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Both The Good & The Bad…

We are roughly at the midway point in the 2011 college baseball season. Probably the biggest conversation coming into the season was the new bat standards and how they would affect the college game.

It’s no surprise that offense has been down, while pitching numbers have been better so far this season. However, nobody predicted James Madison would erupt for 91 runs with those new bats in a four-game sweep of Bucknell to open the season. Jake Lowery and David Herbek have combined to lead not only the Dukes, but also the nation with 14 and 12 home runs, respectively, while also sitting among the nation’s Division One leaders in sever other offensive categories.

Following is a look at some other surprises, both good and bad, to this point in the season.

Pleasant Surprises…

Danny Hultzen is 6-0 with a 1.36 ERA in 2011

Virginia was supposed to be good this year, but Brian O’Connor’s Cavaliers have been flat-out great so far. UVA debuted at #15 in our Preseason Composite National Rankings, but is 29-2 overall and 11-1 in ACC play heading into this weekend’s showdown with Georgia Tech. The Cavs lost just one game in the month of March-their series finale against Florida State. They’ve done anything but mash the ball out of the yard en-route to their 29 victories. Keith Werman has nearly twice as many sac bunts (13) as his team has home runs (7), while they still average 7.3 runs a game with a .300 team batting average. Danny Hultzen (6-0, 1.36 ERA) is second in the nation with 78 strikeouts for a pitching staff that’s so deep that midweek starter Will Roberts, who pitched a perfect game last week, is riding a 21-inning scoreless streak. Virginia has a 1.93 team ERA with 333 strikeouts and just 64 walks this season.

Fresno State was a team that many thought deserved an NCAA bid in 2010, but the Bulldogs (38-25) just missed the field of 64 after Hawaii ended their reign of four straight WAC Tournament titles. Offense wasn’t a problem for Mike Batesole’s squad, but the pitching staff ended the season with a 6.05 ERA. Things have been much different for the 2011 edition of the Bulldogs (20-3). Greg Gonzalez (6-0, 1.36 ERA) fronts a pitching staff that sports a 2.50 ERA. The senior led the staff with 73 strikeouts last year, but he already has 52 Ks with just 9 BB in 46 1/3 IP in 2011. Charlie Robertson has slammed the door at the end of games with 9

Fresno State's Charlie Robertson is among the DI leaders with 9 saves.

saves in 10 appearances. He is yet to surrender an earned run in 16 1/3 IP this year. Like everyone, Fresno State’s offense is still adjusting to the new bats. Most notably Jordan Ribera, who hit .343 and led the nation with 27 home runs last year. He is batting just .244 with one HR and 7 RBIs in 23 starts in ’11. Dusty Robinson has picked-up the slack though, with a .321 BA, 6 HR and 19 RBIs.

Georgia was just 16-37 last year with a dismal 5-23 record in the SEC. Outfielder Zach Cone (.363, 10 HR, 53 RBIs) was practically the entire offense for Dave Perno’s Bulldogs, while the pitching staff had a bloated 8.51 ERA with no complete games. The Bulldogs (15-14, 6-3) are one win from matching last year’s overall win total, while a series win over LSU and a sweep of Mississippi State has already exceeded last year’s conference win total. Georgia also boasts wins over UCLA, Florida State and South Carolina. There’s still work to be done, but where UGA is now is a far cry from a season that started by being swept in a 3-game series at Stetson.

Cal State Bakersfield is well on its way to eclipsing last year’s win total. The Roadrunners are off and running to a 20-7 start after finishing with a 26-30 record in 2010. Bill Kernan’s squad hasn’t shied away from tough competition either. The DI independent has wins over top 10 opponents Arizona State and defending national champion South Carolina along with series wins over Washington and Ohio State. Ryan McIntyre (.363, 10

Tommy Hoenshell has helped spearhead Bakersfield's pitching staff.

doubles, 4 triples, .966 OPS) leads an offense that has five regulars hitting above .300, but it’s pitching that’s really fueled Bakersfield so far. Tommy Hoenshell (5-3, 1.97 ERA) has two complete games and leads the nation with 64.0 IP, Jonathon Montoya (5-1, 3.06 ERA) is tied for the DI lead with four complete games and closer Martin Medina (1-1, 2.45 ERA, 5 saves) has 19 strikeouts in 14 2/3 innings to date.

Cal may or may not be reinstated beyond this season, but the Golden Bears are doing everything they can to make 2011 memorable. Dave Esquer has his team off to a 19-7 record, including 5-1 in the Pac-10, in what could be the program’s swan song. The pitching was expected to be good in 2011, but so far it’s been flat-out great. Justin Jones and Erik Johnson are each 4-1 with respective 2.47 and 2.08 ERAs, while Kevin Miller (3-2, 0.63 ERA, 1 save) has been nearly lights-out in a swing role. The senior has made three relief appearances and five starts, with a team-high 53 strikeouts and just 7 BB in 43.0 IP. Cal has a balanced offensive attack. Six regulars are batting between .317 and Austin Booker’s team-best .346, while eight players have accounted for the team’s 12 home runs.

Central Florida’s sites have been set on Omaha since Terry Rooney left his job as an LSU assistant to take over in Orlando. Now in his third year, Rooney has a team that’s starting to make some noise. The Knights (20-9) opened Conference USA with the program’s first ever series win over Rice only to be swept last weekend by Southern Mississippi.  However, UCF responded by toppling Florida 4-3 Tuesday night in Gainesville. D.J. Hicks (.347, 6 HR,

UCF's D.J. Hicks is among the top overall Conference USA hitters this season.

1.008 OPS) leads an offense that has seven starters batting above .300. Freshman Ben Lively (5-0, 1.88 ERA) has been UCF’s top weekend starter, while relievers Nick Cicio (1.08 ERA) and Joe Rogers (2.04 ERA) have each made 11 appearances out of the Knight’s bullpen, combining for 8 saves and 42 Ks with 5 BB in 44.0 IP.

Stetson (22-7) is another Florida school that’s exceeded most expectations so far. The Hatters need just five wins to match the win total of last year’s team that finished 27-31. Head coach Pete Dunn’s 32nd edition of the Hatters is also just five wins away from matching its 14 Atlantic Sun Conference win total from 2010. Robert Crews (.378, 3 HR), Nick Rickles (.345, 10 doubles, 3 HR, 28 RBIs) and Mark Jones (.343) have provided the bulk of the offense, while relievers Robbie Powell (4-0, 1.05 ERA) and Jake Boyd (2-0, 2.45 ERA) have combined for 8 saves in 31 appearances. The pitching staff has notched 232 strikeouts with 94 walks so far this season.

Head-scratching Surprises…

Connecticut was the darling of the north heading into the 2011 season. The Huskies brought back most of their line-up and pitching from last year’s team that won a school record 48 games and hosted an NCAA Regional. Most is the key word. UConn struggled to an 8-9-1 start to the new campaign without table setter Pierre LePage (.327, 63 R, 29 SB) and top run producer Mike Olt (.318, 23 HR, 76 RBIs), who were both drafted last June. The Huskies (15-10-1) have won seven of their last eight and look like they are back on the right track after sweeping St. John’s last weekend. Ace pitcher Matt Barnes (5-2, 1.00 ERA, 2 CG) has been as dominant as advertised. After starting the season in the Saturday starting role, he’s now the Friday night man. The UConn staff currently sports a 2.78 ERA, which should go a long way toward curing what ails Jim Penders‘ team now that Big East play is here.

