Tigers to Host Second 2026 Diamond Edition of StorageMart Border Showdown vs. Kansas

By
Gary Lee
-

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Baseball is set to host the second 2026 diamond edition of the StorageMart Border Showdown versus Kansas at Taylor Stadium on Tuesday afternoon, with first pitch scheduled for 4:30 p.m. CT. The game will be streamed on SEC Network+.

The Tigers (17-12, 1-8 SEC) dropped a weekend SEC series to No. 25 Texas A&M over the weekend and will aim to get back in the win column against the Jayhawks (18-10, 6-3 Big 12). Kansas is coming off a Big 12 series win over Cincinnati, taking the last two games of the series from the Bearcats.

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In addition to tomorrow’s SEC Network+ coverage, all Mizzou baseball games are available via audio stream on The Varsity Network app by Learfield with longtime play-by-play voice Tex Little on the call alongside Matt Michaels providing color.

Expected Pitching Matchup vs. Kansas

  • Tuesday, March 31 (4:30 P.M. CT)
    • Mizzou – RHP PJ Green (1-0, 6.75 ERA, 8 K, 9 BB)
    • Kansas – RHP Kannon Carr (2-1, 3.18 ERA, 26 K, 9 BB)

SCHEDULE

  • Mizzou vs. Kansas, Tuesday, March 31 @ 4:30 P.M. CT

SCOUTING THE JAYHAWKS

  • Through 28 games, the Jayhawks are 18-10 (6-3 Big 12) overall and have picked up conference series wins over Houston and Cincinnati so far in Big 12 play.
  • Jordan Bach leads the Kansas offense with a .330 batting average, four home runs and 18 RBI while scoring a team-best 29 runs.
  • Augusto Mungarrieta is a power threat in the Jayhawk lineup, slugging eight home runs and knocking in 21 runs so far this season while batting .311 with an OPS of 1.046.
  • Overall, Kansas is slashing .278/.394/.474 and has outscored opponents 208-166.
  • On the mound, the Jayhawks have pitched to the tune of a 5.55 ERA, striking out 260 and walking 111 over 238.1 innings of work.
  • Right-hander Kannon Carr will make his second start of the season against Mizzou after earning the win and throwing four scoreless, two-hit frames in the first matchup this season. He struck out three Tigers and walked a pair.

SERIES HISTORY vs. KANSAS

  • Friday’s opener marks the 356th meeting all-time between the two programs.
  • Mizzou leads the series 220-133-2 all-time.
  • The Jayhawks are the most-frequent opponent for the Tigers in program history.
  • In Columbia, Mizzou holds a 86-33-1 advantage.
  • The Tigers fell 10-0 on March 18 in the first edition of the series this season.

OFFENSE CONTINUES TO ROAR

  • The Tigers are top 25 nationally in triples (9), No. 17 in HBP (61), No. 30 in runs (230), No. 40 in on-base percentage (.416), No. 44 in hits (277) and No. 56 in batting average (.296).
  • With the Tigers’ 15-1 victory over UAPB on Feb. 24, they became the fastest team in program history to reach 100 runs (8 Games).
  • Mizzou reached the 150-run milestone in game 14, also becoming the fastest team in program history to that mark.
  • The Tigers’ run-rule victory over UAPB on Feb. 24 marked the first time Mizzou has recorded four-straight run-rule wins in the 56-game regular season era (1997).
  • MU earned its fifth run-rule victory of the season on Sunday (March 8) in a 10-0 win over UIC.

WAITER, BRING ME WOITA

  • South Carolina transfer Jase Woita has made an immediate impact in the Mizzou lineup this season after hitting .300 with six home runs in 45 games for the Gamecocks in 2025.
  • The physical, left-handed slugger is off to a hot start with the Tigers, batting .365 with an OPS of 1.091 thanks to a team-leading six home runs in 26 games played.
  • His .365 batting average is 10th in the SEC and he’s driven in 33 runs to lead the squad and rank eighth in the SEC in that department.
  • He drove in a career-high eight runs in the record-breaking 34-3 win over Mount Saint Mary’s on Feb. 15 – one shy of the program record for RBI (9) in a game.
  • In addition to the run production, Woita has been among the nation’s toughest batters to strike out. He ranks top 60 in the country (No. 3 SEC) in that metric, striking out just once every 10.7 at-bats (nine times in 96 at-bats).
  • Woita saw his 12-game hitting streak come to an end vs. No. 6 Auburn but extended his on-base streak to 24 games after reaching safely in all three games this weekend against the Aggies.

LIGHTING UP THE SCOREBOARD

  • The Tigers have scored 230 runs through 29 games (7.9 per game) to rank 30th nationally and seventh within the league.

GOING STREAKING!

