TCU Baseball: What Did We Learn?

Welcome back to another edition of "What Did We Learn", a weekly article where I give a sort of editorial, if you will. Where I discuss the past week's games, and what stood out to me,

If you are a Dallas Stars fan or even a hockey fan in general, you are aware of the "Finnish Mafia" that the Stars have dubbed a small part of their team. The Mafia not only consists of players from Finland, hence the term "Finnish," but every member plays a role that is vital to the overall success of the team.

I watched the final TCU Horned Frogs' home series this past weekend, with a decisive 2-1 series win over the Cincinnati Bearcats. At the same time, on Friday, I watched the Stars play. Though the Mafia was incomplete at the time as they awaited a member to return from injury, the thought struck me. If the Frogs were to have a group like this, who would it be? What would they be called? Then, after a conversation with Barry Lewis, the name was founded.

Cowtown Cattlemen

Who is this group, you ask? Well, it's the same group that has been discussed since the beginning of the calendar year. The insanely talented freshman group that has TCU on the brink of hosting a regional.

The group is led by Sawyer Strosnider, the phenom freshman who is third in the conference with a .372 batting average, despite playing the last two series with over 40 stitches in his face. Noah Franco, the two-way sensation that sits fourth on the team in batting average, hasn't touched the mound but once in the past six weeks, but is ok with it, because he is needed in the outfield to help his team win games. Nolan Traeger, the Horned Frog backstop, earned the trust of Kirk Saarloos despite veteran Karson Bowen being on the team and having a resurgence season at the plate.

Mason Brassfield is the only other qualified pitcher on the team (in terms of innings pitched) besides ace Tommy LaPour and is seventh in the Big 12 in ERA. Kade Eudy is fifth in the conference in saves, with six in the season. Nate Stern is a reliable arm out of the bullpen, holding opponents to only a .170 batting average. Trever Baumler has shown flashes of brilliance in his starts this season.

I could go on and on and on about this freshman class, and how every player in that group has had success this season, but that isn't what makes them the cattleman. No, what makes them the cattleman is that they came to a program that, despite just two seasons earlier, were nearly playing for the College World Series. Then, the season before they stepped on campus, the program missed the postseason entirely.

Now, with essentially a spot locked up for regional play and on the precipice of hosting the regional themselves, this team wants more. They want to make it to a Super Regional. They want to make it to college baseball's chapel at Charles Schwab Field. They want to be the group that hoists the first championship trophy in program history.

This is only year one of at least two, potentially four. This group not only has the chance to achieve greatness, but also to leave their mark, which fans, teammates, or college baseball won't forget.

The Cowtown Cattlemen, along with the rest of the Horned Frogs, finish the regular season with a series at Utah this weekend. First pitch in on Thursday, May 15 at 7 pm CT. The game can be seen on ESPN+.