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OWH: Plenty of Huskers know the passion for baseball series with Texas
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OWH: Plenty of Huskers know the passion
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OWH: Plenty of Huskers know the passion
LJS: Garrido goes by his book on way to top
We don't always listen to our parents.
We go with a gut feeling, or a burning desire, and sometimes it works out OK.
It did for Texas baseball coach Augie Garrido.
Long story short, Garrido's parents fled Spain when general Francisco Franco took over as dictator and wiped out bank accounts. The Garrido family then endured the Great Depression while living in Vallejo, California, just north of San Francisco. The elder Garrido, who worked in the ship yards, discouraged his son from becoming a coach.
He thought coaching was about fun and passion, as opposed to providing for a family.
"He was worried I couldn't keep a job as a coach," Augie Garrido said Thursday. "So, this year, after I signed a three-year contract, I went to his resting place, knocked on the tombstone and said, 'Dad, wake up for a minute, I have some news for you. By the time my contract is over this time, I'll be 79 years old. I think I made it.'"
Augie made it, all right.
Made it to the tune of 1,937 victories, more than any college coach in the history of the game. He's made eight trips to the College World Series and won five national championships. Think of the top five people you associate with the CWS. He's on everybody's list.
Garrido is back in our midst, bringing 16th-ranked Texas (17-8) to Haymarket Park for a three-game series starting Friday night. The Longhorns last played here in 2011, when Nebraska was in the Big 12.
Texas, of course, brings with it a certain panache, thanks largely to its leader.
You know you've made it in this world when you can write a book about yourself that people actually give a damn about. Garrido's "Life is Yours to Win," published in 2011, sounds like it's worth reading, especially if you seek more balance in your life.
Garrido was in his 40s when he decided he had to reinvent himself. He was overly award-driven, he said, and tried too hard to seek approval from others.
The biggest problem? His flawed approach was working quite well, thank you.
"But the thing is, I was personally unhappy," he said. "I struggled, because I was coming from a nonspiritual place. I was doing it out of anger. I was doing it out of a fear of losing. I was doing it for the wrong reasons. But when you get the win, and it's all about the win, and you get that trophy ..."
His memory flashes to 1979, when he led Cal State Fullerton to the national championship.
"Someone took a picture, and I had a player on each side of me, and I had my cap pulled down, and I was clutching that trophy like it was me - it was like, 'This is what I'm about. Everybody take a look. This is my trophy,'" he said.
He disliked the feeling. Sure, he was successful, but it came at the expense of personal fulfillment. He sought help "from people wiser than myself, for sure," he said. And in that statement alone, he demonstrates a humility that is at once endearing and necessary for anybody who embarks on a mission to change his life.
"The hippies weren't all wrong, man," Garrido told me. "There's a lot to this love, peace and happiness. I changed."
He thinks back to 1984, when Cal State Fullerton captured its second NCAA title. Once again, someone snapped a photo.
"This time, I'm on top of the shoulders of the players," Garrido said. "They've got the trophy, and I have a giant smile on my face waving to the people because I know it doesn't belong to me. It belongs to everyone except me."
Between 1979 and 1984, he said, "I made a lot of changes with the help of a lot of professional people and a lot of people that I trusted. I got my life focused on doing things differently. I traded trophies for the passion and for the relationships. I came to understand the power of relationships and the rewards that go along with them. And I've lived my life that way ever since."
He kept winning national titles - another at Fullerton (1995) and two at Texas (2002 and 2005) - but those came with much more satisfaction.
We talked about a lot of other topics. About his appreciation for Omaha and the CWS. About college athletes often feeling a sense of entitlement. About his days as an outfielder in the Cleveland Indians' organization. About how he could become overly emotional and throw bats and helmets. He stopped the conversation at one point and wanted to add something about his father.
"Back when I was still at Fullerton, he saw this transition I had made in myself," Garrido recalled. "And after we played this really nerve-wracking game, which we won in the bottom of the ninth, he said, 'You know, Aug, I don't think you could've played for you, pal.'"
Dad obviously liked the improved Augie, and he's not the only one.
Welcome to Lincoln.
LJS: Garrido goes by his book on way to top
We don't always listen to our parents.
We go with a gut feeling, or a burning desire, and sometimes it works out OK.
It did for Texas baseball coach Augie Garrido.
Long story short, Garrido's parents fled Spain when general Francisco Franco took over as dictator and wiped out bank accounts. The Garrido family then endured the Great Depression while living in Vallejo, California, just north of San Francisco. The elder Garrido, who worked in the ship yards, discouraged his son from becoming a coach.
He thought coaching was about fun and passion, as opposed to providing for a family.
"He was worried I couldn't keep a job as a coach," Augie Garrido said Thursday. "So, this year, after I signed a three-year contract, I went to his resting place, knocked on the tombstone and said, 'Dad, wake up for a minute, I have some news for you. By the time my contract is over this time, I'll be 79 years old. I think I made it.'"
Augie made it, all right.
Made it to the tune of 1,937 victories, more than any college coach in the history of the game. He's made eight trips to the College World Series and won five national championships. Think of the top five people you associate with the CWS. He's on everybody's list.
Garrido is back in our midst, bringing 16th-ranked Texas (17-8) to Haymarket Park for a three-game series starting Friday night. The Longhorns last played here in 2011, when Nebraska was in the Big 12.
Texas, of course, brings with it a certain panache, thanks largely to its leader.
You know you've made it in this world when you can write a book about yourself that people actually give a damn about. Garrido's "Life is Yours to Win," published in 2011, sounds like it's worth reading, especially if you seek more balance in your life.
Garrido was in his 40s when he decided he had to reinvent himself. He was overly award-driven, he said, and tried too hard to seek approval from others.
The biggest problem? His flawed approach was working quite well, thank you.
"But the thing is, I was personally unhappy," he said. "I struggled, because I was coming from a nonspiritual place. I was doing it out of anger. I was doing it out of a fear of losing. I was doing it for the wrong reasons. But when you get the win, and it's all about the win, and you get that trophy ..."
His memory flashes to 1979, when he led Cal State Fullerton to the national championship.
"Someone took a picture, and I had a player on each side of me, and I had my cap pulled down, and I was clutching that trophy like it was me - it was like, 'This is what I'm about. Everybody take a look. This is my trophy,'" he said.
He disliked the feeling. Sure, he was successful, but it came at the expense of personal fulfillment. He sought help "from people wiser than myself, for sure," he said. And in that statement alone, he demonstrates a humility that is at once endearing and necessary for anybody who embarks on a mission to change his life.
"The hippies weren't all wrong, man," Garrido told me. "There's a lot to this love, peace and happiness. I changed."
He thinks back to 1984, when Cal State Fullerton captured its second NCAA title. Once again, someone snapped a photo.
"This time, I'm on top of the shoulders of the players," Garrido said. "They've got the trophy, and I have a giant smile on my face waving to the people because I know it doesn't belong to me. It belongs to everyone except me."
Between 1979 and 1984, he said, "I made a lot of changes with the help of a lot of professional people and a lot of people that I trusted. I got my life focused on doing things differently. I traded trophies for the passion and for the relationships. I came to understand the power of relationships and the rewards that go along with them. And I've lived my life that way ever since."
He kept winning national titles - another at Fullerton (1995) and two at Texas (2002 and 2005) - but those came with much more satisfaction.
We talked about a lot of other topics. About his appreciation for Omaha and the CWS. About college athletes often feeling a sense of entitlement. About his days as an outfielder in the Cleveland Indians' organization. About how he could become overly emotional and throw bats and helmets. He stopped the conversation at one point and wanted to add something about his father.
"Back when I was still at Fullerton, he saw this transition I had made in myself," Garrido recalled. "And after we played this really nerve-wracking game, which we won in the bottom of the ninth, he said, 'You know, Aug, I don't think you could've played for you, pal.'"
Dad obviously liked the improved Augie, and he's not the only one.
Welcome to Lincoln.
LJS: Garrido goes by his book on way to top
NU - Unique Husker Doubleheaders: Softball/Baseball
Nebraska Baseball Coach Darin Erstad (pictured above) sidestepped his team's weekend series against No. 16 Texas at Hawks Field to remind Big Red fans of this weekend's special bonus: Any fan with a baseball ticket can walk right in and sit right down in Bowlin Stadium, the home of Coach Rhonda Revelle (below) and her Nebraska softball team, which hosts No. 12 Minnesota.
What a daily double delight for Nebraska fans. The defending Big Ten regular-season champion Huskers, off to a 5-0 conference start, host the Golden Gophers in Friday's 5:30 p.m. softball game, which begins 65 minutes before the Husker baseball team hosts Texas. Saturday is also Pepsi Pack the House Day at Bowlin Stadium with the first softball pitch at 1 p.m., 65 minutes prior to Erstad's Huskers taking the field. On Sunday, Nebraska-Minnesota play at noon in softball, and Nebraska-Texas begin five minutes later. By Sunday, two story lines will be told: 1) Did Nebraska end Minnesota's program record 13-game winning streak and the momentum that goes with that; and 2) Did the tenaciously competitive Erstad and his team win the series against Augie Garrido, the winningest coach in Division I college baseball history. The Longhorns have won five of their six College World Series Championships under Garrido's legendary guidance.
"This is a great weekend for both programs," Erstad said. "In a sense, it's like a daily doubleheader with softball first and baseball second. Husker Nation supports all of our sports, and this weekend is a good opportunity for our fans to see both teams on the same ticket. I expect Husker Nation to take full advantage of that opportunity."
Nine Interesting Storylines for Softball Team's Weekend
To whet the appetite of all Big Red fans, we offer major points that reflect the opportunity for both unranked Husker teams to make a case for themselves to be ranked. Since softball plays first all three days, we feature their primary storylines first, courtesy of Matt Smith, followed by baseball quick hitters, compiled by Jeremy Foote.
1) Conference Champions: Nebraska won a share of the 2014 Big Ten regular-season championship, while Minnesota won the 2014 Big Ten Tournament title.
2) Regional Champions: Nebraska won the 2014 NCAA Columbia (Mo.) Regional, while Minnesota won its home regional last season. This weekend's matchup marks the first time since a Michigan-Ohio State series in 2010 that a pair of Big Ten teams will face each other after both won NCAA Regional titles the previous season.
3) Big Ten Bullies: Nebraska has won eight consecutive Big Ten Conference games, the league's longest winning streak. Minnesota owns the second-longest streak at five consecutive conference victories. The Golden Gophers have won eight straight games against Big Ten teams, counting the 2014 Big Ten Tournament.
4) Home or Away: Nebraska is 4-0 at home this season, while Minnesota is 12-0 on the road. Nebraska has the Big Ten's longest home winning streak at 14, dating back to 2014. Minnesota owns the league's longest road winning streak at 12 straight.
5) Stadium Battles: Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten Conference prior to the 2012 season, Minnesota has defeated the Huskers at Bowlin Stadium as many times as the rest of the league schools combined. Since 2012, the Huskers are 3-3 at Bowlin Stadium against Minnesota and 26-3 against the rest of the conference.
6) The Last Time: Minnesota is the last Big Ten team to defeat Nebraska at Bowlin Stadium, and the Golden Gophers are the last conference team to hand junior right-hander Emily Lockman a Big Ten loss. The Huskers have won 13 consecutive conference home games since losing game one of a doubleheader to Minnesota on March 23, 2014. Lockman suffered that loss, and she won 11 consecutive Big Ten decisions since that defeat.
7) Nebraska Nemesis: Nebraska has won 14 of its last 15 Big Ten Conference weekend series, dating back to the final series of the 2012 season. The only team to take a weekend series from Nebraska during that stretch is Minnesota, which earned a 2-1 series victory over Nebraska last season at Bowlin Stadium. The Golden Gophers have won each of the two weekend series the teams have played since Nebraska joined the Big Ten. Minnesota is the only Big Ten team with a winning record against the Huskers since NU joined the league.
8) Winning Pitchers: Nebraska's Emily Lockman ranks second among all active Big Ten pitchers with an .842 career winning percentage in conference play (16-3), while Minnesota's Sara Groenewegen is third with an .818 winning percentage (9-2).
9) Batting Better Than Average: The series pits the top two hitting teams in the Big Ten against each other. Nebraska leads the league in batting average and Minnesota ranks second. The Huskers and Golden Gophers boast two of the nation's top offenses overall. Nebraska ranks 9th and Minnesota 11th in batting average. The Gophers rank 14th and the Huskers 18th in scoring. Minnesota ranks 15th and Nebraska 17th in on-base percentage.
Nine Storylines for Renewed NU-Texas Baseball Rivalry
1) Once Big 12's Top Two: During the 15 years from 1997 to 2011 that both teams were in the Big 12, the Huskers and Longhorns were the league's top two teams, combining to win 10 (Texas 7, Nebraska 3) regular-season titles and eight tournament titles (four each). The teams also combined for 10 appearances at the College World Series.
2) Huskers-Longhorns Big Draw: Two of Nebraska's home series with Texas rank among the top five in conference series attendances at Hawks Field - the 2005 series ranks third with an attendance of 22,595 and the 2007 series ranks fourth at 21,898.
3) Momentum Builders: Both teams enter the series playing good baseball, as the Huskers are 9-1 over their past 10 games, while the Longhorns have posted an 8-2 record. The Huskers are in the backend of a 16-game homestand and have posted an 11-1 record over the first 12 games of the stretch.
4) Road Troubles: Texas is 5-5 away from Austin this season. The Longhorns are 4-4 on the road, going 2-2 at both Rice and Stanford. UT's other two road games were midweek contests in the state of Texas, including a win at Texas State and a loss at UT Arlington.
5) Series Starter: Senior Chance Sinclair (No. 16 pictured above, from Spring Hill, Kan.) will get the ball for the Huskers on Friday night and will look to win his third straight start following wins over Florida Gulf Coast and Michigan. The third-team preseason All-American has gone at least 6.0 innings in each of his last three starts.
6) Closing in on 20: Senior Kyle Kubat (Waterloo, Neb.) will pitch Saturday, coming off a win over Michigan where he struck out a career-high nine batters and is now 4-0 with a 1.60 ERA this season. After improving to 19-3 in his Husker career, Kubat is seeking to become Nebraska's 11th player in history to earn 20 wins.
7) Sunday Starter: Sophomore Derek Burkamper (Muscatine, Iowa) will pitch Sunday. He's 3-1 this season and has gone at least 5.0 innings in each of his five starts this season.
8) 192 Hits and Counting: Michael Pritchard and Pat Kelly each joined Nebraska's 200-hit club in 2014. Senior Austin Darby is eight hits away from becoming the program's 23rd member. If he joins the club, Darby would be the fourth Husker to reach that milestone in the past three seasons. Chad Christensen ended his career with 247 hits in 2013.
9) Tanner Heats Up: Senior Tanner Lubach went hitless in his first 18 at bats this season. In his last 15 games, he's hitting .370 (20-for-54) with three doubles, two home runs and seven multi-hit performances. Lubach's .370 average the last 10 games ranks second on the team.
NU - Unique Husker Doubleheaders
Nebraska Baseball Coach Darin Erstad (pictured above) sidestepped his team's weekend series against No. 16 Texas at Hawks Field to remind Big Red fans of this weekend's special bonus: Any fan with a baseball ticket can walk right in and sit right down in Bowlin Stadium, the home of Coach Rhonda Revelle (below) and her Nebraska softball team, which hosts No. 12 Minnesota.
What a daily double delight for Nebraska fans. The defending Big Ten regular-season champion Huskers, off to a 5-0 conference start, host the Golden Gophers in Friday's 5:30 p.m. softball game, which begins 65 minutes before the Husker baseball team hosts Texas. Saturday is also Pepsi Pack the House Day at Bowlin Stadium with the first softball pitch at 1 p.m., 65 minutes prior to Erstad's Huskers taking the field. On Sunday, Nebraska-Minnesota play at noon in softball, and Nebraska-Texas begin five minutes later. By Sunday, two story lines will be told: 1) Did Nebraska end Minnesota's program record 13-game winning streak and the momentum that goes with that; and 2) Did the tenaciously competitive Erstad and his team win the series against Augie Garrido, the winningest coach in Division I college baseball history. The Longhorns have won five of their six College World Series Championships under Garrido's legendary guidance.
"This is a great weekend for both programs," Erstad said. "In a sense, it's like a daily doubleheader with softball first and baseball second. Husker Nation supports all of our sports, and this weekend is a good opportunity for our fans to see both teams on the same ticket. I expect Husker Nation to take full advantage of that opportunity."
Nine Interesting Storylines for Softball Team's Weekend
To whet the appetite of all Big Red fans, we offer major points that reflect the opportunity for both unranked Husker teams to make a case for themselves to be ranked. Since softball plays first all three days, we feature their primary storylines first, courtesy of Matt Smith, followed by baseball quick hitters, compiled by Jeremy Foote.
1) Conference Champions: Nebraska won a share of the 2014 Big Ten regular-season championship, while Minnesota won the 2014 Big Ten Tournament title.
2) Regional Champions: Nebraska won the 2014 NCAA Columbia (Mo.) Regional, while Minnesota won its home regional last season. This weekend's matchup marks the first time since a Michigan-Ohio State series in 2010 that a pair of Big Ten teams will face each other after both won NCAA Regional titles the previous season.
3) Big Ten Bullies: Nebraska has won eight consecutive Big Ten Conference games, the league's longest winning streak. Minnesota owns the second-longest streak at five consecutive conference victories. The Golden Gophers have won eight straight games against Big Ten teams, counting the 2014 Big Ten Tournament.
4) Home or Away: Nebraska is 4-0 at home this season, while Minnesota is 12-0 on the road. Nebraska has the Big Ten's longest home winning streak at 14, dating back to 2014. Minnesota owns the league's longest road winning streak at 12 straight.
5) Stadium Battles: Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten Conference prior to the 2012 season, Minnesota has defeated the Huskers at Bowlin Stadium as many times as the rest of the league schools combined. Since 2012, the Huskers are 3-3 at Bowlin Stadium against Minnesota and 26-3 against the rest of the conference.
6) The Last Time: Minnesota is the last Big Ten team to defeat Nebraska at Bowlin Stadium, and the Golden Gophers are the last conference team to hand junior right-hander Emily Lockman a Big Ten loss. The Huskers have won 13 consecutive conference home games since losing game one of a doubleheader to Minnesota on March 23, 2014. Lockman suffered that loss, and she won 11 consecutive Big Ten decisions since that defeat.
7) Nebraska Nemesis: Nebraska has won 14 of its last 15 Big Ten Conference weekend series, dating back to the final series of the 2012 season. The only team to take a weekend series from Nebraska during that stretch is Minnesota, which earned a 2-1 series victory over Nebraska last season at Bowlin Stadium. The Golden Gophers have won each of the two weekend series the teams have played since Nebraska joined the Big Ten. Minnesota is the only Big Ten team with a winning record against the Huskers since NU joined the league.
8) Winning Pitchers: Nebraska's Emily Lockman ranks second among all active Big Ten pitchers with an .842 career winning percentage in conference play (16-3), while Minnesota's Sara Groenewegen is third with an .818 winning percentage (9-2).
9) Batting Better Than Average: The series pits the top two hitting teams in the Big Ten against each other. Nebraska leads the league in batting average and Minnesota ranks second. The Huskers and Golden Gophers boast two of the nation's top offenses overall. Nebraska ranks 9th and Minnesota 11th in batting average. The Gophers rank 14th and the Huskers 18th in scoring. Minnesota ranks 15th and Nebraska 17th in on-base percentage.
Nine Storylines for Renewed NU-Texas Baseball Rivalry
1) Once Big 12's Top Two: During the 15 years from 1997 to 2011 that both teams were in the Big 12, the Huskers and Longhorns were the league's top two teams, combining to win 10 (Texas 7, Nebraska 3) regular-season titles and eight tournament titles (four each). The teams also combined for 10 appearances at the College World Series.
2) Huskers-Longhorns Big Draw: Two of Nebraska's home series with Texas rank among the top five in conference series attendances at Hawks Field - the 2005 series ranks third with an attendance of 22,595 and the 2007 series ranks fourth at 21,898.
3) Momentum Builders: Both teams enter the series playing good baseball, as the Huskers are 9-1 over their past 10 games, while the Longhorns have posted an 8-2 record. The Huskers are in the backend of a 16-game homestand and have posted an 11-1 record over the first 12 games of the stretch.
4) Road Troubles: Texas is 5-5 away from Austin this season. The Longhorns are 4-4 on the road, going 2-2 at both Rice and Stanford. UT's other two road games were midweek contests in the state of Texas, including a win at Texas State and a loss at UT Arlington.
5) Series Starter: Senior Chance Sinclair (No. 16 pictured above, from Spring Hill, Kan.) will get the ball for the Huskers on Friday night and will look to win his third straight start following wins over Florida Gulf Coast and Michigan. The third-team preseason All-American has gone at least 6.0 innings in each of his last three starts.
6) Closing in on 20: Senior Kyle Kubat (Waterloo, Neb.) will pitch Saturday, coming off a win over Michigan where he struck out a career-high nine batters and is now 4-0 with a 1.60 ERA this season. After improving to 19-3 in his Husker career, Kubat is seeking to become Nebraska's 11th player in history to earn 20 wins.
7) Sunday Starter: Sophomore Derek Burkamper (Muscatine, Iowa) will pitch Sunday. He's 3-1 this season and has gone at least 5.0 innings in each of his five starts this season.
8) 192 Hits and Counting: Michael Pritchard and Pat Kelly each joined Nebraska's 200-hit club in 2014. Senior Austin Darby is eight hits away from becoming the program's 23rd member. If he joins the club, Darby would be the fourth Husker to reach that milestone in the past three seasons. Chad Christensen ended his career with 247 hits in 2013.
9) Tanner Heats Up: Senior Tanner Lubach went hitless in his first 18 at bats this season. In his last 15 games, he's hitting .370 (20-for-54) with three doubles, two home runs and seven multi-hit performances. Lubach's .370 average the last 10 games ranks second on the team.
NU - Unique Husker Doubleheaders
NU: Huskers Renew Rivalry with Texas
Friday, March 27 (6:35 p.m.)
Probable Starters: RHP Sinclair (3-3) vs. RHP French (2-1)
TV: NET
Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: BTN Plus
Radio: Husker Sports Network
Saturday, March 28 (2:05 p.m.)
Probable Starters: LHP Kubat (4-0) vs. Clemens (2-1)
TV: BTN
Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: BTN2Go
Radio: Husker Sports Network
Sunday, March 29 (12:05 p.m.)
Probable Starters: RHP Burkamper (3-1) vs. Hollingsworth (3-1)
TV: None
Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: BTN Plus
Radio: Husker Sports Network
Lincoln - This weekend the Nebraska baseball team (18-7, 3-0 Big Ten) will host the No. 16 Texas Longhorns (17-8, 5-1 Big 12) at Hawks Field for the first time since 2011, when both teams were still members of the Big 12 Conference. This weekend's series, which opens on Friday night at 6:35 p.m., will mark the second series between the two teams since the Huskers left for the Big Ten Conference following the 2011 season, as the Huskers made a trip to Austin for a three-game series in 2013.
During the 15 years from 1997 to 2011 that both teams were in the Big 12, the Huskers and Longhorns were league's top two teams, combining to win 10 (Texas - 7, Nebraska - 3) regular-season titles and eight tournament titles (four each). The teams also combined for 10 appearances at the College World Series.
Two of Nebraska's home series with Texas rank among the top five in conference series attendances at Hawks Field - the 2005 series ranks third with an attendance of 22,595 and the 2007 series ranks fourth at 21,898.
Both teams enter the series playing good baseball, as the Huskers are 9-1 over their past 10 games, while the Longhorns have posted a 8-2 record. The Huskers are in the backend of a 16-game homestand and have posted a 11-1 record over the first 12 games of the stretch.
The Longhorns are just 5-5 away from Austin this season. In two road series the Longhorns are 4-4, as they went 2-2 at both Rice and Stanford. UT's other two road games were midweek contests in the state of Texas, including a win at Texas State and a loss at UT Arlington.
Senior Chance Sinclair will get the ball for the Huskers on Friday night and will look to win his third straight start following wins over Florida Gulf Coast and Michigan. The third-team preseason All-American has gone at least 6.0 innings in each of his last three starts and has 10 strikeouts to two walks. The Longhorns are scheduled to counter with senior Parker French, who started against the Huskers on Friday night two years ago in Austin. The 6-2 Dripping Springs, Texas, native enters Friday with a 2-1 record and a 1.69 ERA in six starts. As a sophomore in 2012, French earned the win after allowing two runs on eight hits and one walk with six strikeouts over 6.1 innings in a 8-2 Texas victory.
Senior Kyle Kubat will climb the hill on Saturday and will be in search of 20th career victory. Kubat is coming off a win over Michigan where he struck out a career-high nine batters and is now 4-0 on the year with a 1.60 ERA. UT is scheduled to start sophomore Kacy Clemens, son of seven-time Cy Young award winner Roger Clemens. The 6-2 right hander is 2-1 on the year with a 4.68 ERA in six appearances, including five starts. Over 25.0 innings, Clemens has struck out 11, but walked 13. Clemens started 63 games at first base last season as a freshman and didn't make an appearance on the mound.
Sunday's pitching matchup is scheduled to be Nebraska's Derek Burkamper against Texas' Chad Hollingsworth. Burkamper is 3-1 on the year and the sophomore has gone at least 5.0 innings in each of his five starts this season. Hollingsworth is also 3-1 on the year with a 2.97 ERA in five starts, with 12 strikeouts to eight walks in 30.1 innings. Hollingsworth earned the win in the second game between the Huskers and Longhorns in 2013, as he got the last out of the top of the ninth before the Longhorns posted a walk-off win in the bottom of the frame.
On the Radio
Fans across Nebraska and around the world can listen to Greg Sharpe and Lane Grindle call all of the action on the Husker Sports Network - including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln - and live on Huskers.com, the Official Husker App or the TuneIn Radio App.
TV Coverage
Friday's game will be shown statewide on NET, and it will also be streamed online on BTN Plus (subscription required). Saturday's game will be shown nationwide on the Big Ten Network.
Web Streams
Friday's and Sunday's games will be streamed on BTN Plus (subscription required), while Saturday's game will be shown on BTN2Go.
Experienced Lefty
Senior Kyle Kubat has six starts under his belt in 2015 and enters his start on Saturday against Texas with 34 career starts on the mound, which ranks 11th all time at Nebraska. The lefty from Waterloo, Neb., started eight games in each of his first two seasons at NU before making 12 starts last year.
Kubat will tie Tony Watson (2005-07) and Cliff Faust (1977-80) for ninth on the career list when he makes his 35th career start.
