Texas Tech Position Previews: Infield

Texas Tech is eight days away from opening day against Tennessee on Friday Feb. 16 in Arlington at Globe Life Field.

As opening day continues to near, our position breakdowns continue to roll along, today with the infield for the Red Raiders.

You can find our preseason pitching breakdown here.

Texas Tech has shifted Kevin Bazzell behind the plate after the transfer from Hudson White to Arkansas in the offseason.

Bazzell is coming off a 2023 campaign as a redshirt freshman where he hit .348 with 24 doubles and ten home runs with an excellent 45-32 BB-K rate enroute to an All-Big 12 First Team nomination.

The Freshman All-American has acclimated well going back to his natural position and is seen as a strong defender as one of the best 2024 MLB Draft prospects in the conference.

The Red Raiders will have Dylan Maxcey as the main backup catcher, who flashed some good things while starting 27 games behind the dish in 2023.

The anchor of the lineup for the Red Raiders is back for another go around after a 26-home run campaign in his first season in Lubbock. Gavin Kash looks to build upon his stellar 2023 campaign where his 26 home runs and 84 RBIs led the Big 12.

Kash was tabbed a second team Preseason All-American by D1Baseball heading into the season and the Red Raiders will once again look towards Kash to anchor the lineup.

Behind Kash, the freshman from Georgia Landon Stripling has slotted in at times behind Kash as well as his primary position at second base.

Texas Tech returns quite a bit up the middle this season with last year’s starting shortstop Tracer Lopez being the headliner but also returning Will Burns and Austin Green, who has shifted to the outfield.

As Lopez seems to have shifted to second base, the Red Raiders have two freshmen that seem to have broken through as TJ Pompey is working towards a starting role at shortstop while Travis Sanders will be an option that can slot in anywhere in the infield. Stripling is also an option for the Red Raiders at second base.

With Lopez and Pompey seeming to be penciled in as the starters for Tech, there are a bevy of options up the middle as Tech head coach Tim Tadlock noted a few weeks ago.

After shifting Kevin Bazzell behind the plate, the Red Raiders landed Gonzaga transfer Cade McGee who comes over after an injury riddled campaign in 2023 but was the 2022 WAC Freshman of the Year.

McGee held a .907 OPS with ten home runs in his strong freshman season in 2022 and hit to the tune of an 1.017 OPS in 20 games as a sophomore.