UCLA road its pitching and a scrappy offense to a national runner-up finish in Omaha last year. The Bruins might have to lean on the arms of Trevor Bauer and Gerrit Cole even more this year. UCLA hit .304 as a team and averaged 6.8 runs a game last year, but those numbers are down to .244 and 4.0 through 24 games this year. John Savage’s Bruins (14-10) weren’t a team built on power to begin with (Dean Espy’s 9 HR led the club last year), but they have just four home runs to date in ’11. Seven different Bruin regulars batted .308 or better last year, but Cody Keefer’s .293 currently leads the team. Bauer (5-1, 1.46 ERA), who leads the nation with 82 Ks, and Cole (3-2, 2.06 ERA, 57 K) and the staff have been overpowering, with a 2.06 staff ERA and 259 strikeouts vs. just 74 walks in 218 2/3 innings this season. But consider this: After a 22-game win streak to start the season, UCLA didn’t lose its first game until April 2 last year. They lost 17 times in 68 games last year, but they have already lost 10 games this season.

San Diego has been to the NCAA Tournament in four of the last five seasons, but the Toreros will have a tough time getting back this year. San Diego (7-19) is off to one of the worst starts in Rich Hill’s 13-year tenure. USD currently sports a .256 team batting average, .325 on-base percentage and 4.82 ERA. The holes in the weekend pitching rotation left by Kyle Blair (8-4, 2.84 ERA) and Sammy Solis (9-2, 3.42 ERA) have been tough to fill on the mound, while the bats of Chris Engall (.416) and James Meador (.391) have left a big offensive void as well. To its credit, San Diego has played a tough schedule, with losses to the likes of Vanderbilt, Oklahoma, Cal, Coastal Carolina, and Fresno State.

New Mexico had its best season in nearly 50 years in 2010, but things have been different this year. After earning the program’s first NCAA bid since 1962, the 2011 Lobos are off to a 9-20 start, including eight straight losses to start the campaign. However, Ray Birmingham’s squad returned just one position starter and six pitchers from last year’s team that went 38-22. Birmingham’s teams have always been offensive minded, but it’s hitting a whopping 80 points below last year’s .346 team batting average, while reaching base at a .342 clip (down nearly 70 points). The lack of offense, combined with a 6.05 staff ERA has been a recipe for  misfortune so far. Give Birmingham credit though. He knew what kind of turnover he would be facing this year, but still scheduled the likes of Arizona State, Oklahoma State, Arizona, and Oklahoma. The first of two conference series against TCU is this weekend.

Oregon is off to just a 14-12 start after an NCAA berth in just the second year of existence in the program’s return. The 40-24 record and that postseason appearance brought high expectations and a top 10 ranking coming into 2011. Like UCLA, George Horton’s offense is know for its small ball approach, but the Ducks are waddling to the tune of a dismal .229 team batting average and a .310 slugging percentage. Aaron Jones (.310) and Danny Pulfer (.301) are the only Ducks batting above .300, while K.C. Serna, who hit a team-best .348 in ’10, is struggling at .194 this season. Oregon scored just three runs in last week’s sweep at the hands of Arizona State to open Pac-10 play, making this weekend’s home series against Washington huge.

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A Look At Some Of The Best Non-Conference Slates…

College Baseball 360 has been steadily posting the some 300 Division I baseball schedules since July as schools have released them. We have also made a few new additions to our Schedule Page for this season. You can now access not only 2011 schedules for every DI baseball team, but also 2011 rosters, and team statistics pages for both 2010 and 2011. Links are also provided for every conference’s official baseball web site.

In any case, when it comes to schedules college baseball is obviously different from Major League Baseball. MLB teams basically have the same degree of difficulty in their year-to-year schedules. The biggest variations come with interleague play and whether or not you happen to reside in the AL East.

But it’s different in college. While conferences dictate league games, each college baseball team is free to set its own non-conference slate.

With that in mind, we thought we would take a look at the top 11 schools that set the bar high with their non-conference schedules in 2011. We also have an honorable mention list of teams that didn’t quite make the cut.

The list is obviously subjective. It is not meant to be a strict “strength of schedule” ranking. Factors like “going outside the comfort zone” and a program trying to challenge itself beyond recent or traditional success. IE-If a team hasn’t been a year-to-year NCAA team, but has several traditional NCAA teams on the schedule that carries extra weight, as does a “power” team going on the road for more than one game on another team’s home field.

Cal State Fullerton

Dave Serrano’s Titans made it to Omaha in 2009 and they were a win away from a return trip last year. With that in mind, Fullerton had no reason to ratchet-up the schedule this season, but that’s what they did. The Titans opening weekend includes three “non-conference” games against Big West rival Long Beach State (they play again in conference play) as well as a game against North Carolina. That appetite wetter is followed by a three-game series in Ft. Worth against  pre-season #1 TCU (Collegiate Baseball Poll). After three games against USC, Serrano then takes his team to Baton Rouge for three games against LSU. Just to make sure they get their money’s worth before going home, the Titans stop in College Station to take on Texas A&M on March 15. Want more? Fullerton plays three games at Washington, followed by two home games against Arizona State and then heads to Hawaii for four games against the Warriors. A home game and a Super Regional rematch against UCLA awaits the Titans when they get home from the islands (Fullerton and UCLA will play again in Westwood later in the season). That’s 15 of 25 games to open the season against 2010 NCAA Tournament teams, with six of those contests against 2010 CWS squads.  There’s also a home and home with another ’10 NCAA team, San Diego.   

New Mexico

After ending a 48-year NCAA Tournament drought, head coach Ray Birmingham could have eased off the pedal when it comes to scheduling in 2011, but that’s not his style. The Lobos set the tone for their historic year by taking two of three from #1 Texas to start 2010. They will have the chance to make a statement right off the bat again this year when they play four games at Arizona State. The Lobos also have three games at Oklahoma State, two games at Arizona, three games at Gonzaga (NCAA ’09), a four-game home and home series with Texas Tech, and a four-game series in May at 2010 CWS team Oklahoma. All that plus a pair of three-game series against Mountain West Conference rival TCU. Hopefully it’s all as fun for the Lobos to play as it is for us to watch (and hopefully Birmingham gets some of those teams to Albuquerque in 2010)!

Oklahoma

Before he even thinks about setting his non-conference schedule, OU head coach Sunny Golloway knows one thing: In any given year he could face nine other Big 12 squads that could be NCAA Tournament teams (all 10 Big 12 teams made the NCAA field at least twice in the last decade). Forgive Golloway for the nine season-opening games in Norman against the likes of William & Mary, Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Oakland (MI), but trust me, it gets better from there. The 2010 CWS Sooners hit the road for five total games against San Diego, San Diego St. and Cal at the USD Tournament in early March. After three against Arkansas-Little Rock, OU heads to Tempe for two games against Arizona State. There are mid-week home and home series against both TCU and Arkansas on the schedule, and the aforementioned four-game set in May against New Mexico. That’s four games against 2010 CWS teams and a total of 11 non-conference games against 2010 NCAA squads.  

