Texas Tech Baseball will face their first test of the 2021-2022 season with a Fall matchup against the Rangers Instructional League Team on Monday, October 25 at 3:00 p.m. According to a release from Texas Tech Athletics, the exhibition matchup will start a Texas college tour that sends the IL team to Dallas Baptist on October 26, Baylor on October 28, and ends at TCU on October 29.
The Red Raiders and Rangers Futures met up in Frisco in 2019 for a two-game stand of 12-inning contests as part of the Rangers Futures Camp. Those games featured Josh Jung on the Rangers side of things facing his brother Jace Jung as part of the Red Raiders’ squad. Tech took the first game 6-3 but fell in the second contest 7-3 after giving up 5 runs in the 11th & 12th. The Red Raiders controlled both extended games through nine innings.
Before Tech faces the Fall exhibition of the newest members of the Rangers organization, they will celebrate a weekend of alumni festivities hosted by the Double T Varsity Club. For the public, an Alumni Softball Game will be held at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park at 5:45 p.m. on Friday, October 22.
The Double T Varsity Club, Texas Tech’s Letterwiners Association, is headed by former Texas Tech quarterback Rodney Allison. The 1976 Southwest Conference MVP, Allison played professionally in the Canadian Football League for the Toronto Argonauts in the 1978 season. Following his playing career, Allison coached at various schools from 1979-2008 with stops including Texas Tech, Clemson, Auburn, and as the head coach at Chattanooga. Allison assumed duties as the Director of the Double T Varsity Club in 2013.
“With the great program that Coach Tadlock has built, we always try to take advantage of that and get his players back as well the players that played before he was the coach here. It also helps that Tim was a former Tech baseball player and has a great connection with all the former players,” explained Allison. “It will be a great event as we celebrate the history of Tech baseball. We will have former players here that played in the ’60s to several that played last year. It’s neat to see the eras come together as one.”
The softball squads will be coached by former Red Raider standouts Cameron Warren and Josh Jung and boast seven current professional players.
Cal Conley: Low-A Augusta Greenjackets
Ty Damron: AA Midland Rockhounds
Zach Davis: AAA Iowa Cubs
Braxton Fulford: Rookie ACL Rockies
Grant Little: High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps
Patrick Monteverde: Rookie FCL Marlins
Ryan Moseley: AAA Oklahoma City Dodgers
Warren, a 22nd round pick by the Cincinnati Reds in the 2019 MLB Draft played for the Red Raiders from 2017-2019. The quick-to-smile first baseman was a fan favorite, known for chewing on items ranging from pieces of bottlecaps to his necklace, Warren amassed 28 home runs in his career and put together an impressive senior season of 18 dingers and four All-America selections, including a 1st Team All-America nod from Perfect Game. Warren has since retired from professional baseball, he earned his master’s degree from Texas Tech in May of 2021 and is currently serving as a Post-Graduate Athletic Intern for the Red Raider Club.
Warren’s Black Team consists of:
Jung played for the Red Raiders from 2017-2019 and garnered 15 All-America selections in his career and was a unanimous All-American selection in his 2019 junior campaign. Jung is Texas Tech’s all-time career leader in several offensive categories in the NCAA Tournament, including games played (23), at-bats (93), runs (18), hits (37), home runs (6), and RBI (14). He was selected #8 overall in the 2019 MLB Draft and was elevated from the AA Frisco RoughRiders to the AAA Round Rock Express during the 2021 season. Jung is listed as the Rangers’ #2 prospect and is expected to see an MLB debut as early as the 2022 season.
His Red Team consists of:
Dr. Mike Gustafson, another Red Raider Baseball alumnus, will be on hand providing live on-field interviews with the players for fans in attendance. Gustafson played for Texas Tech from 1986-1989 and currently serves as the color analyst for Red Raider Baseball on TexasTechTV. He is the President and CEO of the College Baseball Foundation which operates numerous college baseball awards and the College Baseball Hall of Fame.
It is worth noting that it is not always a foregone conclusion that former players remain engaged in a collegiate athletic program when head coaches change and previously unattained success is enjoyed. As noted above by Allison, Head Coach Tim Tadlock’s program has continued to maintain strong relationships with Red Raiders of previous eras, as evidenced by the rosters for this game.
Gustafson noted this point as well.
“It’s a sign of health for any athletic program to have engaged alumni, and Red Raider baseball has that. Tim and his staff have certainly made us former players proud during his time here!” said Gustafson. “I am excited to be a small part of the weekend. It’ll be fun to be around the young guys we’ve watched play these past few years, as well as the guys closer to my age that I haven’t seen in a while. ”
The Red Raiders have more Fall action planned with the annual Red and Black Series slated for next weekend as well.
It’s that time of year! ⚾️
🔴 𝙍𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙎𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨 ⚫️
ᴳᵃᵐᵉ¹
Friday, Oct. 29 – 3 p.m.
ᴳᵃᵐᵉ²
Sunday, Oct. 31 – 1 p.m.
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Tuesday, Nov. 2 – 3 p.m. #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/vZx6lI9ghC— Texas Tech Baseball (@TTU_Baseball) October 19, 2021
