With the bases loaded and two home runs under his belt already, sophomore outfielder Max Belyeu stood in the box with two strikes taunting him and a chance to bring his teammates home.
And he answered with a grand slam. Belyeu launched a home run to right field, helping to secure Texas’ 11-1 run-rule win over Baylor in its final game of the series on Sunday and extending the Longhorns’ series-win streak over the Bears that has lasted since 2017.
Texas wasted no time after the first pitch, shutting out Baylor at the top of the first to set themselves up for success. Sophomore first baseman Jared Thomas hit a single on his first swing, followed by a sacrifice bunt from freshman second baseman Dee Kennedy and another single from redshirt senior Peyton Powell. Sophomore Jalin Flores stepped up with a double as Thomas and Powell put runs on the board, with Flores advancing to third on a wild pitch.
Texas saw action from nearly every hitter in the lineup within the first inning, as junior catcher Kimble Schuessler proceeded to slam a home run past the Yeti Yard for two RBI. And as if that wasn’t enough, Belyeu hammered a homer of his own, putting the Longhorns at a 5-0 start to enter the second inning.
That wouldn’t be Belyeu’s only home run of the afternoon. After a stagnant second and third inning for Texas, the outfielder launched his ninth home run of the season 416 feet past the center field wall at the bottom of the fourth. And as if that wasn’t enough, Belyeu erupted once more in the bottom of the eighth with a grand slam to bring Texas’ lead to 10-1.
“Some days the ball just looks like a pill, and other days that thing just looks like a beach ball,” Belyeu said. “It was just one of those days that I was seeing it really well.”
Belyeu’s three homers put him at 10 on the season, making him a potential first-place holder for most home runs in the Big 12 conference, surpassing University of Cincinnati’s Josh Kross’ current record of nine.
“He’s one of those kids you see that goes through the full cycle of finishing the spring, playing a full summer, coming back with confidence in the fall, earning the job, and then just watching him take off,” head coach David Pierce said. “Hitting is so much about timing and rhythm and confidence, and he’s got it right now, not to mention he’s pretty powerful.”
On the defensive side, sophomore right-handed pitcher Max Grubbs took care of business, pitching six shutout innings in a row. Baylor’s first run of the game would come at the top of the seventh from three singles and one RBI, bringing the score to 6-1. That would be the Bears’ only run of the afternoon, with the help of redshirt junior pitcher Andre Duplantier Ⅱ at the top of the eighth.
Texas ended the game early after eight innings of baseball, finishing out with a pinch-hit by senior Jack O’Dowd for an RBI to leave the final score at 11-1.
The Longhorns will return to UFCU Disch-Falk Field on Tuesday in the last part of their 10-home-game run against Texas A&M Corpus Christi.