If Kubat starts at least 12 games in 2015 he will become the first Husker since Johnny Dorn to make at least 40 career starts. Dorn ranks second all-time at Nebraska with 58 career starts from 2000 to 2003.
Since 2000, only four pitchers at Nebraska have made at least 40 career starts, including Shane Komine (59), Dorn (58), Jamie Rodrigue (53) and Zach Kroenke (41).
Going for 20
Senior Kyle Kubat improved to 19-3 during his career last Saturday in 5-1 victory over Michigan.
Kubat is now trying to become just the 11th player in program history to notch 20 wins during their career.
If Kubat reaches 20 wins, he would tie Zach Kroenke (2003-05) and Jim Sandstedt (1946-49) for ninth place in the NU's career record book.
Shane Komine holds the school record for wins with 41 during his career from 1999 to 2002.
Confidence in the Pen
During Darin Erstad's tenure at Nebraska, the Husker bullpen has done its job when it has a lead.
Led by pitching coach Ted Silva, the Huskers are 94-11 since 2012 when they lead after the sixth inning. The Huskers are 97-6 when leading after seven innings and nearly perfect when leading after eight innings with a 106-4 record.
Year Lead after 6 After 7 After 8
2012 31-5 29-3 31-2
2013 20-3 25-2 28-1
2014 28-3 27-1 31-1
2015 15-0 16-0 16-0
Keep Them on Base
The Husker bullpen has inherited 36 runners this season and only six have scored. Junior Jeff Chesnut leads the way with 14 runners inherited, and only one has scored.
192 and Counting
After Michael Pritchard and Pat Kelly each joined Nebraska's 200-hit club last season, senior Austin Darby is eight hits away from becoming the program's 23rd member.
If he joins the club, Darby would be the fourth Husker to join over the past three seasons, as Chad Christensen ended his career with 247 hits in 2013.
Prior to Christensen, Jake Opitz was the last Husker to join the club in 2008.
Matt Hopper holds the school record with 338 career hits and is one of just two players in school history to have topped 300 hits.
NU 200-Career Hit Club
1. 338 Matt Hopper 2000-03
2. 305 Jeff Leise 2000-03
3. 281 Will Bolt 1999-02
4. 261 Darin Erstad 1993-95
5. 251 Michael Pritchard 2011-14
6. 250 Paul Meyers 1984-86
7. 249 Joe Simokaitis 2002-05
8. 248 Jed Dalton 1992-95
9. 247 Chad Christensen 2010-13
10. 246 Darin Petersen 1992-95
11. 242 Mark Kister 1985-87
12. 240 Alex Gordon 2003-05
13. 238 DJ Belfonte 2007-10
14. 234 Todd Sears 1995-97
15. 231 Daniel Bruce 2002-05
16. 229 Ken Ramos 1987-89
17. 227 Jake Opitz 2005-08
18. 223 Curtis Ledbetter 2003-05
19. 222 John Cole 1999-01
20. 212 Pat Kelly 2012-14
21. 203 Ken Harvey 1997-99
22. 201 Francis Collins 1995-97
Like Your Chances with Sinclair
Even though Chance Sinclair has taken three losses this season, after losing just one game last season, fans should feel confident with him on the mound Friday night.
A third-team All-American and unanimous first-team All-Big Ten performer last season, Sinclair has a career record of 15-4, including a perfect 7-0 record during Big Ten play following a win over Michigan last weekend.
During his career, the right-hander has gone 6.0 or more innings in 16 of his 22 starts, including 11 outings of at least 7.0 innings or more, including a 9.0-inning complete game against Ohio State in 2014.
Last season in eight starts during league play, Sinclair went less than 6.0 innings just once, while going at least 7.0 innings six times.
Early Leads
After scoring just 38 first-inning runs last season in 62 games, the Huskers have gotten their starting pitchers leads early and often in 2015.
Through 25 games, the Huskers are outscoring the opposition 40-16 in the first inning of games this season.
Last season the Huskers outscored their opponents 123-95 in the first three innings of games, while this year NU holds a commanding 55-18 advantage.
Tanner Heating Up
Tanner Lubach didn't get off to the start he wanted in his senior year, going 0-for-18 to start the season. Lubach broke the dry spell with a double that nearly left the park against BYU on Saturday, Feb. 21.
In his 15 games since, Lubach is hitting .370 (20-for-54) with three doubles, two home runs and seven multi-hit performances. Over the last 10 games, Lubach ranks second on the team with a .370 average.
More importantly, Lubach has struck out six times over his past 15 games, after notching nine strikeouts through his first six games of the season.
Cruise with Chesnut
Not only does Omaha native Jeff Chesnut have one of the best mustaches in college baseball, but he has also been nearly flawless out of the bullpen in 2015.
Chesnut is 3-0 on the year and holds a 1.00 ERA over 18.0 innings in a team-high 12 appearances. He has allowed two runs on the year, with 11 strikeouts to two walks.
Miller's Time
Sophomore Ben Miller has been a key cog in NU's offense this season. A left-handed hitter from Clive, Iowa, Miller is tied with Blake Headley for the team lead in RBIs with 23 in 25 games, 10 more than the 13 RBIs he totaled in 29 starts last season.
Miller and Headley are tied for third in the Big Ten in RBIs behind Maryland's Jose Cuas (26) and Michigan's Carmen Benedetti (25).
Over the past 10 games Miller leads the team with a .395 average, while adding five doubles and one triple.
Topping 100
Senior Austin Darby is three RBIs away from becoming the 44th Husker since 1986 to notch 100 RBIs for their career.
With a team-high tying 23 RBIs so far in 2015, Blake Headley (81 career RBIs) also has a chance to join the club this year, needing 19 more RBIs in 2015. Headley produced a career-high 27 RBIs last season.
Pat Kelly joined the club last year and ended his three-year career with 125 RBIs, while Michael Pritchard fell four RBIs short of 100 career RBIs.
Matt Hopper is the only Husker to ever top the 200-RBI mark, with a school-record 271 career RBIs.
Howell Dialed in
After struggling with control in his first two seasons, Colton Howell has found the zone in 2015 and has been a terror to opposing batters late in games. The junior right hander has notched 15 strikeouts in 14.0 innings over 11 appearances, while walking only two batters.
Last season, Howell struck out 19, but walked 10 over 19.2 innings after recording 12 walks to nine strikeouts as a freshman in 2013.
NU: Huskers Renew Rivalry with Texas
Friday, March 27 (6:35 p.m.)
Probable Starters: RHP Sinclair (3-3) vs. RHP French (2-1)
TV: NET
Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: BTN Plus
Radio: Husker Sports Network
Saturday, March 28 (2:05 p.m.)
Probable Starters: LHP Kubat (4-0) vs. Clemens (2-1)
TV: BTN
Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: BTN2Go
Radio: Husker Sports Network
Sunday, March 29 (12:05 p.m.)
Probable Starters: RHP Burkamper (3-1) vs. Hollingsworth (3-1)
TV: None
Audio Stream: Huskers.com | Video Stream: BTN Plus
Radio: Husker Sports Network
Lincoln - This weekend the Nebraska baseball team (18-7, 3-0 Big Ten) will host the No. 16 Texas Longhorns (17-8, 5-1 Big 12) at Hawks Field for the first time since 2011, when both teams were still members of the Big 12 Conference. This weekend's series, which opens on Friday night at 6:35 p.m., will mark the second series between the two teams since the Huskers left for the Big Ten Conference following the 2011 season, as the Huskers made a trip to Austin for a three-game series in 2013.
During the 15 years from 1997 to 2011 that both teams were in the Big 12, the Huskers and Longhorns were league's top two teams, combining to win 10 (Texas - 7, Nebraska - 3) regular-season titles and eight tournament titles (four each). The teams also combined for 10 appearances at the College World Series.
Two of Nebraska's home series with Texas rank among the top five in conference series attendances at Hawks Field - the 2005 series ranks third with an attendance of 22,595 and the 2007 series ranks fourth at 21,898.
Both teams enter the series playing good baseball, as the Huskers are 9-1 over their past 10 games, while the Longhorns have posted a 8-2 record. The Huskers are in the backend of a 16-game homestand and have posted a 11-1 record over the first 12 games of the stretch.
The Longhorns are just 5-5 away from Austin this season. In two road series the Longhorns are 4-4, as they went 2-2 at both Rice and Stanford. UT's other two road games were midweek contests in the state of Texas, including a win at Texas State and a loss at UT Arlington.
Senior Chance Sinclair will get the ball for the Huskers on Friday night and will look to win his third straight start following wins over Florida Gulf Coast and Michigan. The third-team preseason All-American has gone at least 6.0 innings in each of his last three starts and has 10 strikeouts to two walks. The Longhorns are scheduled to counter with senior Parker French, who started against the Huskers on Friday night two years ago in Austin. The 6-2 Dripping Springs, Texas, native enters Friday with a 2-1 record and a 1.69 ERA in six starts. As a sophomore in 2012, French earned the win after allowing two runs on eight hits and one walk with six strikeouts over 6.1 innings in a 8-2 Texas victory.
Senior Kyle Kubat will climb the hill on Saturday and will be in search of 20th career victory. Kubat is coming off a win over Michigan where he struck out a career-high nine batters and is now 4-0 on the year with a 1.60 ERA. UT is scheduled to start sophomore Kacy Clemens, son of seven-time Cy Young award winner Roger Clemens. The 6-2 right hander is 2-1 on the year with a 4.68 ERA in six appearances, including five starts. Over 25.0 innings, Clemens has struck out 11, but walked 13. Clemens started 63 games at first base last season as a freshman and didn't make an appearance on the mound.
Sunday's pitching matchup is scheduled to be Nebraska's Derek Burkamper against Texas' Chad Hollingsworth. Burkamper is 3-1 on the year and the sophomore has gone at least 5.0 innings in each of his five starts this season. Hollingsworth is also 3-1 on the year with a 2.97 ERA in five starts, with 12 strikeouts to eight walks in 30.1 innings. Hollingsworth earned the win in the second game between the Huskers and Longhorns in 2013, as he got the last out of the top of the ninth before the Longhorns posted a walk-off win in the bottom of the frame.
On the Radio
Fans across Nebraska and around the world can listen to Greg Sharpe and Lane Grindle call all of the action on the Husker Sports Network - including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln - and live on Huskers.com, the Official Husker App or the TuneIn Radio App.
TV Coverage
Friday's game will be shown statewide on NET, and it will also be streamed online on BTN Plus (subscription required). Saturday's game will be shown nationwide on the Big Ten Network.
Web Streams
Friday's and Sunday's games will be streamed on BTN Plus (subscription required), while Saturday's game will be shown on BTN2Go.
Experienced Lefty
Senior Kyle Kubat has six starts under his belt in 2015 and enters his start on Saturday against Texas with 34 career starts on the mound, which ranks 11th all time at Nebraska. The lefty from Waterloo, Neb., started eight games in each of his first two seasons at NU before making 12 starts last year.
Kubat will tie Tony Watson (2005-07) and Cliff Faust (1977-80) for ninth on the career list when he makes his 35th career start.
If Kubat starts at least 12 games in 2015 he will become the first Husker since Johnny Dorn to make at least 40 career starts. Dorn ranks second all-time at Nebraska with 58 career starts from 2000 to 2003.
Since 2000, only four pitchers at Nebraska have made at least 40 career starts, including Shane Komine (59), Dorn (58), Jamie Rodrigue (53) and Zach Kroenke (41).
Going for 20
Senior Kyle Kubat improved to 19-3 during his career last Saturday in 5-1 victory over Michigan.
Kubat is now trying to become just the 11th player in program history to notch 20 wins during their career.
If Kubat reaches 20 wins, he would tie Zach Kroenke (2003-05) and Jim Sandstedt (1946-49) for ninth place in the NU's career record book.
Shane Komine holds the school record for wins with 41 during his career from 1999 to 2002.
Confidence in the Pen
During Darin Erstad's tenure at Nebraska, the Husker bullpen has done its job when it has a lead.
Led by pitching coach Ted Silva, the Huskers are 94-11 since 2012 when they lead after the sixth inning. The Huskers are 97-6 when leading after seven innings and nearly perfect when leading after eight innings with a 106-4 record.
Year Lead after 6 After 7 After 8
2012 31-5 29-3 31-2
2013 20-3 25-2 28-1
2014 28-3 27-1 31-1
2015 15-0 16-0 16-0
Keep Them on Base
The Husker bullpen has inherited 36 runners this season and only six have scored. Junior Jeff Chesnut leads the way with 14 runners inherited, and only one has scored.
192 and Counting
After Michael Pritchard and Pat Kelly each joined Nebraska's 200-hit club last season, senior Austin Darby is eight hits away from becoming the program's 23rd member.
If he joins the club, Darby would be the fourth Husker to join over the past three seasons, as Chad Christensen ended his career with 247 hits in 2013.
Prior to Christensen, Jake Opitz was the last Husker to join the club in 2008.
Matt Hopper holds the school record with 338 career hits and is one of just two players in school history to have topped 300 hits.
NU 200-Career Hit Club
1. 338 Matt Hopper 2000-03
2. 305 Jeff Leise 2000-03
3. 281 Will Bolt 1999-02
4. 261 Darin Erstad 1993-95
5. 251 Michael Pritchard 2011-14
6. 250 Paul Meyers 1984-86
7. 249 Joe Simokaitis 2002-05
8. 248 Jed Dalton 1992-95
9. 247 Chad Christensen 2010-13
10. 246 Darin Petersen 1992-95
11. 242 Mark Kister 1985-87
12. 240 Alex Gordon 2003-05
13. 238 DJ Belfonte 2007-10
14. 234 Todd Sears 1995-97
15. 231 Daniel Bruce 2002-05
16. 229 Ken Ramos 1987-89
17. 227 Jake Opitz 2005-08
18. 223 Curtis Ledbetter 2003-05
19. 222 John Cole 1999-01
20. 212 Pat Kelly 2012-14
21. 203 Ken Harvey 1997-99
22. 201 Francis Collins 1995-97
Like Your Chances with Sinclair
Even though Chance Sinclair has taken three losses this season, after losing just one game last season, fans should feel confident with him on the mound Friday night.
A third-team All-American and unanimous first-team All-Big Ten performer last season, Sinclair has a career record of 15-4, including a perfect 7-0 record during Big Ten play following a win over Michigan last weekend.
During his career, the right-hander has gone 6.0 or more innings in 16 of his 22 starts, including 11 outings of at least 7.0 innings or more, including a 9.0-inning complete game against Ohio State in 2014.
Last season in eight starts during league play, Sinclair went less than 6.0 innings just once, while going at least 7.0 innings six times.
Early Leads
After scoring just 38 first-inning runs last season in 62 games, the Huskers have gotten their starting pitchers leads early and often in 2015.
Through 25 games, the Huskers are outscoring the opposition 40-16 in the first inning of games this season.
Last season the Huskers outscored their opponents 123-95 in the first three innings of games, while this year NU holds a commanding 55-18 advantage.
Tanner Heating Up
Tanner Lubach didn't get off to the start he wanted in his senior year, going 0-for-18 to start the season. Lubach broke the dry spell with a double that nearly left the park against BYU on Saturday, Feb. 21.
In his 15 games since, Lubach is hitting .370 (20-for-54) with three doubles, two home runs and seven multi-hit performances. Over the last 10 games, Lubach ranks second on the team with a .370 average.
More importantly, Lubach has struck out six times over his past 15 games, after notching nine strikeouts through his first six games of the season.
Cruise with Chesnut
Not only does Omaha native Jeff Chesnut have one of the best mustaches in college baseball, but he has also been nearly flawless out of the bullpen in 2015.
Chesnut is 3-0 on the year and holds a 1.00 ERA over 18.0 innings in a team-high 12 appearances. He has allowed two runs on the year, with 11 strikeouts to two walks.
Miller's Time
Sophomore Ben Miller has been a key cog in NU's offense this season. A left-handed hitter from Clive, Iowa, Miller is tied with Blake Headley for the team lead in RBIs with 23 in 25 games, 10 more than the 13 RBIs he totaled in 29 starts last season.
Miller and Headley are tied for third in the Big Ten in RBIs behind Maryland's Jose Cuas (26) and Michigan's Carmen Benedetti (25).
Over the past 10 games Miller leads the team with a .395 average, while adding five doubles and one triple.
Topping 100
Senior Austin Darby is three RBIs away from becoming the 44th Husker since 1986 to notch 100 RBIs for their career.
With a team-high tying 23 RBIs so far in 2015, Blake Headley (81 career RBIs) also has a chance to join the club this year, needing 19 more RBIs in 2015. Headley produced a career-high 27 RBIs last season.
Pat Kelly joined the club last year and ended his three-year career with 125 RBIs, while Michael Pritchard fell four RBIs short of 100 career RBIs.
Matt Hopper is the only Husker to ever top the 200-RBI mark, with a school-record 271 career RBIs.
Howell Dialed in
After struggling with control in his first two seasons, Colton Howell has found the zone in 2015 and has been a terror to opposing batters late in games. The junior right hander has notched 15 strikeouts in 14.0 innings over 11 appearances, while walking only two batters.
Last season, Howell struck out 19, but walked 10 over 19.2 innings after recording 12 walks to nine strikeouts as a freshman in 2013.
NU: Huskers Renew Rivalry with Texas
BA - Weekend Preview: March 27-29
California 16-year head coach David Esquer knew he'd have to wait for this. He knew it would take time.
It isn't easy to come back from the dead.
For a brief span-from September 2010 to April 2011-the Cal baseball program was dead. Dropped. Discontinued. The Golden Bears were playing a lame-duck 2011 season. Enough funds were eventually raised to ward off disbandment, but the cost of those few months in limbo was great.
After an against-all-odds trip to Omaha in 2011-the third postseason appearance in four years-the Golden Bears needed to rebuild.
"I knew it was going to take a little bit of time to get back to full strength," Esquer said. "I knew it was going to be at least a three-year process because when that happened to us, we had some players transfer. It affected the current recruiting class and the class behind it, so there's times in your program that 75 percent of the classes were touched by the time off."
As he predicted, the Bears went 78-83 in those ensuing three years, missing the NCAA tournament each year. But now, Esquer says his team is closer than ever to getting back to what it once was.
Cal started the season inauspiciously, losing two of three games to visiting Duke opening weekend. However, the Bears then went on to win 14 of their next 15 games-one win against Stanford, three against UC Irvine and two against a ranked Oregon team-in an impressive stretch.
They've since cooled just a tad, going 3-3, but with an 18-6 record, they've entered the Top 25 at No. 21, and they should be in prime position to add a few more wins to the ledger against an 8-15 Utah team this weekend in Salt Lake City-although Esquer doesn't take the Utes lightly.
"I'm scared to death of them to be honest with you," he said. "I have a lot of respect for them. There is not a punching bag in the league where you're just going to get you're wins against them. You have to play well. They're very aggressive."
Youth forms the nucleus of this Cal team, both offensively and on the mound. Injuries to starting right fielder Devin Pearson (broken hamate), starting second baseman Robbie Tenerowicz (wrist) and Friday ace righthander Daulton Jefferies (tendinitis) have tested the team's depth and mettle. But unlike in past years, when those types of injuries would derail the Bears, this group has been resilient, Esquer said.
At the core of it all is sophomore third baseman Lucas Erceg, who has made tremendous strides from his freshman season, batting .380/.433/.641 with a team-leading six home runs and 22 RBIs in 92 at-bats.
He homered in all three games of Cal's sweep at Washington last weekend-including the game-winning solo shot in the eighth inning in both Friday and Saturday's 3-2 wins.
"He's a legitimate professional prospect," Esquer said. "He's a legitimate major league prospect, the type of kid we've had in our program over and over from the Allen Craig's to the Tony Renda's to the Josh Satin's. He's just another in that same type of line.
"That's taken a lot of pressure off of people."
Another sophomore, center fielder Aaron Knapp, has batted .354/.416/.427 in 96 at-bats, igniting the offense with his speed at the top of the order. Freshman catcher Brett Cumberland adds pop, swatting four home runs as the team's cleanup hitter. And senior first baseman Chris Paul, like Erceg, has taken a developmental leap, matching Erceg's six home runs and batting .369/.471/.679 in 84 at-bats.
Those four hitters have combined to form what's been a fearsome top half of the order for the Bears.
"To have the development of Erceg, to have the development of a senior who is playing like a senior and then having that freshman Brett Cumberland step in and say, 'Hey, this is what I've always done,' and not miss a beat-that combination has been refreshing for us," Esquer said.
The same concept holds true for the weekend rotation, where freshman righthander Jeff Bain (3-0, 1.98) has stepped in for Jefferies on Fridays without missing a beat. Not overpowering, Bain commands an 89-91 mph sinking fastball well, walking just three batters in 27 innings this season. Bain, along with freshman lefthander Matt Ladrech (4-2, 1.60) have lent stability to a weekend rotation missing its ace.
The good news for the Bears is that Jefferies, who was touching 95 mph and sitting 92-94 before the tendinitis, could throw a couple of innings as soon as this weekend. Esquer said he expects to insert him back into the rotation within the coming weeks.
Pearson and Tenerowicz shouldn't be far behind. Tenerowicz has been cleared to play, and Pearson is about three weeks away. Another reinforcement, senior righthander Keaton Siomkin, could be ready to pitch in mid-April as he makes his way back from Tommy John surgery.
Those expected returnees, along with the way the current group has pitched and played defense, gives Esquer hope that Cal is almost all the way back from its brief demise.
"No one expected us to play at this level, and we are," Esquer said. "And we've sustained it.
"And I don't think it's a fluke."
- Mike Lananna
Heller Believes In Iowa
Eric Toole (Photo by Brian Ray/hawkeyesports.com)
Eric Toole (Photo by Brian Ray/hawkeyesports.com)
These are heady days for Big Ten baseball. The conference has two teams already in the Top 25-Indiana and Illinois-while newcomer Maryland, which was ranked in the preseason, and Nebraska are both knocking on the door.
Then there's Iowa. Hawkeyes head coach Rick Heller is just in his second year in the league but has spent his entire coaching career in the Midwest, with previous stops at Indiana State, Northern Iowa and Division III Upper Iowa, so he's well aware of how much the Big Ten has elevated itself on the diamond.
"I don't think there's any question that it's the best it's been," Heller said. "I think the talent in the league this season is incredible. You're talking about a league that for years was a one-bid league-whoever won the tournament. Maybe get a second (bid) if the (regular season) champion had a great year. Now, you're looking at this year's group, especially with Maryland coming into the league as good as they are, you're looking at four or five teams that have a chance to get a regional bid."
The Hawkeyes come into the weekend 14-6, most notably having won road series against Kansas and Middle Tennessee State. Most of the league began conference play last week, but the Hawkeyes join the fray this weekend and get a stern test right out of the gate, hosting No. 24 Indiana. Can the Hawkeyes, who went 10-14 in the conference last year in Heller's first season on the job, mix it up with the Indianas and Nebraskas? Heller sure believes so.
"If we play to our capability," he said, "there's no question we can."
The Hawkeyes were the Big Ten's highest scoring team a season ago at 6.4 runs per game, but they've dipped to 4.8 in the early going this year, owing to a combination of slow starts by returning players and offense-inhibiting cold weather. However, Heller does feel their bats are thawing out after they scored six runs in each of their two wins at Kansas last weekend, and not a moment too soon with Indiana and it's talented pitching staff coming to town.
Senior center fielder Eric Toole is the Hawkeyes' top-of-the-lineup igniter, the guy that makes the offense go. Toole went 4-for-4 in Sunday's win and had eight hits in all against Kansas, breaking out of an early-season slump to raise his average to .337. The Hawkeyes have also started getting more production from veterans Jake Mengler, whom Heller says is their best clutch hitter, and Dan Potempa, who hit .330 last year and should be one of their better power threats.
But the star of the show has been Joel Booker, the Hawkeyes' junior right fielder. A transfer from Indian Hills (Iowa) CC, Booker has stepped into the middle of Iowa's lineup to lead the team in both average and slugging at .342/.395/.443, with two homers, six steals and 13 RBIs. Heller calls Booker a dynamic player, thanks to his speed and throwing arm in addition to what he can do at the plate. The Hawkeyes have been trying to keep Booker focused on hitting line drives as that's when he's at his best, but he does have power, Heller recalling a home run he hit on a cold, wind-blown day against Cincinnati.
"He's just a great all-around player," Heller said. "He was exactly what we needed after losing (Taylor) Zeutenhorst, our right fielder last year who was our big power guy. So Joel comes in with the ability to change the game with his speed and then also can hit it out of the park occasionally as well."
While the Hawkeyes haven't been putting up the runs they expect, not yet, their pitching and defense have been doing the heavy lifting. Pitching was the Hawkeyes' undoing last year, as they finished eighth in the Big Ten in ERA at 4.34, but some added depth, particularly in the bullpen, has paid immediate dividends. They come into the weekend 11th in the nation in ERA at 2.34.
Friday starter Tyler Peyton, who doubles as Iowa's No. 3 hitter on days he's not pitching, has shown more a more mature approach on the mound as a junior, starting the year 2-2, 3.14. The righthander has cleaned up his mechanics and added some strength in the weight room, helping his velocity jump from 88-90 mph last year to 90-93 this year, complemented by a hard slider and improving changeup. Saturday starter Blake Hickman, a former two-way player himself, can run his fastball up to 96 mph and has steadily improved as a pitcher-2-1, 3.19 thus far-since giving up hitting midway through last season.
Heller admits the Hawkeyes' rotation is in a less than ideal situation as Calvin Mathews-last year's Friday starter-has been bumped to Sundays as he pitches through pain caused by a loose capsule in his shoulder. His results haven't dropped off so far-he's 2-0, 0.35-and having him on Sundays better positions the coaches if they need to go to the bullpen early, something they'd prefer not to do on Fridays. The good news is that bullpen has been stout. Returning righthanders Nick Hibbing and Tyler Radtke lead the way, but juco transfers Luke Vandermaten, who's yet to allow a run in 13 innings, and Connor Grant, who can touch 93 mph, have both emerged as important contributors. There's also Ryan Erickson, who joined the team out of a tryout in the fall and has proven to be an invaluable lefthanded arm, throwing his fastball up to 91-92.
The other big part of Iowa's excellent run prevention has of course been its defense, which ranks third nationally in fielding. Booker, Toole and Kris Goodman give Iowa an outfield with all kinds of speed. Heller credits senior Nick Day with being one of if not the best defensive third baseman in the Big Ten, while Mengler and Nick Roscetti have been steady up the middle at second base and shortstop, respectively. Catching was the one potential sore spot. The Hawkeyes had to throw freshman Austin Guzzo into the fire sooner than expected when veteran Jimmy Frankos lacerated his throwing hand-a box cutter mishap over Christmas break-before the season, but Guzzo's filled in admirably.
