MWC: TCU Simply the Best

By Jason Owens - May 24, 2007

One thing is absolutely clear from the afternoon matchup between TCU and UNLV. It was no accident that the Horned Frogs finished 20-3 in conference play. They are head and shoulders above the rest of the competition in Las Vegas and looked almost flawless against an outmatched Rebels squad.

They made a couple of base-running errors that cost them some runs in the first inning and didn't take advantage of a bases-loaded situation in the seventh but still came up with 13 hits in an 8-1 win. They got strong play from every aspect of the game.

They hit well. All but one starter got a hit in three of them hit home runs.

They defend well. Austin Adams made a major-league type throw to home plate to help starting pitcher Jake Arrieta out of a bases-loaded jam. Any ball hit in the infield was gobbled up with apparent ease to make tough plays look routine.

They pitch well. Arrieta cruised for five innings then proved he can pitch a gutsy game in getting out of the bases-loaded jam unscathed.

BYU looked good in the early game, but didn't show the completeness that TCU displayed today. But with MWC pitcher of the year Jesse Craig taking the mound for the Cougars tomorrow, BYU may have the one weapon that can baffle the TCU machine. He's done it before, pitching a shutout of the Horned Frogs in the regular season and helps make for a very intriguing 1-2 seed matchup on Friday.