The No. 3 Texas Tech baseball team capped their five-game home stand with a 12-0 shutout of New Mexico State on Tuesday afternoon at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park.
The Red Raiders (5-0) launched four home runs, including three in the third inning, combined with a masterful pitching performance to roll past the Aggies (2-2) in the first midweek game of the season.
For the fourth-straight game, Tech rattled off 10 or more runs and 10 or more hits, totaling 12 & 10, respectively. It was the third time this season the Red Raiders have scored 12 runs, bringing their season total to 61 in 2018.
Tuesday’s contest was the first shutout of the year for the Red Raiders and the 26th under head coach Tim Tadlock. Last season, Tech didn’t record a scoreless performance until May 6 on the road at West Virginia (1-0).
A big part of Tuesday’s shutout was because of junior right-handed pitcher Ryan Shetter, who got the start and put together a fantastic outing, securing his first victory of the season. The Friendswood native was full of strikeouts, racking up nine over his 6.0 shutout innings. Shetter gave up just one hit & did not allow a walk in his first start of the year.
The Red Raiders struck first in the third inning, scoring first for the fourth time in five games this season. Sophomore designated hitter Brian Klein rocketed a solo homer, his first of the year, over the right-center field wall to put Tech on the board.
Tech plated six more in the fifth thanks to a trio of two-run dingers. After freshman infielder Gabe Holt was hit by the first pitch he saw to begin the frame, Klein made the Aggies pay with a two-run bomb into the Tech bullpen to increase the lead to 3-0.
He was the first Red Raider this season to hit multiple homers in a game, and the last since Tanner Gardner against Sam Houston State on June 3 in last year’s NCAA Regional. Klein finished the day with three RBI, three runs and a walk to go with his two home runs.
It wouldn’t be the only long ball of the frame, as sophomore outfielder Grant Little joined in the party with a two-run home run to the left field bullpen after sophomore infielder Josh Jung shot a double up the middle. With two gone in the inning and a new pitcher on the mound, freshman outfielder Kurt Wilson rocketed another two-run blast over the wall for his first career homer & a 7-0 Tech lead.
The first runs of the day that weren’t from homers came off a double from Jung in the eighth inning. With the bases loaded, Jung ripped his second two-bagger of the day to left-center field, plating junior outfielder Cody Farhat & freshman pinch-hitter Cody Masters for a 9-0 advantage. Another bases loaded base hit from Little added Tech’s 10th run of the day, while a wild pitch during the next at-bat scored Jung and a sacrifice fly from junior infielder Cameron Warren brought in freshman pinch-hitter Braxton Fulford to make it 12-0.
Next up, the Red Raiders hit the road for the first time this season, traveling to San Antonio to face UTSA on Feb. 23-25 at Roadrunner field.
(Courtesy: Texas Tech Sports Communications Department)
