Frisco Classic
The 4th Annual Frisco Classic is this weekend, February 28th-March 1st at Dr Pepper Ballpark in Frisco, Texas! For how this tournament will shake out, this post has all you need. For ticketing and more, visit their website: www.friscoclassic.com.
The Games
Friday
#7 UCLA vs. Oklahoma State, 3pm
#13 Texas A&M vs. Illinois, 7pm
Saturday
Illinois vs. Oklahoma State, 2pm
Sunday
Illinois vs. #7 UCLA, 11am
Oklahoma State vs. #13 Texas A&M, 3pm
*home team listed second
The Teams
Illinois (3-3) – This is the Illini's first time in the Frisco Classic. Senior closer Garrett Acton, sophomore short stop Branden Comia, and senior starting pitcher Ty Weber all received preseason first team All-Big Ten honors this year. These veterans should lead the young Illini in a deeper-than-usual Big Ten conference race this year.
Player to watch: Garrett Acton, coming back the mound after leading the country in saves (19) in 2019. already has two saves in two opportunities in 2020.
Oklahoma State (7-2) – Oklahoma State comes into this weekend on a bit of a hot streak. After losing two out of three games in their opening weekend series to Grand Canyon in Phoenix, they have beaten Arizona State on a Tuesday and then preceded to average 11.4 runs over their next five games, blowing out lesser competition. If the Cowboys are to compete for the Big 12 crown and get back to Omaha for the first time since 2016, they'll need a good showing here to inspire confidence.
Record in previous Frisco Classic: 2-1 (2017)
Player to watch: Freshman Caeden Trenkle has been electrifying on the base paths, at the plate, and in the outfield. He's hitting 0.361 with one double, three triples, and two home runs.
#13 Texas A&M (10-0) – The Aggies come into this tournament looking for a true test after cruising through their first 10 games. Their offense needed a new scheme to provide some spark compared to last year's team and new hitting coach, Chad Caillet, has brought plenty of spark. Combined with their already dominant pitching staff, could this be the year the Aggies have a complete enough team to compete for a CWS title?
Record in previous Frisco Classic: 2-1 (2018)
Player to watch: Junior Asa Lacy is a preseason All-America First Team honoree for five major outlets and the SEC coaches and has high expectations on the year, including possibly being drafted highly in the first round of the MLB Draft. With a nasty breaking ball as his strikeout pitch, the talented lefty is a must-watch on Friday nights.
#7 UCLA (8-0) – The Bruins are also newbies at the Frisco Classic. UCLA is not a team that is going to overwhelm you with power like OSU and A&M, but they will likely out-pitch you. Staff ace Zach Pettway has allowed two earned runs in 12.2 innings of work to go along with 21 strikeouts. UCLA has high expectations on the season to be at the top of the Pac-12 and make it back to Omaha for the first time since 2013 when they won it all.
Player to watch: Junior Garrett Mitchell was selected as a preseason All-American by five major outlets and has gotten off to a great start to his 2020 season, hitting 0.379 with four doubles and four walks.
The Tournament
The two teams that have the most history between each other are A&M and OSU, with OSU leading the series 34-33, most recently meeting in 2012 when A&M was a member of the Big 12.
The biggest game of the weekend is #7 UCLA vs. #13 Texas A&M. Both teams will be tested for the first time against top competition. While they both have tests coming in the future, this will help determine how the rest of the season will go.
I have personally been to this tournament once in the past and it was pretty cold that night in DFW. If you're heading out to the games, bring a jacket because the night games get chilly with that north wind blowing in from Oklahoma!
Kyle's (@kylemckelv) prediction: Texas A&M 3-0, UCLA 2-1, Oklahoma State 1-2, Illinois 0-3
John's (@johnny_omaha_) prediction: Texas A&M 3-0, UCLA 2-1, Oklahoma State 1-2, Illinois 0-3
Thanks for reading! The Frisco Classic is the #BestOutsideOfOmaha. Follow along on Twitter (@FriscoClassic) all weekend for updates about the games. If you're in the area, try to make it out to these games! I will be at the game with press credentials, so follow us on Twitter and Instagram @CollegeBallNat for updates too.
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