Vanderbilt baseball falls prey to big inning in season-opening loss to TCU at College Baseball Showdown

ARLINGTON, Texas — Vanderbilt baseball fell prey to many of the same issues as last season in its opener at the College Baseball Showdown.

The game was a low-scoring pitchers' duel at first, but the Commodores fell prone to two big innings from TCU (1-0) after starter Carter Holton left the game, as the Horned Frogs put up five runs in the sixth and four runs in the seventh via a surge of power, to beat Vanderbilt 11-4.

Vanderbilt (0-1) pitched relatively well outside the two big innings and freshman David Horn was a bright spot, showcasing a fastball that reached 96 mph, but the offensive struggles that plagued this team for most of last season continued and made a comeback impossible.

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Holton not sharp

Holton, a preseason Second-Team All-SEC selection, wasn't sharp and battled through 3⅔ innings, though he gave up just two runs. Holton struggled with his command, throwing 46 strikes in 80 pitches and walking two, hitting two batters and throwing two wild pitches. He struck out four.

Hliboki's return

Redshirt junior right-hander Sam Hliboki last appeared in a game on April 10, 2021, when he tore his UCL and required surgery. He made his official return against TCU and for his first few innings, he looked like the pitcher who had become one of the top arms on the staff before his injury. But in the sixth inning, he was left in two batters too long and gave up a bases-clearing double and then a home run to TCU star Brayden Taylor. Vanderbilt's top left-handed reliever, Ryan Ginther, was warming up at the time but did not come into the game.

Overall, Hliboki went 2⅓ innings and gave up five runs on four hits and one walk with five strikeouts.

Offensive ups and downs

The Commodores this year are likely a team that's going to have to manufacture runs to an extent, and at times they did that very well. In the second inning, left fielder Calvin Hewett walked, stole second, advanced to third on a flyout and then scored on a groundout. In the sixth, two walks and two hit batters allowed Vanderbilt to score another run without a hit.

But TCU had far more firepower on offense as the Horned Frogs were able to pepper the park with doubles, plus Taylor's home run. Vanderbilt's lone extra-base hits came on a Davis Diaz triple in which the center fielder tried and failed to dive for what should've been a routine single and a Jonathan Vastine home run.

Diaz (1-for-2, triple, hit-by-pitch), Vastine (3-for-4, home run) and Hewett (1-for-2, two hit-by-pitches) were the team's top hitters but the lineup struggled to produce much beyond them. Those three accounted for all of Vanderbilt's hits and all but two times on base.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vanderbilt baseball falls to TCU in season opener in Arlington