"It started last year when I got the job here, Heller said. "(Defense) was one of the main focuses with our team-we needed to get ourselves to a point where we're a top 10 or top 20 defensive team in the country. That's always been one of the big things I hang my hat on. At Indiana State and even UNI, we were always strong defensively, so there's a definite focus within the program."
The Hawkeyes haven't been to regionals since 1990-nor have they finished higher than third in the conference standings since then-but as the Big Ten's tide rises, Iowa has come with it. The school has invested in a new playing surface and a new video board at Banks Field, among other improvements. Now it's time to see how they hold up against the league's best.
"Things are moving," Heller said. "People are really excited here at Iowa."
- Jim Shonerd
Around The Nation
• American Athletic Conference play will open this weekend with its can't-miss series of the season: No. 6 Central Florida playing host to No. 17 Houston. The teams have taken vastly different paths to get to this point. Houston was the No. 3 team in the preseason but nearly plummeted out of the rankings after an 8-7 start to the season and losing closer Bubba Maxwell (Tommy John surgery), third baseman Connor Hollis (broken hamate) and ace Jake Lemoine (shoulder impingement) to injury. But the Cougars head to Orlando having won 10 straight games, coming off a thrilling 10-inning walk-off win against Lamar.
Meanwhile, with a powerful veteran lineup, preseason No. 22 UCF quickly surged into the top 10, leading the country with a .539 team slugging percentage and 38 home runs. However, the Knights have been struggling on the mound. UCF lost to Jacksonville 13-9 on Tuesday and has allowed five runs or more in eight of its past 10 games. With both teams having issues on the mound, signs point to a high-scoring weekend in Orlando.
"I think what's sustainable is that we've got a very good offense," head coach Terry Rooney told centralfloridafuture.com. "I think our expectations are that it's going to continue to go. From my end, from a team standpoint, I want these guys to understand where I want them to celebrate their success, and I also want them to understand we haven't done anything yet."
• Another Big Ten squad with an opportunity to make a statement is Nebraska, which hosts Texas this weekend for the first time since the Huskers left the Big 12 in 2011. It's the second half of a big week in Lincoln, as Nebraska hosted Cal State Fullerton for a two-game midweek series on Tuesday and Wednesday. Both teams have been on the upswing after uneven starts, Texas winning nine of its past 11 and Nebraska reeling off an 11-game winning streak that was snapped Wednesday by the Titans.
Friday's game matches a pair of outstanding seniors on the mound as Nebraska's Chance Sinclair faces off with the Longhorns' Parker French. French has been rock-solid at the top of Texas' rotation, going 2-1, 1.69, while Sinclair has pulled out of some early struggles to win each of his last two starts, improving to 3-3, 3.93. Both teams are in the top 25 nationally in ERA, Nebraska at 2.59 and Texas at 2.67.
• Two Southeastern Conference series pit teams badly in need of wins against each other. Mississippi heads to Arkansas for a Thursday-Saturday series and Auburn travels to Mississippi State.
The reeling Bulldogs have lost three straight series to San Diego, Alabama and Kentucky, and they were shut out by Southern Mississippi on Tuesday, dropping their RPI all the way down to 109 on WarrenNolan.com. The RPI is seldom an issue for SEC teams, but MSU's home-heavy schedule-last week's trip to Kentucky was the first time it'd left Starkville all season-won't do it any favors. Auburn, meanwhile, was a base hit away from winning the rubber game in last week's series against Vanderbilt but ended up taking a heartbreaking extra-inning loss. The Tigers head to Starkville with a 1-5 SEC record and can ill afford to fall further behind the 8-ball.
Arkansas is likewise 1-5 in the league and just 12-12 overall, putting it at No. 125 in the RPI. The good news for the Razorbacks is the hardest segment of their league schedule is already behind them-back-to-back series with Vanderbilt and Louisiana State-and they don't have to face Florida or South Carolina from the SEC East. The Rebels scored a marquee series win against Florida last week but were then swept in a midweek doubleheader by Alabama-Birmingham, dropping their record to 13-12. The Rebels own the No. 1 strength of schedule and are 14th in the RPI, but, for both these teams, flirting with .500 is a dangerous game when your conference schedule is so unforgiving.
• Georgia Tech will be without star freshman Kel Johnson as it heads to Louisville. Johnson sprained an ankle last Saturday against North Carolina and will be out indefinitely. The freshman outfielder and first baseman accounts for seven of Tech's 19 home runs as a team and leads the Yellow Jackets in hitting at .379. The Yellow Jackets' lineup has enough depth to still be dangerous-senior A.J. Murray hit his fifth homer of the season in Tuesday's win against Auburn-but it's nonetheless a most inopportune time for Tech to be without its biggest bat as it heads on the road to face one of the ACC's hottest teams.
BA - Weekend Preview: March 27-29
California 16-year head coach David Esquer knew he'd have to wait for this. He knew it would take time.
It isn't easy to come back from the dead.
For a brief span-from September 2010 to April 2011-the Cal baseball program was dead. Dropped. Discontinued. The Golden Bears were playing a lame-duck 2011 season. Enough funds were eventually raised to ward off disbandment, but the cost of those few months in limbo was great.
After an against-all-odds trip to Omaha in 2011-the third postseason appearance in four years-the Golden Bears needed to rebuild.
"I knew it was going to take a little bit of time to get back to full strength," Esquer said. "I knew it was going to be at least a three-year process because when that happened to us, we had some players transfer. It affected the current recruiting class and the class behind it, so there's times in your program that 75 percent of the classes were touched by the time off."
As he predicted, the Bears went 78-83 in those ensuing three years, missing the NCAA tournament each year. But now, Esquer says his team is closer than ever to getting back to what it once was.
Cal started the season inauspiciously, losing two of three games to visiting Duke opening weekend. However, the Bears then went on to win 14 of their next 15 games-one win against Stanford, three against UC Irvine and two against a ranked Oregon team-in an impressive stretch.
They've since cooled just a tad, going 3-3, but with an 18-6 record, they've entered the Top 25 at No. 21, and they should be in prime position to add a few more wins to the ledger against an 8-15 Utah team this weekend in Salt Lake City-although Esquer doesn't take the Utes lightly.
"I'm scared to death of them to be honest with you," he said. "I have a lot of respect for them. There is not a punching bag in the league where you're just going to get you're wins against them. You have to play well. They're very aggressive."
Youth forms the nucleus of this Cal team, both offensively and on the mound. Injuries to starting right fielder Devin Pearson (broken hamate), starting second baseman Robbie Tenerowicz (wrist) and Friday ace righthander Daulton Jefferies (tendinitis) have tested the team's depth and mettle. But unlike in past years, when those types of injuries would derail the Bears, this group has been resilient, Esquer said.
At the core of it all is sophomore third baseman Lucas Erceg, who has made tremendous strides from his freshman season, batting .380/.433/.641 with a team-leading six home runs and 22 RBIs in 92 at-bats.
He homered in all three games of Cal's sweep at Washington last weekend-including the game-winning solo shot in the eighth inning in both Friday and Saturday's 3-2 wins.
"He's a legitimate professional prospect," Esquer said. "He's a legitimate major league prospect, the type of kid we've had in our program over and over from the Allen Craig's to the Tony Renda's to the Josh Satin's. He's just another in that same type of line.
"That's taken a lot of pressure off of people."
Another sophomore, center fielder Aaron Knapp, has batted .354/.416/.427 in 96 at-bats, igniting the offense with his speed at the top of the order. Freshman catcher Brett Cumberland adds pop, swatting four home runs as the team's cleanup hitter. And senior first baseman Chris Paul, like Erceg, has taken a developmental leap, matching Erceg's six home runs and batting .369/.471/.679 in 84 at-bats.
Those four hitters have combined to form what's been a fearsome top half of the order for the Bears.
"To have the development of Erceg, to have the development of a senior who is playing like a senior and then having that freshman Brett Cumberland step in and say, 'Hey, this is what I've always done,' and not miss a beat-that combination has been refreshing for us," Esquer said.
The same concept holds true for the weekend rotation, where freshman righthander Jeff Bain (3-0, 1.98) has stepped in for Jefferies on Fridays without missing a beat. Not overpowering, Bain commands an 89-91 mph sinking fastball well, walking just three batters in 27 innings this season. Bain, along with freshman lefthander Matt Ladrech (4-2, 1.60) have lent stability to a weekend rotation missing its ace.
The good news for the Bears is that Jefferies, who was touching 95 mph and sitting 92-94 before the tendinitis, could throw a couple of innings as soon as this weekend. Esquer said he expects to insert him back into the rotation within the coming weeks.
Pearson and Tenerowicz shouldn't be far behind. Tenerowicz has been cleared to play, and Pearson is about three weeks away. Another reinforcement, senior righthander Keaton Siomkin, could be ready to pitch in mid-April as he makes his way back from Tommy John surgery.
Those expected returnees, along with the way the current group has pitched and played defense, gives Esquer hope that Cal is almost all the way back from its brief demise.
"No one expected us to play at this level, and we are," Esquer said. "And we've sustained it.
"And I don't think it's a fluke."
- Mike Lananna
Heller Believes In Iowa
Eric Toole (Photo by Brian Ray/hawkeyesports.com)
Eric Toole (Photo by Brian Ray/hawkeyesports.com)
These are heady days for Big Ten baseball. The conference has two teams already in the Top 25-Indiana and Illinois-while newcomer Maryland, which was ranked in the preseason, and Nebraska are both knocking on the door.
Then there's Iowa. Hawkeyes head coach Rick Heller is just in his second year in the league but has spent his entire coaching career in the Midwest, with previous stops at Indiana State, Northern Iowa and Division III Upper Iowa, so he's well aware of how much the Big Ten has elevated itself on the diamond.
"I don't think there's any question that it's the best it's been," Heller said. "I think the talent in the league this season is incredible. You're talking about a league that for years was a one-bid league-whoever won the tournament. Maybe get a second (bid) if the (regular season) champion had a great year. Now, you're looking at this year's group, especially with Maryland coming into the league as good as they are, you're looking at four or five teams that have a chance to get a regional bid."
The Hawkeyes come into the weekend 14-6, most notably having won road series against Kansas and Middle Tennessee State. Most of the league began conference play last week, but the Hawkeyes join the fray this weekend and get a stern test right out of the gate, hosting No. 24 Indiana. Can the Hawkeyes, who went 10-14 in the conference last year in Heller's first season on the job, mix it up with the Indianas and Nebraskas? Heller sure believes so.
"If we play to our capability," he said, "there's no question we can."
The Hawkeyes were the Big Ten's highest scoring team a season ago at 6.4 runs per game, but they've dipped to 4.8 in the early going this year, owing to a combination of slow starts by returning players and offense-inhibiting cold weather. However, Heller does feel their bats are thawing out after they scored six runs in each of their two wins at Kansas last weekend, and not a moment too soon with Indiana and it's talented pitching staff coming to town.
Senior center fielder Eric Toole is the Hawkeyes' top-of-the-lineup igniter, the guy that makes the offense go. Toole went 4-for-4 in Sunday's win and had eight hits in all against Kansas, breaking out of an early-season slump to raise his average to .337. The Hawkeyes have also started getting more production from veterans Jake Mengler, whom Heller says is their best clutch hitter, and Dan Potempa, who hit .330 last year and should be one of their better power threats.
But the star of the show has been Joel Booker, the Hawkeyes' junior right fielder. A transfer from Indian Hills (Iowa) CC, Booker has stepped into the middle of Iowa's lineup to lead the team in both average and slugging at .342/.395/.443, with two homers, six steals and 13 RBIs. Heller calls Booker a dynamic player, thanks to his speed and throwing arm in addition to what he can do at the plate. The Hawkeyes have been trying to keep Booker focused on hitting line drives as that's when he's at his best, but he does have power, Heller recalling a home run he hit on a cold, wind-blown day against Cincinnati.
"He's just a great all-around player," Heller said. "He was exactly what we needed after losing (Taylor) Zeutenhorst, our right fielder last year who was our big power guy. So Joel comes in with the ability to change the game with his speed and then also can hit it out of the park occasionally as well."
While the Hawkeyes haven't been putting up the runs they expect, not yet, their pitching and defense have been doing the heavy lifting. Pitching was the Hawkeyes' undoing last year, as they finished eighth in the Big Ten in ERA at 4.34, but some added depth, particularly in the bullpen, has paid immediate dividends. They come into the weekend 11th in the nation in ERA at 2.34.
Friday starter Tyler Peyton, who doubles as Iowa's No. 3 hitter on days he's not pitching, has shown more a more mature approach on the mound as a junior, starting the year 2-2, 3.14. The righthander has cleaned up his mechanics and added some strength in the weight room, helping his velocity jump from 88-90 mph last year to 90-93 this year, complemented by a hard slider and improving changeup. Saturday starter Blake Hickman, a former two-way player himself, can run his fastball up to 96 mph and has steadily improved as a pitcher-2-1, 3.19 thus far-since giving up hitting midway through last season.
Heller admits the Hawkeyes' rotation is in a less than ideal situation as Calvin Mathews-last year's Friday starter-has been bumped to Sundays as he pitches through pain caused by a loose capsule in his shoulder. His results haven't dropped off so far-he's 2-0, 0.35-and having him on Sundays better positions the coaches if they need to go to the bullpen early, something they'd prefer not to do on Fridays. The good news is that bullpen has been stout. Returning righthanders Nick Hibbing and Tyler Radtke lead the way, but juco transfers Luke Vandermaten, who's yet to allow a run in 13 innings, and Connor Grant, who can touch 93 mph, have both emerged as important contributors. There's also Ryan Erickson, who joined the team out of a tryout in the fall and has proven to be an invaluable lefthanded arm, throwing his fastball up to 91-92.
The other big part of Iowa's excellent run prevention has of course been its defense, which ranks third nationally in fielding. Booker, Toole and Kris Goodman give Iowa an outfield with all kinds of speed. Heller credits senior Nick Day with being one of if not the best defensive third baseman in the Big Ten, while Mengler and Nick Roscetti have been steady up the middle at second base and shortstop, respectively. Catching was the one potential sore spot. The Hawkeyes had to throw freshman Austin Guzzo into the fire sooner than expected when veteran Jimmy Frankos lacerated his throwing hand-a box cutter mishap over Christmas break-before the season, but Guzzo's filled in admirably.
"It started last year when I got the job here, Heller said. "(Defense) was one of the main focuses with our team-we needed to get ourselves to a point where we're a top 10 or top 20 defensive team in the country. That's always been one of the big things I hang my hat on. At Indiana State and even UNI, we were always strong defensively, so there's a definite focus within the program."
The Hawkeyes haven't been to regionals since 1990-nor have they finished higher than third in the conference standings since then-but as the Big Ten's tide rises, Iowa has come with it. The school has invested in a new playing surface and a new video board at Banks Field, among other improvements. Now it's time to see how they hold up against the league's best.
"Things are moving," Heller said. "People are really excited here at Iowa."
- Jim Shonerd
Around The Nation
• American Athletic Conference play will open this weekend with its can't-miss series of the season: No. 6 Central Florida playing host to No. 17 Houston. The teams have taken vastly different paths to get to this point. Houston was the No. 3 team in the preseason but nearly plummeted out of the rankings after an 8-7 start to the season and losing closer Bubba Maxwell (Tommy John surgery), third baseman Connor Hollis (broken hamate) and ace Jake Lemoine (shoulder impingement) to injury. But the Cougars head to Orlando having won 10 straight games, coming off a thrilling 10-inning walk-off win against Lamar.
Meanwhile, with a powerful veteran lineup, preseason No. 22 UCF quickly surged into the top 10, leading the country with a .539 team slugging percentage and 38 home runs. However, the Knights have been struggling on the mound. UCF lost to Jacksonville 13-9 on Tuesday and has allowed five runs or more in eight of its past 10 games. With both teams having issues on the mound, signs point to a high-scoring weekend in Orlando.
"I think what's sustainable is that we've got a very good offense," head coach Terry Rooney told centralfloridafuture.com. "I think our expectations are that it's going to continue to go. From my end, from a team standpoint, I want these guys to understand where I want them to celebrate their success, and I also want them to understand we haven't done anything yet."
• Another Big Ten squad with an opportunity to make a statement is Nebraska, which hosts Texas this weekend for the first time since the Huskers left the Big 12 in 2011. It's the second half of a big week in Lincoln, as Nebraska hosted Cal State Fullerton for a two-game midweek series on Tuesday and Wednesday. Both teams have been on the upswing after uneven starts, Texas winning nine of its past 11 and Nebraska reeling off an 11-game winning streak that was snapped Wednesday by the Titans.
Friday's game matches a pair of outstanding seniors on the mound as Nebraska's Chance Sinclair faces off with the Longhorns' Parker French. French has been rock-solid at the top of Texas' rotation, going 2-1, 1.69, while Sinclair has pulled out of some early struggles to win each of his last two starts, improving to 3-3, 3.93. Both teams are in the top 25 nationally in ERA, Nebraska at 2.59 and Texas at 2.67.
• Two Southeastern Conference series pit teams badly in need of wins against each other. Mississippi heads to Arkansas for a Thursday-Saturday series and Auburn travels to Mississippi State.
The reeling Bulldogs have lost three straight series to San Diego, Alabama and Kentucky, and they were shut out by Southern Mississippi on Tuesday, dropping their RPI all the way down to 109 on WarrenNolan.com. The RPI is seldom an issue for SEC teams, but MSU's home-heavy schedule-last week's trip to Kentucky was the first time it'd left Starkville all season-won't do it any favors. Auburn, meanwhile, was a base hit away from winning the rubber game in last week's series against Vanderbilt but ended up taking a heartbreaking extra-inning loss. The Tigers head to Starkville with a 1-5 SEC record and can ill afford to fall further behind the 8-ball.
Arkansas is likewise 1-5 in the league and just 12-12 overall, putting it at No. 125 in the RPI. The good news for the Razorbacks is the hardest segment of their league schedule is already behind them-back-to-back series with Vanderbilt and Louisiana State-and they don't have to face Florida or South Carolina from the SEC East. The Rebels scored a marquee series win against Florida last week but were then swept in a midweek doubleheader by Alabama-Birmingham, dropping their record to 13-12. The Rebels own the No. 1 strength of schedule and are 14th in the RPI, but, for both these teams, flirting with .500 is a dangerous game when your conference schedule is so unforgiving.
• Georgia Tech will be without star freshman Kel Johnson as it heads to Louisville. Johnson sprained an ankle last Saturday against North Carolina and will be out indefinitely. The freshman outfielder and first baseman accounts for seven of Tech's 19 home runs as a team and leads the Yellow Jackets in hitting at .379. The Yellow Jackets' lineup has enough depth to still be dangerous-senior A.J. Murray hit his fifth homer of the season in Tuesday's win against Auburn-but it's nonetheless a most inopportune time for Tech to be without its biggest bat as it heads on the road to face one of the ACC's hottest teams.
BA - Weekend Preview: March 27-29
PG - Weekend Preview: Week 7
Each of the top six teams as shown below will play at home this weekend, and none of them come against ranked opponents. The biggest series to note among these teams will occur in College Station, Texas, as No. 5 Texas A&M host current SEC and former Big 12 rival Missouri while No. 6 Louisville takes on a surging Georgia Tech team.
In addition, 12 of the top 15 teams will also play their series at home, with the most notable team on the road coming in the form of No. 10 Miami traveling to Chapel Hill, N.C., to take on North Carolina, as previewed below.
The only other bout between top 25 ranked teams will occur in Orlando, Fla., as No. 15 UCF hosts No. 19 Houston in hopes of claiming American Athletic Conference supremacy. This series is also detailed below.
Jheremy Brown will be in Phoenix this weekend to cover the Pac-12 matchup between No. 12 Arizona State and Stanford. Stay tuned to Perfect Game throughout the weekend for notes on those games as well as others from across the nation.
Top 25 in Action
Rk. Team Opponent Location
1 Louisiana State home vs. Kentucky Baton Rouge, LA
2 Texas Christian home vs. Wichita State Fort Worth, TX
3 Florida home vs. Alabama Gainesville, FL
4 Vanderbilt home vs. Tennessee Nashville, TN
5 Texas A&M home vs. Missouri College Station, TX
6 Louisville home vs. Georgia Tech Louisville, KY
7 UCLA at Washington State Pullman, WA
8 South Carolina home vs. Georgia Columbia, SC
9 Florida State home vs. Virginia Tech Tallahassee, FL
10 Miami at No. 18 North Carolina Chapel Hill, NC
11 Oregon State home vs. Cal Poly Corvallis, OR
12 Arizona State home vs. Stanford Phoenix, AZ
13 UC Santa Barbara home vs. Long Beach State Santa Barbara, CA
14 Virginia at Notre Dame South Bend, IN
15 UCF home vs. No. 19 Houston Orlando, FL
16 Texas at Nebraska Lincoln, NE
17 Oregon at Arizona Tucson, AZ
18 North Carolina home vs. No. 10 Miami Chapel Hill, NC
19 Houston at No. 15 UCF Orlando, FL
20 Florida Atlantic at Texas-San Antonio San Antonio, TX
21 Illinois at Michigan State East Lansing, MI
22 Southern California at Washington Seattle, WA
23 Texas Tech home vs. Kansas Lubbock, TX
24 Dallas Baptist home vs. Illinois State Dallas, TX
25 Maryland at Michigan Ann Arbor, MI
Marquee Matchup #1:
No. 10 Miami at No. 18 North Carolina
There's no such thing as an easy weekend in the ACC as each and every team is able to erupt at any moment or receive a big time performance from one of their top arms. The setting for this conference series is Chapel Hill, N.C., as the Hurricanes from the University of Miami, ranked No. 10 per the Perfect Game staff, travel north to face the 19th ranked North Carolina Tar Heels. Both programs are coming off key conference series wins with the Canes taking two of three from surging Wake Forest while the Heels, like Miami, took two of three from Georgia Tech.
Miami enters the weekend with a 6-3 record in the Coastal Division of the ACC, tops in the division, while North Carolina is currently tied for second in the division with a 5-4 record, knotted with Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech.
David Thompson (Photo: Richard Lewis / Miami Athletics)
The Hurricanes pitching staff has been a key part of their success early on in this young 2015 campaign. Staff ace Andrew Suarez appears to be fully recovered from his early season injury, turning in back-to-back strong performances in conference play. Thomas Woodrey hasn't looked back after a strong start to the spring and heads into this weekend with a 3-1 record over five starts while maintaining a 2.93 ERA with just six walks over 30 2/3 innings. Another arm who has been as consistent as they come is sophomore closer Bryan Garcia who has closed out four games this spring, making 12 appearances with a 1.15 ERA.
Of course to win games you need to score runs and Miami is more than capable of that. Junior David Thompson has caught fire over the last week hitting a couple of long balls, increasing his team lead to eight while driving in a remarkable 39 runs while hitting a loud .361. Surprisingly enough Thompson's .361 mark is only third best on the team as George Iskenderian (.375) and Garrett Kennedy (.369) have both offered consistent bats as well, showing strength off their barrels while hitting for a high average.
Like Miami, Coach Mike Fox has received solid contributions from his pitching staff, particularly his starting rotation. Even with junior righthander Trent Thornton moving to the bullpen where he has continued to find success, the Tar heels rotation hasn't skipped a beat. Sophomore Zac Gallen, freshman J.B. Bukauskas, and senior Benton Moss all turned in solid starts last week and will be key to the Heels' success this weekend and for ACC series moving forward. They may also boast the deepest crop of freshmen arms, all of whom have their roles and have performed well when called up. Senior Trevor Kelley has been remarkable out of the 'pen, and their most relied upon arm, appearing in a team-high 16 games with a 1.74 ERA, striking out 28 while walking just four.
North Carolina erupted for nine runs in their most recent game, a shutout victory over Appalachian State mid-week in which nearly every starter recorded a hit. The Heels look to continue their hot-hitting ways, especially from outfielder Skye Bolt who has recorded two multi-hit games in their last three contests.
Overall, the series looks to be a good one as each team is able to send a quality starter out to the mound for each of the three games and complements them with a strong bullpen. Both offenses are capable of exploding for runs though the depth of pitching may be the story of the weekend matchup.
Marquee Matchup #2:
No. 19 Houston at No. 15 UCF
The American Athletic Conference is only in year two but it is quickly establishing itself as one of the better baseball conferences in the country. The league sent Louisville to Omaha in its inaugural season last year and this year's championship race shapes up to be even better. It all kicks off this weekend and Houston at UCF is the main event.
Houston looked to build off of the momentum of last year's run to a Super Regional as the Cougars returned their entire weekend rotation and most of the lineup. This led to a top 10 preseason ranking, and that was before we even knew how productive newcomers Connor Wong and Chris Iriart would be. The freshman shortstop Wong leads the club with 22 RBI, although he has struggled defensively with 12 errors already. Iriart has six home runs and 14 extra-base hits and his physicality has been critical in solidifying the middle of the order.
Dylan Moore (Photo: UCFKnights.com)
The bad news is that the highly touted Houston rotation has struggled outside of Andrew Lantrip who has been outstanding. Senior Aaron Garza has pitched his way out of the rotation with a 5.92 ERA and junior flame-thrower Jake Lemoine will miss his second straight start this weekend with a shoulder impingement.
Through all of this adversity, Todd Whitting and his staff have done an incredible job keeping this team moving forward and the Cougars come to Orlando riding an amazing 10-game winning streak. And this winning streak was preceded by a stretch where Houston lost five of six games. Overall, the Cougars' postseason resume shapes up nicely as their 18 wins include a series win against Alabama and a road sweep of a New Mexico team that looks to be of Regional caliber.
UCF is enjoying a magical season under Terry Rooney. The Knights may have the most experienced roster in the nation with 16 players in their fourth year of college baseball. They certainly have the best offense in the country ranking first nationally in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. UCF is second in the nation in scoring at 8.8 runs per game. The Knights also sport an impressive postseason resume with a series win over Ole Miss and individual wins over Arkansas, Maryland, and Florida.
Senior shortstop Dylan Moore may be the best player in America still flying under the radar in college baseball. The senior transfer from Cypress JC in California played second base last year and he is having a huge season. Not only is Moore fielding .966 at shortstop, but he is among the nation's leaders with seven home runs and 34 RBI.
The interesting matchup this weekend will be the UCF pitching staff versus a very balanced Houston offense. UCF is thin on the mound and led by a true freshman in Cre Finfrock who has been pitching on Friday nights. The atmosphere in Orlando should be electric and this series certainly has a Super Regional feel to it.
Mound Matchup:
Grayson Long (Texas A&M) vs. Reggie McClain (Missouri)
This entire series could prove to be one of the more meaningful matchups on the weekend, particularly in the two starting rotations, as the Tigers' starting three has posted numbers remarkably similar to that of the Aggies' starting trio. However, it will be that Friday night matchup between Missouri's Reggie McClain and Texas A&M's Grayson Long that will set the tone for the rest of the weekend.
