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College  | Story  | 3/5/2019

Scout Take: Texas Tech

Britt Smith     
Photo: Josh Jung (Texas Tech Athletics/Norvelle Kennedy)

College Notes: March 1 | March 2 | March 3 | College Player Database
Scout Takes: Texas A&M | Mississippi State | Oregon State | Georgia Tech | UCLA | Vanderbilt | Virginia | Stanford


Texas Tech Red Raiders

What Happened: Texas Tech found themselves on the short end of a pair of games at the weather-shortened Frisco College Classic. Suffering a game one loss to Nebraska by a score of 2-1 and following it up with a loss at the hands of Mississippi State, the Red Raiders fell to 6-3 on the season. Riding a six-game winning streak entering the event, Tech failed to gain any sort of momentum in either game and seemed to be unable to capitalize on the few opportunities they were afforded.

Carrying Tool: Depth and athletic ability. The Red Raiders have assembled quite a collection of athletically skilled position players who all have the ability to impact the game in multiple ways. Finding the hot combination and piecing it together at the right time is a good problem to have for head coach Tim Tadlock. The pitching staff has depth and talent as well, with a collection of powerful arms and the ability to play matchups with a stable of both left and righthanded relievers. There may not be a better collection of talent on a roster in the country.

Concerns: The weather and field conditions did Texas Tech no favors over the weekend. Drawing the late game on each day, the Red Raiders played in the both of the worst games from that standpoint. Tech struggled to grasp one aspect of their game and let that pull the team through to earn a win. The offense did not ever really get going and struggled to string together a bunch of quality at-bats in a row. Defensively, there were chances that led to their demise in game two, and though the pitchers were solid in multiple spots, they were unable to post zeros in innings after the offense scored for them. In all, the Red Raiders just did not play like they are capable of and will have to move forward into the season and take this as a learning opportunity.

Best Player on the Field: Josh Jung. The heart of the Texas Tech lineup started off the tournament well, collecting hits in each of first two at-bats, including a double, while scoring the only run against Nebraska in the team’s opener. However, other than an RBI in game two, Jung was held in check by the Mississippi State Bulldogs pitching staff. With a lack of production around him in the order over the weekend, Jung was pitched extremely tough, as most of his at-bats came with the bases empty. Jung, generally considered the top third baseman in the country for the 2019 draft, has all of the ability to own that designation and will hear his name called in the first round come June.

Fearless Prediction: Omaha. The Red Raiders will be looking to return to Omaha for a fourth time under Coach Tadlock and the pieces are in place for that goal to become a reality. The schedule is always challenging, as the Red Raiders have shown they will travel and challenge themselves regularly, which only helps them in the long run. The talent is present at every position and then some. The depth of the pitching staff will certainly be a strength and help cover any issues that could potentially arise due to injury. This team will be in contention for a top 8 national seed and has the ability to host their way to Omaha through Lubbock, Texas.


Players covered: Josh Jung, Erikson Lanning, Caleb Kilian.


Josh Jung
It is easy to see how the talented junior third baseman of the Red Raiders is touted as the top prospect at his position in the country. Jung stands 6-foot-2, 215-pounds, but shows in-game speed with range in the field and quickness on the basepaths. With solid glove skills and arm strength to play at the highest levels, Jung is a complete package of physical tools. He has a presence at the plate with an approach that allows him to handle quality pitching without requiring too many adjustments.


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