By Steve Parkhurst The first inning at Jackie Robinson Field in West Los Angeles on Friday night looked the same for both the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos and the UCLA Bruins. In the inning, both teams sent four batters to the plate, each team got a single, and neither team scored a run. However, the inning was not indicative of the rest of the game, or the rest of the weekend for that matter. In the second, the Gauchos scored one. They added two in the third. Then they added four in the fourth as UCSB drove UCLA starter Zach Pettway from the game and took a 7-0 lead. Bruins shortstop Mikey Perez got the Bruins on the board with a solo home run off Gauchos starter Michael McGreevy in the bottom of the fifth, but UCSB still held a 7-1 lead. Following Pettway’s early exit, the Bruin bullpen held the game together quite well, allowing just three runs in the final five frames. Charles Harrison gave up only one hit over 1.2 innings pitched and Jack Filby recorded a nine-pitch, three up, three down eighth inning. The Bruins put together a late rally of sorts, scoring runs in the eighth and ninth frames. But the Gauchos went to Conner Roberts out of the bullpen and he retired the Bruins in order to secure the road victory. The 10-4 final score was UCLA’s worst defeat of the season. McGreevy struck out twelve and only allowed only the one run over 6 1/3 innings. He picked up the win to improve his record to 7-1. For the Gauchos, Zach Rodriguez went 2-for-4 and led the team with four RBI, and Mason Eng went 3-for-5. UCLA outhit the Gauchos 15 to 14 in the game, with six different Bruins hitters having multiple hits, but they only had four runs to show for it all as they also struck out 16 times against Gauchos pitching. Heading into the weekend, UCLA and UCSB were both within striking distance of the College Baseball Nation top 25 heading into the weekend and the winner of the series would likely achieve that goal. After game one, UCSB had two chances to clinch the series. Saturday afternoon's game switched to the Gauchos home turf in Santa Barbara. The Gauchos struck first with a home run in the bottom of the first off of Bruins starter Sean Mullen, but Bruins third baseman Kyle Karros (2-for-3) hit a home run over the scoreboard in left field to tie the game against Gauchos starter Rodney Boone. Still tied at one going into the seventh, UCSB went to the bullpen after a leadoff walk by Boone. The Bruins took a 2-1 lead when Michael Curialle (2-for-4) singled to left, and an error by the left fielder allowed the go-ahead run to round third base and score. UCLA then added an insurance run one out later on a liner to center by JonJon Vaughns that the Gaucho center fielder was unable to field cleanly, as the ball bounced off his shin. Mullen was replaced after six innings having just allowed the one earned run on three hits and striking out six Gauchos batters. With two outs in the seventh, UCSB's Kyle Johnson hit a solo home run. The Gauchos threatened further with runners on first and second, but the Bruins went to the bullpen for a second time in the inning to finally escape, leading 3-2. The Bruins increased their lead in the top of the ninth when Kevin Kendall singled to left with a runner on second to bring home a run. Pat Caulfield then hit a ball off the wall in left field to plate Kendall for a 5-2 lead. Max Rajcic closed out Santa Barbara by retiring the side in the bottom of the ninth securing the 5-2 road win. Rajcic pitched the final 2.1 innings and did not allow a hit or a walk as he earned the save, his sixth of the season. Mullen improved to an impressive 9-1 on the year while Boone fell to 8-4. Back at Jackie Robinson Field on Sunday for the rubber match, the Bruins and the Gauchos battled with the series on the line. The Gauchos got on the board quickly in the first when a one-out single by Zach Rodriguez gave UCSB the early 1-0 lead. Bruin first baseman JT Schwartz (7) hit a home run in the home half of the first that cleared the scoreboard in right field to tie the game. The Bruins jumped in front in the second inning, doing their damage with two outs. Kendall doubled to right to drive in a run and then Perez hit the first pitch he saw into center field for a two-RBI double and gave UCLA a 4-1 lead. Johnson homered to right in the fourth for UCSB. It was Johnson's second home run in as many days and cut the UCLA lead to 4-2. “He fought. That’s all we’re asking our guys to do is to go pitch by pitch and keep fighting.” -UCLA HC John Savage on Jesse Bergin UCSB got within a run in the fifth when Jordan Sprinkle singled home a run and forced UCLA to go to the bullpen as starter Jesse Bergin exited. Adrian Chaidez took the mound and ended the frame with the Bruins still in front 4-3. UCLA head coach John Savage said of Bergin’s outing: “He fought. That’s all we’re asking our guys to do is to go pitch by pitch and keep fighting.” The Bruins loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh courtesy of a walk, a single, and an intentional walk to Schwartz. With