By Will Potter
Reporter
For the first time since 1988, Baylor baseball lost to Lamar. Wednesday’s game was also the Bears’ second consecutive loss at Baylor Ballpark this season.
Baylor failed to capitalize with runners in scoring position, leaving 13 runners on base while the Cardinals utilized a key error from the Bears and efficient hitting to cruise to a 7-3 victory.
“I thought we were so bad pitching and that just kind of set the tone,” head coach Steve Smith said. “We had a real crisp start to the game, but after that we just went downhill.”
Sophomore Crayton Bare was the Baylor pitcher charged with the loss, moving to 0-1 this season. Bare pitched 2.1 innings giving up two earned runs while on the mound.
“Right now we have some young, young guys on the mound, and there really is no other way to explain what happened today,” Smith said. “We are just really young in our pitching lineup.”
Nick Berryman | Lariat Photographer
Junior Dan Evatt provided a spark for Baylor as a designated hitter going 2 for 4 with one run and a double that gave the Bears a 2-1 lead heading to the fourth inning.
“Dan swung the bat really well and that was very good to see,” Smith said. “Confidence is everything, and I like to see that in Dan. But I really want to instill a lot of confidence in some more of our younger guys.”
The two-hit effort for Evatt was his first multiple-hit game of the year. Lamar, however, would outscore Baylor 6-1 in the final five innings to put the game out of reach.
Lamar got revenge on Baylor for last year’s second-round NCAA Fort Worth regional matchup when the Bears defeated the Cardinals 6-4. The loss eliminated Lamar from postseason play.
Kevin Roebuck had a field day against the Baylor pitching staff going 2 for 5, driving in two runs and pounding a home run in the ninth inning to put an exclamation point on the Lamar win.
The Bears walked a total of 10 hitters, and Smith said that was also major factor in the game.
“Whenever you walk 10 batters, you really dig yourself in a hole,” Smith said. “I hope we can get it together in front of the more hostile crowds on the road in Big 12 play.”
Lamar utilized a total of seven pitchers in the ballgame and gave up only two earned runs. The Cardinals also finished the day with no errors and were efficient in every aspect of the game.
“The Southland conference teams are really good,” Smith said. “Most conferences like the SEC don’t have to face quality nonconference opponents like the teams from the Southland conference.”
The loss marks the first time this season Baylor has dropped back to back games, previously 8-0 following a loss.
After a season long 14 game home stand at the Baylor Ballpark, the Bears travel to Lawrence, Kan., to face the Kansas Jayhawks. The first game in the series begins at 4 p.m. today, and Baylor will look to bounce back from two consecutive nonconference losses.
The series with Kansas will be the third Big 12 series of the season for Baylor, currently 3-3 in conference with a 16-10 record overall.
Meanwhile, the Jayhawks have compiled a 10-14 overall record and are 2-4 in conference play after taking two of three games against Oklahoma State and being swept by Texas A&M.
