The Texas Tech baseball team qualified for the Big 12 Tournament on Sunday without playing.
The Red Raiders’ final game of the series, played at No. 20 Oklahoma State, was rained out and there will be no make-up.
This makes Tech the No. 10 seed in the conference tournament, confirming it will play in the first round at Globe Life Field in Arlington on May 21 at 7:30 p.m. If UCF loses its remaining conference games, Tech (30-22, 12-17) would finish tied for ninth place with Central Florida (31-17, 12-14), but the direct The Knights won the showdown series.
Tech is now certain to finish with a better conference record than Baylor (21-29, 9-18), its main competition for No. 10 in the 10-team field.
Tech has lost eight straight games in the Big 12, including three at Kansas, three at home to No. 17 Oklahoma, and two at Oklahoma State. Tech’s downturn came after the Red Raiders swept the series from West Virginia while the Mountaineers were deciding the standings.
The remaining Big 12 teams all have conference series remaining next weekend, but the Red Raiders will conclude the regular season with a game in Tempe, Arizona. Tech will play Arizona State (28-24) on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. CDT, Nevada vs. Las Vegas (25-24) on Friday at 3 p.m., and Arizona State on Friday at 8:30 p.m. .
Tech-OSU Game 1:Oklahoma State defeats Texas Tech Baseball with 7 HRs in series opener
Tech-OSU Game 2:Texas Tech baseball player Kyle Robinson pitches for the first time in his career, and Oklahoma State wins anyway
Who might the Texas Tech baseball team face in the opening game of the Big 12 Tournament?
Tech has five possible opponents in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. Texas (32-20, 17-10) and West Virginia (31-19, 17-10) remain tied for third place with wins on Sunday. The Longhorns and Mountaineers are a half-game behind Oklahoma State (34-16, 17-9) and one game behind Cincinnati (30-21, 16-11).
Kansas (29-18, 15-12) also has a chance to advance to the No. 3 seed.
The final regular season series were Oklahoma vs. Cincinnati, Oklahoma State vs. Houston, Kansas vs. Texas, West Virginia vs. TCU, UCF vs. Baylor, and Brigham Young vs. Kansas State.
What must the Red Raiders do to make the NCAA Tournament?
Texas Tech will almost certainly have to win the Big 12 Tournament and an automatic bid to advance to the NCAA Tournament. In addition to him finishing in the second division in the Big 12, the Red Raiders are 54th in his RPI rankings, which is not a favorable position.
The Red Raiders have appeared in the NCAA regional tournament for seven consecutive years starting in 2016, making the regional tournament the first five of those years.
Their late-season swoon puts that winning streak in jeopardy.
