University of Houston Athletics
PREVIEW: Baseball Welcomes in Cincinnati for Three
4/16/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
| #25 HOUSTON (23-14, 4-5) vs. CINCINNATI (12-23, 4-5) | |
| SERIES BREAKDOWN |
| LOCATION | Houston, Texas - Cougar Field |
| GAMEDAY CENTRAL | GAMEDAY CENTRAL |
| LISTEN LIVE | UHCougars.com/baseradio |
| WATCH LIVE | Houston All-Access |
| GAMETRACKER | | | |
| SERIES HISTORY | Houston and Cincinnati have met 34 times. |
| ALL-TIME | Houston is 27-7 all-time vs. Cincinnati. |
| GAME NOTES | Houston Notes |
Bark in the Park Helpful Hints 
HOUSTON - American Athletic Conference play will continue when No. 25 Houston Baseball welcomes in league foe Cincinnati for a three-game series, beginning Friday at 6:30 p.m. at Cougar Field.
The series will continue on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. and wrap on Sunday at Noon. Note: Saturday's game will be in conjunction with Spring Fling, which will showcase the Houston Football team in action at 2 p.m. at TDECU Stadium for their annual Red-White Game, Houston Softball vs. UConn in a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. and Baseball following at 6:30 p.m. Gates on Saturday open at 4 p.m.
Reminder: Saturday's game will be part of Spring Fling, in conjunction with Houston Football's Spring Game and Houston Softball's doubleheader vs. UConn.
Fans can pre-purchase a Spring Fling ticket for just $5 that will allow general admission access to the Red & White Game, Houston Baseball vs. Cincinnati and Houston Softball vs. UConn. Tickets on the day of event are $10. All baseball and softball season ticket holders receive entry to the event with their season tickets. Admission for UH students is free with a valid student ID.
Fans can pre-purchase tickets online at UHCougars.com/spring, by phone at 713-462-6647 or in person at the Houston Athletics Ticket Office in the Athletics/Alumni Center at TDECU Stadium. Tickets on the day of the event will be available for purchase at the Houston Athletics Ticket Office located at Gate 1 on the northeast corner of TDECU Stadium beginning at 1 p.m., at the entrance to Cougar Softball Stadium beginning at 1 p.m. and the entrance to Cougar Field at 5:30 p.m.
PROMOTIONS
Friday, April 17 - UH Residence Hall Night
Friday Frenzy: $1 popcorn, $2 hot dogs, $3 sodas, $4 beers* (21 years or older)
Saturday, April 18 - Spring Fling - Game Sponsor: AT&T
Follow Houston Baseball on Social Media? Prove it and win a UH Baseball Keychain at GAMEDAY CENTRAL
Baseball Bingo: Watch Baseball, Play Bingo.
Sunday, April 19 - 1st Annual Bark in the Park at Cougar Field
- First 250 dogs will receive a UH dog bowl
- Kids Day (inflatables, Anthem Buddies, Postgame Run the Bases, Postgame autographs)
ON THE AIR
You can follow all the action by also listening in live at UHCougars.com/baseradio with Jeremy Branham on the call ... or by following via GAMEDAY CENTRAL at UHCougars.com/gameday.
QUICK HITS ON HOUSTON
Houston, under fifth-year head coach Todd Whitting, returns to play after falling in a midweek contest at Rice on Tuesday as the Silver Glove Series evened with the Owls' victory. The Cougars are now 23-14 on the year and 4-5 in league play. This will mark the second consecutive weekend at Cougar Field after Houston won two of three last weekend vs. Tulane.
OFFENSIVE OUTLOOK
Homeruns have highlighted the offensive production this season as the Cougars have tallied 26 long balls after hitting just 17 the entire 2014 season. As a team, Houston is hitting .269 and slugging .388.
Leading the charge offensively is junior Chris Iriart with a .351 average, 47 hits, 32 runs scored and 26 RBI, while also pacing with a conference-leading 11 homeruns.
