The Missouri baseball team kicked off its 2016 campaign down in Florida with a four-game set against the Seton Hall Pirates. Mizzou’s big guns, Reggie McClain and Tanner Houck, helped the Tigers earn wins in each of the first two games, but the back half of the series ended on a sour note.
Seton Hall, a club that managed just a .500 record in the Big East last season, won the final two games in dominant fashion, out-hitting Mizzou 25-11. The series undoubtedly raised some concerns about the Tigers going forward. Here are five takeaways we learned from opening weekend:
**Shane Benes is back**
Tigers’ third baseman Shane Benes is back and healthy after missing nearly two years due to injuries. Benes, a highly-touted 2014 recruit from Westminster Christian Academy in Missouri, made his return near the end of last season, but he was strictly used as a designated hitter for precautionary reasons. Now, months after his ACL injury and with his knee fully healed and his lateral movement back, he looked like the talent the Tigers recruited against Seton Hall.
Benes smacked two home runs and collected five RBIs over the weekend, all coming in winning efforts. He was a threat at the plate throughout the series and managed to reach base six times (2 HR, 1B, 2 BB, HBP). If he can maintain that sort of production, it would be monumental for the Tigers, who ranked 13th in the SEC last season in runs scored and in the middle of the pack in home runs.
**Mizzou will ride its top two as far as it can**
We know what Reggie McClain and Tanner Houck can do. The Tigers are guaranteed to be competitive in any series with that dynamic duo on the bump on Friday and Saturday. McClain was near perfect on opening day, leading Mizzou to a 7-0 win. The redshirt senior right-hander tossed eight innings of shutout baseball, allowing just four hits and walking none. He mixed up his pitches well and kept hitters off-balance with some nice off-speed action. Houck, on the other hand, wasn’t his dominant self, but did earn the win in a 4-1 Tigers victory. The sophomore right-hander struggled a bit with his command in the early going, but was able to maneuver his way out of numerous jams and keep the Pirates at bay. He turned in a six-inning performance, allowing one run on seven hits and fanning nine.
However, that’s when the wheels fell off. We knew the Tigers would have issues trying to pinpoint a No. 3 starter and it showed on opening weekend. Freshman southpaw Michael Plassmeyer got the nod in game three of the series, but did not receive a warm welcome from the Pirates. He was roughed up for five runs on nine hits in just four innings, before being yanked as the Tigers tried to mount a comeback. Mizzou got within a run late in the game, but Plassmeyer was eventually saddled with the loss. In the series finale, Ryan Lee started the game, but lasted just 2.1 innings after he was knocked around for three runs, all earned, on three hits and took the loss.
The other candidate for the No. 3 spot in the rotation is senior southpaw Austin Tribby, who is making the transition from reliever to starter this season. Tribby showed promise over the weekend in relief efforts, but it’s still unclear how he’ll hold up as a potential starter. Look for him to get some chances throughout nonconference play.
**Inexperienced bullpen will have growing pains**
Aside from Tribby, the Tigers have a very young, inexperienced bullpen to work with this season. With that lack of experience, there’s going to be some obvious growing pains: missed locations, lack of communication on bunts, need for more development, etc. While there were some bright spots, Mizzou’s bullpen did have its fair share of struggles against Seton Hall and will continue to work through these growing pains throughout nonconference play before the talent gap kicks in during conference play. In a combined 15.2 innings of relief work, the Tigers’ bullpen surrendered nine runs. Four relievers made their first career appearances and two others saw their first action in nearly two seasons.
**Tigers’ 7-9 hitters are a major question mark**
Another question mark for the Tigers in 2016 will be the production they get from the 7-9 slots in the order. Opening weekend saw next to none. Hitters slotted 7-9 (including pinch-hitters) went an abysmal 2-for-38 with zero RBI and 11 strikeouts against Seton Hall. Given, nearly all of the players who were slotted 7-9 over the weekend are underclassmen or transfer students, so there is an expected learning curve as they see their first stretch of games with the Tigers. However, if the Tigers continue to get that little production, it will force the guys in the 1-6 spots to become too aggressive, trying to make too much happen.
**Ryan Howard leading off might work out**
In a surprise move, coach Tim Jamieson gave junior shortstop Ryan Howard a new role this season. After Howard was successful in the middle of the order last season on a team that lacked power, Jamieson moved Howard to the leadoff spot in an effort to stack his best hitters on top of one another at the top of the order. During opening weekend, the strategy panned out. Howard tied junior center fielder Jake Ring with a team-high six hits against Seton Hall, including one home run. He slugged .625 over the weekend and held a team-high .444 on-base percentage, as well (among full-time starters). The jury is still out whether the Tigers will be struck with a power struggle in the heart of the order this year, but if Benes can continue his power stroke and help that cause, there’s no reason to believe that Howard as a leadoff hitter can’t work.
**Next up**
Mizzou will take on Florida International (0-3) in a single game on Wednesday in Miami. The game will be broadcast on KTGR.
