconds.
As it was before, if a pitcher fails to deliver a pitch or pick-off attempt within that window, a ball will be added to the count. Alternatively, if a batter is unprepared to hit within that 20 second window, a strike will be added to the count.
“It’s definitely different, going up there and knowing that you’re getting a little rushed,” catcher Garret Guillemette said of the changes. “But, if you just get in the mindset and you just get in the box, the pitcher has to throw to you. He can’t throw until you get in the box. We’re getting used to that.”
For another experienced player like TCU transfer Porter Brown, who previously liked taking his time, it’s been a tougher change.
“I don’t have a practice swing anymore, and I don’t hop out of the box with two feet,” Brown said. “I keep a foot in there, just take my breath, and hop back in for the next pitch.”
It’s a part of the change for the entire team, and one that’ll carry on throughout the season whether ahead, tied, or behind.
Pierce noted on Thursday that the Hoosier lineup heading to town this weekend is filled with experience and handles the strike zone well. He also mentioned the Disch-Falk environment probably won’t be too much for IU considering they were just at Auburn.
“I don’t think they’ll be intimidated coming in here,” he said.
Indiana has 15 transfers on the roster who were previously at another Division I school, compared to Texas who has eight.
The Longhorns aren’t averse to adding players through the portal. Brown and Guillemette headline the transfer class this year, following in the footsteps of players like Mike Antico and Skyler Messinger.
They have to be the right fit for the program, according to Pierce. His goal is to strike a balance with adding from the portal and developing additions from the high school ranks.
“I still want to stay in that 10 to 13 range for freshmen, so you still have room to get the right kind of transfers in here,” Pierce said. “Just getting a transfer versus a transfer that fits, to me they’re kind of replacements like the JC kids used to be. Mike Antico fit so well. Skyler Messinger fit so well. That’s the kind of guy you want, but you don’t know.”
It all boils down for “getting the right guy” for Pierce. The position player portal additions have been in the lineup with regularity, save for catcher Kimble Schuessler who is out for the year, but the freshmen have seen just as much action. He wants those freshmen players to be successful this year, and for the years to come.
“I got into this thing a long time ago because of growth and development,” Pierce said. “That’s my job. I don’t want to rent a player, so I fight that a little bit right now. The system may force me to do that. Referring back to those two guys in Mike and Skyler, I think they’ll be around this program for a long time even though they only played here one year. That’s important to me.
“It’s not just about, can we load up with a bunch of seniors and see how it pans out? My job is development. Recruiting, we have to be good at. I want to develop players not only off the field, but off the field.”
The development process is in the early stages for many of the freshmen who are stepping in for a number of departures from a team responsible for Pierce’s third trip to Omaha as UT head coach.
“I think they still have to improve on how they handle those situations, learning and trusting their routines, and really knowing how to breathe,” Pierce said.
How quickly it happens will determine how many wins the Longhorns put under their belts this year. As it pertains to weekend series, that begins Friday night at 6:30 p.m.