Junior Josh Vidales follows with a .321 clip, 48 hits, 30 runs scored and 23 RBI, while junior Jacob Campbell is hitting .286 and junior Kyle Survance paces the team with 20 stolen bases and holds a .275 average.
The team owns a .369 on-base percentage after drawing 167 walks and 38 hit-by-pitches.
ON THE BUMP
Houston's pitching staff owns a 3.65 ERA and in 330.1 innings, the Cougars have fanned 254 and walked just 93. Six Cougars have multiple wins this season and opponents are hitting just .269 against the staff.
Leading the charge in wins is sophomore Andrew Lantrip with a 6-2 record and a 2.70 ERA. He has fanned 44 in 60.0 inning to match the team-high in strikeouts with freshman Seth Romero, who has fanned 44 in just 36.2 innings, while holding a 2.21 ERA and a 3-3 record with four saves.
Junior Patrick Weigel is 3-0 with a 3.43 ERA with 38 punchouts in 91. Innings, while junior Kyle Dowdy is 4-1 with a 3.49 ERA and is coming off a 10-strikeout performance in the series-clinching win over Tulane last Saturday.
QUICK HITS ON CINCINNATI
Cincinnati will enter the weekend series with a 12-23 overall record and a 4-5 mark in the American Athletic Conference after earning back-to-back series wins over Memphis and UCF at home. The Bearcats played twice this week, earning a win over Xavier before falling to Wright State, 15-9 on Wednesday.
OFFENSIVE OUTLOOK
On the year, Cincinnati is hitting .233 and slugging .345 with 24 homeruns, 45 doubles and five triples. Preseason All-American Ian Happ leads the charge with a .397 average, a team-leading 48 hits, 25 runs, 29 RBI and 10 homeruns - one behind conference leader in Houston's Iriart.
Following Happ offensively is R.J. Thompson with a .329 average, while Ryan Noda has 21 RBI on seven homeruns to accompany 23 runs scored. As a team, the Bearcats have stolen 28-of-51 and are fielding .970 with 41 errors.
ON THE BUMP
Cincinnati's pitching staff owns a 5.77 ERA and in 310.2 innings, the Bearcats have fanned 165 and struck out 181. Opponents are hitting .274 against the staff.
The Bearcats have used a variety of starting pitching this season, led by LHP Dalton Lehnen with nine starts. The southpaw is 1-5 with a 4.99 ERA and in 52.1 innings, Lehnen has fanned 42 and walked 17.
Also making weekend starts of late has been RHP David Orndorff (1-1, 6.03 ERA) and RHP Ryan Atkinson (3-3, 4.14 ERA).
Out of the pen, Cincinnati has rode the arm of RHP Andrew Zellner, who owns a 1.51 ERA and is 2-1 with three saves in 12 appearances and seven starts.
SERIES HISTORY
• Houston and Cincinnati have met 34 previous times in program history, dating back to 1958.
• The Cougars own the all-time series, 27-7 and have won 10 of the last 12 meetings.
• Houston earned a 2-1 series win at Cincinnati in 2014 after having not played the Bearcats since 2005.
• Houston is 12-4 all-time at home vs. Cincinnati.
• Last Meeting: at Cincinnati (Houston 15, Cincinnati 1 - 7 innings) - April 27, 2014
HOUSTON TO INSTALL LARGEST COLLEGE BASEBALL VIDEO BOARD
Thanks to lead donations from Don Sanders and Joe Gutierrez, Houston Baseball and head coach Todd Whitting are proud to announce that Daktronics will design, manufacture and install a brand new LED video display to be named Sanders-Gutierrez Scoreboard at Cougar Field.