Stanford

After a 31-win season in 2010, Mark Marquess’ Cardinal enters 2011 with a #10 Collegiate Baseball national ranking. With that in mind, Stanford could easily sit at home in Palo Alto and schedule a bunch of home games against the likes of Sacramento State, Nevada and various repeat California foes. That’s not even close to the plan for Marquess and Stanford in 2011. The schedule starts with 10 of 11 non-conference games against 2010 NCAA teams, with nine of those games in different time zones and six of them against 2010 Super Regional squads. Here’s how it goes: Three games at Rice (Regional), a home game vs. rival Cal (Regional), three games at Vanderbilt (Super Regional) in Nashville, a home game vs. Santa Clara, and three games at Texas (Super Regional). All that is followed by a three-game home series against Michigan. Three home games against Long Beach State, another game against Cal (they also close the season and possibly the long rivalry with three games in Berkley), and a sneaky home and home against a rising Pacific team (coached by former Stanford and MLB player Ed Sprague) are among other non-conference games. While Michigan and LBSU have both been down the last couple years, they are both teams that could challenge for their conference crowns in any given year. It all adds up to a schedule that’s great for college baseball and tough for Stanford.

Arizona State

For now, Tim Esmay’s Sun Devils will not be participating in the 2011 NCAA Tournament (ASU is appealing the recent NCAA ban), but Arizona State has plenty of non-conference opponents on its schedule that made it last year and could be back again this year. The schedule starts with that four-game series with New Mexico. It cools a bit over the next couple weeks, but gets hot again March 11-23 with 10 straight non-conference games against 2010 NCAA participants. ASU starts the stretch with three games at Auburn, followed by two home games with Oklahoma, three home games against Oral Roberts, and then finishes the stretch with two games at Cal State Fullerton. The Sun Devils open Pac 10 play against arch rival Arizona after that stretch. They play two more games against the Wildcats in “non-conference” action.

Long Beach State

The Dirt Bags have averaged just 24 wins over the last two seasons, but that won’t stop first-year head coach Troy Buckley’s squad from challenging itself early in 2011. LBSU opens with 18 of its first 23 non-conference games against 2010 NCAA Tourney teams. The campaign begins with the three “non-league” games against Cal State Fullerton (their official Big West series in in May) and continues with games against Arizona (3), Oregon (3), Hawaii, Rice, Cal, Oregon State (3), and Stanford (3). The degree of difficulty of the Dirt Bags’ schedule also bumps-up with a home and home series with UCLA and a three-game set at Arizona State in May.

Georgia

Most SEC teams don’t schedule a high degree of difficulty in their non-conference games since they know they’ll cannibalize each other once conference play begins. A three-game series at Stetson to open the season doesn’t necessarily scream “must-see”, but give Dave Perno credit for starting on the road and outside his comfort zone. Things do get tougher though as the early portion of the season progresses with three-game home series vs. Baylor (Georgia played two games at Baylor last year) and Florida State. A “non-league” game against Alabama at Lawrenceville, GA’s Coolray Field also precedes a trip to L.A. for games against UCLA, USC and St. Mary’s. A mid-week game against Clemson and three games against intrastate rival Georgia Tech also dot the 2011 slate.

Oral Roberts

It’s tough for a smaller program that’s had a lot of success (13 straight conference titles) to get the big boys to play, but Rob Walton has his Golden Eagles playing a slew of tough teams on the 2011 docket. ORU has a three-game series with Baylor, a home and home with perennial midwest power Wichita State, three games at Arizona State, three at San Diego State, and single games at Texas and TCU. There’s also an early three-game home series against a Bethune-Cookman team that includes preseason All-American Pete O’Brien, who belted 20 HR last year.

Rutgers

The Scarlet Knights will not participate in the Big East/Big Ten Challenge this year. Instead, Fred Hill’s team from New Jersey will open the schedule with three games in Coral Gables against Miami. It’s a team Rutgers has traditionally faced over the years. Georgia Tech is another frequent stop for Rutgers, and they’ll visit Atlanta for three games again this year. RU also has three games against Michigan in Port St. Lucie, FL and three games at East Carolina. All four of those teams have been to at least a Super Regional over the last five seasons.

San Diego

The Toreros open their 2011 season with 15 of their first 20 games against 2010 NCAA teams. Three of their first four games are against Vanderbilt. Other NCAA foes in that stretch include UConn (4), Oregon (4), Oklahoma, and Coastal Carolina (2). There are also home and home series with Cal State Fullerton and UC Irvine as well as a four-game set at Fresno State.

Wichita State

Just a glance a the Shocker’s 2011 schedule doesn’t make anyone go “wow”, with early three-game home series against Niagara and North Dakota. However, there’s more appreciation after looking a little deeper. WSU follows their home-opening series against the Purple Eagles with a trip to Tulsa to face Oral Roberts. There is also good competition at the Dallas Baptist Tournament against the host Patriots as well as UT-Arlington and New Orleans, as well as another game against Arlington before returning home. Gene Stephenson then goes to Tulane for three games before welcoming Arizona to Wichita for a two-game set. The Shockers then play four games at Oregon, followed by four more at Hawaii. There are also home and home series against Kansas, Kansas State and Oklahoma State, as well as home games against Nebraska and Oral Roberts.

Honorable Mention

Bethune-Cookman: UC-Irvine, @ Auburn (2), @ Oral Roberts (3), @ Oklahoma State (2), Florida International, @ Miami, @ Florida

Cal Poly: Missouri, North Carolina, USC, UCLA (3), @ Oklahoma State (3), Minnesota (3)

Cal State Bakersfield: Washington State (3), Washington (3), Arizona St., Kansas, Fresno St. (3), @ South Carolina (3), Ohio State (3), Minnesota (2), UC-Irvine (3), @ Kansas St. (2), @ UCLA (3), Cal Poly (3)

Coastal Carolina: Virginia Tech, Tennessee Tech, Kansas State, Cal, Western Kentucky, North Carolina State, Kent State, @ San Diego (2), The Citadel (2), @ Clemson, @ North Carolina, @Virginia.

Connecticut: Minnesota, Oregon State, Cal, @ San Diego (4), @ UC Irvine, College of Charleston, Southern Mississippi

Dallas Baptist: @ Oklahoma State, TCU (home and home), Wichita State, @ Washington State (2), @ Washington (3), @ Rice, @ Texas, @ Oklahoma, @ Texas A&M (3), Baylor

Florida: Miami (3), Florida State (3), Bethune-Cookman

Fresno State: Oregon State (2), @ Nebraska (3), Washington State (3), San Diego (4), Ohio State (2)

Hawaii: Oregon (4), Texas (3), Cal State Fullerton (4), Wichita State (4)

Illinois-Chicago: @ Kentucky (3), @ Missouri (4), @ Vanderbilt (3)

Kent State: @ Georgia Tech (3), @ Louisville (3), @ Coastal Carolina, @ Houston (3)

Louisville: Michigan, Ohio State, Minnesota, Kent State (3), @ Pepperdine (3), @ USC (2), Western Kentucky (2), Kentucky, Vanderbilt

Oklahoma State: Cal Poly (3), Washington State, Minnesota, TCU (3), Wichita St. (2), @ Ohio State (2)

Rice: Stanford (3), USC (3), Kentucky, Baylor, Texas, @Arizona (2)

TCU: Kansas (3), Cal State Fullerton (3), @ Texas Tech (3), Oklahoma (2), @ Oklahoma State (3), @ Oral Roberts, @ Texas A&M, plays nearly every DI team from Texas except Texas and Rice

Texas Tech: TCU (3), New Mexico (4-home and home), @ Michigan (2)

Tulane: Southeastern Louisiana (2), @ Ole Miss (3), Wichita State (3), LSU (2), Florida International

UCLA: @ Nebraska (3), @ Cal Poly (3), Cal State Fullerton (2), UC-Irvine (2), Long Beach State (2), Georgia

USC: Missouri, North Carolina, Cal Poly, @ Rice (3), Cal State Fullerton (3), Louisville (2), Pacific (3), Georgia, UC-Irvine (2)

Related

Top 11 Catchers To Watch In 2011

Top 11 Shortstops To Watch In 2011

A Look Around The Country At Saturday’s NCAA Action

• The hitting streak continues, but the season is over.  Garrett Wittels extended his hitting streak to 56 games in Florida International’s 15-9 loss to Dartmouth.  The loss eliminated FIU from the Coral Gables Regional.  That means Wittels will begin the 2011 season needing hits in his first two games to tie Robin Ventura for the all-time Division One record hit streak.
  

