Fresno State BulldogsThe final eight are ready to go in Omaha! We got some of the favorites that did not disappoint during Regional and Super Regional play and a lone sleeper that no one (including myself) gave a chance to reach this point. Before I get into a team by team analyst then to my predictions I would first and foremost like to add something that occurred today. The NCAA will keep the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., through 2035 under an unprecedented 25-year contract extension. This is a very big deal because I remember thinking not to long ago that a deal might not get done this year and that would mean that in the year of 2011 the CWS would not be played in Omaha, something that hasn't happened since 1949. Kudos to the NCAA for getting the deal done! On to my preview...
MIAMI - The overall number 1 seed entering the field of 64. Making their 23rd appearance in Omaha, last winning the title in '01. Freshman phenom Chris Hernandez, who is making the a lot of noise entering the CWS, has a 11-0 record this season with a 2.62 ERA and will be getting the call to start their opener verses Georgia on Saturday night. I obviously have been very high on the 'canes since the get-go with their powerful offense, but if you got a chance to watch them in the Supers you got to notice more of their defense and timely pitching against Arizona. They got a tough draw with the foursome in their top part of the bracket but this team who had 5 players drafted in the first three rounds of the MLB Draft, should stay alive after this crazy weekend.
NORTH CAROLINA - The overall number 2 seed entering the field of 64. Making their 7th appearance in Omaha, losing the championship game the last two years. The Tarheels really took advantage of an easy round by advancing to Omaha in just 5 games. Are they finally ready to get over the Omaha hump? Well, they certainly aren't going to be fazed by the lively crowd having played 13 games there the last two seasons. Also, they have an awesome pitching staff that led the nation with a team 2.83 ERA and 640 strikeouts which features a trio of future 1st round picks in Alex White, Matt Harvey, and stud Adam Warren. The only downfall if you can call it that in their line up is that they don't have a whole lot of power. But, their 2,3, and 4 hitters hit a total of 68 double on the year. Carolina faces a hot LSU team on Sunday, and I fully expect them to keep their hitters off balanced and move on for another shot at the NCAA title.
FLORIDA STATE - The overall number 4 seed entering the field of 64. Making their 19th appearance in Omaha without a title to show for their efforts. This Seminole team has been shaky to say the least, having to win six elimination games during the first two weeks of the NCAA tournament. Winning a national championship is certainly Florida State's goal throughout the next 12 days. The Seminoles won 54 games this season, hitting .354 with 101 home runs, which ranked first and fourth among NCAA Division I teams, respectively. Led by All-America catcher, and 5th overall pick in the MLB Draft, Buster Posey, who hit .460 with 26 homers and 92 RBIs, the Seminoles averaged 9.9 runs per game. I am a little concerned if Florida State can get away with the way they have been playing in their location in the top half of the bracket. Stanford, who in my opinion, is playing the best ball right now will be a big step in the right direction if they win on Saturday.
RICE - The overall number 6 seed entering the field of 64. Making their 7th appearance in Omaha, having won their lone title back in '03. The Owls join the Tarheels as the only teams to make the last 3 CWS'. If any team can best North Carolina in the arms race, it's Rice. The Owls come at opponents with all kinds of talent, power and depth on its pitching staff. They posted a 3.63 ERA behind ace Ryan Berry and a bullpen featuring flamethrowers Cole St. Clair, Brian Price (the Red Sox's first-round pick), Matt Evers and Bobby Bell. Rice along with Carolina had a nice easy road to Omaha, but won most of the games close. I didn't get a chance to see Rice play yet but my sources tell me to remember the name, Rick Hague. The freshman shortstop has really come on strong as of late and is currently batting .347. Rice faces off against the Cinderella team in Fresno State, should be a win, but who am I. I my opinion it'll be Rice and UNC to come out of the bottom bracket.
