⚾ Kansas Opens Big 12 Play with No. 3 TCU This Weekend

No. 3 TCU (13-0) vs. Kansas (7-4)
When	March 8-10
Where	Lawrence, Kan. // Hoglund Ballpark
Watch	Friday | Saturday | Sunday
Radio	Jayhawk Sports Network
Live Stats	Friday | Saturday | Sunday
Notes	Kansas | TCU | Big 12
Tickets	Buy Tickets
Social Media	@KUBaseball | @kubaseball | Facebook

*The start time of Friday’s game vs. TCU was adjusted to a 5 p.m. CT first pitch.

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas begins conference play on Friday when it hosts the No. 3-ranked TCU Horned Frogs at Hoglund Ballpark for a three-game series. The Jayhawks are in the midst of an eight-game homestand.

Kansas (7-4) completed its first sweep of the season and the first four-game series sweep since 2021 against Texas Southern last weekend. The four-game sweep was the first of the Dan Fitzgerald era and the first since March 19-21, 2021 vs. Creighton. The Jayhawks outscored Texas Southern by a combined score of 41-7 in the four games.

The Jayhawks are ranked in the top five of the Big 12 in several team statistics. KU is third in slugging percentage (.545) and ERA (4.02), fourth in on-base percentage (.430) and home runs (19) and fifth in batting average (.317), doubles (26) and opponent batting average (.245).

TCU (13-0) is coming off a trip to the College World Series last season and the NCBWA currently has them ranked at No. 3. The Horned Frogs are off to their best start in program history having earned wins against a handful of Power Five schools including, No. 20 UCLA, Washington State, Arizona, USC and Arizona State.

TICKETS
Fans can purchase tickets by contacting the Kansas ticket office at 785-864-3141 or by visiting the ticketing page here. Students will receive free admission all season by presenting their KU student ID at the ticket booth.

PROMOTIONS

Friday – Fans will receive a schedule magnet, while supplies last.

Saturday – Students have the opportunity to take batting practice on the field at the conclusion of all Saturday home games.

Sunday – Fans will receive a sleeping mask, while supplies last.

To view the complete 2024 promotions schedule, click here.

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
All three games this weekend will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with Leif Lisec (play-by-play) and Kevin Wheeler (analyst) on the call. Fans can also listen to the game on the Jayhawk Sports Network on KUAthletics.com and the Kansas Jayhawks app.

Live statistics can be found here, while live updates will also be provided on the team’s official Twitter page @KUBaseball.

VAMO LENNY
Senior outfielder Lenny Ashby was named Big 12 Co-Newcomer of the Week, the conference office announced on Monday. Ashby hit .800/.875/1.300 (8-for-10), with two doubles, one home run, six RBIs, five runs scored, six walks and a 2.175 OPS in four games against Texas Southern this past weekend. He recorded multi-hit games in three of the four contests and posted multi-RBI efforts twice. Ashby reached base in his final 10 plate appearances over the weekend.

The Oranjestad, Aruba, native and transfer from New Mexico, Ashby ranks tied for third in the Big 12 in home runs (4) and fourth in on-base percentage (.565) and slugging percentage (.829).

ROTATION ROLLING
The trio of Reese Dutton, Dominic Voegele and Patrick Steitz have started all three weekends and combined for a 1.61 ERA and earned five wins in their nine starts. Kansas is the only team with three pitchers ranked in the top 10 in innings pitched in the Big 12.

Dutton, a senior transfer from USC Upstate, has earned the win in back-to-back starts against Texas State on Feb. 23 (5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO) and vs. Texas Southern (W, 7.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 7 SO). He is tied for the most innings pitched on the team and tied for the sixth most in the Big 12 (15.0).

Voegele was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 20th round of the 2023 MLB Draft this past summer. This season, Voegele has started on Saturday all three weekends and currently boasts an impressive 1.80 ERA as a true freshman. He has allowed only one earned run in each of his three starts.

Steitz transferred to Kansas from Central Arizona College where he spent the last two seasons. Steitz currently leads the Big 12 in ERA (0.61) and is eighth in innings pitched (14.2). He has earned wins this season against Illinois-Chicago and Texas Southern.

DOING IT ON BOTH SIDES OF THE PLATE
Senior catcher Jake English leads the Big 12 with six home runs (16th nationally) and a .970 slugging percentage (18th nationally). He is also tied for first with six runners caught stealing (6th nationally as of March 3). English has thrown out 6-of-13 (46.2%) runners this season.

He also leads the team in RBIs (14) and runs (17) and is tied for the most walks (10) on the team. English recorded his second multi-homer game of the season (third of his career) vs. Texas Southern on March 2.

SERIES HISTORY
Kansas and TCU have played 38 times in program history dating back to 1990. The Horned Frogs hold a 27-11 advantage in the all-time series, which includes seven-straight wins. The last KU victory came on April 25, 2021, in Fort Worth by a score of 2-1, defeating then 8th-ranked TCU. The Jayhawks were trailing by a run in the fourth inning before scoring a pair of runs and keeping TCU scoreless the rest of the way.

UP NEXT
Kansas will wrap up its homestand with a game against Missouri on Tuesday, March 12 at 6 p.m. CT at Hoglund Ballpark.