  Garrett Wittels (FIU photo)

• ““Teams are gonna know what to anticipate.  He likes to drive the ball away.  Look for some teams to try to different things next season.  Try busting him hard inside.  Nobody tried to do that.  We know he can push the ball into right center field, but can he turn on the ball?  I think that’s gonna be the test.”  That’s what ESPNU studio analyst Jay Walker had to say about Wittels and how other teams might approach him next year.  So let me get this straight…Wittels batted .409 this season, hit safely in 56 games, smacked 20 doubles, and came to the plate 237 times, but nobody ever challenged him inside once and he never once turned on the ball?  Great analysis Jay (I hope the sarcasm is detected)!  Anyone who hits in 56 straight and bats .400 over the course of the season is going to do it by going to all fields.  More great analysis by someone we’ve never heard of who probably saw all of eight of Wittels’ at-bats this season.
• Dartmouth clean-up batter Jason Brooks was 2-for-5 in the win over FIU with a grand slam and a total of 6 RBIs.  The win was the first for Dartmouth in the NCAA Tournament since 1987 and the first for the Ivy League since Princeton won a game in 2004.
• Not to be outdone, Illinois State got its first NCAA win in 34 years by downing St. Louis 8-3 in the Louisville Regional elimination game.  Kevin Tokarski homered and drove-in four.
  

  Anthony Rendon (Rice photo)

• Anthony Rendon jacked 3 HR and totaled 7 RBIs to lead Rice to a resounding 19-1 elimination game win over Rider at the Austin Regional.  With the Owls leading 11-0 Wayne Graham lifted starter Taylor Wall after 3 2/3 hitless innings.
• Southern Mississippi’s Taylor Walker was 4-for-4 with a home runs, 4 runs and 4 RBIs in an Auburn Regional elimination win over Jacksonville State.
• Matt Weisinger hit two of St. John’s‘ four home runs in Charlottesville to help the Red Storm eliminate VCU 8-6.
• Baylor beat Lamar 6-5 in Ft. Worth.  Logan Vick had his 29th extra base hit to set a freshman school record.
• Florida Atlantic had a season-high 18 hits to eliminate Bethune-Cookman with a 12-6 win in Gainesville.
• Buddy Sosnoskie belted two HR with 6 RBIs to help Virginia Tech beat Bucknell 16-7.
• Stony Brook eliminated North Carolina State with a 6-2 win in Myrtle Beach.  Sophomore Tyler Johnson (10-3) set a new Seawolves single-season record for wins.  Johnson notched 10 Ks in 8 IP.
• Tyler Garwal hit a walk-off home run to keep Oral Roberts‘ season going with a 9-8 win over Cal in Norman.  The Golden Eagles hit 4 HR and won despite walking 9 batters.
• Francis Larson hit his 25th career home run to help UC Irvine beat Kent State 19-9 in the L.A. elimination game.  Larson has now hit the most home runs in Anteater history.
  

  Neil Holland (UofL photo)

• Louisville’s 7-1 win over Vanderbilt set a program record with the 50th win of the season for the Cardinals.  Neil Holland got his 17th save with 3 shutout innings of one hit ball.
• How confident was Louisville head coach Dan McDonnell that his team could start Regional play 2-0?  Cardinal ace Thomas Royse (9-1, 2.91 ERA) did not start either of his team’s first two games.  He’ll start Sunday, which is the final game of McDonnell’s 3-game suspension.
• Mike Olt is UConn’s all-time home run (44) and RBI (177) leader after belting two long balls with a career-best 8 RBIs as the Huskies routed Central Connecticut State 25-5.  UConn now faces Oregon, which lost 6-4  to Florida State.
• Rain and lightening caused two hours and 28 minutes of delay, but Miami cruised to a 14-1 win over Texas A&M.  Hurricane 1B Scott Lawson was 4-for-6 with 3 HR and 6 RBIs.
• Danny Hultzen gave-up 6 earned runs in 6 IP, but still improved to 10-1 as Virginia beat Ole Miss. 13-7.  The Cavaliers tied a school record with their 49th win.
• Mike Ferraro was 4-for-6 with a home run, two doubles and 6 RBIs to lead San Diego to a resounding 22-1 elimination game win over Wisconsin-Milwaukee in Tempe.
• Here’s a lesson to the kids at home: ALWAYS RUN IT OUT.  Stanford’s Colin Walsh hit a fairly routine fly ball to left field, but Cal State Fullerton’s Casey Watkins dropped it.  Walsh motored all the way to third on the play and scored on a single by Stephen Piscotty.  The Titans still won 6-5 thanks to a pair of 2-run home runs by Christian Colon.
• Stanford goes 0-2 at the Fullerton Regional.  It’s just the second time Stanford has gone two and out in Regional play.  The last time it happened was in 1994 in Austin, TX.
• There were a total of seven upsets on Saturday.  Five #4 seeds won, with three of those wins vs. #2 seeds.  Two #1 seeds lost to #2 seeds.
• Minnesota is the Cinderella of the Regionals so far.  The fourth-seeded Golden Gophers downed #3 New Mexico 6-4 in 10 innings the Fullerton winner’s bracket game to go to 2-0.
• Scott Matyas struckout 8 in three scoreless, hitless innings of relief to improve to 5-1.
• Eight of Saturday’s Regional games were decided by double digits.
• Citadel’s 1-3 batters combined to go just 2-for-12 in their 9-4 loss to South Carolina.  The Gamecocks used a 5-run 7th inning to take the win.
• Starting pitchers Blake Cooper (11-1) of South Carolina and Asher Wojciechowski (12-3) of The Citadel combined for 23 strikeouts and just 4 walks.
  

  Trevor Bauer (UCLA photo)

• Trevor Bauer had 11 strikeouts to lead UCLA to a 6-3 win over defending national champion LSU in the L.A. winner’s bracket game.  Anthony Ranaudo had 10 Ks in the loss.
• The Bruins (45-13) tied a program record for most wins in one season.  It equals the win total from the Bruins’ 1997 team (45-19-1), which was the last UCLA program to go to the College World Series.
• Junior Casey Harman tossed the first complete game of his career to help #2 seed Clemson topple #1 Auburn 5-2  in Auburn.  Harman scattered five hits with 8 strikeouts.
• Arizona State’s Seth Blair is 12-0 after giving-up just a run in 7 IP as the overall #1 seeded Sun Devils rolled Hawaii 12-1.
• Joe Weik smacked two home runs and had a career-high 6 RBIs to help TCU down Arizona 11-5.  The Horned Frogs improve to 48-11 to tie the school record for wins in a season.
• TCU pitchers Matt Purke (13-0) and Tyler Lockwood combined for 10 strikeouts, making TCU 21-0 when its pitchers have at least 10 Ks in a game.