one out and a count of 3-2, Kyle Cuellar hit a grand slam over the wall in right field. Despite multiple calls to the bullpen, the Gauchos bullpen was unable to retire Bruins batters and with two outs and two on, Vaughns launched a ball over the right field fence for a three-run home run. The seven-run inning put UCLA in front 11-3. “Those are the moments you play baseball for,” Cuellar said after the game of his grand slam. But he was quick to deflect away from himself, “It was just a really good team win.” Rajcic ended the game by pitching the final inning and retiring the Gauchos in order on six pitches. Chaidez got the win and moved to 2-0. UCLA took the series with wins in the final two games. A series that was great on paper and looked like pitching would prevail in the opening innings on Friday, saw two runaway wins and one relatively close game decided late. Savage said of the series after Sunday’s game, “You’ve got to be able to win a lot of different games in a lot of different styles.” That they did this weekend. UCLA is now 30-16, while UCSB falls to 31-18 with two weekends left in the regular season. UCLA enters the College Baseball Nation top 25 at #22. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

Editor's Note: The College Baseball Nation Top 50 is brought to you by Press Sports. Join over 2,000 players and 1,000 coaches from all college divisions posting their highlights on Press Sports for FREE! The Press Sports App allows players to archive all the top moments from throughout their career together in one place so that anyone can go back and easily find them. On top of that, players and coaches can use profiles as scouting tools to extend careers from High School to College as well as College to Pro. Essentially the app functions similar to Tiktok to serve the purpose of LinkedIn for athletes, coaches and fans from all levels & sports. The app also features a transfer portal for college athletes that is becoming a very popular destination for coaches! Download Press Sports on iOS today! Arkansas won another series over the weekend, this time on the road at Tennessee, and the Razorbacks stay at number one in the College Baseball Nation Top 50. The Razorbacks have yet to drop a series against the toughest schedule in the country. Vanderbilt, despite losing a road series at Ole Miss, checks in at number two, while Ole Miss climbs to #15. Texas, idle this weekend, slides up a spot to number three, and Mississippi State is number four. Tennessee stays at number five after a close series with Arkansas. Florida, Notre Dame, Texas Tech, Oregon, and Arizona comprise the remainder of the top ten. New this week to the top 25 are #22 UCLA, #23 UC Irvine, and #24 Oklahoma State. VCU, winners of 16 straight games, enters the top 50 this week. The full top 50 can be found below. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

by Matt Sefcovic (@MattSefcovic) Jekyll and Hyde. Not the description you want for your team, but it’s true for the Clemson baseball team (23-21,15-15 ACC). In April, the Tigers suffered a seven game losing streak, followed by seven consecutive wins, sweeping both Wake Forest and Louisville and then defeating South Carolina Upstate. They followed that up by suffering a sweep in Atlanta at the hands of Georgia Tech before winning a midweek game against South Carolina. Coach Monte Lee is looking for more consistency out of his club in order to hear their name called on Selection Monday in a few weeks. As of now, College Baseball Nation has Clemson in the NCAA Tournament as one of the “Last 4 In,” but Tigers fans would feel more comfortable with a series win this weekend in Tallahassee. Over the last four series, the Tigers have used the same starting rotation with Mack Anglin, Keyshawn Askew, and Mat Clark, but this trio has combined for a 4-5 record on the season. Anglin has been the most consistent starter with a 3.24 ERA, striking out 56 batters in 41.2 innings of work, but Askew and Clark are both allowing opponents batting averages near .270 and have ERA’s above 4.00 Fortunately for the Tigers, the bullpen is very deep and will be used early and often. Five different pitchers have greater than 16 appearances, led by Geoffrey Gilbert with 25. Gilbert boasts a 1.66 ERA with three saves and a 47/12 strikeout to walk ratio. Look for his name to be called multiple times this weekend. At the plate, Clemson will have their hands full against a very stout Seminoles pitching staff. The Tigers are 186th in the nation, batting .259 as a team. Caden Grice leads the offensive attack, batting .321 with 12 home runs and 44 RBI, with four of the home runs and 12 RBI coming in the series sweep against Louisville. James Parker and Kier Meredith are the only other qualified batters above .300. Florida State (26-18, 17-13 ACC) on the other hand, is attempting to make a case for one of the final regional hosts, but as of now, they are projected as the two seed in the Gainesville regional. The Seminoles fell to the Gators 3-2 earlier this season in ten innings. Last