According to Daktronics, the new outfield video display will be the largest at an on-campus baseball stadium in the country. It will measure roughly 27.5 feet high by more than 55 feet wide to provide more than 1,500 square feet of space for live video, instant replays, statistics and scoring information, graphics and animations, and sponsor messages. The display features a 15HD pixel layout for crisp, clear imagery with wide-angle viewing for a great view from every seat at the ballpark.
ON DECK
Following the weekend series, Houston Baseball will hit the road all next week with four games away from Cougar Field, beginning with a Tuesday, April 21 contest at McNeese State at 6 p.m. The Cougars will then travel to conference-leader USF next weekend for a three-game set.
SINGLE-GAME TICKETS
Single game tickets for the remaining 11 home games at Cougar Field can be purchased by clicking here: UHCougars.com/Basetickets.
Along with the online option, fans can purchase tickets by visiting the Athletics Ticket Office at TDECU Stadium Monday through Friday, 10 a.m., to 5:30 p.m. or can call 713-GO-COOGS.
Houston Baseball offers variable pricing on its single-game tickets and group rates.
For the first time ever, the pricing breakdown will be determined whether or not you purchase your single-game tickets online vs. at the gate the day of the game as well as whether the Cougars play on a weekday (Monday-Thursday) or weekend (Friday-Sunday).
| 2015 Houston Baseball Single-Game Ticket Prices | ||||
| Weekday | Weekend | Weekday Walk-Up | Weekend Walk-Up | |
| Reserved 1 | $7 | $8 | $9 | $10 |
| Reserved 2 | $6 | $7 | $8 | $9 |
| GA | $5 | $6 | $7 | $8 |
| 2015 Houston Baseball Group Rates | ||||
| Weekday | Weekend | |||
| 10-24 | $4 | $5 | ||
| 25+ | $3 | $4 | ||
Weekday: Monday-Thursday; Weekend: Friday-Sunday.
As noted in the table, variable pricing occurs. For weekday (Tuesday nights) online purchases, fans can take in a game, ranging from $5-$7 depending on the choice of seating. If you choose to purchase the day of the game as a Weekday Walk-Up, you will pay roughly $2 more than the online price ($7-$9).
Weekend (Friday-Sunday) online pricing will range from $6-$8 per game, while Weekend Walk-Up pricing the day of the game will run a fan anywhere from $8-$10.
GROUP RATES
Group rates are also available (as noted in the table). Weekday (Tuesday) and Weekend (Friday-Sunday) pricing occurs. Groups of 10-24 are set at $4-$5 per person, while groups of 25+ are $3-$4 per person.
HOW TO PURCHASE
To purchase tickets in advance, fans must visit the Athletics Ticket Stadium Office located on the northeast corner of TDECU Stadium, just outside of Gate 1 off Cullen Boulevard. Parking is available in the TDECU Stadium parking garage with the first 30 minutes free of charge. Regular business hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m., to 5:30 p.m. or you can call 713-GO-COOGS.
JOIN THE DUGOUT CLUB
Nationally-ranked Houston Baseball would like to encourage those wishing to support the efforts and success of the baseball student-athletes to consider joining the Dugout Club for as low as $25 a month or $300 annually.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
LEVELS
PINCH HITTER
For a minimum monthly installment of $25 or a minimum one-time gift of $300, supporters can take advantage of the Pinch Hitter level, which will guarantee an invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball team apparel.
DIAMOND
For a minimum monthly installment of $100 or a minimum one-time gift of $1,000, supporters can take advantage of the Diamond level, which will guarantee batting practice passes for two to any home game, invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball apparel.
**Cougar Pride points will be applied accordingly.
For more information on joining the Dugout Club, please contact the Houston Baseball office at (713) 743-9396.
For more information regarding Cougar Pride, please call (713) 743-GOUH.
STAY CONNECTED
Stay up to date with all Houston Baseball news and highlights by following us on Twitter @UHCougarBB or on Facebook at /HoustonCougarBaseball. Fans can also follow head coach Todd Whitting @toddwhitting on Twitter.