Notes & Thoughts From Day 1 NCAA Action (updated)

CLICK HERE for DAY-1 NCAA SCOREBOARD

• Minnesota was the only #4 seed that won on Friday (3-1 at Cal State Fullerton, see notes below), while the collective #3 seeds went 9-7 vs. the #2s. The #3 seeds that posted the “minor upsets” (some may have been considered the favorites?) included: Louisiana-Lafayette 1, Rice 0 (in Austin) … The Citadel 7, Virginia Tech 2 (in Columbia) … Washington State 8, Kansas State 6 (in Fayetteville) … Arizona 10, Baylor 9 (in Ft. Worth) … New Mexico 9, Stanford 5 (in Fullerton, which also had the 4-vs.-1 upset) … Oregon State 6, Florida Atlantic 4 (in Gainesville) … North Carolina 12, California 3 (in Norman) … Oregon 5, Connecticut 3 (in Norwich) … and Hawaii 4, San Diego 2 (in Tempe). See bullet notes below for some highlights from Friday’s nine “upsets” (along with info. from the other games).

• Regional host teams have the option to take the first or second game on Day-1 of NCAA Regional play. The hosts traditionally take the second or “Prime Time” game, and this year was no different with 12 of 16 Regional hosts opting for game two. Coastal Carolina, Virginia, Arkansas, and Oklahoma were the only Regional hosts to opt for the early game rather than the night cap (some coaches prefer to get the game out of the way, avoid risk of rain delays, get their team a few hours more rest, etc.). All four of those teams won.
  

  11 year MLB veteran turned college baseball analyst Eric Byrnes

• Disclaimer: I (Sean Stires … Pete LaFleur ditto) like Eric Byrnes. That said, Byrnes was considered by many to be more style than substance in his playing days, so it’s only fitting that ESPNU has continued its tradition of going with style over substance by using the newly-retired Byrnes in the broadcast booth during the Coral Gables Regional. Case in point:  Texas A&M was trailing FIU 1-0 in the bottom of the first inning. After Aggie leadoff man Jaoquin Hinojosa reached base safely, 2-hole batter Tyler Naquin tried (unsuccessfully) to bunt him over. This prompted Byrnes to question why A&M was playing for only onw run so early in the game…. An inning later, with #9 batter Andrew Collazo at the plate in the same situation, Byrnes said, “We’re not bunting again are we?” Uh, yes Eric they were, and after Collazo executed his 8th sac-bunt of the season a graphic popped-up on the screen that showed that A&M had just tied a school record with its 59th sac-bunt of the season. The Aggies entered the day tied for 14th nationally in that department. Apparently game preparation was not high on Byrnes’ list of things to do prior to his college baseball broadcasting debut.
• Byrnes, who played at the 1997 College World Series for UCLA, again showed his lack of knowledge of the current college game later in the broadcast when the subject of NCAA bids came up. Minnesota was mentioned as the only Big Ten representative in the tournament, while the Pac-10 was one of three conferences to get eight bids. “How does that happen, though,” Byrnes asked. “We’re talking one team from the Big Ten and eight from the Pac.” Um…do I really need to say more? Thankfully, Kyle Peterson was there to keep Byrnes pointed in the right direction.
• In fairness to Byrnes, he did provide some needed entertainment when the game turned into a blowout in the middle innings.
• When Florida International pitcher Daniel DeSimone hit Caleb Shofner with a pitch in the bottom of the 5th inning, it marked the 100th HBP by the Golden Panther pitching staff this season. The dubious mark sets an NCAA single-season record.
• Garrett Wittels extended hit hitting streak to 55 games in FIU’s loss to Texas A&M. He doubled to right-center field by swinging at a 3-0 pitch to lead off the top of the 6th inning. A smattering of boos were directed at A&M pitcher Barret Loux when the count reached 3-0 and it looked like Wittels might not have a chance to swing in his third at-bat of the day.
• The hit by Wittels marked the 16th time he extended the streak with a hit between the 4th and 6th innings this season. He’s kept the streak going 25 times in the first three innings of a game, 13 times from the 7th through 9th innings, and once (March 26 vs. Arkansas-Little Rock) in the 12th inning.
• Five different Texas A&M players hit home runs in the 17-3 win, while Aggie winning pitcher Loux (11-2) struck out 10 in 8 IP. He’s now fanned 136 in 104 innings this season.
• The Aggies have won seven straight, 13 of their past 14 and 19 of 22 games dating back to April 27.
• Southern Mississippi’s got some work to do if they’re going to make a return trip to the College World Series (and possibly extend Brett Favre’s NFL career … although something tells us he’s coming back anyway!). The Golden Eagles fell 10-1 to Clemson in their Regional opener. USM ace Scott Copeland dropped to 11-1 with his first loss of the season, after winning as a starter and deep reliever at the C-USA Tournament (to earn CB360 national Primetime Pitcher of the Week honors).
  

  Brett Eibner hit 3 HR in Arkansas' Friday win over Grambling St. (Arkansas photo)

• Brett Eibner smacked 3 HR to help Arkansas rout Grambling State 19-7.  Eibner was 4-for-5 with 7 RBIs and 5 runs. Look for the two-way talent on the mound this weekend as well. Collin Kuhn and Andy Wilkins each homered twice for the Hogs.
• The Citadel pulled-off a minor upset as the #3-seeded Bulldogs beat #2 Virginia Tech, 7-2. The win is the 13th straight for The Citadel, but the best news is they didn’t even use ace Asher Wojciechowski (3.25 ERA, 12-2. 144 Ks in 119 IP). Lefty Matt Talley (8-3) tossed 7.0 innings and won, while 3B David Greene had a 2-run HR from the 7-hole. The jr. RHP “Wojo” is slated to be opposed on Saturday by South Carolina’s ace, sr. RHP Blake Cooper (2.94, 10-1, 88 Ks in 104 IP). Justin Wright was the losing pitcher on Friday vs. Citadel (5.1IP-6R-10H-BB-5K), as VT’s #1-3 hitters combined to hit only 2-for-14 (CF/leadoff Sean Ryan has a 2-run HR in the 7th).
• Zach Osborne registered Louisiana-Lafayette’s first NCAA Tournament shutout since 2002 by blanking Rice, 1-0. Catcher/cleanup hitter Chad Keefer’s 2-out single in the 8th inning plated the game’s lone run.
• Baylor scored five runs in the bottom of the 9th inning, but they came up short in a 10-9 loss to Arizona at the Ft. Worth Regional. The Bears left runners at first and third to end the game. They committed three errors to give the Wildcats five unearned runs in the 6th inning. Steve Selsky & DH/6-hole Josh Garcia (2RBI-2R-HBP) homered for the Wildcats, while SS Alex Mejia was 3-for-4 with 4 RBI, a double & run scored from the bottom of the order.
• Baylor’s Logan Vick walked twice to set a single-season school record with 56 BBs this year. The Bears left 12 men on base (including the two in the 9th), with Gregg Glime‘s home run and 3 RBI pacing the Baylor offense. Logan Verrett had no-decision (3.1IP-3R-5H-BB-2K) and Shawn Tolleson (2-7) was let down by his defense in the hard-luck loss (3.2IP-6R/1ER-5H-BB-2K).
• Closing in on 200: … Friday’s win by Coastal Carolina (6-0 vs. Stony Brook) is the 199th victory for the Chanticleers over past four seasons (199-50-0, from 2007-10).
  

