Month one recap

April's almost here, and TCU has a full month of baseball in the can. As the Horned Frogs (14-12) await Baylor, here's a recap of what's unfolded so far, both good and bad. Here's a breakdown first of five positives for TCU -

1. Tyler Lockwood (pictured) - He's easily been the best and most consistent pitcher. In 38.1 innings pitched, Lockwood (2-0) has a 1.17 ERA and has allowed five earned runs. He has a 5-to-1 strikeout/walk ratio (26/5) and opponents are hitting .204.

2. Ole Miss series - TCU took two of three from the Rebels, then ranked No.2 in the nation. It's been their best series so far, but one that can be a great recruiting tool in the coming years.

3. The comeback - Horned Frog fans won't soon forget last week's 20-3 victory over Dallas Baptist at Dr. Pepper/7 Up Ballpark in Frisco.  TCU had only one hit through six innings, but then exploded for 20 runs in the final three. The Horned Frogs batted through the order in each inning. It was a big win after opening conference with a series loss to New Mexico. A loss here could've been disastrous.

4. Clutch time - TCU has gone to the bottom of the ninth, and needed extra innings, for some wins.
Feb.29 - Minnesota - W, 7-4 (12)
March 4 - UTA - W, 3-2
March 5 - Texas State - W, 4-3 (11)
March 25 - A&M-Corpus Christi - W, 1-0

5. Defense - Coach Jim Schlossnagle said before the season how key it would be, and noted how Oregon State played great defense en route to back-to-back College World Series championships. Through the first month, TCU has a .969 team fielding percentage. Of the players who have played in 20 or more games, none have double digits in errors. The top five:

Player - Chances - errors - Fld. pct (%)
Clint Arnold - 49 - 0 - 1.000
Steve Ellington - 16 - 0 - 1.000
Matt Vern - 179 - 1 - .994
Bryan Holaday - 210 - 3 - .986
Ben Carruthers - 114 - 4 - .965

-Trae Thompson