Missouri Baseball Defeats Rival Kansas 5-4 in Extra Innings
No matter the score, Jackson Beaman was going to be the story of the game.
Luckily for him, it did come with a 5-4 win. After holding on to the lead for most of the game, Missouri secured a tenth inning win against their biggest rival to extend their win streak against Kansas to four games.
Out in the field, Jackson Beaman was able to flash his arm after a catch in right and a throw to third to secure the double play and empty the bases in the first inning. He did it again, but this time to first base, in the bottom of the third to end the inning. On the base path, a wild throw down the first baseline and aggressive running on Jackson Beaman's part put the Tigers ahead in the third. He walked in the tenth inning to become the game-winning run.
Kansas got the game started with a walk and a ball that wasn't coming back in the bottom of the second. Luckily, Missouri's starter Daniel Wissler was able to keep them to two runs.
After days of playing long ball, the Tigers went for short. In just the first three innings, Missouri put up two bunt singles. It benefited them in the top of the third to help them get their first two runs across and put the Tigers right back in the game.
The Jayhawks tied the game in the bottom of the eighth. Missouri would need to get another run in if they wanted to win the game. They had the chance in the top of the ninth with Matt Garcia on second, but they weren't able to bring him home.
It came down to the tenth inning. Back-to-back walks Beaman and Justin Colon put two on. It once again came down to the man of the game to cross the plate on a Brock Daniels ground-rule double and give Missouri the lead. A wild pitch gave the Tigers a safety run in the ninth.
Daniels was able to show off his speed with a bunt hit and a stolen base. He displayed the power of his bat with his game-winning RBI ground-rule double. In just his third start of the year, he made an impact and a case for him starting more in the future. On Sunday, Daniels sent a three-run homer over the wall in his pinch-hit appearance to prompt his start in this game.
On the mound, Wissler was able to toss another strong game. He held the Jayhawks to just the two runs in the second inning and limited them to three hits through four innings. Charlie Miller followed up Wissler's performance to put up two scoreless frames. The combined force kept the KU without a hit between the third and seventh inning.
That is until Ian Lohse gave up a double in the bottom of the seventh, but luckily stranded the runner on second. That luck didn't continue into the eighth, as Brock Lucas took over in relief and gave up back-to-back doubles to tie the game.
Ben Pedersen made the hearts of Missouri fans' race in the bottom of the tenth. He gave up a lead-off single and followed that up with a double to the wall. It was the sacrifice fly that brought the score to a one run difference with the tying run on third. Pedersen struck out the last batter of the game to strand runners on second and third and secure the Missouri win.
Despite their win, Missouri had some struggles at the plate. The Tigers racked up 18 strikeouts after two consecutive games with a low number. They were never expected to put up another run-rule against KU, but they were held to just eight hits.
The Tigers will head into SEC play with a winning record of 9-8. Missouri hits the road again for Fayetteville to face No. 1 Arkansas on Friday, March 15 at 6 p.m. CT.