Reggie McClain (Photo: Kyle Mazabob)
Texas A&M is off to a 25-1 start to the season, starting the year ranked 24th and rising to their current slot at No. 5. Missouri is coming fresh off their series against previously ranked No. 5 South Carolina in which the Tigers claimed two of the three games, largely in part due to the pitching performances of McClain and their Saturday starter, freshman Tanner Houck.
While neither Long nor McClain is particularly overpowering, both excel at changes speeds and commanding the strike zone with three distinct pitches. Long, who has assumed the Friday night role for the last two weekends for the injured A.J. Minter, actually throws a fourth, mixing in a mid-70s curveball later in games this year to complement his low-90s fastball, that usually peaks at 93 mph, as well as his low-80s slider and changeup.
McClain works in the mid- to upper-80s with his fastball, and his best pitch is his changeup thrown with the exact same arm action and speed as his fastball, pulling the string perfectly to get a lot of empty swings.
As noted, both pitchers do an excellent job keeping hitters guessing as to what pitch is coming next by changing speeds and throwing strikes. Here's a look as to just how similar the two starters have fared so far this year:
Player Record G/GS ERA IP H K BB BAA
Long 5-0 6/6 2.08 34.2 23 43 13 .184
McClain 4-1 6/6 1.74 46.2 31 40 7 .189
Expand that to each team's Saturday and Sunday starters (Matt Kent and Turner Larkins for Texas A&M, Tanner Houck and Peter Fairbanks for Missouri):
Team Record ERA IP K BB
Texas A&M 8-1 3.08 73 66 9
Missouri 5-3 2.48 76.1 66 10
The strikeout-to-walk ratio is what stands out the most for each team, as they're missing bats and they're not beating themselves. The biggest difference is the win-loss ratio, which is more reflective of the teams' difference in records (25-1 to 19-7).
And that difference largely has to do with the difference in offensive production, with A&M boasting one of the best in the nation, producing a cumulative .311/.413/.453 slash line as compared to Missouri's .246/.334/.355. The Tigers don't have a single regular hitting .300 or better, while the Aggies have seven.
But again, it comes back to the starting pitching, and it starts with McClain squaring off against Long on Friday in College Station.
National Notes:
• No. 2 Texas Christian squeaked out a mid-week win over Oklahoma on Tuesday, a game decided in extra innings when Jeremie Fagnan delivered a walkoff RBI single in the 10th. Horned Frogs pitching was once again the story in this game, with mid-week starter Tyler Alexander working the first seven innings of the game before handing the ball over the Trek Teakell, who went the rest of the way.
While Alexander didn't factor into the decision his presence, as noted in previous features, will make TCU very tough to beat in their mid-week contests. The draft-eligible sophomore lefthander served as one the team's weekend starters a year ago, and performed admirably as a freshman, leading the team in wins with 10 while posting a 2.36 ERA in 99 innings of work. He started the year once again in the weekend rotation this year before Mitchell Traver's emergence pushed the entire starting staff back.
Alexander's overall delivery and stuff are similar to that of Young's with a upper-80s to low-90s fastball delivered from a lower, slinging angle from the left side. He mixes in a solid sweeping breaking ball that he's able to add and subtract from, as well as an effective fading changeup.
As for Teakell, he and lefthander Ryan Burnett have formed a very nice 1-2 punch out of the bullpen, frequently leading up to fireballing closer Riley Ferrell. Although Teakell, who typically sits in the low-90s, gave up two runs in the eighth inning which allowed the Sooners to tie the game 3-3, only one of those runs were earned. He leads the staff in appearances with 13 and has a 1.25 ERA in 21 2/3 innings of work.
• One of the bigger series this weekend not detailed above will occur in Louisville, Ky., as the Cardinals host Georgia Tech. Louisville, now ranked sixth in the nation, got off to a rough start this season, losing two of three games to Arkansas State during the second weekend of the year. Since then they are 15-4, taking two of three from Miami to open ACC play before sweeping both Boston College and Notre Dame in the two weeks that followed.
While Kyle Funkhouser continues to front the weekend staff, the emergence of freshman two-way standout Brendan McKay has been huge for the Cardinals. He is hitting .309 on the season and is getting on base at a .434 clip, while also going 3-0 on the mound in nine appearances, two of which have been starts. He also has recorded four saves this year, although has handed the closer role over to sophomore Zack Burdi, who like his older brother Nick, has seen his velocity take a huge step forward this year with the ability to touch the upper-90s.
Georgia Tech comes to town led by a standout freshman of their own, slugging outfielder Kel Johnson. Johnson is hitting .379 with 16 extra-base hits so far this year, seven of which are home runs, for the 17-7 Yellow Jackets. Georgia Tech took two of three from both Notre Dame and Duke to open ACC play before losing their series to North Carolina last weekend, 1-2.
• After opening the year 13-0 wins have been harder to come by for Mississippi State. They have gone 5-9 since their red-hot start to the year, which saw them rise up from their opening No. 23 ranking, only to fall out of Perfect Game's Top 25 last weekend.
Redshirt sophomore outfielder Jacob Robson continues to do his job at the top of the batting order, producing a .415/.537/.476 slash line. In addition to the 34 base hits he has recorded, he also has drawn 22 walks, and has had made his presence on the basepaths be known as well, swiping 15 bases.
The Bulldogs will look to get back on track this weekend as they host 15-10 Auburn.
• Nebraska saw it's 11-game winning streak snapped on Wednesday at the hands of Cal State Fullerton. The Titans travelled to Lincoln for a pair of mid-week contests against the Huskers, with the teams splitting the series with a win apiece.
Splitting the Fullerton series, combined with a strong showing in their upcoming weekend series against former Big 12 rivals Texas in Lincoln, could go a long way to drawing even more serious consideration from the PG college baseball staff for top 25 inclusion come Monday. The team started the year 7-6, taking two games from both Brigham Young and Loyola Marymount over the first month of the season before going 1-2 at the Houston College Classic, with their two losses coming against No. 1 LSU and No. 5 Texas A&M.
Since then they're 11-1 at home as part of a 16-game stretch playing on their home turf. They swept respectable Florida Gulf Coast and Michigan programs, and now boast an 18-7 overall mark.
No. 16 Texas will represent Nebraska's third ranked opponent so far this season, and their first at home in a non-conference tilt between two deep and balanced ballclubs. They're also fairly evenly matched, as Nebraska has a triple slash of .278/.350/.364 this season while Texas is at .270/.371/.425, with only Texas' power standing out among those numbers. The staff ERA is also similar at 2.59 and 2.67 respectively. Nebraska's weekend trio of Chance Sinclair, Kyle Kubat and Derek Burkamper have been particularly stingy this season, collectively going 10-4 this season with a 2.82 ERA.
PG - Weekend Preview: Week 7
Each of the top six teams as shown below will play at home this weekend, and none of them come against ranked opponents. The biggest series to note among these teams will occur in College Station, Texas, as No. 5 Texas A&M host current SEC and former Big 12 rival Missouri while No. 6 Louisville takes on a surging Georgia Tech team.
In addition, 12 of the top 15 teams will also play their series at home, with the most notable team on the road coming in the form of No. 10 Miami traveling to Chapel Hill, N.C., to take on North Carolina, as previewed below.
The only other bout between top 25 ranked teams will occur in Orlando, Fla., as No. 15 UCF hosts No. 19 Houston in hopes of claiming American Athletic Conference supremacy. This series is also detailed below.
Jheremy Brown will be in Phoenix this weekend to cover the Pac-12 matchup between No. 12 Arizona State and Stanford. Stay tuned to Perfect Game throughout the weekend for notes on those games as well as others from across the nation.
Top 25 in Action
Rk. Team Opponent Location
1 Louisiana State home vs. Kentucky Baton Rouge, LA
2 Texas Christian home vs. Wichita State Fort Worth, TX
3 Florida home vs. Alabama Gainesville, FL
4 Vanderbilt home vs. Tennessee Nashville, TN
5 Texas A&M home vs. Missouri College Station, TX
6 Louisville home vs. Georgia Tech Louisville, KY
7 UCLA at Washington State Pullman, WA
8 South Carolina home vs. Georgia Columbia, SC
9 Florida State home vs. Virginia Tech Tallahassee, FL
10 Miami at No. 18 North Carolina Chapel Hill, NC
11 Oregon State home vs. Cal Poly Corvallis, OR
12 Arizona State home vs. Stanford Phoenix, AZ
13 UC Santa Barbara home vs. Long Beach State Santa Barbara, CA
14 Virginia at Notre Dame South Bend, IN
15 UCF home vs. No. 19 Houston Orlando, FL
16 Texas at Nebraska Lincoln, NE
17 Oregon at Arizona Tucson, AZ
18 North Carolina home vs. No. 10 Miami Chapel Hill, NC
19 Houston at No. 15 UCF Orlando, FL
20 Florida Atlantic at Texas-San Antonio San Antonio, TX
21 Illinois at Michigan State East Lansing, MI
22 Southern California at Washington Seattle, WA
23 Texas Tech home vs. Kansas Lubbock, TX
24 Dallas Baptist home vs. Illinois State Dallas, TX
25 Maryland at Michigan Ann Arbor, MI
Marquee Matchup #1:
No. 10 Miami at No. 18 North Carolina
There's no such thing as an easy weekend in the ACC as each and every team is able to erupt at any moment or receive a big time performance from one of their top arms. The setting for this conference series is Chapel Hill, N.C., as the Hurricanes from the University of Miami, ranked No. 10 per the Perfect Game staff, travel north to face the 19th ranked North Carolina Tar Heels. Both programs are coming off key conference series wins with the Canes taking two of three from surging Wake Forest while the Heels, like Miami, took two of three from Georgia Tech.
Miami enters the weekend with a 6-3 record in the Coastal Division of the ACC, tops in the division, while North Carolina is currently tied for second in the division with a 5-4 record, knotted with Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech.
David Thompson (Photo: Richard Lewis / Miami Athletics)
The Hurricanes pitching staff has been a key part of their success early on in this young 2015 campaign. Staff ace Andrew Suarez appears to be fully recovered from his early season injury, turning in back-to-back strong performances in conference play. Thomas Woodrey hasn't looked back after a strong start to the spring and heads into this weekend with a 3-1 record over five starts while maintaining a 2.93 ERA with just six walks over 30 2/3 innings. Another arm who has been as consistent as they come is sophomore closer Bryan Garcia who has closed out four games this spring, making 12 appearances with a 1.15 ERA.
Of course to win games you need to score runs and Miami is more than capable of that. Junior David Thompson has caught fire over the last week hitting a couple of long balls, increasing his team lead to eight while driving in a remarkable 39 runs while hitting a loud .361. Surprisingly enough Thompson's .361 mark is only third best on the team as George Iskenderian (.375) and Garrett Kennedy (.369) have both offered consistent bats as well, showing strength off their barrels while hitting for a high average.
Like Miami, Coach Mike Fox has received solid contributions from his pitching staff, particularly his starting rotation. Even with junior righthander Trent Thornton moving to the bullpen where he has continued to find success, the Tar heels rotation hasn't skipped a beat. Sophomore Zac Gallen, freshman J.B. Bukauskas, and senior Benton Moss all turned in solid starts last week and will be key to the Heels' success this weekend and for ACC series moving forward. They may also boast the deepest crop of freshmen arms, all of whom have their roles and have performed well when called up. Senior Trevor Kelley has been remarkable out of the 'pen, and their most relied upon arm, appearing in a team-high 16 games with a 1.74 ERA, striking out 28 while walking just four.
North Carolina erupted for nine runs in their most recent game, a shutout victory over Appalachian State mid-week in which nearly every starter recorded a hit. The Heels look to continue their hot-hitting ways, especially from outfielder Skye Bolt who has recorded two multi-hit games in their last three contests.
Overall, the series looks to be a good one as each team is able to send a quality starter out to the mound for each of the three games and complements them with a strong bullpen. Both offenses are capable of exploding for runs though the depth of pitching may be the story of the weekend matchup.
Marquee Matchup #2:
No. 19 Houston at No. 15 UCF
The American Athletic Conference is only in year two but it is quickly establishing itself as one of the better baseball conferences in the country. The league sent Louisville to Omaha in its inaugural season last year and this year's championship race shapes up to be even better. It all kicks off this weekend and Houston at UCF is the main event.
Houston looked to build off of the momentum of last year's run to a Super Regional as the Cougars returned their entire weekend rotation and most of the lineup. This led to a top 10 preseason ranking, and that was before we even knew how productive newcomers Connor Wong and Chris Iriart would be. The freshman shortstop Wong leads the club with 22 RBI, although he has struggled defensively with 12 errors already. Iriart has six home runs and 14 extra-base hits and his physicality has been critical in solidifying the middle of the order.
Dylan Moore (Photo: UCFKnights.com)
The bad news is that the highly touted Houston rotation has struggled outside of Andrew Lantrip who has been outstanding. Senior Aaron Garza has pitched his way out of the rotation with a 5.92 ERA and junior flame-thrower Jake Lemoine will miss his second straight start this weekend with a shoulder impingement.
Through all of this adversity, Todd Whitting and his staff have done an incredible job keeping this team moving forward and the Cougars come to Orlando riding an amazing 10-game winning streak. And this winning streak was preceded by a stretch where Houston lost five of six games. Overall, the Cougars' postseason resume shapes up nicely as their 18 wins include a series win against Alabama and a road sweep of a New Mexico team that looks to be of Regional caliber.
UCF is enjoying a magical season under Terry Rooney. The Knights may have the most experienced roster in the nation with 16 players in their fourth year of college baseball. They certainly have the best offense in the country ranking first nationally in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. UCF is second in the nation in scoring at 8.8 runs per game. The Knights also sport an impressive postseason resume with a series win over Ole Miss and individual wins over Arkansas, Maryland, and Florida.
Senior shortstop Dylan Moore may be the best player in America still flying under the radar in college baseball. The senior transfer from Cypress JC in California played second base last year and he is having a huge season. Not only is Moore fielding .966 at shortstop, but he is among the nation's leaders with seven home runs and 34 RBI.
The interesting matchup this weekend will be the UCF pitching staff versus a very balanced Houston offense. UCF is thin on the mound and led by a true freshman in Cre Finfrock who has been pitching on Friday nights. The atmosphere in Orlando should be electric and this series certainly has a Super Regional feel to it.
Mound Matchup:
Grayson Long (Texas A&M) vs. Reggie McClain (Missouri)
This entire series could prove to be one of the more meaningful matchups on the weekend, particularly in the two starting rotations, as the Tigers' starting three has posted numbers remarkably similar to that of the Aggies' starting trio. However, it will be that Friday night matchup between Missouri's Reggie McClain and Texas A&M's Grayson Long that will set the tone for the rest of the weekend.
Reggie McClain (Photo: Kyle Mazabob)
Texas A&M is off to a 25-1 start to the season, starting the year ranked 24th and rising to their current slot at No. 5. Missouri is coming fresh off their series against previously ranked No. 5 South Carolina in which the Tigers claimed two of the three games, largely in part due to the pitching performances of McClain and their Saturday starter, freshman Tanner Houck.
While neither Long nor McClain is particularly overpowering, both excel at changes speeds and commanding the strike zone with three distinct pitches. Long, who has assumed the Friday night role for the last two weekends for the injured A.J. Minter, actually throws a fourth, mixing in a mid-70s curveball later in games this year to complement his low-90s fastball, that usually peaks at 93 mph, as well as his low-80s slider and changeup.
McClain works in the mid- to upper-80s with his fastball, and his best pitch is his changeup thrown with the exact same arm action and speed as his fastball, pulling the string perfectly to get a lot of empty swings.
As noted, both pitchers do an excellent job keeping hitters guessing as to what pitch is coming next by changing speeds and throwing strikes. Here's a look as to just how similar the two starters have fared so far this year:
Player Record G/GS ERA IP H K BB BAA
Long 5-0 6/6 2.08 34.2 23 43 13 .184
McClain 4-1 6/6 1.74 46.2 31 40 7 .189
Expand that to each team's Saturday and Sunday starters (Matt Kent and Turner Larkins for Texas A&M, Tanner Houck and Peter Fairbanks for Missouri):
Team Record ERA IP K BB
Texas A&M 8-1 3.08 73 66 9
Missouri 5-3 2.48 76.1 66 10
The strikeout-to-walk ratio is what stands out the most for each team, as they're missing bats and they're not beating themselves. The biggest difference is the win-loss ratio, which is more reflective of the teams' difference in records (25-1 to 19-7).
And that difference largely has to do with the difference in offensive production, with A&M boasting one of the best in the nation, producing a cumulative .311/.413/.453 slash line as compared to Missouri's .246/.334/.355. The Tigers don't have a single regular hitting .300 or better, while the Aggies have seven.
But again, it comes back to the starting pitching, and it starts with McClain squaring off against Long on Friday in College Station.
National Notes:
• No. 2 Texas Christian squeaked out a mid-week win over Oklahoma on Tuesday, a game decided in extra innings when Jeremie Fagnan delivered a walkoff RBI single in the 10th. Horned Frogs pitching was once again the story in this game, with mid-week starter Tyler Alexander working the first seven innings of the game before handing the ball over the Trek Teakell, who went the rest of the way.
While Alexander didn't factor into the decision his presence, as noted in previous features, will make TCU very tough to beat in their mid-week contests. The draft-eligible sophomore lefthander served as one the team's weekend starters a year ago, and performed admirably as a freshman, leading the team in wins with 10 while posting a 2.36 ERA in 99 innings of work. He started the year once again in the weekend rotation this year before Mitchell Traver's emergence pushed the entire starting staff back.
Alexander's overall delivery and stuff are similar to that of Young's with a upper-80s to low-90s fastball delivered from a lower, slinging angle from the left side. He mixes in a solid sweeping breaking ball that he's able to add and subtract from, as well as an effective fading changeup.
As for Teakell, he and lefthander Ryan Burnett have formed a very nice 1-2 punch out of the bullpen, frequently leading up to fireballing closer Riley Ferrell. Although Teakell, who typically sits in the low-90s, gave up two runs in the eighth inning which allowed the Sooners to tie the game 3-3, only one of those runs were earned. He leads the staff in appearances with 13 and has a 1.25 ERA in 21 2/3 innings of work.
• One of the bigger series this weekend not detailed above will occur in Louisville, Ky., as the Cardinals host Georgia Tech. Louisville, now ranked sixth in the nation, got off to a rough start this season, losing two of three games to Arkansas State during the second weekend of the year. Since then they are 15-4, taking two of three from Miami to open ACC play before sweeping both Boston College and Notre Dame in the two weeks that followed.
While Kyle Funkhouser continues to front the weekend staff, the emergence of freshman two-way standout Brendan McKay has been huge for the Cardinals. He is hitting .309 on the season and is getting on base at a .434 clip, while also going 3-0 on the mound in nine appearances, two of which have been starts. He also has recorded four saves this year, although has handed the closer role over to sophomore Zack Burdi, who like his older brother Nick, has seen his velocity take a huge step forward this year with the ability to touch the upper-90s.
Georgia Tech comes to town led by a standout freshman of their own, slugging outfielder Kel Johnson. Johnson is hitting .379 with 16 extra-base hits so far this year, seven of which are home runs, for the 17-7 Yellow Jackets. Georgia Tech took two of three from both Notre Dame and Duke to open ACC play before losing their series to North Carolina last weekend, 1-2.
• After opening the year 13-0 wins have been harder to come by for Mississippi State. They have gone 5-9 since their red-hot start to the year, which saw them rise up from their opening No. 23 ranking, only to fall out of Perfect Game's Top 25 last weekend.
Redshirt sophomore outfielder Jacob Robson continues to do his job at the top of the batting order, producing a .415/.537/.476 slash line. In addition to the 34 base hits he has recorded, he also has drawn 22 walks, and has had made his presence on the basepaths be known as well, swiping 15 bases.
The Bulldogs will look to get back on track this weekend as they host 15-10 Auburn.
• Nebraska saw it's 11-game winning streak snapped on Wednesday at the hands of Cal State Fullerton. The Titans travelled to Lincoln for a pair of mid-week contests against the Huskers, with the teams splitting the series with a win apiece.
Splitting the Fullerton series, combined with a strong showing in their upcoming weekend series against former Big 12 rivals Texas in Lincoln, could go a long way to drawing even more serious consideration from the PG college baseball staff for top 25 inclusion come Monday. The team started the year 7-6, taking two games from both Brigham Young and Loyola Marymount over the first month of the season before going 1-2 at the Houston College Classic, with their two losses coming against No. 1 LSU and No. 5 Texas A&M.
Since then they're 11-1 at home as part of a 16-game stretch playing on their home turf. They swept respectable Florida Gulf Coast and Michigan programs, and now boast an 18-7 overall mark.
No. 16 Texas will represent Nebraska's third ranked opponent so far this season, and their first at home in a non-conference tilt between two deep and balanced ballclubs. They're also fairly evenly matched, as Nebraska has a triple slash of .278/.350/.364 this season while Texas is at .270/.371/.425, with only Texas' power standing out among those numbers. The staff ERA is also similar at 2.59 and 2.67 respectively. Nebraska's weekend trio of Chance Sinclair, Kyle Kubat and Derek Burkamper have been particularly stingy this season, collectively going 10-4 this season with a 2.82 ERA.
PG - Weekend Preview: Week 7
D1 - Regional Spotlight: Setting The Table
"The world is made for people who aren't cursed with self awareness." - Bull Durham
Sometimes us baseball pundits prattle on about the nuances of the postseason picture and assume all of you know this as well as we do. Some of you do - but there is undoubtedly some out there who can benefit from a refresher course and maybe a source to refer back to later in the season.
For those hardcore fans, this is redundant. For the rest, here is how the college baseball postseason transpires. The field contains 64 teams divided into 16 Regionals. Teams are seeded 1-4 in each Regional. Typically the top seed is the host, but it is not mandatory.
Thirty-one teams win their conference's automatic bid and are included in the field. The remainder are chosen as at-large teams. Those 33 at large teams are evaluated by a 10-member selection committee and selected based on the following criteria:
• Overall record
• Division 1 record
• Overall RPI rank
• Non-conference record and non-conference RPI rank
• Conference record and tournament results
• Road record and road RPI rank
• Last 15 games record
• Record vs RPI 1-15, 26-50, 51-100, 101-150, 150+
• Head-to-head
• Common opponents' record
• Input from regional advisory committees
The teams are typically selected in groups of sixteen by seed. They are then slotted based on proximity to the host site and competitive balance. There is a full bracket where teams 1-8 are protected and cannot face each other until the College World Series. They are known as national seeds. Teams 9-16 are not ranked and are paired with the national seeds. Unlike basketball, there is no "S-curve", so the top overall seed does not necessarily play the No. 16 seed. In fact, No. 1 could play No. 9 in reality. There is a restriction where teams from the same conference who are one-seeds cannot play each other until the College World Series. Also, teams from the same conference cannot be placed in the same Regional. They can meet in the second weekend - known as the super regionals.
The regional field is announced on Memorial Day. The four-team double-elimination regionals take place the following weekend with games from Friday through Monday. The format follows a 2-2-2-1 format. All of the games are now broadcast on ESPN television networks or WatchESPN.com.
The regional champion faces off with the champion of the paired regional in the bracket. Teams are not reseeded. The national seed will be given the first opportunity to host the best-of-three super regional series. If the national seed has been eliminated, the surviving teams are given the opportunity to submit a bid for hosting. Typically, the team with the better regular season hosts.
Winners of the super regional advance to Omaha, Nebraska for the College World Series. The eight teams are again not reseeded. The CWS is basically two four team, double-elimination tournaments. The winners meet the second weekend in Omaha in a best of three championship series.
bulldurham
Choosing can be hard
"Why do you get to choose? I mean, why don't I get to choose, why doesn't he get to choose?" - Bull Durham
No one person gets to choose the field. Lord knows I have tried. Sometimes I've remarked when asked about how a projected field compared to the actual one with,"the committee missed one".
There have been some selections over the years that begged for second guessing. Other seasons the field goes according to expectations. We all hope for a season field without a cringe.
Here are the 10 thick-skinned men in a room in Indianapolis for Memorial Day weekend. They will debate and compromise until 64 teams are selected to play for a trophy.
Atlantic: Mike Buddie - Sr. Associate AD Wake Forest
East: Robert Goodman - Sr. Associate Commissioner CAA
Midwest: Ron Prettyman - AD Indiana State
South: Joel Erdmann - AD South Alabama
West: Scott Sidwell - AD San Francisco
Central: Patrick Chun - AD FAU
Mideast: Dave Heeke - AD Central Michigan - chair
Northeast: Ed Scott - Sr Associate AD Binghamton
South: Eric Hyman - AD Texas A&M
West : Dan Guerrero - AD UCLA
AnnieSavoy
Does everyone understand how the RPI has been adjusted?
"This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." - Bull Durham
And sometimes you win and counts more than a win.
Crash and Nuke probably have no idea about adjusted RPI. I'm sure Annie understands. She even knows when to count games as neutral and when to assign a designated home team. For the rest of us though, here is a refresher course.
The RPI is a simple formula. It is calculated with a combination of your winning percentage (25%) + your opponents' winning percentage (50%) + your opponents' opponents' winning percentage (25%). This includes Division I opponents only.
Last season, the formula was adjusted to count 1.3 for a road win and 0.7 for a home win. The reverse is true for home losses (1.3) and road losses (0.7). Neutral site games are not adjusted.
As a result, teams with home-heavy schedules that are near the top of the polls may find themselves lower than expected in the adjusted RPI. Also, teams that took extended road trips to open the season should expect their RPI rankings to be good now but to dip as they play more home games.
Basically, a team that loses two games of a three-game series on the road would see an adjusted record of 1.3-1.4 instead of 1-2. Win a road series and you make out great going 2.6-0.7 instead of 2-1. A road sweep gives you almost an extra win at 3.9-0.
This model definitely provides an incentive to schedule more road contests. That does not mean, however, that teams absolutely must hit the road in non-conference. Many conference schedules feature five road weekends which if a team performs, can be enough to offset the adjustment.
Last season, South Carolina played 37 home games and still hosted a regional. They were 8-9 on the road, which was adjusted to 10.4-6.3. Their RPI rank on selection day: 14.
It can be done, but teams will need to play good teams and have some road success to offset a predominant home schedule.
D1 - Regional Spotlight: Setting The Table
"The world is made for people who aren't cursed with self awareness." - Bull Durham
Sometimes us baseball pundits prattle on about the nuances of the postseason picture and assume all of you know this as well as we do. Some of you do - but there is undoubtedly some out there who can benefit from a refresher course and maybe a source to refer back to later in the season.