  Oklahoma's Chris Ellison

• Chris Ellison drove in Cody Reine in the bottom of the 10th inning to give Oklahoma a 7-6 win over Oral Roberts. Reine had homered two innings earlier to tie the game (6-6) and ultimately force extra innings.
• One-time Little League World series participant Michael Broad hit one of Miami’s two 1st-inning, 3-run home runs to help the Hurricanes beat Dartmouth, 12-8. The ‘Canes held on after leading 11-0 thru five innings. Joe Sclafani homered twice for the Big Green.
• Oregon State beat Florida Atlantic, 6-4, in Gainesville, Fla. The start of the game was delayed a total of 3:15 by rain. Tyler Smith hit his first home run in nearly two months in the win.
• “Lobos fight scratch and claw baby, we’ll play anybody, anywhere anytime and we’re trying to spend a lot of our effort trying to prove that we can play with anybody in the country.” – Those were New Mexico third-year head coach Ray Birmingham’s comments during his in-game interview on ESPNU while his team was playing Stanford. Is it any wonder UNM is making its first NCAA appearance since 1962?
• New Mexico won that game, 9-5, for the second NCAA Tournament win in school history. Willy Kesler had no-decision (5.2IP-4R-11H-BB-5K) and Jason Oatman (1-2) picked up the relief win (3.1IP-R-3H-2K). RF Chris Juarez went 3-for-4 (3RBI-2B) from the 5-hole, while the 2-hole-batting catcher Rafael Neda homered and scored 4 times (1B/2-hole Justin Howard had 3R).
• Don’t know how to say his name, but Pi’ikea Kitamura was hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded in the top of the 9th inning to give Hawaii a 4-3 win over San Diego in Tempe, Ariz. San Diego ace Kyle Blair had another solid outing but did not figure into the decisions (8IP-3R/1ER-7H-8K). USD’s Mike Ferraro homered from the 7-hole and had 2 RBI, but USD’s #1-5 hitters combined for only 4 hits.
  

  LSU's Trey Watkins

• In his only at-bat of the night, LSU’s Trey Watkins smacked a 2-strike, 2-out double in the bottom of the 11th to lift LSU to an 11-10 over UC-Irvine. LSU’s Austin Nola forced extra innings when his blooper to right with 2 outs in the 9th scored Johnny Dishon, who motored all the way  aroundfrom first base.
• Jack Armstrong’s pinch-hit single scored Andrew Giobbi to give Vanderbilt an 8-7 win over Illinois State at the Louisville Regional opener. If the name of the offensive hero sounds familiar, it’s because Armstrong has been one of Vandy’s top starting pitchers this season and we’re sure to see him make a start over the weekend.
• Oregon beat Connecticut, 5-3, in Norwich, Conn., thanks to three runs in the top of the 9th inning.
• TCU didn’t use freshman ace Matt Purke (12-0), but the Horned Frogs still cruised to a 16-3 win over Lamar. Kyle Winkler and Greg Holle combined for 11 strikeouts to improve TCU to 20-0 this year when its pitchers have at least 10 K in a game. Purke will go Saturday vs. Arizona.
• Louisville also sat its ace, Thomas Royse (9-1), in its 11-2 win over Saint Louis. Head coach Dan McDonnell was not in the dugout, as he served the first game of his three-game suspension for last week’s dustup with an umpire at the Big East Tournament.
• Minnesota pulled-off the biggest Day-1 upset, as the #4 seed Golden Gophers downed #1 seed andnd host Cal State Fullerton, 3-1 in Fullerton. Jr. RHP  Seth Rosin (9-4) faced only 26 batters and struck out 7 with no walks in 8.0 innings to move his season totals to 95 Ks and only 12 BB. All the Gophers runs came in the opening frame, with RBI singles from Kyle Knudson and Matt Puhl scoring AJ Pettersen & AndyHenkmeryer (other run scores on error/unearned).
• Washington State registered its 19th come-from-behind win of the season, an 8-6 victory over Kansas State in Fayetteville, Ark. Adam Conley postedhis 19th save, while the Cougar bullpen notched its 18th win of the year (one away from tyingthe school record set in 1987). Cody Barlett’s 2-run HR in the 8th inning proved to be the game-winner.
• It took a 5-run 8th inning for South Carolina to rally to a 9-5 home win over Bucknell. It’s the Gamecock’s 12th straight postseason home win.
• Texas scored all 11 of its runs with 2-outs in an 11-0 win over Rider in Austin. Brandon Workman (12-1) tossed a complete game.
• Ole Miss held off St. John’s, 10-5, in Charlottesville, Va. The Red Storm scored all five of their runs in the last two innings.
• Tony Plagman was 5-for-5 in Georgia Tech’s 10-0 win over Mercer in Atlanta.
• Florida freshman Hudson Randall notched a career-best 10 strikeouts in 7.1 innings to help the Gators beat Bethune-Cookman, 7-3. Randall didn’t allow a hit until the 5th inning.
• UCLA routed Kent State, 15-1 in L.A., for the Bruins 25th home win of the season. Their 44 total wins are one away from tying the program’s single-season record set in 1997.
• North Carolina validated its NCAA berth with a 12-3 win over Cal in Norman, Okla. The Tar Heels have scored eight or more runs in 16 of their past 24 first- or second0round NCAA Tournament games.
• 5,684 fans saw Oregon beat UConn, 5-3 at Dodd Stadium in Norwich, Conn. The Ducks rallied for three runs in the top of the 9th. Reliever Madison Boer has notched a save in Oregon’s past four wins. An attendance of 1,948 was on hand earlier in the day to see Florida State beat Central Connecticut, 11-3.
• Kole Calhoun hit his team-leading 14th HR to help overall #1 seed Arizona State beat Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 6-2 in Tempe.

The Last Notebook Of The Regular Season…

College Baseball Thoughts Heading Into The Season’s Home Stretch

By Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires

The “weekend” starts early this week.  With most conference tournaments starting next Tuesday and Wednesday the start of the last week of most conference regular season series will start this Thursday instead of Friday.  In fact, so many conferences are starting on Thursday this week (ACC, SEC, Big Ten, Big East to name a few) the Big 12 is about the only conference that is sticking with its regular Friday, Saturday, Sunday schedule.

Peter O'Brien

The MEAC starts its tournament this Thursday.  It would be a major upset if Bethune-Cookman doesn’t win the championship.  The top-seeded Wildcats (32-18, 18-0) are one of just two teams in the six-team field with a winning record (North Carolina A&T at 25-23 overall & 15-3 in league play is the other).  BC’s Peter O’Brien leads the MEAC and is tied for fourth in the nation with 19 home runs.

What happened to Portland? Just two weeks ago the Pilots were the nation’s feel good story heading into a home series with West Coast Conference leader San Diego.  Winners of 11 straight heading into that showdown, they had a chance to make a case for at least an at-large NCAA berth and an outside chance to claim the WCC title.  All that is gone now though.  After being swept by San Diego, Portland (31-16) lost a mid-week game to Washington State and was swept again last weekend by San Francisco.  That’s seven straight losses heading into Wednesday’s (5/18) home game vs. Oregon.  Ben Roethlisberger has about as much of a chance at being named Georgia’s Man of the Year as Portland now has to get an NCAA bid.

What happened to the Big Ten? A year ago at this time there were three Big Ten teams that had a legitimate chance to receive an NCAA bid, and that’s how many bids the league ended-up with.  Ohio State, Minnesota and Indiana all went to regionals, while Illinois just missed out after the Hoosiers won the conference tournament.  There won’t be three bids for the Big Ten this year though.  All ten teams are still in contention for the six spots in the conference tournament, but only the tourney winner will be NCAA bound this year.  Minnesota (25-27, 13-8) leads the conference, while Michigan State (32-17, 10-11) has the best overall record, but sits in a four-way tie for fifth place

Retiring head coach Bob Todd (OSU photo)

heading into the final weekend of the regular season.

