Huskers know where they stand in Big 12
Nebraska’s baseball team is in a unique position of being able to acknowledge a series that’s six games down the schedule and 10 days away from starting, and not be called out for peeking ahead.
That’s because no matter what happens before then, the Huskers, now ranked as high as No. 6, will enter that home set against No. 5 Texas A&M trailing the Big 12 Conference-leading Aggies by 2 1/2 games.
The contests between the first and second-place clubs in Haymarket Park on the next-to-last weekend of Big 12 play will determine whether a final series at Missouri will hold championship implications for NU.
“I’m not going to say we’re going to change our approach against A&M, but you have two weeks you can kind of say ‘Hey, this is what we’re trying to build to,’ and go back in playing our own style of baseball,” Nebraska coach Mike Anderson said.
Having won their first-ever series at Baylor last weekend, the Huskers (32-8-1) play host to Western Illinois (10-24) at 6:35 p.m. Tuesday and 1:35 Wednesday. NU then welcomes Louisiana-Lafayette (22-22 prior to a game at LSU on Tuesday) to Haymarket for a Friday night contest and a day-night doubleheader on Saturday.
Then, after a break for final exams, come the Aggies on May 9-11. A&M is currently 37-7 and winner of conference-record 15 straight in the Big 12.
“I will admit I have seen (the Big 12 standings) now. This is the first time all season,” senior center fielder Bryce Nimmo said. “We’ve got an idea of what needs to go on, and we’ll just take it from there.”
Anderson noted that some of his club’s success this season has come about because it hasn’t sweated the little things.
“We’re just going out and play (how) we know how to play. To say ‘Hey, a race,’ and all of a sudden put expectations and pressures on them, they already have that,” he said. “They don’t need it from me. But after the Baylor series, it’s something you talk about.”
Senior pitcher Thad Weber understands that topic will be a popular one among NU baseball fans until that series begins. But he contends the Huskers won’t be consumed by it.
“Obviously, they’re playing very well, but we need to move on,” he said after going the distance in a series-clinching 14-1 win at Baylor on Saturday night. “When A&M comes up, we’ll deal with that.”
Added Nimmo, “It’s going to be a close race, if I had to guess, and it’s going to be tough. So (it’s) pitch by pitch, inning by inning and we go from there.”
Western Illinois comes to Lincoln having had a weekend series at South Dakota State canceled by weather. The Leathernecks have not announced their starting pitchers.
Nebraska will go with left-handed junior Dan Jennings (5-0, 1.88) on Tuesday, but hasn’t determined its Wednesday starter.
After a 4-1 week, the Huskers remained No. 10 in Collegiate Baseball, but climbed one spot to No. 7 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches’ poll and moved up two to No. 6 in Baseball America.
The Baseball America listing is the only one that has the Huskers higher than A&M.
Reach Curt McKeever at 473-7441 or cmckeever@journalstar.com.
That’s because no matter what happens before then, the Huskers, now ranked as high as No. 6, will enter that home set against No. 5 Texas A&M trailing the Big 12 Conference-leading Aggies by 2 1/2 games.
The contests between the first and second-place clubs in Haymarket Park on the next-to-last weekend of Big 12 play will determine whether a final series at Missouri will hold championship implications for NU.
“I’m not going to say we’re going to change our approach against A&M, but you have two weeks you can kind of say ‘Hey, this is what we’re trying to build to,’ and go back in playing our own style of baseball,” Nebraska coach Mike Anderson said.
Having won their first-ever series at Baylor last weekend, the Huskers (32-8-1) play host to Western Illinois (10-24) at 6:35 p.m. Tuesday and 1:35 Wednesday. NU then welcomes Louisiana-Lafayette (22-22 prior to a game at LSU on Tuesday) to Haymarket for a Friday night contest and a day-night doubleheader on Saturday.
Then, after a break for final exams, come the Aggies on May 9-11. A&M is currently 37-7 and winner of conference-record 15 straight in the Big 12.
“I will admit I have seen (the Big 12 standings) now. This is the first time all season,” senior center fielder Bryce Nimmo said. “We’ve got an idea of what needs to go on, and we’ll just take it from there.”
Anderson noted that some of his club’s success this season has come about because it hasn’t sweated the little things.
“We’re just going out and play (how) we know how to play. To say ‘Hey, a race,’ and all of a sudden put expectations and pressures on them, they already have that,” he said. “They don’t need it from me. But after the Baylor series, it’s something you talk about.”
Senior pitcher Thad Weber understands that topic will be a popular one among NU baseball fans until that series begins. But he contends the Huskers won’t be consumed by it.
“Obviously, they’re playing very well, but we need to move on,” he said after going the distance in a series-clinching 14-1 win at Baylor on Saturday night. “When A&M comes up, we’ll deal with that.”
Added Nimmo, “It’s going to be a close race, if I had to guess, and it’s going to be tough. So (it’s) pitch by pitch, inning by inning and we go from there.”
Western Illinois comes to Lincoln having had a weekend series at South Dakota State canceled by weather. The Leathernecks have not announced their starting pitchers.
Nebraska will go with left-handed junior Dan Jennings (5-0, 1.88) on Tuesday, but hasn’t determined its Wednesday starter.
After a 4-1 week, the Huskers remained No. 10 in Collegiate Baseball, but climbed one spot to No. 7 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches’ poll and moved up two to No. 6 in Baseball America.
The Baseball America listing is the only one that has the Huskers higher than A&M.
Reach Curt McKeever at 473-7441 or cmckeever@journalstar.com.
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