LSU - The overall number 7 seed entering the field of 64. Making their 14th appearance in Omaha, having won 4 titles in the '90s and their last one in 2000. The Tigers great ride back to legendary Omaha has been truly remarkable after missing the NCAA Tournament in 2006 for the first time in 18 years then missing the SEC Tournament in 2007 for the first time since 1984. Now LSU is back and is not just a football school anymore. Mid-season the Tigers began a SEC-record 23-game win streak that started at Tulane on April 22 and continued all the way through an 11-4 win over Southern Miss to clinch the Baton Rouge Regional on June 1. During that perfect stretch, the Tigers overcame deficits in 17 games to keep the streak alive. As a team, they hit .324 with 42 home runs while outscoring their opponents 219-101. Two of the hottest bats during the run belonged to sophomore DH Blake Dean (.424, 11 HRs, 34 RBIs) and junior first baseman Matt Clark (.392, 12 HRs, 39 RBIs). In what I believe is the best matchup of this weekend, LSU's offense faces UNC's pitching should be very interesting.
GEORGIA - The overall number 8 seed entering the field of 64. Making their 6th appearance in Omaha, having won their lone title back in 1990. I haven't been sold on Georgia at all since the tournament started, but I can say that they have one of the most feared hitters in the CWS on their team in shortstop and number 8 overall pick in the MLB Draft, Gordon Beckham. He along with Buster Posey are tied in first in the nation in homers with 26. Georgia has had lots of scares throughout this tournament having slipped their way out of the Regionals after losing the opener to Lipscomb and squeezing be Georgia Tech twice. The Bulldogs are 16-0 in elimination games at their home field over the years but now they travel to a land where they haven't fared to well the last decade. Tough challenge with Miami on Saturday night then having to face the loser of the Stanford/Florida State game on Monday, not good!
STANFORD - The number 1 seed in their Regional bracket entering the field of 64. Making their 16th appearance in Omaha, having won the title back to back in '87 and '88 for their only titles. Stanford's five consecutive trips to the College World Series from 1999 to 2003 seem very long ago. But, the Cardinals are back with very impressive play in the Regionals and knocking out overall 5th seed Cal State Fullerton in only two games in the Supers. They did it the hard way, but the Cardinal are rolling now. The victory over Fullerton was the sixth in a row of the postseason for Stanford, which had to win four in a row to get out of the regionals after losing its opening game to UC Davis. There is really nothing special about this team other than they are winning with timely hits and a great bullpen has gotten the job done. Stanford faces off verses Florida State at 2:00 on Saturday and I wouldn't be surprised in the least if they keep this momentum going.
FRESNO STATE - The number 4 seed in the Regional bracket at Long Beach State entering the field of 64. Making their 4th appearance in Omaha, having no titles and their last trip here was back in 1991. My favorite team! Saved the best for last! The three-time WAC champion Fresno State (42-29) became the first regional No. 4 seed to reach Omaha, since the tournament field expanded to 64 teams in 1999. More impressive, they survived without star pitcher Tanner Scheppers, a recent second-round pick by the Pittsburgh Pirates sidelined with a shoulder injury. Beating the likes of Long Beach State, San Diego, and recently knocking out the overall number 3 seed Arizona State in the Super Regional, has given the upstart Bulldogs a ton of respect entering the final 8. The biggest reason for this impressive run has come from their coach, Mike Batesole, who just received National Coach of the Year Award this week. Like I wrote earlier being without their ace Scheppers, the rest of the Bulldog staff has stepped it up and the offense has come up big at the right times. This weekend will be a special treat since I wasn't able to see any of their games being on the west coast. They start up the CWS with a match up against Rice on Sunday, think that they will be intimidated? After the recent resume that they put up, I don't!
PREDICTIONS
FINAL FOUR
Miami
Stanford
North Carolina
Rice
CHAMPIONSHIP
Miami
North Carolina
MIAMI IS YOUR 2008 NATIONAL CHAMP
(like I said from the beginning)
No comments:
Post a Comment