Speaking of Ohio State…The Buckeyes have to be the biggest disappointment in the conference.  OSU returned the conference Player and Pitcher of the Year (Dan Burkhart and Alex Wimmers, respectively) from last year’s regular season championship team, but they have floundered their way to a 27-21 overall mark, including 10-11 in conference play.  And if head coach Bob Todd was hoping for a “Corky Palmer effect” by announcing his retirement it hasn’t worked.  Palmer’s Southern Mississippi squad ran a hot streak all the way to Omaha after he announced his retirement before season’s end last year, but Todd’s Buckeyes have gone 3-4 with series losses to Illinois and Iowa since he announced his impending retirement on May 5.

Tony Thompson (KU photo)

Kansas finds itself in a rough situation this weekend. As they head into this weekend’s regular season ending series with Oklahoma, most current bracket projections have the Jayhawks (31-21 DI record, #54 NCAA RPI) staying home for the NCAA Tournament.  A look at the stats shows this year’s team is not much different than last year’s team that finished 39-24 after playing at the Chapel Hill Regional.  This year’s respective team batting average and ERA of .303 and 5.15 are pretty similar to the 2009 marks of .301 and 4.46.  The biggest difference appears to be the absence of the big bat Tony Thompson provided when he won the Big 12’s first triple crown by hitting .389 with 21 home runs and 82 RBIs.  He was one of two Jayhawks to hit double-digit dingers last year, but so far no KU player has reached even 10 long balls in 2010.  Thompson fractured his left knee cap before the season started, and he hasn’t been able to fully regain his form in the 33 games he’s played since his return to the field.  Thompson is batting a respectable .325, but has just five home runs with 35 RBIs.  He also hasn’t seen as many pitches to hit this year.  After walking 21 times in 61 games and 247 at-bats as a sophomore, the junior has drawn 19 free passes in just 126 ABs this season.

FIU’s Wittels Heads This Week’s “By The Numbers”…

Garrett Wittels (FIU photo)

45…Game hitting streak by Florida International’s Garrett Wittels.  The sophomore had at least one hit in each of FIU’s three wins over South Alabama over the weekend to tie Roger Schmuck of Arizona State (1971) for the third longest Division One hitting streak of all-time.

47…Game hitting streak by Phil Stephenson of Wichita State in 1981 for the second longest streak in NCAA history.  Oklahoma State’s Robin Ventura’s 58 game streak (which ended at the 1987 College World Series) is the longest in DI history.

3…Teams that have qualified for the 2010 NCAA Baseball Tournament.  San Diego and Cal State Fullerton joined Ivy League champ Dartmouth by claiming the their regular season crowns over the weekend.  San Diego won the WCC thanks to losses by Portland, while Fullerton claimed at least a share of the Big West after sweeping Long Beach State.  The Titans own the tie-breaker with UC Irvine and need just one win or one Cal State Northridge loss to win the title outright.

18-2…Fullerton’s record in its last 20 games since losing game one of its series vs. Irvine back on April 9th.

19…Straight NCAA Tournament appearances Fullerton will make when it plays in its NCAA regional this season.  It’s the third longest active streak in the nation behind Miami (37) and Florida State (32).

47…Days it took to complete TCU‘s 19-17 win in 12 innings over Air Force to clinch the 2010 Mountain West

Matt Purke (TCU photo)

Conference Championship.  The game began on March 28th in Colorado Springs, and was suspended due to weather.  It resumed in the 7th inning Friday afternoon in Ft. Worth with TCU leading 16-15.

12…Strikeouts by TCU pitcher Matt Purke, who gave-up just a run on five hits in six innings of relief in that game to improve to 10-0.  The freshman is the Horned Frog’s regular Friday starter.

8…Home runs TCU hit in that game to help the Horned Frogs to a new school record total of 84 HR hit this season.  The record had stood since 1998.

3…Weekend wins by Kentucky (29-23, 12-15) over LSU to hand the defending national champions their fourth straight SEC series loss.  The Tigers (34-18, 12-15) have lost 11 of their last 12 SEC games and 12 of their last 14 games overall.

19…Years since Kentucky had last swept a weekend series from LSU.

21…Years since LSU played in the NCAA Tournament but did not host a Regional.  The Tigers played in College Station Texas that year.  LSU has hosted 18 NCAA Regionals since then, but could find themselves on the road when the tournament starts this year.

16-8…Score by which Indiana trailed Kentucky heading into the bottom of the 8th inning of Tuesday’s game vs. Kentucky.  The Hoosiers plated five runs with two outs in the 8th and then added three more in the 9th to force extra innings before Michael Early’s walk-off hit gave IU an improbable 18-17 victory.

0-for-6…What Early was at the plate in the game prior to drilling a pitch off the left field wall to plate Dylan Smith with the game-winning run.

4 & 7…Home runs hit and RBI’s by St. John’s left fielder Jeremy Baltz in Friday’s 8-5 win over #6 Louisville (the Red

Jeremy Baltz (SJU photo)

Storm lost the other two games in the series).  The freshman leads St. John’s with a .412 average, 18 home runs and 68 RBIs this season.

14-0…Northwestern’s lead over Michigan in the middle of the third inning Sunday in Ann Arbor.

15-14…The final score of Michigan’s comeback win over the Wildcats.  The game ended on Mike Dufek’s walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

5 2/3…Scoreless innings pitched by Wolverine reliever Matt Miller to pick-up the win.  The junior struck out seven and gave-up just two hits to keep the Wildcats scoreless while Michigan scored the last nine of its 15 unanswered runs.

14…Straight games Virginia has won after sweeping North Carolina over the weekend.  North Carolina (32-20, 11-16) had won eight straight and 10 of its last 11 games heading into the series with the Cavs (43-9, 21-6).

2…Walk-off hits the Cavaliers needed to pull off the sweep.  John Barr’s 2-out RBI single capped Saturday’s game one 3-2 victory,  while John Hicks ended Sunday’s 5-3 win with a 3-run home run.

900…Wins at Ohio State by head coach Bob Todd after Sunday’s 11-6 win over Iowa for the Buckeyes’ lone win of the 3-game series.  Todd will retire at season’s end.

7…Scoreless innings pitched by South Carolina’s bullpen in a 3-game weekend sweep of Arkansas.  Five relievers combined to give-up just two hits after starter Tyler Webb left after giving-up three runs in three innings in Sunday’s 5-3 win to cap the sweep.

33…Consecutive Big South Conference games won by #5 Coastal Carolina (45-6, 23-0) after a 3-game sweep of #39 Liberty (37-15, 18-6).  The Chanticleers remain in good shape to receive a top 8 national seed after sweeping the second place team in their conference.

14,619…Fans who saw Florida’s 3-game sweep of Georgia over the weekend in Gainesville.  It’s the best 3-game attendance figure in program history.  Florida (37-12, 20-7) and South Carolina (41-11, 29-7) are tied for first place in the SEC East.  They go head to head this weekend.

4…Straight SEC series won by Auburn after taking two of three games from Tennessee.  The Tigers (35-17, 17-10) now lead the SEC West.

15…Years since Auburn last won the SEC’s Western Division.  They close the regular season this weekend at Ole Miss.

Anthony Rendon (Rice photo)

10…Run deficit faced by Rice as the Owls prepared to bat in the bottom of the third inning Sunday vs. Southern Mississippi.