For those hardcore fans, this is redundant. For the rest, here is how the college baseball postseason transpires. The field contains 64 teams divided into 16 Regionals. Teams are seeded 1-4 in each Regional. Typically the top seed is the host, but it is not mandatory.
Thirty-one teams win their conference's automatic bid and are included in the field. The remainder are chosen as at-large teams. Those 33 at large teams are evaluated by a 10-member selection committee and selected based on the following criteria:
• Overall record
• Division 1 record
• Overall RPI rank
• Non-conference record and non-conference RPI rank
• Conference record and tournament results
• Road record and road RPI rank
• Last 15 games record
• Record vs RPI 1-15, 26-50, 51-100, 101-150, 150+
• Head-to-head
• Common opponents' record
• Input from regional advisory committees
The teams are typically selected in groups of sixteen by seed. They are then slotted based on proximity to the host site and competitive balance. There is a full bracket where teams 1-8 are protected and cannot face each other until the College World Series. They are known as national seeds. Teams 9-16 are not ranked and are paired with the national seeds. Unlike basketball, there is no "S-curve", so the top overall seed does not necessarily play the No. 16 seed. In fact, No. 1 could play No. 9 in reality. There is a restriction where teams from the same conference who are one-seeds cannot play each other until the College World Series. Also, teams from the same conference cannot be placed in the same Regional. They can meet in the second weekend - known as the super regionals.
The regional field is announced on Memorial Day. The four-team double-elimination regionals take place the following weekend with games from Friday through Monday. The format follows a 2-2-2-1 format. All of the games are now broadcast on ESPN television networks or WatchESPN.com.
The regional champion faces off with the champion of the paired regional in the bracket. Teams are not reseeded. The national seed will be given the first opportunity to host the best-of-three super regional series. If the national seed has been eliminated, the surviving teams are given the opportunity to submit a bid for hosting. Typically, the team with the better regular season hosts.
Winners of the super regional advance to Omaha, Nebraska for the College World Series. The eight teams are again not reseeded. The CWS is basically two four team, double-elimination tournaments. The winners meet the second weekend in Omaha in a best of three championship series.
bulldurham
Choosing can be hard
"Why do you get to choose? I mean, why don't I get to choose, why doesn't he get to choose?" - Bull Durham
No one person gets to choose the field. Lord knows I have tried. Sometimes I've remarked when asked about how a projected field compared to the actual one with,"the committee missed one".
There have been some selections over the years that begged for second guessing. Other seasons the field goes according to expectations. We all hope for a season field without a cringe.
Here are the 10 thick-skinned men in a room in Indianapolis for Memorial Day weekend. They will debate and compromise until 64 teams are selected to play for a trophy.
Atlantic: Mike Buddie - Sr. Associate AD Wake Forest
East: Robert Goodman - Sr. Associate Commissioner CAA
Midwest: Ron Prettyman - AD Indiana State
South: Joel Erdmann - AD South Alabama
West: Scott Sidwell - AD San Francisco
Central: Patrick Chun - AD FAU
Mideast: Dave Heeke - AD Central Michigan - chair
Northeast: Ed Scott - Sr Associate AD Binghamton
South: Eric Hyman - AD Texas A&M
West : Dan Guerrero - AD UCLA
AnnieSavoy
Does everyone understand how the RPI has been adjusted?
"This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." - Bull Durham
And sometimes you win and counts more than a win.
Crash and Nuke probably have no idea about adjusted RPI. I'm sure Annie understands. She even knows when to count games as neutral and when to assign a designated home team. For the rest of us though, here is a refresher course.
The RPI is a simple formula. It is calculated with a combination of your winning percentage (25%) + your opponents' winning percentage (50%) + your opponents' opponents' winning percentage (25%). This includes Division I opponents only.
Last season, the formula was adjusted to count 1.3 for a road win and 0.7 for a home win. The reverse is true for home losses (1.3) and road losses (0.7). Neutral site games are not adjusted.
As a result, teams with home-heavy schedules that are near the top of the polls may find themselves lower than expected in the adjusted RPI. Also, teams that took extended road trips to open the season should expect their RPI rankings to be good now but to dip as they play more home games.
Basically, a team that loses two games of a three-game series on the road would see an adjusted record of 1.3-1.4 instead of 1-2. Win a road series and you make out great going 2.6-0.7 instead of 2-1. A road sweep gives you almost an extra win at 3.9-0.
This model definitely provides an incentive to schedule more road contests. That does not mean, however, that teams absolutely must hit the road in non-conference. Many conference schedules feature five road weekends which if a team performs, can be enough to offset the adjustment.
Last season, South Carolina played 37 home games and still hosted a regional. They were 8-9 on the road, which was adjusted to 10.4-6.3. Their RPI rank on selection day: 14.
It can be done, but teams will need to play good teams and have some road success to offset a predominant home schedule.
D1 - Regional Spotlight: Setting The Table
D1 - The Fives: Favorite Stats Through Six Weeks
Six weeks into the college baseball season, and with conference play underway, we can begin to look at what's happened so far as if it means something, making informed predictions and, in certain cases, drawing conclusions. It's a very exciting time. With that in mind, here are five stats from the season so far that bring me particular joy.
1. St. Joseph's has laid down two sacrifice bunts in 18 games.
That's the lowest sacrifice bunts-to-games ratio in Division I, and one that makes you wonder if the Hawks are playing the same sport as the Gaels of St. Mary's College, who lay down two sacrifice bunts per game on average. It appears that no coach is as stingy with his outs as Hawks head man Fritz Hamburg, whose team is also a very efficient 13-for-16 in stolen base attempts. That reactive approach has only led to a 7-11 record, but that's not as bad as it sounds for an Atlantic 10 team that's had to face Loyola Marymount and Indiana. Here's to the Hawks achieving the success their tactics deserve.
2. Yale's Eric Hsieh is hitting .525.
I've joked about guys like Cincinnati's Ian Happ and Nebraska's Ryan Boldt hitting .500 for the entire season, and sure enough, their batting averages have descended to merely impressive levels, but here we are, in the last week of March, and Hsieh still has more hits than outs. That line is somewhat misleading because the NCAA batting title rules require only that an eligible player average three plate appearances per team game and appear in 75 percent of his team's games; Yale's only played 11 games so far, so Hseih's 40 plate appearances are about half what his competitors have.
With that said, it's not an empty .525 - he's walked twice as often as he's struck out and hit three doubles, which isn't 1998 LSU power, but it's not nothing. Perhaps more interesting is that even though he's usually played first base, Yale lists Hsieh as a pitcher, and he has indeed made two relief appearances. Also of note is the wild nature of Yale's season so far; four of its five losses have been by double digits, including one wild weekend where the Bulldogs lost to Richmond 30-2 on a Saturday afternoon, then beat Davidson 22-3 that night before losing to Davidson 23-2 in the Sunday finale. So maybe having Division I's leading hitter isn't the weirdest thing that's happened to Yale so far this year.
3. Indiana's Thomas Belcher still hasn't walked anyone.
For pitchers, the cutoff for rate stat leaderboards is one inning pitched per team game, and with 22 2/3 innings over the Hoosiers' 21 total games, Belcher just barely makes that cut. Among such pitchers, the lanky righty is the only one who has yet to walk a batter. I saw Belcher against Cal State Fullerton two weeks ago and he was outstanding, using a mix of offspeed pitches and arm angles to scare the bejeezus out of righthanded hitters while fending off lefties. And he's not some soft-tossing pitch-to-contact guy. His fastball sits in the high 80s and he's struck out 23 batters while allowing only two earned runs over the course of the season. Belcher's got a while to go before we can start calling his performance "Eshelmanian," but he's been one of the most impressive relievers in the country thus far. A further tip of the cap goes to TCU lefthander Tyler Alexander, who has yet to walk a batter in 27.2 innings.
4. Texas A&M started the season 24-0.
Sure, you were all aware of this before, but going through the early nonconference schedule undefeated was incredibly impressive, and that "-0" in the standings stood out more and more as early-season favorites Vanderbilt, Virginia, UCLA and TCU stumbled, even if only a little. So even while the cries of "they ain't played nobody yet" - directed at an SEC West team for a change - rang out, the Aggies did manage to beat all comers until a 6-2 loss to Alabama broke the streak. In a sport where it's never the goal to win literally every game, streaks like that deserve special mention.
5. Throw a dart at LSU's offensive stats and pick that.
It's remarkable that LSU has even lost three times. Paul Mainieri's team is leading all of Division I with a .332 team batting average, which is so high as to be almost incomprehensible. You could talk about how, 25 games into the season, they've got not one but two players - Kade Scivique and Andrew Stevenson - still hitting over .400. You could also talk about how three of the 20 hardest players to strike out - Scivique, Mark Laird and Alex Bregman - are Tigers, while all the other Power Five conference schools together have two players in the top 20. Or how Bregman, the team's shining light, is actually dragging down the team's numbers slightly with his .327 batting average and .393 OBP.
The Tigers are outhitting their opponents by 110 points, outslugging them by 195 points and outscoring them by more than four runs a game. Those numbers will likely decline as they get deeper into SEC competition, but then again, they did just drop 18 runs on Ole Miss and 16 runs on Arkansas.
D1 - The Fives: Favorite Stats Through Six Weeks
Six weeks into the college baseball season, and with conference play underway, we can begin to look at what's happened so far as if it means something, making informed predictions and, in certain cases, drawing conclusions. It's a very exciting time. With that in mind, here are five stats from the season so far that bring me particular joy.
1. St. Joseph's has laid down two sacrifice bunts in 18 games.
That's the lowest sacrifice bunts-to-games ratio in Division I, and one that makes you wonder if the Hawks are playing the same sport as the Gaels of St. Mary's College, who lay down two sacrifice bunts per game on average. It appears that no coach is as stingy with his outs as Hawks head man Fritz Hamburg, whose team is also a very efficient 13-for-16 in stolen base attempts. That reactive approach has only led to a 7-11 record, but that's not as bad as it sounds for an Atlantic 10 team that's had to face Loyola Marymount and Indiana. Here's to the Hawks achieving the success their tactics deserve.
2. Yale's Eric Hsieh is hitting .525.
I've joked about guys like Cincinnati's Ian Happ and Nebraska's Ryan Boldt hitting .500 for the entire season, and sure enough, their batting averages have descended to merely impressive levels, but here we are, in the last week of March, and Hsieh still has more hits than outs. That line is somewhat misleading because the NCAA batting title rules require only that an eligible player average three plate appearances per team game and appear in 75 percent of his team's games; Yale's only played 11 games so far, so Hseih's 40 plate appearances are about half what his competitors have.
With that said, it's not an empty .525 - he's walked twice as often as he's struck out and hit three doubles, which isn't 1998 LSU power, but it's not nothing. Perhaps more interesting is that even though he's usually played first base, Yale lists Hsieh as a pitcher, and he has indeed made two relief appearances. Also of note is the wild nature of Yale's season so far; four of its five losses have been by double digits, including one wild weekend where the Bulldogs lost to Richmond 30-2 on a Saturday afternoon, then beat Davidson 22-3 that night before losing to Davidson 23-2 in the Sunday finale. So maybe having Division I's leading hitter isn't the weirdest thing that's happened to Yale so far this year.
3. Indiana's Thomas Belcher still hasn't walked anyone.
For pitchers, the cutoff for rate stat leaderboards is one inning pitched per team game, and with 22 2/3 innings over the Hoosiers' 21 total games, Belcher just barely makes that cut. Among such pitchers, the lanky righty is the only one who has yet to walk a batter. I saw Belcher against Cal State Fullerton two weeks ago and he was outstanding, using a mix of offspeed pitches and arm angles to scare the bejeezus out of righthanded hitters while fending off lefties. And he's not some soft-tossing pitch-to-contact guy. His fastball sits in the high 80s and he's struck out 23 batters while allowing only two earned runs over the course of the season. Belcher's got a while to go before we can start calling his performance "Eshelmanian," but he's been one of the most impressive relievers in the country thus far. A further tip of the cap goes to TCU lefthander Tyler Alexander, who has yet to walk a batter in 27.2 innings.
4. Texas A&M started the season 24-0.
Sure, you were all aware of this before, but going through the early nonconference schedule undefeated was incredibly impressive, and that "-0" in the standings stood out more and more as early-season favorites Vanderbilt, Virginia, UCLA and TCU stumbled, even if only a little. So even while the cries of "they ain't played nobody yet" - directed at an SEC West team for a change - rang out, the Aggies did manage to beat all comers until a 6-2 loss to Alabama broke the streak. In a sport where it's never the goal to win literally every game, streaks like that deserve special mention.
5. Throw a dart at LSU's offensive stats and pick that.
It's remarkable that LSU has even lost three times. Paul Mainieri's team is leading all of Division I with a .332 team batting average, which is so high as to be almost incomprehensible. You could talk about how, 25 games into the season, they've got not one but two players - Kade Scivique and Andrew Stevenson - still hitting over .400. You could also talk about how three of the 20 hardest players to strike out - Scivique, Mark Laird and Alex Bregman - are Tigers, while all the other Power Five conference schools together have two players in the top 20. Or how Bregman, the team's shining light, is actually dragging down the team's numbers slightly with his .327 batting average and .393 OBP.
The Tigers are outhitting their opponents by 110 points, outslugging them by 195 points and outscoring them by more than four runs a game. Those numbers will likely decline as they get deeper into SEC competition, but then again, they did just drop 18 runs on Ole Miss and 16 runs on Arkansas.
D1 - The Fives: Favorite Stats Through Six Weeks
D1 - Weekend Preview: March 27-29
Surprising Missouri seizing opportunities
By Kendall Rogers
Missouri might finally have found its identity in the Southeastern Conference.
As was the case with fellow ex-Big 12 team Texas A&M, the Tigers entered the SEC two seasons ago not real sure what to expect. Long-time Mizzou head coach Tim Jamieson had experienced a lot of success in the Big 12, and sure, he knew the SEC was a good conference. But this good at the top, and goodness, this balanced?
It is pretty clear the Tigers didn't make a smooth transition at first. Missouri struggled immensely in its first season in the conference, while the second wasn't better despite having some quality arms. Missouri finished its first two seasons in the SEC with an overall record of 38-65. It was that bad, and it left me wondering if the Tigers had what it took to make that full transition once and for all.
Missouri has enjoyed the services of righthander Reggie McClain. (Kyle Mazabob)
Missouri has enjoyed the services of righthander Reggie McClain. (Kyle Mazabob)
Well, thanks to Reggie McClain, Tanner Houck, and plenty of others, the answer is a resounding yes, as the Tigers enter this weekend's crucial series at No. 3 Texas A&M with a 19-7 overall record, 5-1 mark in league play, and clearly on the cusp of the latest D1Baseball Top 25.
The Tigers have had quite the whirlwind season thus far. They started the year on a hot note, going 10-1, albeit against not exactly the greatest competition. Then, in a home series, the Tigers were swept by Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
That knocked Missouri right out of Top 25 consideration, and rightfully so.
"I think the bottom line is that no matter who we've played, we've struggled to score runs. We just have a team that really has to pitch it well to win, even in the midweek," Jamieson said. "The names of teams we're playing aren't historic, but I still think they're pretty decent clubs. For us, this is pretty much the same team each day. We're not going to have a lot of run scoring opportunities. We just really have to play defense and pitch. That's about it."
The Tigers had their will tested in that Milwaukee series. Missouri had been so fragile in 2013 and '14, and that series left many of us wondering if it was one they'd recover from. Jamieson's club left little double very soon after, hitting the road and sweeping Georgia in a series where it allowed five runs in three games. Then the Tigers returned home last weekend to take a series from South Carolina, and they could have swept the series if they could have held off the Gamecocks after racing out to a 3-0 lead early in third game.
Missouri suddenly is in great shape despite having an offense that might permanently just struggle outside of Brett Bond (.291/.354/.395) and vastly improved third baseman Josh Lester (.289/.387/.422), who has increased his batting average over 50 points from last season. The Tigers are hitting .250 overall, and also possess a .249 average in league play, though they're just two weeks into conference play so there is time to improve that number.
"I think we can be much better offensively, but the biggest issue we have is we're giving away too many at-bats," Jamieson said. "We need be a bit more disciplined with our approach. We have good team speed, but we don't have a lot of power. We do have some guys who can at least drive balls into the gaps. We just have too many lapses as an offensive unit. It's not a physical thing, it's just a situation where we haven't stepped up there when we've needed to.
"It's frustrating for me," he continued. "I think there's more in there."
Regardless of what the offense does the rest of the way, the Tigers have a consistent and powerful force in their pitching staff. The Tigers rank third in the league in team ERA, two spots behind Texas A&M - their opponent this weekend - and have allowed the fewest runs of anyone in the league through six games.
How have they done it? It's pretty simple, and it starts with McClain and Houck.
McClain transferred to Missouri from Manatee (Fla.) CC, and has been a real Godsend. He's a command-heavy pitcher who is steady mentally and not afraid to hold the Friday night role. McClain has been terrific thus far, sitting with a 1.74 ERA in 46.2 innings, along with 40 strikeouts and only seven walks. In addition to his impeccable command, McClain possesses quality stuff. He's 87-90 with his fastball and keeps his pitches down in the zone. He also can mix in quality secondary stuff, including a changeup.
"For him, it's his ball and attitude, and he's going to be down in the zone, get ahead early in the count, and his stuff is going to have really good life at the plate," Jamieson said. "He gets a lot of swings and misses on balls in the strike zone, and isn't afraid to pitch backwards. He just commands so well and doesn't walk anyone. It also helps that we've played good defense behind him, too."
Then there's Houck. The skinny 6-foot-5, 202-pounder has drawn some very impressive reviews and lofty comparisons through the first few weeks of his collegiate career. The Illinois native was a 12th-round pick of the Blue Jays out of high school, but opted to go to college. So he entered college with high expectations. Houck didn't waste any time impressing the coaching staff, sitting anywhere from 89-93 in the fall and showing electric overall stuff, clearly showing he had what it took to be in the weekend rotation.
The righthander has been a consistent force in the rotation, and he's coming off one of his most impressive outings yet, striking out eight, not walking anyone and allowing just two runs on eight hits in eight innings in a win over South Carolina last weekend. In that game, Houck sat anywhere from 89-93, with a lot of 93s, and even touched 94 on a couple of occasions. He also showed good secondary stuff with a Frisbee slider that reminds Jamieson and the Tigers a lot of former LSU righthander Aaron Nola during his sophomore campaign.
"You have to be poised, competitive and mature to pitch in this league at this age, and he's just one of those guys I don't even call a freshman anymore. Because he doesn't pitch like one," Jamieson said. "You're going to see a lot of 93s and even some 94s, and if you remember Nola as a sophomore, I think he's advanced as Aaron was as a sophomore. He throws from a similar arm slot, and he throws a little harder. He also doesn't walk anyone.
"His fastball has life to it, and really, the only time folks have been able to hit him is his fastball, when he's tired, tends to flatten out a bit. With that said, he's ahead of anyone we've ever had as a freshman, including Aaron Crow, Max Scherzer and Kyle Gibson. He just throws strikes, doesn't get rattled, and will just continue to get better as he also develops his changeup."
The Tigers have other quality options on the mound, too. Fellow starting pitcher Peter Fairbanks has a 1.82 ERA in 34.2 innings, while closer Breckin Williams has been a force at the end of games, tallying six saves already and a 1.26 ERA in 14.1 innings. Williams is another power arm for this team, sitting 92-94 with a swing-and-miss curveball and good slider. But most importantly, he has a great closer's mentality and attacks the zone.
It'll be interesting to see how the Tigers progress the rest of the season. In theory, you'd think the offensive woes would eventually catch up to them. But they haven't yet, and Mizzou just keeps getting great starts from its pitchers.
It's taken a while, but the Tigers finally have an identity in this league.
Texas embraces unique approach
By Dustin McComas
AUSTIN, Texas - Normally at this point in the season, long-time Longhorns head coach Augie Garrido has a weekend rotation, closer, and lineup locked in. As past seasons progressed, changes in those roles were very rare. Part of that was because Texas had strong starting players that took over those roles and never relinquished them. However, part of that also was because, believe it not, Texas simply didn't have the depth in recent years. It's different now.
Texas needs righthander Parker French to have a strong weekend against Nebraska. (Texas)
Texas needs righthander Parker French to have a strong weekend against Nebraska. (Texas)
Now, Garrido has a dugout and bullpen full of talented players that can contribute in many ways. After two weeks in Big 12 play, the rotation, outside of veteran righthander Parker French and maybe Chad Hollingsworth, isn't set in stone. And the closer spot - a position at Texas that's treated like quarterback on the football team - is not just up for grabs; it's a matchup-based platoon. This season is a unique one for Texas, which never pinch-hit and went away from roles in the postseason last year mostly because it didn't have anyone else. That uniqueness is something Garrido and the Longhorns are embracing.
"Right, it is," responded Garrido Wednesday afternoon when asked if this season was different from past ones because roles aren't as filled as normal, and they're comfortable in that because of the depth and production. "That comes from the recruiting depth."
Indeed, it does. Assistant coaches Skip Johnson and Tommy Nicholson have teamed up to stock the roster with talent top-to-bottom. Heck, the combination of the new baseballs, production, and talent has even changed the rate at which Garrido implements his famous small ball strategy on offense.
"I think we are hitting the ball hard and often," Garrido said. "And I think it will kind of change the way we use the offense. We have to get runners moving a little more in different ways than just bunting them over and stealing bases. Because of the way we're hitting the ball, we might move into more hit-and-run, run-and-hits, and move them that way."
We're accustomed to big names like Huston Street, J. Brent Cox, Austin Wood, Chance Ruffin and Corey Knebel as All-American closer types at the end of games for Texas. Right now, the Longhorns are comfortable using a six-man bullpen that includes three righthanders (Ty Marlow, Kyle Johnston, Connor Mayes) and three lefthanders (Travis Duke, Ty Culbreth, Kirby Bellow). Of those six, four different ones have recorded at least one save this year. Texas tries to get to Mayes - a freshman with a strong mix of low-90s fastball, slurve, and changeup - against righties late and Bellow, who has enjoyed a renaissance on the mound thanks to a changed delivery and move to a plus curve instead of a hard slider, against lefties.
"I think that's a good analysis of the current situation," responded Garrido when asked if Texas is taking comfort in its platoon-like approach to closer. "But I think we're starting to gain more confidence in Connor Mayes as someone that will throw strikes with a variety of pitches at the end of the game with runners on base and the game on the line. And the same goes for Kirby Bellow. I think getting to those two is where we are right now. That appears to be establishing itself more clearly."
Although the lineup is steadier, Garrido hasn't hesitated to use its depth, like pinch-hitting freshman Joe Baker late in Tuesday's comeback win on the road at Texas State.
"And the same thing for the players. We haven't done a lot of pinch-hitting as you go into championship play, you're going to get matchups from the pitching and you want to be able to counter that," Garrido said. "We have that [ability]. But the first thing is to develop the team and the team concept. That's why you see me hold to the lineup pretty steady all the way through these players have in their heads a description of what each position in the batting order is supposed to do, and it's hard to get that out too we haven't really completely committed to that process yet. The good news is they have a strong will to win and they have the talent to act on it because in every game we've made a move (late) to win the game from the offensive side, and that's not something we've had for quite a while."
Garrido said Wednesday he hopes to take his team by TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha during the team's weekend trip to the Cornhusker State to face streaking Nebraska. He also hopes to ride the depth and talent of this team to Omaha a couple of months from now.
Tennessee looking to hit 'reset' button
By Aaron Fitt
Dave Serrano doesn't mince words. If he thinks his program is a couple of years away from contending, he says so publicly. If he thinks he's got a good club, he doesn't back down from speaking boldly about his expectations.
Serrano is refreshingly candid in a way that few coaches are. Heading into this season, he made it clear that he expected his Tennessee Volunteers to make a leap forward - to make a regional for the first time since 2005, but also to make a run in the postseason. Given the talent on the roster, it was not an outlandish forecast, and we ranked the Vols No. 25 in our preseason rankings.
So Tennessee's 10-11 start (1-5 in the SEC) has been a notable disappointment, both to those outside the program and to insiders. And Serrano isn't shying away from that reality, either.
Dave Serrano
Dave Serrano
"I like this team; I'm as confused as anybody," Serrano said. "Obviously there's a lot of frustrated people in our fan base, and I get that. There's every right to be frustrated; this team has underachieved. I'm OK saying that because I'm in the front of the boat. I don't know what has crept in, but a tightness. A tightness has crept in. I blame myself because I came out for the first time in four years and said our goal is Omaha, looked past the SEC tournament, the regionals and the super regionals. That's probably a mistake on my part. That's probably too big of a vision to look at."
The Vols have lost road series to Florida International, UC Irvine and Florida. They had an early series against Rutgers canceled due to wintry weather, which was certainly a developmental setback for Tennessee. They hit rock bottom last weekend, getting swept at home by Georgia in embarrassing fashion. On Saturday, the Volunteers committed seven errors and allowed nine unearned runs. They made three more errors and gave up four more unearned runs on Sunday. They exhibited awful baserunning in the series too, running into unforced outs repeatedly.
"It was a low point in my coaching career of not being able to control anything that was happening," Serrano said. "And I'm in it with them. But we're trying to focus more the positive. We've just got to let it go and move forward."
This week, Serrano said the Volunteers were hitting the "reset" button on their season. He told his players to treat Wednesday's game against Cincinnati as Opening Day. They know they can't change the past, but they can refocus on smaller, shorter-term goals, and then maybe their bigger goals can still be attained. The Vols responded with a 7-0 win against the Bearcats. It wasn't a flawless performance - they still committed two errors and mustered just four hits in the victory - but they pitched well. And most importantly, they are now 1-0 in their new season, with a trip to in-state rival and national superpower Vanderbilt looming this weekend.
Last year, Tennessee's series victory over the Commodores in early April was the high point of its season. It was an intense, chippy series in Knoxville, and it brought out the best in the young Volunteers. On paper, this Tennessee team is good enough to beat anybody - it's just a matter of playing smart.
"They have talent," said one scout who has seen a number of Tennessee games. "They just find ways to beat themselves."
Tennessee has a brutal .951 team fielding percentage, so it must begin by playing better defense. There is hope for this unit; at least the Vols have two quality defenders in the middle infield with shortstop A.J. Simcox and second baseman Nick Senzel.
That Simcox/Senzel duo also makes up two of UT's top four hitters. Senzel (.354/.422/.557) and preseason All-American Christin Stewart (.324/.462/.676, 6 HR, 19 HR) would be formidable middle-of-the-lineup threats for any team in college baseball, and junior Vincent Jackson (.347/.472/.417) has dramatically improved his on-base skills and become a good leadoff man, though he is not driving the ball the way you might expect a 6-foot-6 physical specimen to.
