Login | Member Center | Contact Us | About Us | Site Map | Archive | Alerts/Photos | Subscribe to the paper | knoxnews.com

HomeBaseball

Morgado stellar again, but Vols lose to Oklahoma

Redshirt freshman strikes out 10; UT falls, 2-0

HOUSTON - Tennessee left-hander Bryan Morgado pitched superbly again Sunday against Oklahoma in the final game of the Houston College Classic.

His fellow Vols gave him virtually no help, offensively or defensively, sending Tennessee to a 2-0 defeat at Minute Maid Park.

The redshirt freshman from Miami surrendered only five hits and one earned run in eight innings, striking out 10.

"You can't ask for anything more than what he gave us," Tennessee coach Todd Raleigh said. "You've got to win that game, based on pitching."

Unfortunately for the Vols (4-3), Oklahoma starter Michael Rocha, another freshman, was even better. Or the Tennessee offense was worse, depending on which dugout you were sitting.

The Vols managed only one legitimate hit off Rocha - a single by Tanner Moore in the bottom of the fifth - and never even put a runner on base in any other inning.

"We didn't have a very good approach (at the plate) today," said third baseman Cody Brown, who went 3-for-10 for the weekend and drove in three runs. "(Rocha) did a good job of throwing strikes, and that was about it."

Tennessee hit only one ball out of the infield in the first four innings off Rocha, who went eight. Brown was the Vols' first base runner when he reached on a hit by pitch to open the fifth.

That was the inning that exposed Tennessee's weakness.

Moore followed with a lined single to right to put runners on first and second. Jeff Lockwood hit a one-hopper back to Rocha, who looked to third. But the Oklahoma third baseman, anticipating a bunt, had charged the plate and no one was covering third.

By the time Rocha could turn toward first, Lockwood was nearing the base and the pitcher never attempted a throw. It was generously scored a hit, Tennessee's second and last of the game.

Leading 2-0 with the bases loaded and nobody out, Rocha struck out Blake Forsythe, got Cody Grisham to pop up to second and struck out Daniel Beasley. End of threat. End of game, for all intent and purposes.

"He's not a Greg Maddux yet," said Tennessee pitching coach Fred Corral, who helped recruit Rocha to Norman when he was an assistant last year at Oklahoma. "But we made him look like one today."

The Vols, who made three errors in Saturday's loss to Texas Tech, made two more Sunday.

Morgado (1-1), who gave up only two hits, one earned run and struck out 12 in eight innings of last Monday's 2-1 win over Furman, did earn himself a regular spot in the rotation.

"He should be a key weekend guy for sure," Raleigh said.

"He's one of the best arms I've come across," added Corral.

The Vols, who play James Madison Wednesday at home, finished 1-2 for the weekend

       2 Comments

Posted by GreerVol22 on March 3, 2008 at 7:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)

These kids are in learning mode right now. Concentration, form and finish are what hitting is about. Just like golf, its as much mental as it is physical. In time, these guys will come around.

Posted by TommyJack on March 3, 2008 at 12:36 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Hey, they've jumped into some pretty stellar competion here. Should help later on. Stay with'em.

Post a comment
(Requires free registration.)

Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.

Username:

Password:
(Forgotten your password?)

Your Turn:

Please download the latest version of Adobe Flash Player, or enable JavaScript for your browser to view the video player.