Austin Wood: what do you do?

O

orangecat

1,000+ Posts
so, I'm guessing it's pretty obvious to most serious observers that he is not the same since he threw his 13 innings?

Do you keep bringing him in and just be ready with a quick hook? Or do you give someone else the first chance to close out a game?
 
how so? he didn't pitch poorly tonight at all. crappy defense behind him.

in retropsect, It's great that Jungmann got out there tonight.

wood is fine.
 
Austin Wood became the face of Texas Baseball in that 25 inning game. I have a feeling the fanbase will turn ugly if we stop bringing him in.

Bring him in but don't expect him to pitch long, thats the best approach. Maybe make him a 3rd choice in a close game.
 
Austin Wood = Austin Wood.

Like any reliever he is on a choke-collar - especially now that we're into the winner's bracket. Dicharry didn't pitch tonight, but I expect he'll be the first reliever out of the bullpen on Tuesday (assuming Ruffin goes at least 6),
 
Anybody who doesn't think a 12.1 inning no-hitter is an anomaly should just stop watching baseball.

I think Wood is fine. Our defense had their heads in their asses that inning. Wood is not a strike out pitcher, never has been, and people forget that. He is a location pitcher who relies on his defense to get outs. It works against some teams, not so much against others, but it sure as hell doesn't work when your senior third baseman suddenly forgets how to play.

If Wood didn't think he was okay, he wouldn't be throwing. As much as he probably would love to be the go-to guy here like Street and Cox were in '02 and '05, I think he is too much of a team player to go out there knowing he can't get it done.
 
Quick, someone call the baseball Hall of Fame and get his lucky hat back. Every player gets a free pass on tonight's game. Think about it. It's their first time in Omaha. Sure the Horns have been there before, but for these guys, it's their first time. Now that they've got the first game behind them, they'll settle down. Just be thankful that we got a W, despite the sloppy play.
 
i really think two of those walks to load the bases were on the "intentional unintentional" variety. i was surprised he missed so badly on the 3-2 count to walk a run in, but I thought he was fine.
 
DId you see him pitch in the Big XII tournament? He got shelled by Baylor and had a terrible time against Missouri. Sometimes Wood is awesome and sometimes not so much. We were grumbling about on this board about how Wood was struggling down the stretch...then he had the amazing game against Boston College.

Wood will be ok he just has rough games from time to time. Besides it is not like he was getting shelled he just was the victim of a rare couple errors.
 
He did have to get 4 outs in the 8th because of the bad throw. Still he walks 15 all year and walks 2 tonight. The wild pitch was in the dirt, but still right in front of the catcher. Not like he missed way wide. The 3 K's were huge.
 
Wood rose to the occasion in what likely was a must win game vs. BC in that 25 inning game. If he was that good all the time, his #s would be alot better. Instead he was a hero that night and played above his head.

So I don't expect that type of performance again. BUT he needs to keep throwing but be ready to pull him quick if he gets in bad shape.
 
"What do you do" (re: Austin Wood) As DKR said "You dance with the one that brung ya"

The BC game and the media accolades after, including the HOF "induction" has added pressure on Austin. His mindset could be he has to perform like that every time. I noticed a lack of self -confidence and aggressiveness tonight with Austin. Keep in mind that was his first time to pitch in the CWS. After he and Skip review the tape, he will be fine.
 
One game gave Austin Wood, Vince Young status. He had one amazing game which will always be remembered but we need to remember that he hasn't performed this way all year. He has blown games and has won them. He's a good pitcher, but we can't start expecting perfection suddenly when it hasn't been that way all year.
 
just want to echo what has been said above...you might want to go back and look at his 10 appearances prior to his superman act.

also want to echo that he didn't necessarily get a lot of help during the 8th and he just might have been feeling some pressure.
 
If you've been watching consistently this season you know there isn't a real problem. If you started paying attention the last few games in the playoffs, and are listening to the media, then I could see why you are concerned. Until Wood has another dominant outing they will continue to key on him being overused in the BC game.
 
Seriously the ignorance of the Media on Wood is realy unbelievable...but not unbelievable when you realize that non of the writers really watch the team very much. Listening to the Baseball America CWS preview it was pretty clear the Super Regional was the first time they had actually seen Texas play all season and not just seen the stats and box scores.
 
You have to give the SM batters some credit...they were disciplined enough at the plate not bite on all the stuff Wood was throwing just off the strike zone (and I'm talking about the wide zone the ump was calling). Wood is a location guy and cannot challenge these hitters without a 90+mph fastball.

He is going to struggle if he cannot hit his spots or get batters to chase pitches.
 
This is what is so disappointing about ESPN's coverage of the CWS. While I'm grateful to get to watch the games on TV, it is absurd that even baseball guys like Karl Ravech don't know what they are talking about.

They are all so used to covering MLB that they don't even realize the college game is an entirely different brand of baseball. Every single year, the same guys marvel at Augie's small ball philosophy as though he hasn't been playing that way for decades. And they don't even understand what it is really. Last night, they insisted Texas scored 2 runs in the first using "small ball." Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure Texas scored those two runs on a lead-off single, a 2-out walk, and a 2-RBI double. That isn't small ball.

They don't know anything about our players, very little about our history as a program, other than what's printed on a sheet of paper in front of them, nothing about our coaching staff. It's pathetic that ESPN, the king of sports media, has so little to say regarding the game at hand that they spend an entire inning extolling the virtues of Twitter.
 
Yeah, but his pinpoint control and ability to move the ball around was lacking last night. He isn't always at his best, so maybe the first game CWS jitters affected him.
I would like to see Austin Dicharry for the first couple of relief innings, then Wood come in for just three or four outs, where he can be so effective-but he usually can go about three innings effectively.
Part of the decision last night was the not so great control, part was all the righties in the USM lineup, and part was saving Wood for Tuesday, I believe. Luckily, it worked out, and hopefully, Wood will have his precise location working Tuesday night, because we most likely going to need it.
 
Not so fast, my friend. Wood's shakiness started before the postseason--he blew a three-run lead at Collieville and nearly blew another two days later in the rubber match versus aggy. He also got roughed up in the Big 12 tournament, didn't he?

If you analyze Wood's outings from the past five or so weeks, my guess is his B.C. masterpiece was the anomaly, not the other way around.
________________________________________________________
You hit the nail right on the head.
 
And again, a 12.1 inning no hitter would be an anomaly for anyone. Only the media is stupid enough to take that and run wild with it, although, many of our fans have been calling for Wood to come on as early as the 5th inning lately. It's like everyone has lost their minds and forgotten that the guy is a closer and that we don't want him on the mound for 4 or 5 innings in regulation. We do have other arms in the bullpen.
 
I will say one thing about Wood. His two strike outs with the bases loaded after USM took the lead saved the game.

That was absolutely critical.
 
I'd have no problem sending Austin back out there but I also think we have a couple other quality relievers who should probably get the call first.
 
I agree. I thought Dicharry should have pitched the 8th and Wood the 9th, standard procedure for set-up and closer. But Augie wouldn't go to Dicharry or Workman in game 3 of the super regional, opting to bring Chance Ruffin out on 2 days rest after throwing a complete game. Sunday night, he goes to Wood then Jungmann. One has to wonder what that does to Dicharry's and Wokrman's confidence.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Weekly Prediction Contest

* Predict HORNS-AGGIES *
Sat, Nov 30 • 6:30 PM on ABC

Recent Threads

Prediction Results Threads

2024 Schedules

Back
Top