Nick Senzel (Photo by Andrew Bruckse/Tennessee Athletics)
Nick Senzel (Photo by Andrew Bruckse/Tennessee Athletics)
Tennessee needs more production from the rest of its lineup, and it needs more consistency in its lineup. Serrano said he is going to try to settle on a core group of starters and resist shuffling the lineup; two-way talent Andrew Lee has begun to play regularly at DH, and expect him to be a powerful fixture in the lineup going forward. The Vols also need more out of NAIA transfer Chris Hall, who was one of the team's best hitters in the fall but has gotten off to a brutal start for Tennessee, going just 1-for-28 (.036).
"That's a guy we need to get going," Serrano said. "He was a spark plug for us, and he's played well below his capabilities.
"The other thing I think we've done to ourselves, we went in with a plan for ourselves. Then we start playing musical chairs with some guys, and I think it brought a sense of doubt. Every team I've been a part of that was successful, there's been some solidified spots."
On the mound, Serrano is making a tweak to his rotation this weekend. Bulldog Bret Marks and talented lefty Drake Owenby will remain in the top two spots, but Kyle Serrano (Dave's son) will move from the Sunday spot into the bullpen, and sophomore righty Hunter Martin will take over the Sunday starter job.
"I would say out of four starts, Kyle's been very good in two and very average in two," Dave Serrano said. "His stuff has been phenomenal - he was up to 97 this weekend. But it's the same old deal, he's working too hard I think this will take some pressure off him, allow him to throw that 94-96 fastball and spin that breaking ball, shorten the repertoire of pitches he has to use. It's there, it's just taken longer than I thought it would. I think it's a confidence deal. He's no different from this team. I hate the word 'potential,' but that's what he has and this team has."
As the season progresses, "potential" becomes irrelevant, and only results matter. Serrano hopes this team is still capable of harnessing its potential, like the 2004 Cal State Fullerton team did. Serrano was an assistant on the staff for that group of Titans, which famously turned a lackluster first half into a run to the national championship.
"By no means am I comparing these two teams, but in 2004, we couldn't do anything right. Then something clicked," Serrano said. "I'm holding onto the fact that something's gonna click. We do need to have more fight. Baseball is a game of adversity and failure. We've got to be able to fight through that adversity and failure and still achieve our goals.
"We've kind of scaled down to smaller short-term goals. Let's just get to the SEC tournament, which is still in our reach. We have a lot of work to do, but let's focus on how good this is going to feel when we get this turned around I could eat my words, and I've kind of already eaten my words a little bit. Because one thing about me is I have confidence; I have confidence in our kids, confidence in our organization. So sometimes I'll speak highly of our team, where some guys play the coach-talk. There's no doubt in my mind, we're going to look back in May and June and say, 'We turned a really difficult, horrible situation into a positive situation.' There's no doubt in my mind. Two or three years ago, I couldn't have said that, because we didn't have the ability to do that. We have the ability now."
Checking in with Houston's Todd Whitting
By Kendall Rogers
It wasn't long ago Houston coach Todd Whitting was looking for some answers.
The Cougars, who entered the season with the highest preseason ranking in program history, had just split a four-game series with Columbia at home, and began the Houston College Classic with a pair of losses to LSU and Texas A&M, scoring just two runs in those two games, and having ace righthander Jake Lemoine struggle immensely against the Aggies. We've now found out that Lemoine was pitching through a shoulder impingement, and is now on the shelf for another week or two. But at any rate, the Cougars were having a tough weekend, and though they captured a win over Hawaii to end the tournament, it wasn't exactly accomplished in typical Houston fashion. It wasn't the weekend a top-10 club puts together.
Houston needs guys to step up with Jake Lemoine still on the shelf. (Kendall Rogers)
Houston needs guys to step up with Jake Lemoine still on the shelf. (Kendall Rogers)
Questions still abounded about Houston.
The veteran Cougars have since answered a lot of those questions, and frankly, quelled a lot of doubts. They've won 10 straight contests since playing the Aggies at Minute Maid Park, and they've found dramatic ways to win games. Just earlier this week, the Cougars rallied late to beat Lamar at home, and that came following a road series sweep over a quality New Mexico club without Lemoine.
"I think early on, everything just kind of hit us at once, whether it was struggling or injuries, and this team just kind of went into a tailspin. Those things can happen," Whitting said. "We're just playing really, really hard right now. This team just has a next man up mentality, and it's special to see.
"The season is so long, and teams are going to have ups and downs. Every team is going to go through a stretch where they're not playing well in some situations. But even in those situations, you can right the ship pretty quickly. And it's seemed we've done that."
Not everything has been impressive for the Cougars during this winning streak. For instance, they enter a huge American Athletic Conference series this weekend against UCF without Lemoine, and also have relegated senior righthander Aaron Garza to the bullpen the past couple of weeks. Whitting said Garza is throwing better out of the pen, but the Cougars obviously would have preferred him to be a quality starter like he was for the first three years of his collegiate career. UH also needs Jared Robinson to step up. Robinson was expected to log a lot of innings this year, and his role was magnified when Bubba Maxwell went down with an injury. Robinson, though, has a 4.91 ERA in 11 innings, and hardly has been a knockout reliever.
Adding to the headaches for Whitting and his coaching staff, the Cougars found out Thursday that outfielder Michael Pyeatt, who had been out since the start of the season with a foot injury, will now miss the rest of the season as surgery is required to fix his issue. The good news is the Cougars expect to get spark plug Connor Hollis back this weekend. Hollis has been dealing with a hamate bone injury, and the Cougars love to have him back in the mix. UH still isn't sure where he'll play in the field, but corner outfield is a safe bet.
"He played in a little simulated game earlier this week and had a couple of hits," Whitting said. "He's an energy bat for us, and it's good to get him back in there."
UH will need some arms to really step up to take a series from a very good UCF club this weekend. Junior-college transfer and righthander Kyle Dowdy (2.28, 23.2) has been solid in the weekend rotation after being moved from the bullpen to that role, while Taylor Cobb could also start this weekend. Cobb works at 89-92 with a good breaking pitch. However, there are times when Cobb doesn't have that breaking pitch working for him. Freshman lefthander Seth Romero is the other option to start this weekend. Romero is an arm we've chronicled already this season. He sat 92-95 in the Houston College Classic, and has continued to develop his secondary stuff, making him more ready to be a starter.
"We threw Romero against Rice last week to get him ready to start this weekend, so that's likely what we're doing. But Cobb is in the mix," Whitting said. "Cobb's body type kind of reminds me of Jake Arrieta when I was at TCU. He kind of has that downhill delivery and he's kind of upright. As for Seth, his secondary stuff is still OK, but he's got to get better with it. But his fastball is down and up, and side-to-side. It continues to be a very good pitch."
Houston still isn't a finished product, but in the midst of a 10-game winning streak, Whitting and his staff can't ask for much more at this point.
Five Teams Needing Wins
By Kendall Rogers
Mississippi State1. Mississippi State - The Bulldogs have been unimpressive the first two weekends of conference play, and it has them in a huge hole with series losses to Alabama, and surprisingly, on the road against Kentucky last weekend. Here's something to chew on: While the Bulldogs hitting .260 isn't too big of a surprise, how about State's pitching staff having a 6.92 ERA in the first two conference series? Until that combination takes a turn for the better, things might not change much this weekend against Auburn. Of course, the Tigers have their own host of issues, too.
University of Virginia logo2. Virginia - There's no doubt coach Brian O'Connor is one of the best in the business, so we're expecting the Cavaliers to make a run at some point. The Cavaliers might've made a turn for the better in a midweek 10-7 win over Liberty, but we'll see what happens this weekend in South Bend against Notre Dame. Here's a surprise, though: The Cavaliers really struggled at times on the mound last weekend, issuing 34 walks in three games. We knew Virginia wouldn't have an amazing offense, but if the staff struggles again this weekend, it could again spell doom.
Cal State Fullerton Titans logo3. Cal State Fullerton - Is there a more Jekyll and Hyde type of team out there than the Titans? One week these guys will look very good, then for two weeks they'll look just plain bad. Well, the Titans are coming off back-to-back series losses to Long Beach State and Indiana after sweeping Texas Tech. Now, they must take on a much improved Cal State Northridge squad, albeit at home. Fullerton obviously has a terrific one-two punch in Thomas Eshelman and Justin Garza, but the offense has to be better. The Titans enter the Northridge series with an ugly .249 batting average.
Pepperdine logo4. Pepperdine - The Waves have plenty of time to work their magic, especially with series against Portland and Pacific - albeit on the road - the next two weekends. But I'm frankly surprised the Waves are 11-15 overall and just haven't been able to establish an identity. Interestingly enough, righthander Jackson McClelland has one of the more odd stat lines you'll see: He's got a 1.71 ERA in 42 innings, but 20 walks and just 28 strikeouts. It seems he's been able to pitch his way out of trouble effectively.
Stanford logo5. Stanford - You know, the Cardinal does have that built-in excuse that injuries have taken their toll, especially with losing someone of the caliber of righthander Cal Quantrill. But the Cardinal just isn't getting it done overall. Stanford dropped yet another series last weekend to Arizona, and now is 10-11 with a series at Arizona State on the docket. Hint: I don't think that series turns out well for "9" and his team, but I've seen stranger things happen. Stanford has two hitters (Matt Winaker, Mikey Diekroeger) in its everyday lineup hitting over .300. That's not going to get it done.
D1 - Weekend Preview: March 27-29
Surprising Missouri seizing opportunities
By Kendall Rogers
Missouri might finally have found its identity in the Southeastern Conference.
As was the case with fellow ex-Big 12 team Texas A&M, the Tigers entered the SEC two seasons ago not real sure what to expect. Long-time Mizzou head coach Tim Jamieson had experienced a lot of success in the Big 12, and sure, he knew the SEC was a good conference. But this good at the top, and goodness, this balanced?
It is pretty clear the Tigers didn't make a smooth transition at first. Missouri struggled immensely in its first season in the conference, while the second wasn't better despite having some quality arms. Missouri finished its first two seasons in the SEC with an overall record of 38-65. It was that bad, and it left me wondering if the Tigers had what it took to make that full transition once and for all.
Missouri has enjoyed the services of righthander Reggie McClain. (Kyle Mazabob)
Missouri has enjoyed the services of righthander Reggie McClain. (Kyle Mazabob)
Well, thanks to Reggie McClain, Tanner Houck, and plenty of others, the answer is a resounding yes, as the Tigers enter this weekend's crucial series at No. 3 Texas A&M with a 19-7 overall record, 5-1 mark in league play, and clearly on the cusp of the latest D1Baseball Top 25.
The Tigers have had quite the whirlwind season thus far. They started the year on a hot note, going 10-1, albeit against not exactly the greatest competition. Then, in a home series, the Tigers were swept by Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
That knocked Missouri right out of Top 25 consideration, and rightfully so.
"I think the bottom line is that no matter who we've played, we've struggled to score runs. We just have a team that really has to pitch it well to win, even in the midweek," Jamieson said. "The names of teams we're playing aren't historic, but I still think they're pretty decent clubs. For us, this is pretty much the same team each day. We're not going to have a lot of run scoring opportunities. We just really have to play defense and pitch. That's about it."
The Tigers had their will tested in that Milwaukee series. Missouri had been so fragile in 2013 and '14, and that series left many of us wondering if it was one they'd recover from. Jamieson's club left little double very soon after, hitting the road and sweeping Georgia in a series where it allowed five runs in three games. Then the Tigers returned home last weekend to take a series from South Carolina, and they could have swept the series if they could have held off the Gamecocks after racing out to a 3-0 lead early in third game.
Missouri suddenly is in great shape despite having an offense that might permanently just struggle outside of Brett Bond (.291/.354/.395) and vastly improved third baseman Josh Lester (.289/.387/.422), who has increased his batting average over 50 points from last season. The Tigers are hitting .250 overall, and also possess a .249 average in league play, though they're just two weeks into conference play so there is time to improve that number.
"I think we can be much better offensively, but the biggest issue we have is we're giving away too many at-bats," Jamieson said. "We need be a bit more disciplined with our approach. We have good team speed, but we don't have a lot of power. We do have some guys who can at least drive balls into the gaps. We just have too many lapses as an offensive unit. It's not a physical thing, it's just a situation where we haven't stepped up there when we've needed to.
"It's frustrating for me," he continued. "I think there's more in there."
Regardless of what the offense does the rest of the way, the Tigers have a consistent and powerful force in their pitching staff. The Tigers rank third in the league in team ERA, two spots behind Texas A&M - their opponent this weekend - and have allowed the fewest runs of anyone in the league through six games.
How have they done it? It's pretty simple, and it starts with McClain and Houck.
McClain transferred to Missouri from Manatee (Fla.) CC, and has been a real Godsend. He's a command-heavy pitcher who is steady mentally and not afraid to hold the Friday night role. McClain has been terrific thus far, sitting with a 1.74 ERA in 46.2 innings, along with 40 strikeouts and only seven walks. In addition to his impeccable command, McClain possesses quality stuff. He's 87-90 with his fastball and keeps his pitches down in the zone. He also can mix in quality secondary stuff, including a changeup.
"For him, it's his ball and attitude, and he's going to be down in the zone, get ahead early in the count, and his stuff is going to have really good life at the plate," Jamieson said. "He gets a lot of swings and misses on balls in the strike zone, and isn't afraid to pitch backwards. He just commands so well and doesn't walk anyone. It also helps that we've played good defense behind him, too."
Then there's Houck. The skinny 6-foot-5, 202-pounder has drawn some very impressive reviews and lofty comparisons through the first few weeks of his collegiate career. The Illinois native was a 12th-round pick of the Blue Jays out of high school, but opted to go to college. So he entered college with high expectations. Houck didn't waste any time impressing the coaching staff, sitting anywhere from 89-93 in the fall and showing electric overall stuff, clearly showing he had what it took to be in the weekend rotation.
The righthander has been a consistent force in the rotation, and he's coming off one of his most impressive outings yet, striking out eight, not walking anyone and allowing just two runs on eight hits in eight innings in a win over South Carolina last weekend. In that game, Houck sat anywhere from 89-93, with a lot of 93s, and even touched 94 on a couple of occasions. He also showed good secondary stuff with a Frisbee slider that reminds Jamieson and the Tigers a lot of former LSU righthander Aaron Nola during his sophomore campaign.
"You have to be poised, competitive and mature to pitch in this league at this age, and he's just one of those guys I don't even call a freshman anymore. Because he doesn't pitch like one," Jamieson said. "You're going to see a lot of 93s and even some 94s, and if you remember Nola as a sophomore, I think he's advanced as Aaron was as a sophomore. He throws from a similar arm slot, and he throws a little harder. He also doesn't walk anyone.
"His fastball has life to it, and really, the only time folks have been able to hit him is his fastball, when he's tired, tends to flatten out a bit. With that said, he's ahead of anyone we've ever had as a freshman, including Aaron Crow, Max Scherzer and Kyle Gibson. He just throws strikes, doesn't get rattled, and will just continue to get better as he also develops his changeup."
The Tigers have other quality options on the mound, too. Fellow starting pitcher Peter Fairbanks has a 1.82 ERA in 34.2 innings, while closer Breckin Williams has been a force at the end of games, tallying six saves already and a 1.26 ERA in 14.1 innings. Williams is another power arm for this team, sitting 92-94 with a swing-and-miss curveball and good slider. But most importantly, he has a great closer's mentality and attacks the zone.
It'll be interesting to see how the Tigers progress the rest of the season. In theory, you'd think the offensive woes would eventually catch up to them. But they haven't yet, and Mizzou just keeps getting great starts from its pitchers.
It's taken a while, but the Tigers finally have an identity in this league.
Texas embraces unique approach
By Dustin McComas
AUSTIN, Texas - Normally at this point in the season, long-time Longhorns head coach Augie Garrido has a weekend rotation, closer, and lineup locked in. As past seasons progressed, changes in those roles were very rare. Part of that was because Texas had strong starting players that took over those roles and never relinquished them. However, part of that also was because, believe it not, Texas simply didn't have the depth in recent years. It's different now.
Texas needs righthander Parker French to have a strong weekend against Nebraska. (Texas)
Texas needs righthander Parker French to have a strong weekend against Nebraska. (Texas)
Now, Garrido has a dugout and bullpen full of talented players that can contribute in many ways. After two weeks in Big 12 play, the rotation, outside of veteran righthander Parker French and maybe Chad Hollingsworth, isn't set in stone. And the closer spot - a position at Texas that's treated like quarterback on the football team - is not just up for grabs; it's a matchup-based platoon. This season is a unique one for Texas, which never pinch-hit and went away from roles in the postseason last year mostly because it didn't have anyone else. That uniqueness is something Garrido and the Longhorns are embracing.
"Right, it is," responded Garrido Wednesday afternoon when asked if this season was different from past ones because roles aren't as filled as normal, and they're comfortable in that because of the depth and production. "That comes from the recruiting depth."
Indeed, it does. Assistant coaches Skip Johnson and Tommy Nicholson have teamed up to stock the roster with talent top-to-bottom. Heck, the combination of the new baseballs, production, and talent has even changed the rate at which Garrido implements his famous small ball strategy on offense.
"I think we are hitting the ball hard and often," Garrido said. "And I think it will kind of change the way we use the offense. We have to get runners moving a little more in different ways than just bunting them over and stealing bases. Because of the way we're hitting the ball, we might move into more hit-and-run, run-and-hits, and move them that way."
We're accustomed to big names like Huston Street, J. Brent Cox, Austin Wood, Chance Ruffin and Corey Knebel as All-American closer types at the end of games for Texas. Right now, the Longhorns are comfortable using a six-man bullpen that includes three righthanders (Ty Marlow, Kyle Johnston, Connor Mayes) and three lefthanders (Travis Duke, Ty Culbreth, Kirby Bellow). Of those six, four different ones have recorded at least one save this year. Texas tries to get to Mayes - a freshman with a strong mix of low-90s fastball, slurve, and changeup - against righties late and Bellow, who has enjoyed a renaissance on the mound thanks to a changed delivery and move to a plus curve instead of a hard slider, against lefties.
"I think that's a good analysis of the current situation," responded Garrido when asked if Texas is taking comfort in its platoon-like approach to closer. "But I think we're starting to gain more confidence in Connor Mayes as someone that will throw strikes with a variety of pitches at the end of the game with runners on base and the game on the line. And the same goes for Kirby Bellow. I think getting to those two is where we are right now. That appears to be establishing itself more clearly."
Although the lineup is steadier, Garrido hasn't hesitated to use its depth, like pinch-hitting freshman Joe Baker late in Tuesday's comeback win on the road at Texas State.
"And the same thing for the players. We haven't done a lot of pinch-hitting as you go into championship play, you're going to get matchups from the pitching and you want to be able to counter that," Garrido said. "We have that [ability]. But the first thing is to develop the team and the team concept. That's why you see me hold to the lineup pretty steady all the way through these players have in their heads a description of what each position in the batting order is supposed to do, and it's hard to get that out too we haven't really completely committed to that process yet. The good news is they have a strong will to win and they have the talent to act on it because in every game we've made a move (late) to win the game from the offensive side, and that's not something we've had for quite a while."
Garrido said Wednesday he hopes to take his team by TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha during the team's weekend trip to the Cornhusker State to face streaking Nebraska. He also hopes to ride the depth and talent of this team to Omaha a couple of months from now.
Tennessee looking to hit 'reset' button
By Aaron Fitt
Dave Serrano doesn't mince words. If he thinks his program is a couple of years away from contending, he says so publicly. If he thinks he's got a good club, he doesn't back down from speaking boldly about his expectations.
Serrano is refreshingly candid in a way that few coaches are. Heading into this season, he made it clear that he expected his Tennessee Volunteers to make a leap forward - to make a regional for the first time since 2005, but also to make a run in the postseason. Given the talent on the roster, it was not an outlandish forecast, and we ranked the Vols No. 25 in our preseason rankings.
So Tennessee's 10-11 start (1-5 in the SEC) has been a notable disappointment, both to those outside the program and to insiders. And Serrano isn't shying away from that reality, either.
Dave Serrano
Dave Serrano
"I like this team; I'm as confused as anybody," Serrano said. "Obviously there's a lot of frustrated people in our fan base, and I get that. There's every right to be frustrated; this team has underachieved. I'm OK saying that because I'm in the front of the boat. I don't know what has crept in, but a tightness. A tightness has crept in. I blame myself because I came out for the first time in four years and said our goal is Omaha, looked past the SEC tournament, the regionals and the super regionals. That's probably a mistake on my part. That's probably too big of a vision to look at."
The Vols have lost road series to Florida International, UC Irvine and Florida. They had an early series against Rutgers canceled due to wintry weather, which was certainly a developmental setback for Tennessee. They hit rock bottom last weekend, getting swept at home by Georgia in embarrassing fashion. On Saturday, the Volunteers committed seven errors and allowed nine unearned runs. They made three more errors and gave up four more unearned runs on Sunday. They exhibited awful baserunning in the series too, running into unforced outs repeatedly.
"It was a low point in my coaching career of not being able to control anything that was happening," Serrano said. "And I'm in it with them. But we're trying to focus more the positive. We've just got to let it go and move forward."
This week, Serrano said the Volunteers were hitting the "reset" button on their season. He told his players to treat Wednesday's game against Cincinnati as Opening Day. They know they can't change the past, but they can refocus on smaller, shorter-term goals, and then maybe their bigger goals can still be attained. The Vols responded with a 7-0 win against the Bearcats. It wasn't a flawless performance - they still committed two errors and mustered just four hits in the victory - but they pitched well. And most importantly, they are now 1-0 in their new season, with a trip to in-state rival and national superpower Vanderbilt looming this weekend.
Last year, Tennessee's series victory over the Commodores in early April was the high point of its season. It was an intense, chippy series in Knoxville, and it brought out the best in the young Volunteers. On paper, this Tennessee team is good enough to beat anybody - it's just a matter of playing smart.
"They have talent," said one scout who has seen a number of Tennessee games. "They just find ways to beat themselves."
Tennessee has a brutal .951 team fielding percentage, so it must begin by playing better defense. There is hope for this unit; at least the Vols have two quality defenders in the middle infield with shortstop A.J. Simcox and second baseman Nick Senzel.
That Simcox/Senzel duo also makes up two of UT's top four hitters. Senzel (.354/.422/.557) and preseason All-American Christin Stewart (.324/.462/.676, 6 HR, 19 HR) would be formidable middle-of-the-lineup threats for any team in college baseball, and junior Vincent Jackson (.347/.472/.417) has dramatically improved his on-base skills and become a good leadoff man, though he is not driving the ball the way you might expect a 6-foot-6 physical specimen to.
Nick Senzel (Photo by Andrew Bruckse/Tennessee Athletics)
Nick Senzel (Photo by Andrew Bruckse/Tennessee Athletics)
Tennessee needs more production from the rest of its lineup, and it needs more consistency in its lineup. Serrano said he is going to try to settle on a core group of starters and resist shuffling the lineup; two-way talent Andrew Lee has begun to play regularly at DH, and expect him to be a powerful fixture in the lineup going forward. The Vols also need more out of NAIA transfer Chris Hall, who was one of the team's best hitters in the fall but has gotten off to a brutal start for Tennessee, going just 1-for-28 (.036).
"That's a guy we need to get going," Serrano said. "He was a spark plug for us, and he's played well below his capabilities.
"The other thing I think we've done to ourselves, we went in with a plan for ourselves. Then we start playing musical chairs with some guys, and I think it brought a sense of doubt. Every team I've been a part of that was successful, there's been some solidified spots."
On the mound, Serrano is making a tweak to his rotation this weekend. Bulldog Bret Marks and talented lefty Drake Owenby will remain in the top two spots, but Kyle Serrano (Dave's son) will move from the Sunday spot into the bullpen, and sophomore righty Hunter Martin will take over the Sunday starter job.
"I would say out of four starts, Kyle's been very good in two and very average in two," Dave Serrano said. "His stuff has been phenomenal - he was up to 97 this weekend. But it's the same old deal, he's working too hard I think this will take some pressure off him, allow him to throw that 94-96 fastball and spin that breaking ball, shorten the repertoire of pitches he has to use. It's there, it's just taken longer than I thought it would. I think it's a confidence deal. He's no different from this team. I hate the word 'potential,' but that's what he has and this team has."
As the season progresses, "potential" becomes irrelevant, and only results matter. Serrano hopes this team is still capable of harnessing its potential, like the 2004 Cal State Fullerton team did. Serrano was an assistant on the staff for that group of Titans, which famously turned a lackluster first half into a run to the national championship.
"By no means am I comparing these two teams, but in 2004, we couldn't do anything right. Then something clicked," Serrano said. "I'm holding onto the fact that something's gonna click. We do need to have more fight. Baseball is a game of adversity and failure. We've got to be able to fight through that adversity and failure and still achieve our goals.
"We've kind of scaled down to smaller short-term goals. Let's just get to the SEC tournament, which is still in our reach. We have a lot of work to do, but let's focus on how good this is going to feel when we get this turned around I could eat my words, and I've kind of already eaten my words a little bit. Because one thing about me is I have confidence; I have confidence in our kids, confidence in our organization. So sometimes I'll speak highly of our team, where some guys play the coach-talk. There's no doubt in my mind, we're going to look back in May and June and say, 'We turned a really difficult, horrible situation into a positive situation.' There's no doubt in my mind. Two or three years ago, I couldn't have said that, because we didn't have the ability to do that. We have the ability now."
Checking in with Houston's Todd Whitting
By Kendall Rogers
It wasn't long ago Houston coach Todd Whitting was looking for some answers.
The Cougars, who entered the season with the highest preseason ranking in program history, had just split a four-game series with Columbia at home, and began the Houston College Classic with a pair of losses to LSU and Texas A&M, scoring just two runs in those two games, and having ace righthander Jake Lemoine struggle immensely against the Aggies. We've now found out that Lemoine was pitching through a shoulder impingement, and is now on the shelf for another week or two. But at any rate, the Cougars were having a tough weekend, and though they captured a win over Hawaii to end the tournament, it wasn't exactly accomplished in typical Houston fashion. It wasn't the weekend a top-10 club puts together.
Houston needs guys to step up with Jake Lemoine still on the shelf. (Kendall Rogers)
Houston needs guys to step up with Jake Lemoine still on the shelf. (Kendall Rogers)
Questions still abounded about Houston.
The veteran Cougars have since answered a lot of those questions, and frankly, quelled a lot of doubts. They've won 10 straight contests since playing the Aggies at Minute Maid Park, and they've found dramatic ways to win games. Just earlier this week, the Cougars rallied late to beat Lamar at home, and that came following a road series sweep over a quality New Mexico club without Lemoine.