  • Mizzou had its 13-game winning streak snapped by No. 6 Auburn on March 13 – its longest since rattling off 20-straight victories in 2017.
  • South Carolina grad transfer Jase Woita is riding a 24-game on-base streak into Tuesday’s matchup – the longest by a Tiger this season.
  • Center fielder Kaden Peer has been on base in all 17 games since returning from injury.
  • Shortstop Kam Durnin has reached base safely in 16-straight games.
  • Freshman Blaize Ward has been on bases in 10-straight contests.

PASS THE TORCH

  • The Tigers have already hit consecutive home runs on three occasions this season:
  • In the series finale vs. UIC on March 8, the entire starting outfield (Peer, Benson, Seals) went back-to-back-to-back in a matter of five pitches – all solo shots.
  • It marked the second time of Benson’s career being a part of back-to-back-to-back home runs, the first coming April 11, 2023, as a member of the Kerrick Jackson-coached Memphis Tigers in an 11-9 win at Ole Miss.

ON LIKE DONKEY KONG

  • Mizzou ranks 40th nationally with a .416 on-base percentage.
  • The Tigers rank 44th nationally in hits (277) and 56th in batting average (.296).
  • In addition, MU ranks No. 17 in the country and third in the SEC with 61 HBP.

WEAR IT!

  • The Tigers are averaging 2.1 HBP per game to rank 17th nationally, being plunked 61 times so far this season.
  • Winthrop leads the nation with 79 HBP while Kentucky leads the league with 67.
  • Mizzou has been hit five-plus times on five occasions and has been hit at least twice 13 times.

MAKING STRIDES ON THE MOUND

  • Under first-year pitching coach Drew Dickinson, the Tigers have made impressive strides on the mound through the first 25 games of the campaign.
  • As of March 26, the Tigers rank 37th nationally in hits allowed per nine innings (7.80) and 41st in strikeouts per nine innings (10.2).
  • Over 132.2 innings of work, the starting rotation has combined for a 9-7 record, a 4.61 ERA, 146 strikeouts to 61 walks and opponents are batting just .215 against the unit.

CONSECUTIVE SHUTOUTS FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2017

  • The Tigers recorded consecutive shutouts for the first time since May 18-19, 2017, after defeating UIC 7-0 and 10-0, respectively, March 7 and 8.
  • Those shutouts accounted for 16 innings within a 22-inning stretch of consecutive scoreless frames by Tiger pitchers.

KEEP STACKING BRICKS

  • The Tigers and head coach Kerrick Jackson have developed a new winning ritual: stacking bricks.
  • After each win, the Tigers add a brick to the wall, each of them resting on three black cinder blocks at the base of the wall that each display one of the team’s three core values: accountability, respect and connection.
  • The bricks themselves have a color-code black are non-conference victories, gold are SEC victories and tiger-striped brick signifies a series-clinching victory.

DEFEND THE TURF

  • Mizzou is in its first season of a brand-new turf surface at Taylor Stadium, and the Tigers are off to a 10-6 start on the new digs.
  • With their 10-0 shutout of UIC on March 8, the Tigers clinched having more home wins this season than they had all of last season, going 8-20 at Taylor Stadium in 2025.

NON-CON DOMINANCE

  • After concluding the 2025 season with a 13-11 record against non-conference opponents, the Tigers are off to a 16-4 start in 2026.
  • Last year’s Tigers clinched a winning non-con season slate for the 11th time in the last 12 seasons; only MU’s 2021 squad (7-14) failed to reach the .500 mark vs. non-SEC foes over that span.
  • Over the last 13 seasons, the Tigers’ dominance has been equally impressive, with MU winning 116 more non-conference games than it has lost (207-91).

HISTORIC OFFENSIVE OUTPUT

  • Mizzou baseball used a record-setting performance from its offense in Sunday’s series finale to earn a dominant 34-3 victory over Mount St. Mary’s on Feb. 15.
  • Missouri’s 34 runs were its second most in a single game in program history and the most since a 35-run outing in 1902.
  • As a team, the Tigers had a program-best 32 RBI, passing the previous record of 28 against Texas on April 19, 2008.
  • In addition, the Tigers’ 26 hits matched a program record that had been done just twice (2005 vs. Navy; 2008 vs. Texas).
  • Lead-off hitter Tyler Macon went 6-for-6 (eight RBI) to become the third Tiger in program history with a six-hit performance while Jase Woita, batting second, went 4-for-7 with a home run and eight RBI. The top two spots in the Tigers’ lineup combined to go 10-for-13 with 16 RBI and seven runs scored, while both Macon and Woita came up one RBI short of tying the school record (nine).
  • Left fielder Isaiah Frost was overshadowed while still having a huge day at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a double and five RBI.
  • Four Tigers scored four runs apiece: Macon, Chris Patterson, Jamal George and Gehrig Goldbeck.
  • Overall, 11 Tigers recorded hits while 13 players scored a run.

FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For all the latest information on Mizzou baseball, please visit MUTigers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Tigers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

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