weekend, Mike Martin Jr. took his team to South Bend, winning the series against a Notre Dame team that had not lost a series all season long. With a strong finish to the regular season and a few wins in the ACC Tournament, it would not be a surprise if the Seminoles were to host a regional in the NCAA Tournament. Matheu Nelson is putting up ACC Player of the Year type numbers, leading the nation with 20 home runs and is second in the country with 58 RBI. Nelson is the only Seminole batting over .325 on a team with a .241 average, which is good for 250th in the country. Elijah Cabell is another name to keep an eye on in this lineup as his production continues to increase as the season progresses. Cabell has five home runs in the last ten games, improving his average from .221 to .291 during that span. How does a team batting 250th in the nation contend to host a regional? A dominant pitching staff. The Seminoles have a 3.23 ERA, which is the 8th best in the country and they rank third in the nation with just over 11.5 strikeouts per nine innings. Parker Messick has been the leader of the staff with a 6-2 record and 2.37 ERA in 12 starts, while freshman Bryce Hubbart is 5-4 with a 3.46 ERA. Conor Grady has been very consistent this season as the Sunday starter with a 5-2 record and 3.56 ERA. These three have combined for 253 strikeouts and just 57 walks. Matt’s Prediction: If you are a fan of high octane offenses, this may not be a series for you. Both teams have a lot on the line this weekend as Clemson is trying to prove they belong while Florida State is attempting to make one last push for a top 16 seed. It should be a low-scoring affair. Neither team will have much room for error, but I think the Seminoles pitching staff will prove to be too much for the Tigers offense in Tallahassee. Give me Mike Martin Jr. and Co. this weekend to take the series. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

The NCAA Tournament selection is later this month (5/31), and College Baseball Nation's bubble watch is in full force. The bubble watch started with 79 teams and is down to 70 teams in just one week. With the Ivy League not playing an official season this year, there are 34 at-large bids to go around. As of now 70 teams from 19 conferences are on the bubble watch. When automatic bids and tournament "locks" are accounted for, that means 39 teams are vying for 22 spots; 11 of those teams are in the "need a miracle" category, so only 28 teams are in serious contention and on the bubble. Conference tournaments always bring a few bid stealers, so somewhere between 6-15 deserving teams will be left out. ACC (12) Locks: Notre Dame Should be in: Pitt, Miami, Louisville, Florida State, Georgia Tech Work left to do: Clemson, NC State, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Virginia Need a miracle: Duke In reality, more of the ACC's teams feel like locks, but the RPI is holding them back. The selection committee's release of possible host sites this week will reveal how they are thinking about the conference. American (3) Locks: ECU Work left to do: Tulane, Wichita State ECU took three out of four games off of Tulane over the weekend. Tulane's RPI (57) is likely not good enough to make it in as of now, but the Green Wave still have a chance to get into the top 50. ASUN (1) Work left to do: Liberty With its RPI holding pat at 35 and a 17-1 ASUN record, Liberty should start to feel pretty good about its at-large potential, should it need it. Atlantic 10 (2) Work left to do: VCU Need a miracle: Rhode Island VCU, winners of 16 straight games, needs to keep winning to feel secure about an at-large bid. Perfection might not be enough for Rhode Island, but it still has an outside shot for an at-large bid. Rhode Island's bubble might burst should it fail to sweep St. Joseph's this weekend. Big 12 (6) Locks: TCU, Texas, Texas Tech Work left to do: Baylor, Oklahoma State Need a miracle: Oklahoma The winner of next weekend's series between Baylor and Oklahoma State in Stillwater should lock up its at-large bid. Oklahoma may need to win out to earn an at-large bid. Big East (2) Work left to do: UConn Need a miracle: Creighton UConn scheduled tough with series at Texas Tech, Southern Miss, and Virginia. That has paid off for the Huskies, as they have a clear path to a top 50 RPI. Creighton will need to be perfect to earn an at-large bid. Big South (1) Work left to do: South Carolina Upstate Sweeping High Point on the road this past weekend was a nice boost to USC Upstate's at-large hopes. Winning this weekend's series against Campbell would go a long way in locking up an at-large bid. Big Ten (8) Should be in: Michigan, Indiana, Nebraska Work left to do: Iowa, Maryland, Rutgers, Ohio State Need a miracle: Illinois Who knows exactly what the NCAA Selection Committee will do with the Big Ten? Four bids seems like the floor, and there is a large pack of teams in the middle of the conference competing for those bids. Keep an eye on whether or not any Big Ten teams get selected as potential host sites