"I think early on, everything just kind of hit us at once, whether it was struggling or injuries, and this team just kind of went into a tailspin. Those things can happen," Whitting said. "We're just playing really, really hard right now. This team just has a next man up mentality, and it's special to see.
"The season is so long, and teams are going to have ups and downs. Every team is going to go through a stretch where they're not playing well in some situations. But even in those situations, you can right the ship pretty quickly. And it's seemed we've done that."
Not everything has been impressive for the Cougars during this winning streak. For instance, they enter a huge American Athletic Conference series this weekend against UCF without Lemoine, and also have relegated senior righthander Aaron Garza to the bullpen the past couple of weeks. Whitting said Garza is throwing better out of the pen, but the Cougars obviously would have preferred him to be a quality starter like he was for the first three years of his collegiate career. UH also needs Jared Robinson to step up. Robinson was expected to log a lot of innings this year, and his role was magnified when Bubba Maxwell went down with an injury. Robinson, though, has a 4.91 ERA in 11 innings, and hardly has been a knockout reliever.
Adding to the headaches for Whitting and his coaching staff, the Cougars found out Thursday that outfielder Michael Pyeatt, who had been out since the start of the season with a foot injury, will now miss the rest of the season as surgery is required to fix his issue. The good news is the Cougars expect to get spark plug Connor Hollis back this weekend. Hollis has been dealing with a hamate bone injury, and the Cougars love to have him back in the mix. UH still isn't sure where he'll play in the field, but corner outfield is a safe bet.
"He played in a little simulated game earlier this week and had a couple of hits," Whitting said. "He's an energy bat for us, and it's good to get him back in there."
UH will need some arms to really step up to take a series from a very good UCF club this weekend. Junior-college transfer and righthander Kyle Dowdy (2.28, 23.2) has been solid in the weekend rotation after being moved from the bullpen to that role, while Taylor Cobb could also start this weekend. Cobb works at 89-92 with a good breaking pitch. However, there are times when Cobb doesn't have that breaking pitch working for him. Freshman lefthander Seth Romero is the other option to start this weekend. Romero is an arm we've chronicled already this season. He sat 92-95 in the Houston College Classic, and has continued to develop his secondary stuff, making him more ready to be a starter.
"We threw Romero against Rice last week to get him ready to start this weekend, so that's likely what we're doing. But Cobb is in the mix," Whitting said. "Cobb's body type kind of reminds me of Jake Arrieta when I was at TCU. He kind of has that downhill delivery and he's kind of upright. As for Seth, his secondary stuff is still OK, but he's got to get better with it. But his fastball is down and up, and side-to-side. It continues to be a very good pitch."
Houston still isn't a finished product, but in the midst of a 10-game winning streak, Whitting and his staff can't ask for much more at this point.
Five Teams Needing Wins
By Kendall Rogers
Mississippi State1. Mississippi State - The Bulldogs have been unimpressive the first two weekends of conference play, and it has them in a huge hole with series losses to Alabama, and surprisingly, on the road against Kentucky last weekend. Here's something to chew on: While the Bulldogs hitting .260 isn't too big of a surprise, how about State's pitching staff having a 6.92 ERA in the first two conference series? Until that combination takes a turn for the better, things might not change much this weekend against Auburn. Of course, the Tigers have their own host of issues, too.
University of Virginia logo2. Virginia - There's no doubt coach Brian O'Connor is one of the best in the business, so we're expecting the Cavaliers to make a run at some point. The Cavaliers might've made a turn for the better in a midweek 10-7 win over Liberty, but we'll see what happens this weekend in South Bend against Notre Dame. Here's a surprise, though: The Cavaliers really struggled at times on the mound last weekend, issuing 34 walks in three games. We knew Virginia wouldn't have an amazing offense, but if the staff struggles again this weekend, it could again spell doom.
Cal State Fullerton Titans logo3. Cal State Fullerton - Is there a more Jekyll and Hyde type of team out there than the Titans? One week these guys will look very good, then for two weeks they'll look just plain bad. Well, the Titans are coming off back-to-back series losses to Long Beach State and Indiana after sweeping Texas Tech. Now, they must take on a much improved Cal State Northridge squad, albeit at home. Fullerton obviously has a terrific one-two punch in Thomas Eshelman and Justin Garza, but the offense has to be better. The Titans enter the Northridge series with an ugly .249 batting average.
Pepperdine logo4. Pepperdine - The Waves have plenty of time to work their magic, especially with series against Portland and Pacific - albeit on the road - the next two weekends. But I'm frankly surprised the Waves are 11-15 overall and just haven't been able to establish an identity. Interestingly enough, righthander Jackson McClelland has one of the more odd stat lines you'll see: He's got a 1.71 ERA in 42 innings, but 20 walks and just 28 strikeouts. It seems he's been able to pitch his way out of trouble effectively.
Stanford logo5. Stanford - You know, the Cardinal does have that built-in excuse that injuries have taken their toll, especially with losing someone of the caliber of righthander Cal Quantrill. But the Cardinal just isn't getting it done overall. Stanford dropped yet another series last weekend to Arizona, and now is 10-11 with a series at Arizona State on the docket. Hint: I don't think that series turns out well for "9" and his team, but I've seen stranger things happen. Stanford has two hitters (Matt Winaker, Mikey Diekroeger) in its everyday lineup hitting over .300. That's not going to get it done.
D1 - Weekend Preview: March 27-29
D1 - Sorenson: Off The Top Of My Head
Think about this for a second
In the last seven or eight years, when you've read a college baseball column having to do with the national landscape of our fair game, I'm willing to bet there was a 90-95 percent chance it was written by either myself or Aaron Fitt or Kendall Rogers.
There are a few others sprinkled in here and there, like our boy Doug Kroll who writes a lot of stuff for NCAA.com and of course, I can't forget the boys over at College Baseball Insider, Phil Stanton and Sean Ryan, who have been doing the Lord's work for that site since 2001 and are still going strong.
But other than that, I'm willing to bet it has been Aaron, Kendall or myself. Now, is this a good thing or a bad thing that we're all under one roof here? Go ahead, be honest, I think we can take it
Oh come on, it's a great thing. Right?
Sure, I still have my website at CollegeBaseballToday.com - and you better still check that joint out - and Baseball America has continued on since Aaron left and Perfect Game is still doing it's thing for college baseball (even if it has been scaled back a bit).
But for all intents and purposes, the place you have your browser set at right now is just about all you need for all of you college baseball addicts to get your daily fix. And especially with Shotgun Spratling out West, Michael Baumann in the Midwest, Dustin McComas in the Southwest and of course, the venerable Mark Etheridge rehashing his coverage of the SEC and other teams in y'all country, there's only one thing left to do.
As those old album rock FM radio DJs used to say, set your tuner then rip off the dial! because you've got the best in rock on the radio right here at D1B dot com.
But here is another odd subject for me: the rankings. From what I can tell, here is the list of "major" college baseball rankings as we know them from the different college baseball outlets:
- NCBWA (writers)
- Collegiate Baseball (Lou Pavlovich)
- Baseball America
- Perfect Game
- USA Today Coaches Poll
- D1Baseball
And then there are the "other" rankings
- CBI's "Composite Rankings"
- ESPN.com's Power Rankings
- Warren Nolan's Power Index
- Boyd Nation's ISR rankings
For a sport that doesn't get a whole lot of national publicity, it sure has an overkill of rankings. And the funny thing about them is that this is also a sport that doesn't need weekly rankings. It's not like college football where for multiple decades the weekly polls determined everything in the sport. The RPI is the lord-God-king of our sport. Even though the NCAA Selection Committee likes to refer to it as merely "a tool" it is the only ranking system that holds any influence on the committee. I mean, if not, wouldn't Utah Valley have gotten into the NCAA tournament in 2012? They were 47-12 and receiving votes in all the human polls. But the RPI said 'Nyet!" and the Wolverines sat at home.
With that in mind, maybe the human polls should have more influence in our sport and not just sit there like a Miss America candidate who is insanely beautiful, but she's just content to sit there quietly and look pretty. Shhhhh, Miss Congeniality.
Sorry, I digress. I get the purpose of rankings. Yes, it keeps the conversation going in our sport. It brings a little more interest. I'm not gonna hassle that. That's a given. It also gives baseball programs a little bit of an ego boost and something to use in recruiting. All duly noted. But don't you kind of wish it was like college football's old days where there were just two major polls and both of them really had meaning to them? I don't know, sometimes I get nostalgic about that stuff.
Simpler times.
As an aside here, it is interesting to note how far we've come. Back about 20 years ago, there were three polls/rankings: The USA Today/Baseball Weekly coaches poll, the Collegiate Baseball ranking and the NCBWA poll. To tell you the truth, the only one that mattered to me was the coaches poll, because that was the poll I would read when each Wednesday afternoon I'd sneak out to my closest 7-11 and buy the Baseball Weekly newspaper. The NCBWA poll? Pfft, I never saw it. And the only time I was exposed to Baseball America or Collegiate Baseball was during their preseason issues. Otherwise, there was no internet to get the weekly baseball rankings out there. Nope, it was all according to Rick Lawes, the Baseball Weekly college beat writer and whatever the coaches rankings were telling us about our sport.
The legend himself, Rick Lawes, the former college baseball writer for Baseball Weekly.
The legend himself, Rick Lawes, the former college baseball writer for Baseball Weekly.
I miss those days. Well, sorta.
Yes I admit that it would've been nice to have had a D1Baseball.com back then. Information and entertainment were skimpy at best for our poor sport. Now, if you want to know if your local team has a game, you go to D1Baseball and check the schedule. If you want to know what the longest winning streak in the country is, you go to D1Baseball. If you want to read about the latest mid-major that is under the radar, you go to D1Baseball. If you want to read about who the top pro prospects are in the country, you go to D1Baseball. And if you want to read an opinion column where the lead visual is a picture of the writer with his head chopped off, you go to D1Baseball.
Hang on. Have we all said, "Thank you Mr. Peterson" yet?
THIS WEEK'S EIGHT FOR OMAHA
And no, this isn't a "Top Eight" ranking.
- TCU
- Vanderbilt
- Oklahoma State
- Arizona State
- LSU
- Texas A&M
- UCF
- Illinois
TOP FIVE PLACES TO BE THIS WEEKEND
Did you purloin the keys to the company LearJet? Then fire it up and get to these places.
Notre Dame logoUniversity of Virginia logo5- Virginia at Notre Dame
By the numbers:
UVa: 15-8, 3-6 ACC, RPI No. 68
ND: 16-7, 3-6 ACC, RPI No. 16
How much do you think the Irish want to prove themselves here? They took it on the chin vs. Louisville, but here's their chance to make amends and prove that RPI ranking is for real. Also, whoever loses this series is really behind the 8-ball in ACC play.
Nebraska Cornhuskers logoTexas logo4- Texas at Nebraska
By the numbers:
UT: 17-8, 5-1 Big 12, No. 36
NU: 18-7, 3-0 Big 10, No. 34
An old gathering of former Big 12 rivals and two hot teams. Texas has won nine of their last 11 and the Big Red has won 11 of its last 12. The Longhorns have 80 extra-base hits on the season, compared to 41 at this point last year. Still have to like Nebraska having the chill in the air on their side.
North Carolina logoMiami Florida logo3- Miami at North Carolina
By the Numbers:
The U: 18-8, 6-3 ACC, RPI No. 5
UNC: 15-9, 5-4 ACC, RPI No. 13
It's probably way too early to be talking about national seeds and whatnot, but if the season ended on Sunday, this would be a battle for a national seed and home regional. Keep an eye on the Hurricane pitching staff and defense as they have given up 41 hits and 25 runs in their last three games.
Louisville lgooGeorgia Tech Yellow Jackets logo2- Georgia Tech at Louisville
By the Numbers:
Tech: 17-7, 5-4 ACC, RPI No. 11
UofL: 18-7, 8-1 ACC, RPI No. 41
The Jackets are still kicking themselves for losing that UNC series, especially giving up two runs in the ninth inning on Friday to lose 5-3. Good matchup of that Tech offense (.295 AVG, 19HRs, 58 doubles) vs. the Cardinals arms (2.70, 27th Nationally).
University of Central Florida logoHouston Cougars logo1- Houston at UCF
UofH: 18-7, 0-0 AAC, RPI No. 44
UCF: 20-6, 0-0 AAC, RPI No. 18
Ah, big series, big atmosphere at Jay Bergman Field this weekend. As you can tell by the numbers, despite both being in the human rankings, the Cougars are a little bit off-the-radar in the RPI, so this becomes an even bigger weekend now. Beyond Andrew Lantrip, the Cougs staff hasn't been up to snuff this year and they'll face the hardest hitting team in D1 as the Knights are third in team average (.330), first in home runs (38) and first in slugging percentage (.539). Something has got to give, right? Look for UCF to try and make this a statement weekend.
FIVE MORE TO WATCH
- No. 25 Oregon at Arizona
As pointed out below, this series became huge for both teams as the Ducks are at No. 59 and the Wildcats are in the hundreds.
- Just about any SEC series
But especially these
Kentucky at No. 1 LSU
Tennessee at No. 2 Vanderbilt
Missouri at No. 3 Texas A&M
Alabama at No. 4 Florida
- No. 19 Indiana at Iowa
Without fanfare, the Hawkeyes have raced out to a 14-6 record with the 11th best pitching staff in the country at 2.34 ERA.
- Stanford at No. 6 Arizona State
So much has gone wrong for the Cardinal lately, is this a do-or-die weekend in the desert?
- No. 11 Maryland at Michigan
Great storyline with Wolverines head coach Erik Bakich welcoming his old program to Ann Arbor. Good time for the 12-11 Wolverines to make a bounce-back weekend too.
RPI ODDITIES, THE GOOD SIDE
As mentioned last week in this space, the RPI is still a little whacky and should be taken with a sizable grain of salt. But there are all kinds of kinks, twists, knots and oddities in the latest mathematical ranking of our sport. Of course, you are going to think these are typos here, but these are real RPIs:
- Dallas Baptist at No. 1
Pats (19-3) taking two of three at San Diego looks even better than it did in week two. You know what else helped their RPI? The entire series vs. 4-11 UMass-Lowell getting cancelled.
- Bradley at No. 3
Some good mid-major road series wins for BU, including at Mercer and at McNeese State. The big key for the Braves (17-5) have been holding their opponents to a paltry .234 batting average.
- Florida Atlantic at No. 15
Nobody has taken advantage of playing snowbound teams who have had few outdoor practices than the Owls (20-5), who went 11-1 against UConn, Ohio State, Monmouth and Rutgers.
- Columbia at No. 17
Remember how the Lions (8-9) hung around the top 25 of the RPI nearly until May last year? Looks like they are doing it again this year.
- UNC-Wilmington at No. 19
The Seahawks (16-6) own two wins over Maryland and Columbia, helping their cause. They hit .310 as a team, led by Terrence Connelly's .395.
- Ohio State at No. 20
While Illinois, Maryland and Nebraska have gotten all the Big Ten pub, The Buckeyes (16-6) have played well, though no real marquee wins other than the Friday vs. Florida Atlantic.
- Harvard at No. 25
Keep in mind this is a program that was 11-28 last season. Now, they are 10-9 and in the top 25 of the RPI. Wow. Crimson scheduled to play Columbia in a DH on Sunday.
- Wright State at No. 27
This team raised a flag from the get-go with wins over Ole Miss and Miami in the first three weeks of the season. A sweep of Horizon rival Milwaukee didn't hurt ether.
- Missouri State at No. 29
Oddly, there are no real big wins that jump off the page for the Bears (14-7), but they do get Dallas Baptist at home next week.
AND THE BAD SIDE
If the season ended today, here are some of the teams RPI rankings that would be screaming bloody murder:
- South Carolina at No. 43
Under normal circumstances, an SEC team with an RPI in the 40s doesn't usually make it in as an at-large. Keep in mind the Gamecocks are ranked No. 12 in the human polls.
- Southern California at No. 52
Oh you thought the other S.C. ranking was bad? Look at where the No. 8-ranked Trojans show up on the RPI? My goodness. Yes, this is the team that beat TCU, Vanderbilt and UCLA in three days.
- Cal State Fullerton at No. 58
Pitching-wise, the Titans are probably a Top 10 team. But taking the team in total, the Titans are still a struggle, especially at the dish.
- Texas Tech at No. 67
The Red Raiders dropped out of the Top 25 in the human polls after a 3-2 week, but if the RPI were in charge, they'd not even get a sniff at an at-large berth.
- Virginia at No. 68
Here is a team that has yet to crack the top 60 in the RPI to begin with, nevermind that they dropped like a pair of concrete shoes after getting routed twice by Florida State.
- Long Beach State at No. 98
Usually the Dirtbags play one of the more ridiculously tough schedules of anyone in the country. Now it's a detriment to their postseason hopes.
- Georgia at No. 101
When I talked to Florida State head coach Mike Martin about the Bulldogs he said, "I didn't see a weakness in that ball club." Looks like the RPI found it.
- Mississippi State at No. 108
Yes, the 18-9 Bulldogs are in triple digits in the RPI. Re-read that sentence if you must. An 18-win SEC team this low? The 197th ranked schedule has a lot to do with that.
- Arizona at No. 119
The Cats are 19-6 and just got done sweeping Stanford, a team that owns two wins over both Rice and Texas. So you'd figure UofA ranking would be higher, right?
THE WINLESS
Here is who everyone in college baseball will be cheering for this weekend:
- Eastern Illinois, 0-17
This weekend: at home vs. 8-17 Murray State
Oh come on Panthers, you are the final team to pull off a win this year. Yes, at 1-9, even Coppin State has tasted the sweetness of success. The team is hitting .185 and even All American Caleb Howell is not immune. After hitting .420 last season, Howell is mired in a .255 funk so far, having also been walked 13 times this season.
MOTHER NATURE'S WHIPPING BOYS
The winner of the Most Games Cancelled Award goes to Albany.
The Great Danes have had a ridiculous season so far. First off, they started a week later than most everybody did by playing in the Caravelle Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C. on Feb. 21, which was the second Friday of the season for almost everyone else. They played NC State in mid-40s temperatures and intermittent rain. Oh, but they beat the Pack 9-6 so congrats on a solid opening day. Since then, they have had 16 games cancelled or postponed by Mother Nature. Yes, the Great Danes are 4-7 overall, but have had 16 games get scratched, including all three of last week's American East opener vs. UMass-Lowell, which was moved to Kingston, R.I. in hopes of getting the games in. Instead, they just sat in their hotels and watched the snow fall and blanket the field.
DENNIS SETS SAVES RECORD
Another indicator of Bradley's stunning RPI Top 5 success has been sophomore righthander Matt Dennis, who has needed less than a season-and-a-half to set the program's career saves record. After saving six games during his freshman season last year, Dennis nailed down his fifth save of this season and 11th of his career last Saturday, closing out the 4-3 win at North Florida with 2.1 innings of scoreless work. Jason Simmons previously held the school's career record with 11 saves from 1990-93. Also, with his five saves this season, Dennis is tied for fifth on the school's single-season saves list, just three shy of the record eight saves by Justin Ziegler in 2011.
SEASON COMING TO AN END?
The Ivy League has some RPI studs right now in Columbia and Harvard and league play starts up this weekend as those two will play each other in a doubleheader on Sunday. But that also means that the Ancient Eight, with its policy of not playing any more regular season games anytime after the beginning of semester exams, is also close to wrapping up its season. Starting this weekend, there are only five weekends of competition left in the Ivy League regular season. By April 26, exactly a month from when I'm writing this, the Ivies will be done with the regular season.
In a word, gah!
Half the reason I would hope that the NCAA allows the season to go further into summer is so that the Ivy League will jettison its ridiculously early season-end rule. If the regular season ended in late June, the Ivy League would have to keep playing games beyond the first week in May. And believe me, every Ivy League coach I have talked to wished they would re-visit this policy.
THE BEST END OF GAME THEME SONGS
I've been to a lot of college baseball venues over the years and noticed some stadiums play the same song after their home team has won or just completed a game. Here are some of my favorite songs at stadiums while I am there trying to pound out a write-up of the game
- UCLA:
Randy Newman, 'I Love L.A.'
- Stanford:
Semisonic, 'Closing Time'
- Long Beach State:
AC/DC, 'Back In Black'
And the best one of all
- UNLV:
Frank Sinatra, 'This Town'
Got any other stadiums that play a cool pack-it-up-and-go-home song? Let me know.
That's enough for now. Need a break from all this March Madness? Go check out a game near you.
G'night.
D1 - Sorenson: Off The Top Of My Head
Think about this for a second
In the last seven or eight years, when you've read a college baseball column having to do with the national landscape of our fair game, I'm willing to bet there was a 90-95 percent chance it was written by either myself or Aaron Fitt or Kendall Rogers.
There are a few others sprinkled in here and there, like our boy Doug Kroll who writes a lot of stuff for NCAA.com and of course, I can't forget the boys over at College Baseball Insider, Phil Stanton and Sean Ryan, who have been doing the Lord's work for that site since 2001 and are still going strong.
But other than that, I'm willing to bet it has been Aaron, Kendall or myself. Now, is this a good thing or a bad thing that we're all under one roof here? Go ahead, be honest, I think we can take it
Oh come on, it's a great thing. Right?
Sure, I still have my website at CollegeBaseballToday.com - and you better still check that joint out - and Baseball America has continued on since Aaron left and Perfect Game is still doing it's thing for college baseball (even if it has been scaled back a bit).
But for all intents and purposes, the place you have your browser set at right now is just about all you need for all of you college baseball addicts to get your daily fix. And especially with Shotgun Spratling out West, Michael Baumann in the Midwest, Dustin McComas in the Southwest and of course, the venerable Mark Etheridge rehashing his coverage of the SEC and other teams in y'all country, there's only one thing left to do.
As those old album rock FM radio DJs used to say, set your tuner then rip off the dial! because you've got the best in rock on the radio right here at D1B dot com.
But here is another odd subject for me: the rankings. From what I can tell, here is the list of "major" college baseball rankings as we know them from the different college baseball outlets:
- NCBWA (writers)
- Collegiate Baseball (Lou Pavlovich)
- Baseball America
- Perfect Game
- USA Today Coaches Poll
- D1Baseball
And then there are the "other" rankings
- CBI's "Composite Rankings"
- ESPN.com's Power Rankings
- Warren Nolan's Power Index
- Boyd Nation's ISR rankings
For a sport that doesn't get a whole lot of national publicity, it sure has an overkill of rankings. And the funny thing about them is that this is also a sport that doesn't need weekly rankings. It's not like college football where for multiple decades the weekly polls determined everything in the sport. The RPI is the lord-God-king of our sport. Even though the NCAA Selection Committee likes to refer to it as merely "a tool" it is the only ranking system that holds any influence on the committee. I mean, if not, wouldn't Utah Valley have gotten into the NCAA tournament in 2012? They were 47-12 and receiving votes in all the human polls. But the RPI said 'Nyet!" and the Wolverines sat at home.
With that in mind, maybe the human polls should have more influence in our sport and not just sit there like a Miss America candidate who is insanely beautiful, but she's just content to sit there quietly and look pretty. Shhhhh, Miss Congeniality.
Sorry, I digress. I get the purpose of rankings. Yes, it keeps the conversation going in our sport. It brings a little more interest. I'm not gonna hassle that. That's a given. It also gives baseball programs a little bit of an ego boost and something to use in recruiting. All duly noted. But don't you kind of wish it was like college football's old days where there were just two major polls and both of them really had meaning to them? I don't know, sometimes I get nostalgic about that stuff.
Simpler times.
As an aside here, it is interesting to note how far we've come. Back about 20 years ago, there were three polls/rankings: The USA Today/Baseball Weekly coaches poll, the Collegiate Baseball ranking and the NCBWA poll. To tell you the truth, the only one that mattered to me was the coaches poll, because that was the poll I would read when each Wednesday afternoon I'd sneak out to my closest 7-11 and buy the Baseball Weekly newspaper. The NCBWA poll? Pfft, I never saw it. And the only time I was exposed to Baseball America or Collegiate Baseball was during their preseason issues. Otherwise, there was no internet to get the weekly baseball rankings out there. Nope, it was all according to Rick Lawes, the Baseball Weekly college beat writer and whatever the coaches rankings were telling us about our sport.
The legend himself, Rick Lawes, the former college baseball writer for Baseball Weekly.
The legend himself, Rick Lawes, the former college baseball writer for Baseball Weekly.
I miss those days. Well, sorta.
Yes I admit that it would've been nice to have had a D1Baseball.com back then. Information and entertainment were skimpy at best for our poor sport. Now, if you want to know if your local team has a game, you go to D1Baseball and check the schedule. If you want to know what the longest winning streak in the country is, you go to D1Baseball. If you want to read about the latest mid-major that is under the radar, you go to D1Baseball. If you want to read about who the top pro prospects are in the country, you go to D1Baseball. And if you want to read an opinion column where the lead visual is a picture of the writer with his head chopped off, you go to D1Baseball.
Hang on. Have we all said, "Thank you Mr. Peterson" yet?
THIS WEEK'S EIGHT FOR OMAHA
And no, this isn't a "Top Eight" ranking.
- TCU
- Vanderbilt
- Oklahoma State
- Arizona State
- LSU
- Texas A&M
- UCF
- Illinois
TOP FIVE PLACES TO BE THIS WEEKEND
Did you purloin the keys to the company LearJet? Then fire it up and get to these places.
Notre Dame logoUniversity of Virginia logo5- Virginia at Notre Dame
By the numbers:
UVa: 15-8, 3-6 ACC, RPI No. 68
ND: 16-7, 3-6 ACC, RPI No. 16
How much do you think the Irish want to prove themselves here? They took it on the chin vs. Louisville, but here's their chance to make amends and prove that RPI ranking is for real. Also, whoever loses this series is really behind the 8-ball in ACC play.
Nebraska Cornhuskers logoTexas logo4- Texas at Nebraska
By the numbers:
UT: 17-8, 5-1 Big 12, No. 36
NU: 18-7, 3-0 Big 10, No. 34
An old gathering of former Big 12 rivals and two hot teams. Texas has won nine of their last 11 and the Big Red has won 11 of its last 12. The Longhorns have 80 extra-base hits on the season, compared to 41 at this point last year. Still have to like Nebraska having the chill in the air on their side.
North Carolina logoMiami Florida logo3- Miami at North Carolina
By the Numbers:
The U: 18-8, 6-3 ACC, RPI No. 5
UNC: 15-9, 5-4 ACC, RPI No. 13
It's probably way too early to be talking about national seeds and whatnot, but if the season ended on Sunday, this would be a battle for a national seed and home regional. Keep an eye on the Hurricane pitching staff and defense as they have given up 41 hits and 25 runs in their last three games.