19…Unanswered runs Rice scored to beat the Golden Eagles 21-14.  Anthony Rendon paced the Owls, going 4-for-5 with two home runs and 4 RBIs to help Rice lock-up the top seed in the Conference USA Tournament.

7…RBIs by USM’s B.A. Vollmuth in the loss.  The sophomore shortstop belted a pair of home runs himself, including a grand slam.

1,000…Career wins by Arizona head coach Andy Lopez after his Wildcats topped #1 Arizona State 12-4 Sunday night in Tucson.  Lopez is the 16th active coach and the 46th all-time Division One coach to reach the milestone.

1…Loss by ASU’s Merrill Kelly (9-1) this season after giving-up six runs (five earned) in just 3 2/3 IP-his shortest start of the season.  The 12 runs are the most given-up by the Sun Devils this year.

25…Consecutive scoreless innings pitched by Rhode Island’s Tim Boyce (a new URI school record).  The senior struck out 10 and gave-up just two singles with his second straight complete game shutout in Friday’s 6-0 win over Richmond.

27 1/3…Consecutive scoreless innings pitched by Wichita State’s Jordan Cooper after Friday’s 3-0 win over Missouri State.  The sophomore fanned 14 and struck out at least one batter in every inning to improve to 8-2.

69…Walks issued to UT Arlington outfielder Michael Choice this season to set a new Southland Conference single season record.  Choice is batting .401 with 16 home runs and 58 RBIs for the Mavericks (26-26).  He was walked

Tony Nix (UC Riverside photo)

intentionally in the first inning of Sunday’s 11-8 win over Lamar to set the record.

19…Times Choice has been intentionally walked this season to help him lead the nation with his 69 free passes 2010.

10…Big Ten teams that are all still alive in the race to qualify for next week’s 6-team Big Ten Tournament. Four  teams, Michigan State, Ohio State, Indiana, and Iowa, are tied for fifth place.

.266…UC Riverside’s Tony Nix’s season batting average entering last week’s action.

.341…Nix’s current average after a week in which he was 17-for-26 with three home runs, five doubles, a triple, 11 runs scored, and 15 RBIs.  Nix had a stretch during which he had nine straight hits, including a 6-for-6 game against Loyola Marymount.

4…Home runs hit by Bucknell’s Paul Shribman to help the #4 seed Bison beat #1 seed Army in the Patriot League’s best two of three semifinal series.  Shribman belted a grand slam in the series clinching win and finished the weekend by batting 8-for-13 with 9 RBIs and 7 runs scored.  Bucknell faces #3 seed Holy Cross in this weekend’s Patriot League Championship Series.

30 conference champions earn automatic berths into the field of 64 in the 2010 NCAA Division One baseball tournament.  We will list them as they secure their bids.

CLICK HERE to see the NCAA selection handbook, which includes at-large selection criteria and more information.

NCAA Tournament Selection Timeline

America East-Stony Brook

ACC:  Florida State

Atlantic Sun:  Mercer

Atlantic 10-St. Louis

Big East-St. John’s

Big South-Coastal Carolina

Big Ten-Minnesota

Big 12-Texas A&M

Big West-Cal State Fullerton

CAA-Virginia Commonwealth

CUSA-Southern Mississippi

Horizon:  Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Ivy League-Dartmouth

MAAC-Rider

MAC-Kent State

MEAC-Bethune-Cookman

Missouri Valley-Illinois State (Won First Ever Tournament)

Mountain West-TCU

Northeast-Central Connecticut St.

Ohio Valley-Jacksonville St.

Pac 10-Arizona State

Patriot League-Bucknell

SEC-LSU

Southern-The Citadel

Southland-Texas St.

SWAC-Grambling St.

Summit League-Oral Roberts (Won 13th straight tournament)

Sun Belt-Florida International

WCC-San Diego

WAC-Hawaii (First title since 1992)

Texas Nipping On Virginia’s Heels…

The staff of Baseball America determines the Top 25 rankings. Records indicated are through games of May 2 and do not include ties.

Four Things I’m Thinking About Right Now…

By Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires

As April hits its stride we’re getting ready for another weekend of college baseball.  We’ve had some new podcasts and will continue to have more in the coming weeks as we look at different teams and conferences around the country.  Here are some things that gnawed at my mind this week…

Say What… Here are the current statistics of two catchers.  One is on the 2010 Johnny Bench Award Watch List, but

Yasmani Grandal (Miami photo)

the other is not.  See if you can guess which one is:  A.  .414 BA, 7 HR, 37 RBIs, 1.211 OPS, 1 Passed Ball  B.  .294 BA, 6 HR, 25 RBIs, .888 OPS, 3 Passed Balls.  If you said catcher “B” is the one on the watch list you would be correct (I won’t mention his name here).  Catcher “A” is Miami Hurricane Yasmani Grandal.  After hitting 16 home runs and then playing last summer for Team USA the junior was not only not on the original watch list, but also left out of the group of nine catchers who were added to the watch list this week.  That’s 61 total catchers now on the watch list, but the guy hitting .414 at one of the best programs in the history of the sport is not one of them.

Big Shake-Up…Before last week the Big East was looking like it was going to be a one-bid league when NCAA selections come out next month, and Louisville was looking like it might earn the programs first top 8 national seed.  That all changed when Pittsburgh took two of three games from the Cardinals in the Steel City.  Pittsburgh (22-9, 6-3) was three outs from sweeping the series before Louisville rallied to salvage the series finale, but their two wins shook-up the Big East standings.  South Florida (16-16, 8-1) is in first place followed by UConn (24-7, 7-2) and Rutgers (18-13, 7-2), with Louisville (26-6, 6-3) and Pitt tied for fourth place.  USF played a brutal early schedule, but has zero quality wins to show for it.  UConn handed Louisville its other conference loss and seems to be gaining momentum.

Revving-up The RPI…The NCAA’s official RPI is out, and it’s no shock that the top five teams include Arizona State, Arkansas, UCLA, Florida, and Virginia.  Three of those five teams made it to Omaha last year and a fourth (Florida) played in a Super Regional.  Louisville (Big East), Coastal Carolina (Big South), Clemson, Texas, and Oregon State round-out the top ten.  That gives the Pac 10 three top ten RPI teams, the ACC and SEC each have two.  Here are some “non-power conference” teams that join Louisville and Coastal Carolina in the RPI Top-50:  17. Western Kentucky 21. The Citadel 23. TCU 24. New Mexico 30. College of Charleston 35. Western Carolina 39. Texas State 40. Connecticut 41. San Diego 44. Southeastern Louisiana 47. South Alabama 49. Pittsburgh 50. VMI

Gary Brown (mattbrownphoto.com)

Titan Turnaround…Since a disappointing 8-8 start to the season Cal State Fullerton (18-12, 5-1 Big West) has won ten of its last 14 games, including two of three from Big West rival UC Irvine last weekend.  The Titans also won a midweek match-up over UCLA (26-3)-a team that moved to #1 in two polls this week.  Fullerton didn’t shy away from tough competition early on, with six of those losses coming at the hands of TCU (24-7), Arizona (23-9) and Arizona State (28-3).  The Titan’s offense is starting to click, with Gary Brown and Billy Marcoe hitting .443 and .402, respectively.  The biggest issue has been inconsistent pitching from a team that has been traditionally dominant on the mound.  2010 Team USA invitees Tyler Pill and Nick Ramirez are a combined 2-7, although Pill gave-up just an unearned run in 8 1/3 IP and also had an RBI in Sunday’s 6-1 win over the Anteaters.  Expect the Titans to build some serious momentum over the next month…