this week. Big West (2) Should be in: UC Irvine Need a miracle: UCSB UC Irvine won three out of four games at Santa Barbara this past weekend, nearly locking up an at-large bid. The Big West has turned into a one-bid league in recent years, so winning the regular season crown (and automatic bid in the Big West) is the only sure way in the tournament. Colonial (1) Should be in: Northeastern Northeastern has one game against UConn and eight road games at Delaware left on its schedule. If Northeastern won out, it would likely have a top 30 RPI. Even if the Huskies drop a few games, they should have a top 50 RPI and a legitimate claim to an at-large bid should they not earn the automatic bid. Conference USA (5) Locks: Charlotte, Old Dominion, Southern Miss, Louisiana Tech Need a miracle: Florida Atlantic What a year for Conference USA. Barring a catastrophic collapse, the league should get at least four teams into the postseason. Florida Atlantic still has an outside chance of making it in with a four-game sweep of Southern Miss and a win at Miami. Horizon League (1) Should be in: Wright State Wright State went 3-1 over the weekend and dropped 11 spots in the RPI to #28. With just four games left, if Wright State wins three of them, even the RPI can't bring them down. MAAC (1) Work left to do: Fairfield With no non-conference play in the MAAC, RPI is meaningless. However, Fairfield's 32-1 record is tough to ignore. The Stags may earn an at-large bid if they fail to get the auto bid. MAC (2) Work left to do: Ball State Need a miracle: Central Michigan Central Michigan would have to be nearly perfect to earn an at-large bid. Ball State, on the other hand could make it in as an at-large team should they finish ~ .750 the rest of the way out. Missouri Valley (2) Should be in: Indiana State Work left to do: Dallas Baptist Indiana State (RPI #19) is nearly a lock. Dallas Baptist's #54 RPI is getting them within shouting distance of an at-large bid. Pac-12 (8) Locks: Arizona, Oregon, Stanford Should be in: UCLA, Oregon State Work left to do: Arizona State Need a miracle: Washington State, California Stanford moves into lock position after winning a series against Arizona. UCLA and Oregon State are likely just one series win away from earning locks themselves. SEC (11) Locks: Arkansas, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Florida Should be in: South Carolina Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU Though LSU needs to go 6-0 to finish at .500 in SEC play, the Tigers' remaining conference schedule (vs Alabama, at Texas A&M) sets up favorably for a hot streak to end the season. LSU could possibly make it in the NCAA Tournament at 13-17 in conference. Sun Belt (1) Work left to do: South Alabama The Sun Belt is looking more and more like a one-bid league this season. South Alabama could possibly make it in with an at-large bid. West Coast (1) Should be in: Gonzaga San Diego losing a series to BYU likely ended its shot at earning an at-large bid. Gonzaga's #23 RPI has the Bulldogs in good shape to make the NCAA Tournament should the fail to earn the auto-bid. Likely one-bid leagues: America East, MEAC, Mountain West, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot League, SoCon, Southland, SWAC, Summit League, WAC Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

The NCAA Tournament marches closer, and College Baseball Nation has another Field of 64 projection. Arkansas remains the number one overall seed with Texas moving up to the second seed just behind the Razorbacks. Mississippi State and TCU follow. Arizona, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, and Notre Dame round out the top eight national seeds. Florida (#14) re-enters as a projected host site. Last 4 in: Clemson Iowa Tulane Wichita State First 4 out: Georgia UNC Kentucky Virginia Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

The Big 12 is currently set to get six NCAA tournament bids according to College Baseball Nation’s Bubble Watch, with one of them needing a miracle to receive a bid. The last of those teams likely to receive at-large bids, Oklahoma State and Baylor, currently sit in the middle of the pack of the conference standings, with seemingly identical records heading into the second to last weekend of Big 12 play. With their postseason hopes “on the bubble”, there is plenty at stake entering this series in Stillwater between the Cowboys and Bears, as the winner can all but seal up its spot in the NCAA Tournament. Baylor takes its road trip north with a 29-14 record overall, leading Oklahoma State by a single game in the conference standings with a 9-9 Big 12 record. The Cowboys, 19-7-1 at home this season, are 25-15-1, with a 10-11 conference mark. In CBN’s CBR postseason rankings, Baylor sits at No. 27, while Oklahoma State is seven spots back at No. 34. Each has a solid tournament resume, having multiple marquee opponents in both non-conference and conference play. The Cowboys took down Vanderbilt 10-6 in the series finale of its March 13-14 series against the Commodores