Louisville lgooGeorgia Tech Yellow Jackets logo2- Georgia Tech at Louisville
By the Numbers:
Tech: 17-7, 5-4 ACC, RPI No. 11
UofL: 18-7, 8-1 ACC, RPI No. 41
The Jackets are still kicking themselves for losing that UNC series, especially giving up two runs in the ninth inning on Friday to lose 5-3. Good matchup of that Tech offense (.295 AVG, 19HRs, 58 doubles) vs. the Cardinals arms (2.70, 27th Nationally).
University of Central Florida logoHouston Cougars logo1- Houston at UCF
UofH: 18-7, 0-0 AAC, RPI No. 44
UCF: 20-6, 0-0 AAC, RPI No. 18
Ah, big series, big atmosphere at Jay Bergman Field this weekend. As you can tell by the numbers, despite both being in the human rankings, the Cougars are a little bit off-the-radar in the RPI, so this becomes an even bigger weekend now. Beyond Andrew Lantrip, the Cougs staff hasn't been up to snuff this year and they'll face the hardest hitting team in D1 as the Knights are third in team average (.330), first in home runs (38) and first in slugging percentage (.539). Something has got to give, right? Look for UCF to try and make this a statement weekend.
FIVE MORE TO WATCH
- No. 25 Oregon at Arizona
As pointed out below, this series became huge for both teams as the Ducks are at No. 59 and the Wildcats are in the hundreds.
- Just about any SEC series
But especially these
Kentucky at No. 1 LSU
Tennessee at No. 2 Vanderbilt
Missouri at No. 3 Texas A&M
Alabama at No. 4 Florida
- No. 19 Indiana at Iowa
Without fanfare, the Hawkeyes have raced out to a 14-6 record with the 11th best pitching staff in the country at 2.34 ERA.
- Stanford at No. 6 Arizona State
So much has gone wrong for the Cardinal lately, is this a do-or-die weekend in the desert?
- No. 11 Maryland at Michigan
Great storyline with Wolverines head coach Erik Bakich welcoming his old program to Ann Arbor. Good time for the 12-11 Wolverines to make a bounce-back weekend too.
RPI ODDITIES, THE GOOD SIDE
As mentioned last week in this space, the RPI is still a little whacky and should be taken with a sizable grain of salt. But there are all kinds of kinks, twists, knots and oddities in the latest mathematical ranking of our sport. Of course, you are going to think these are typos here, but these are real RPIs:
- Dallas Baptist at No. 1
Pats (19-3) taking two of three at San Diego looks even better than it did in week two. You know what else helped their RPI? The entire series vs. 4-11 UMass-Lowell getting cancelled.
- Bradley at No. 3
Some good mid-major road series wins for BU, including at Mercer and at McNeese State. The big key for the Braves (17-5) have been holding their opponents to a paltry .234 batting average.
- Florida Atlantic at No. 15
Nobody has taken advantage of playing snowbound teams who have had few outdoor practices than the Owls (20-5), who went 11-1 against UConn, Ohio State, Monmouth and Rutgers.
- Columbia at No. 17
Remember how the Lions (8-9) hung around the top 25 of the RPI nearly until May last year? Looks like they are doing it again this year.
- UNC-Wilmington at No. 19
The Seahawks (16-6) own two wins over Maryland and Columbia, helping their cause. They hit .310 as a team, led by Terrence Connelly's .395.
- Ohio State at No. 20
While Illinois, Maryland and Nebraska have gotten all the Big Ten pub, The Buckeyes (16-6) have played well, though no real marquee wins other than the Friday vs. Florida Atlantic.
- Harvard at No. 25
Keep in mind this is a program that was 11-28 last season. Now, they are 10-9 and in the top 25 of the RPI. Wow. Crimson scheduled to play Columbia in a DH on Sunday.
- Wright State at No. 27
This team raised a flag from the get-go with wins over Ole Miss and Miami in the first three weeks of the season. A sweep of Horizon rival Milwaukee didn't hurt ether.
- Missouri State at No. 29
Oddly, there are no real big wins that jump off the page for the Bears (14-7), but they do get Dallas Baptist at home next week.
AND THE BAD SIDE
If the season ended today, here are some of the teams RPI rankings that would be screaming bloody murder:
- South Carolina at No. 43
Under normal circumstances, an SEC team with an RPI in the 40s doesn't usually make it in as an at-large. Keep in mind the Gamecocks are ranked No. 12 in the human polls.
- Southern California at No. 52
Oh you thought the other S.C. ranking was bad? Look at where the No. 8-ranked Trojans show up on the RPI? My goodness. Yes, this is the team that beat TCU, Vanderbilt and UCLA in three days.
- Cal State Fullerton at No. 58
Pitching-wise, the Titans are probably a Top 10 team. But taking the team in total, the Titans are still a struggle, especially at the dish.
- Texas Tech at No. 67
The Red Raiders dropped out of the Top 25 in the human polls after a 3-2 week, but if the RPI were in charge, they'd not even get a sniff at an at-large berth.
- Virginia at No. 68
Here is a team that has yet to crack the top 60 in the RPI to begin with, nevermind that they dropped like a pair of concrete shoes after getting routed twice by Florida State.
- Long Beach State at No. 98
Usually the Dirtbags play one of the more ridiculously tough schedules of anyone in the country. Now it's a detriment to their postseason hopes.
- Georgia at No. 101
When I talked to Florida State head coach Mike Martin about the Bulldogs he said, "I didn't see a weakness in that ball club." Looks like the RPI found it.
- Mississippi State at No. 108
Yes, the 18-9 Bulldogs are in triple digits in the RPI. Re-read that sentence if you must. An 18-win SEC team this low? The 197th ranked schedule has a lot to do with that.
- Arizona at No. 119
The Cats are 19-6 and just got done sweeping Stanford, a team that owns two wins over both Rice and Texas. So you'd figure UofA ranking would be higher, right?
THE WINLESS
Here is who everyone in college baseball will be cheering for this weekend:
- Eastern Illinois, 0-17
This weekend: at home vs. 8-17 Murray State
Oh come on Panthers, you are the final team to pull off a win this year. Yes, at 1-9, even Coppin State has tasted the sweetness of success. The team is hitting .185 and even All American Caleb Howell is not immune. After hitting .420 last season, Howell is mired in a .255 funk so far, having also been walked 13 times this season.
MOTHER NATURE'S WHIPPING BOYS
The winner of the Most Games Cancelled Award goes to Albany.
The Great Danes have had a ridiculous season so far. First off, they started a week later than most everybody did by playing in the Caravelle Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C. on Feb. 21, which was the second Friday of the season for almost everyone else. They played NC State in mid-40s temperatures and intermittent rain. Oh, but they beat the Pack 9-6 so congrats on a solid opening day. Since then, they have had 16 games cancelled or postponed by Mother Nature. Yes, the Great Danes are 4-7 overall, but have had 16 games get scratched, including all three of last week's American East opener vs. UMass-Lowell, which was moved to Kingston, R.I. in hopes of getting the games in. Instead, they just sat in their hotels and watched the snow fall and blanket the field.
DENNIS SETS SAVES RECORD
Another indicator of Bradley's stunning RPI Top 5 success has been sophomore righthander Matt Dennis, who has needed less than a season-and-a-half to set the program's career saves record. After saving six games during his freshman season last year, Dennis nailed down his fifth save of this season and 11th of his career last Saturday, closing out the 4-3 win at North Florida with 2.1 innings of scoreless work. Jason Simmons previously held the school's career record with 11 saves from 1990-93. Also, with his five saves this season, Dennis is tied for fifth on the school's single-season saves list, just three shy of the record eight saves by Justin Ziegler in 2011.
SEASON COMING TO AN END?
The Ivy League has some RPI studs right now in Columbia and Harvard and league play starts up this weekend as those two will play each other in a doubleheader on Sunday. But that also means that the Ancient Eight, with its policy of not playing any more regular season games anytime after the beginning of semester exams, is also close to wrapping up its season. Starting this weekend, there are only five weekends of competition left in the Ivy League regular season. By April 26, exactly a month from when I'm writing this, the Ivies will be done with the regular season.
In a word, gah!
Half the reason I would hope that the NCAA allows the season to go further into summer is so that the Ivy League will jettison its ridiculously early season-end rule. If the regular season ended in late June, the Ivy League would have to keep playing games beyond the first week in May. And believe me, every Ivy League coach I have talked to wished they would re-visit this policy.
THE BEST END OF GAME THEME SONGS
I've been to a lot of college baseball venues over the years and noticed some stadiums play the same song after their home team has won or just completed a game. Here are some of my favorite songs at stadiums while I am there trying to pound out a write-up of the game
- UCLA:
Randy Newman, 'I Love L.A.'
- Stanford:
Semisonic, 'Closing Time'
- Long Beach State:
AC/DC, 'Back In Black'
And the best one of all
- UNLV:
Frank Sinatra, 'This Town'
Got any other stadiums that play a cool pack-it-up-and-go-home song? Let me know.
That's enough for now. Need a break from all this March Madness? Go check out a game near you.
G'night.
D1 - Sorenson: Off The Top Of My Head
CBT: Lagniappe, March 26th. A Sneak Peek at the Power Rankings
What exactly IS a "power ranking" you ask? Who the hell cares.
First this
Today in History, March 26th
- In 1937, spinach growers in Crystal City, Texas erected a statue of Popeye.
- In 1945, the battle of Iwo Jima ended.
IwoJimaFlag
- In 1951, in an exhibition game against USC at Bovard Field, Mickey Mantle hits a home run that is estimated to have traveled 650 feet. The pitch was NOT thrown by Trojan Hall of Famer Mark Prior.
- In 1953, Dr. Jonas Salk announced a new vaccine that would prevent polio. Jenny McCarthy would debunk in somewhere around 2010 and kids would magically start getting sick again.
- In 1973, UCLA wins its seventh straight NCAA basketball title with an 81-76 win over Memphis State.
- In 1979, unbeaten Indiana State, led by Larry Bird, it beaten by Michigan State, led by Earvin Johnson, 75-64. Bird was held to his second lowest output of the season, 19 points.
The most-watched NCAA tournament game ever to that point saw Michigan State box up Larry Bird and Indiana State on this day in 1979.
The most-watched NCAA tournament game ever to that point saw Michigan State box up Larry Bird and Indiana State on this day in 1979.
- In 1984, former UCLA All American Jackie Robinson was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom posthumously by President Reagan. It is the highest civilian honor given in the United States.
- In 1989, the first free elections ever took place in the Soviet Union and Boris Yeltsin was elected.
- In 1992, Mike Tyson was found guilty of rape and sentenced to six years in prison.
- In 2000, the Seattle Kingdome was imploded to make room for a new football stadium. Thus ended one of the better pre-conference tournaments in college baseball each year, the Kingdome Classic, in which teams like Notre Dame, Gonzaga and host Washington were regulars.
THE POWER RANKINGS.
Because you guys are so special to me, here are my latest ESPN Power Rankings, before they go to press on the MotherShip. As you'll see, they are much different than the regular polls and rankings you see around college baseball, and that's with good reason. Taking the temperature of our sport, they reflect more of who is hot and who is not.
And yes, the term "power ranking" is just something ESPN uses for all of their sports' rankings. It's not really meant to indicate who has more power than anyone else.
But either way, here you go
This might be the most movement we've seen in the Power Rankings all season, especially given the foibles of most of the Top 10 over the past two weeks. It's just another indication of the wild, unpredictable nature of our college baseball season so far. There were a lot of big movers over the last two weeks, spearheaded by Oklahoma State, who took two of three from TCU over last weekend to deservedly vault into the Top 10. Unsung teams like Dallas Baptist and Cal also made sizable leaps forward, while Texas A&M has now won 25 of its first 26 games on the season to find its own place in the Top 10.
Here is who is hot and who is not in college baseball this week.
1- TCU, 18-4
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 1
Of Note:
If not for everyone below them going snake-eyes in the last two weeks, the Frogs should've taken a jump down a tad here. But we'll give them a pass since they still have a high ISR ranking and have played the 37th toughest slate in the country.
2- Vanderbilt, 20-5
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 9
Of Note:
Despite their troubles winning on the road in the Dodgertown Classic, the Commodores have won three of four on the road in the last six days. Interesting series vs. Tennessee this weekend in a battle between two teams going in opposite directions.
3- UCLA, 18-5
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 10
Of Note:
The bats have cooled a little since their hot start - now hitting .288 - but those old standbys are still stout: pitching and defense. The Bruins have a 2.40 team ERA and a .981 fielding percentage, which are good for 13th and 9th in the country, respectively.
4- UCF, 20-6
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 4
Of Note:
What a way to open American Athletic play, with a home series vs. Houston. That should be a great hoedown with the nation's No. 3-ranked offense, UCF's .330 team batting average, going up against Houston ace Andrew Lantrip (5-1 1.73) on Friday.
5- Arizona State, 15-7
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 5
Of Note:
The Devils made it through a rigorous part of the schedule, going 2-1 vs. the two Oregon programs the last two weeks. And these guys have been clutch too, as five of their last six wins have been by one run and four of them were come-from-behind wins.
6- Florida, 21-5
Trending: Down
Last Rank: 3
Of Note:
The Gators are coming off a series loss at Ole Miss, but should find their comfort zone again by welcoming Alabama this weekend. Their 2.77 team ERA and seventh-ranked defense (.982 fielding) will keep them in any game.
7- Oklahoma State, 17-7
Trending: Up
Last Rank: NR
Of Note:
Wow, what a huge series win at TCU. And certainly no one saw Michael Freeman throwing a complete game six-hitter in Sunday's 7-2 win for his first ever career complete game was epic. If he develops into a reliable third starter on weekends, this team gets more dangerous.
8- LSU, 21-3
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 8
Of Note:
Yeah sure, some people are putting the Tigers at No. 1 in their polls and rankings. But this is still a team that has played a strength of schedule in the 200s range. This week's series vs. Kentucky will help that.
9- Houston, 18-7
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 14
Of Note:
This is a team that likes living on the edge, as they enter this weekend having won four straight one-run games. Though they only hit .281 as a team, Josh Vidales (.370), Chris Iriart (.356, 6HRs) and Kyle Survance (.301, 17SBs) make a great triple threat.
10- Texas A&M, 25-1
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 20
Of Note:
Hey, they had to lose a game at some point, right? Alabama got them in game three at Hoover Met by a 6-2 count. Looking ahead, it's worth noting the Aggies avoid Vanderbilt and Florida in the SEC schedule rotation. Now the question is, will this team best the 1989 squad's 58-7 record?
11- Illinois, 18-5-1
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 15
Of Note:
The Illini are downright filthy so far this season, with a pitching staff ranked third in the country with a 2.08 team ERA. In four starts Kevin Duschene is also third nationally with a 0.67 ERA, to go along with a 3-1 record.
12- Texas, 17-8
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 17
Of Note:
Since I saw them lose two straight to start the Stanford series in Palo Alto, the Longhorns have gone 9-2. But a tough road lies ahead with a series at Nebraska, then Big 12 play starts with a roadie to Oklahoma State and a home series vs. Oklahoma up next.
13- Dallas Baptist, 19-3
Trending: Up
Last Rank: NR
Of Note:
The Patriots have been the great overlooked team so far this season as they still aren't found in any Top 20 polls. But they do occupy the No. 1 position in the coveted RPI as we speak. Relief stud Brandon Koch has 24Ks in his 31 outs recorded in 10.1 innings so far this season.
14- Miami, 18-8
Trending:
Last Rank:
Of Note:
You know how potentially dangerous that offense is, right? Well they may be starting to reach that potential, having scored 76 runs in their last eight wins and now hitting .308 as a team. With Willie Abreu and Zack Collins hitting .284 and .259 respectively, imagine if those two bats get hot? Whew.
15- California, 18-6
Trending: Up
Last Rank: NR
Of Note:
Oh sure, it's early, but the Bears lead the Pac 12 with a 5-1 mark, including an impressive series sweep at Washington that included a pair of 3-2 wins. Lucas Erceg was named the national player of the week for providing eighth inning/game-winning solo shot home runs in both games.
16- UC Santa Barbara, 17-6
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 16
Of Note:
The rotation of Dillon Tate (3-2, 1.69 in six starts), Justin Jacome (3-1, 2.27 in six starts) and Shane Bieber (4-2, 2.27 in six starts) has been stout. But the bullpen will now have to forge on without saves man James Carter, who was felled by Tommy John surgery last week.
17- South Carolina, 18-7
Trending: Down
Last Rank: 12
Of Note:
The Gamecocks didn't have a weekend road trip yet this year, then will play nine of their first 12 SEC games away from Carolina Stadium. It didn't start well as they went 1-2 at Missouri last weekend. Roadies to Mississippi State and Florida await after this weekend's home series vs. Georgia.
18- Rice, 17-10
Trending: Down
Last Rank: 6
Of Note:
Usually pitching-stout, the Owls surrendered 21 runs in Friday and Saturday losses at Old Dominion, before finally winning the getaway game on Sunday, 5-4. Big weekends ahead for the Owls as they'll host Southern Miss and Middle Tennessee the next two weekends in CUSA play.
19- USC, 20-5
Trending: Down
Last Rank: 7
Of Note:
The Trojans hit a few rough patches the last two weeks, including four losses since their epic showing in the DodgerTown Classic. They are still new to all this success, so that's what makes trips to Washington and Arizona back-to-back the next two weeks so tricky.
20- Georgia Tech, 17-7
Trending: Up
Last Rank: NR
Of Note:
Giving a hint tot their quality of depth, the Techsters exacted some revenge with a mid-week win over Auburn to move to 5-1 in mid-week games. Their No. 32-ranked strength of schedule is unlike what we're used to seeing from the Yellow Jackets but either way. it's very cool.
Five to Watch:
- Florida Atlantic
- Nevada
- Oregon State
- San Diego
- Notre Dame
CBT: Lagniappe, March 26th.
What exactly IS a "power ranking" you ask? Who the hell cares.
First this
Today in History, March 26th
- In 1937, spinach growers in Crystal City, Texas erected a statue of Popeye.
- In 1945, the battle of Iwo Jima ended.
IwoJimaFlag
- In 1951, in an exhibition game against USC at Bovard Field, Mickey Mantle hits a home run that is estimated to have traveled 650 feet. The pitch was NOT thrown by Trojan Hall of Famer Mark Prior.
- In 1953, Dr. Jonas Salk announced a new vaccine that would prevent polio. Jenny McCarthy would debunk in somewhere around 2010 and kids would magically start getting sick again.
- In 1973, UCLA wins its seventh straight NCAA basketball title with an 81-76 win over Memphis State.
- In 1979, unbeaten Indiana State, led by Larry Bird, it beaten by Michigan State, led by Earvin Johnson, 75-64. Bird was held to his second lowest output of the season, 19 points.
The most-watched NCAA tournament game ever to that point saw Michigan State box up Larry Bird and Indiana State on this day in 1979.
The most-watched NCAA tournament game ever to that point saw Michigan State box up Larry Bird and Indiana State on this day in 1979.
- In 1984, former UCLA All American Jackie Robinson was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom posthumously by President Reagan. It is the highest civilian honor given in the United States.
- In 1989, the first free elections ever took place in the Soviet Union and Boris Yeltsin was elected.
- In 1992, Mike Tyson was found guilty of rape and sentenced to six years in prison.
- In 2000, the Seattle Kingdome was imploded to make room for a new football stadium. Thus ended one of the better pre-conference tournaments in college baseball each year, the Kingdome Classic, in which teams like Notre Dame, Gonzaga and host Washington were regulars.
THE POWER RANKINGS.
Because you guys are so special to me, here are my latest ESPN Power Rankings, before they go to press on the MotherShip. As you'll see, they are much different than the regular polls and rankings you see around college baseball, and that's with good reason. Taking the temperature of our sport, they reflect more of who is hot and who is not.
And yes, the term "power ranking" is just something ESPN uses for all of their sports' rankings. It's not really meant to indicate who has more power than anyone else.
But either way, here you go
This might be the most movement we've seen in the Power Rankings all season, especially given the foibles of most of the Top 10 over the past two weeks. It's just another indication of the wild, unpredictable nature of our college baseball season so far. There were a lot of big movers over the last two weeks, spearheaded by Oklahoma State, who took two of three from TCU over last weekend to deservedly vault into the Top 10. Unsung teams like Dallas Baptist and Cal also made sizable leaps forward, while Texas A&M has now won 25 of its first 26 games on the season to find its own place in the Top 10.
Here is who is hot and who is not in college baseball this week.
1- TCU, 18-4
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 1
Of Note:
If not for everyone below them going snake-eyes in the last two weeks, the Frogs should've taken a jump down a tad here. But we'll give them a pass since they still have a high ISR ranking and have played the 37th toughest slate in the country.
2- Vanderbilt, 20-5
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 9
Of Note:
Despite their troubles winning on the road in the Dodgertown Classic, the Commodores have won three of four on the road in the last six days. Interesting series vs. Tennessee this weekend in a battle between two teams going in opposite directions.
3- UCLA, 18-5
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 10
Of Note:
The bats have cooled a little since their hot start - now hitting .288 - but those old standbys are still stout: pitching and defense. The Bruins have a 2.40 team ERA and a .981 fielding percentage, which are good for 13th and 9th in the country, respectively.
4- UCF, 20-6
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 4
Of Note:
What a way to open American Athletic play, with a home series vs. Houston. That should be a great hoedown with the nation's No. 3-ranked offense, UCF's .330 team batting average, going up against Houston ace Andrew Lantrip (5-1 1.73) on Friday.
5- Arizona State, 15-7
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 5
Of Note:
The Devils made it through a rigorous part of the schedule, going 2-1 vs. the two Oregon programs the last two weeks. And these guys have been clutch too, as five of their last six wins have been by one run and four of them were come-from-behind wins.
6- Florida, 21-5
Trending: Down
Last Rank: 3
Of Note:
The Gators are coming off a series loss at Ole Miss, but should find their comfort zone again by welcoming Alabama this weekend. Their 2.77 team ERA and seventh-ranked defense (.982 fielding) will keep them in any game.
7- Oklahoma State, 17-7
Trending: Up
Last Rank: NR
Of Note:
Wow, what a huge series win at TCU. And certainly no one saw Michael Freeman throwing a complete game six-hitter in Sunday's 7-2 win for his first ever career complete game was epic. If he develops into a reliable third starter on weekends, this team gets more dangerous.
8- LSU, 21-3
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 8
Of Note:
Yeah sure, some people are putting the Tigers at No. 1 in their polls and rankings. But this is still a team that has played a strength of schedule in the 200s range. This week's series vs. Kentucky will help that.
9- Houston, 18-7
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 14
Of Note:
This is a team that likes living on the edge, as they enter this weekend having won four straight one-run games. Though they only hit .281 as a team, Josh Vidales (.370), Chris Iriart (.356, 6HRs) and Kyle Survance (.301, 17SBs) make a great triple threat.
10- Texas A&M, 25-1
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 20
Of Note:
Hey, they had to lose a game at some point, right? Alabama got them in game three at Hoover Met by a 6-2 count. Looking ahead, it's worth noting the Aggies avoid Vanderbilt and Florida in the SEC schedule rotation. Now the question is, will this team best the 1989 squad's 58-7 record?
11- Illinois, 18-5-1
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 15
Of Note:
The Illini are downright filthy so far this season, with a pitching staff ranked third in the country with a 2.08 team ERA. In four starts Kevin Duschene is also third nationally with a 0.67 ERA, to go along with a 3-1 record.
12- Texas, 17-8
Trending: Up
Last Rank: 17
Of Note:
Since I saw them lose two straight to start the Stanford series in Palo Alto, the Longhorns have gone 9-2. But a tough road lies ahead with a series at Nebraska, then Big 12 play starts with a roadie to Oklahoma State and a home series vs. Oklahoma up next.
13- Dallas Baptist, 19-3
Trending: Up
Last Rank: NR
Of Note:
The Patriots have been the great overlooked team so far this season as they still aren't found in any Top 20 polls. But they do occupy the No. 1 position in the coveted RPI as we speak. Relief stud Brandon Koch has 24Ks in his 31 outs recorded in 10.1 innings so far this season.
14- Miami, 18-8
Trending:
Last Rank:
Of Note:
You know how potentially dangerous that offense is, right? Well they may be starting to reach that potential, having scored 76 runs in their last eight wins and now hitting .308 as a team. With Willie Abreu and Zack Collins hitting .284 and .259 respectively, imagine if those two bats get hot? Whew.
15- California, 18-6
Trending: Up
Last Rank: NR
Of Note:
Oh sure, it's early, but the Bears lead the Pac 12 with a 5-1 mark, including an impressive series sweep at Washington that included a pair of 3-2 wins. Lucas Erceg was named the national player of the week for providing eighth inning/game-winning solo shot home runs in both games.
16- UC Santa Barbara, 17-6
Trending: Even
Last Rank: 16
Of Note:
The rotation of Dillon Tate (3-2, 1.69 in six starts), Justin Jacome (3-1, 2.27 in six starts) and Shane Bieber (4-2, 2.27 in six starts) has been stout. But the bullpen will now have to forge on without saves man James Carter, who was felled by Tommy John surgery last week.
17- South Carolina, 18-7
Trending: Down
Last Rank: 12
Of Note:
The Gamecocks didn't have a weekend road trip yet this year, then will play nine of their first 12 SEC games away from Carolina Stadium. It didn't start well as they went 1-2 at Missouri last weekend. Roadies to Mississippi State and Florida await after this weekend's home series vs. Georgia.
18- Rice, 17-10
Trending: Down
Last Rank: 6
Of Note:
Usually pitching-stout, the Owls surrendered 21 runs in Friday and Saturday losses at Old Dominion, before finally winning the getaway game on Sunday, 5-4. Big weekends ahead for the Owls as they'll host Southern Miss and Middle Tennessee the next two weekends in CUSA play.
19- USC, 20-5
Trending: Down
Last Rank: 7
Of Note:
The Trojans hit a few rough patches the last two weeks, including four losses since their epic showing in the DodgerTown Classic. They are still new to all this success, so that's what makes trips to Washington and Arizona back-to-back the next two weeks so tricky.
20- Georgia Tech, 17-7
Trending: Up
Last Rank: NR
Of Note:
Giving a hint tot their quality of depth, the Techsters exacted some revenge with a mid-week win over Auburn to move to 5-1 in mid-week games. Their No. 32-ranked strength of schedule is unlike what we're used to seeing from the Yellow Jackets but either way. it's very cool.
Five to Watch:
- Florida Atlantic
- Nevada
- Oregon State
- San Diego
- Notre Dame
CBT: Lagniappe, March 26th.