and also has one victory over both Texas Tech and Texas. Josh Holiday’s squad is coming off a momentum boosting 7-3 midweek win over Oklahoma Tuesday. Though played against a Big 12 opponent, the Bedlam rivalry game counted as a non-conference duel, but had all the signs of a heated in-state, conference contest. Baylor took down Auburn for its only win at the Round Rock Classic in late February and also tallied a win over Texas in the conference opening series. Two weeks ago, the Bears shocked many by defeating Texas Tech two games to one in Lubbock, a sign that Baylor is not easily rattled while on the road. The secret to Baylor’s success seems to be found in its performance at the plate. Not only are the Bears the only team in the conference to enter the weekend batting above .300 (.311), but also boast two of the Big 12’s top hitters in outfielder Jared McKenzie and catcher Andy Thomas. Interestingly, unlike other offensive stalwarts, i.e. conference foes Texas Tech and TCU, Baylor hardly hits for power. The Bears are seventh in the league in home runs (44), and are sixth in runs (319). Baylor, who flashed its offensive prowess last weekend against Kansas State’s subpar pitching, outscoring the Wildcats 43-15, is more than just a hitting team that thrives in high-scoring contests. Granted, the majority of their marquee wins are one-sided affairs that feature Baylor putting 10 or more runs on the board, but special attention needs to be paid to the pitching staff as well. Baylor may not have the flashiest guys on the mound, but they get the job done just the same, if not better. The Bears pitching staff ranks just behind Texas in ERA at 3.58 and have demonstrated remarkable accuracy, with the second-fewest hits (327) and walks (162) in the league. That consistency on the hill will collide this weekend with an equally superb offensive opponent in Oklahoma State. Christian Encarnacion-Strand, who is hitting .374 with 15 homers and 58 RBI headlines the Cowboys’ lineup, which features an ample supply of strong hitters. But perhaps most notable is the fact that Oklahoma State’s batters rarely make contact in one and two pitch counts. That is because the Cowboys work the count especially well, fouling off as many pitches as necessary to either generate a walk, or get a more favorable pitch in the zone. In turn, this tires opposing pitchers quickly, as we saw in Tuesday’s win over Oklahoma. Sooner starter Dalton Fowler made it through just 0.1 innings of work, facing four batters and walking three of them, the first of which would score the Cowboys’ first run. Cade Cabbiness tallied the RBI on...you guessed it, a walk against reliever Ben Abram. Cabbiness displayed the Cowboys’ plate approach especially well, hitting with two outs, yet fighting in a nine-pitch at-bat. By the time the Sooners headed to the dugout, 37 pitches had been thrown in the first inning alone. Oklahoma threw 200 pitches in the nine-inning contest, an average of 22.22 per inning. On the mound, Oklahoma State’s pitching staff has an ERA of 4.31, but has allowed the third-fewest hits (341). Perhaps that is offset by the fact that the Cowboys lead the Big 12 in walks surrendered (210). If too many walks are allowed this weekend, there is only so much the Cowboy bats can do. Baylor’s game plan offensively centers around “small ball”, though the Bears do not steal many bases, with just 33 attempts on the season. There may be reason for Baylor to test its speed however, as Oklahoma State has proven inept at fielding bunts, particularly as of late. When Oklahoma’s Brandon Zaragoza dropped a bunt to the third base side on Tuesday, the Cowboys surrounded the ball, and with hesitation, Encarnacion-Strand picked it up, firing it to first base, but well off target. Seeing that may cause Baylor to test the waters, especially early in the series when it comes to bunting. If there is one pitching matchup that sticks out in this series, it will be on Friday night. There will be a touch of uncertainty as Baylor’s Tyler Thomas battles Oklahoma State’s Mitchell Stone. Thomas, a southpaw who currently ranks second in the league in ERA at 2.05, will be back after an absence, having missed the K-State series due to Covid-19 protocols. Truth be told, Oklahoma State could throw either Stone or Bryce Osmond. We will see Osmond, the question is when. He has been used both in the Friday night role and as the Sunday starter during this season. Stone picked up his first victory of the season last Friday, throwing 7.1 innings with three earned runs and eight hits. It should be an intriguing matchup and one that could either become a rubber match or slugfest. Prediction: I like Oklahoma State’s chances at home. But I also like what Baylor does offensively. However, I think Baylor lacks the depth on the mound, especially considering the Cowboys’ plate approach, and that will be a strike against the Bears in Stillwater. I see Baylor, powered by Thomas, winning game one handily, but Oklahoma State pulling out wins in both games two and three, likely sealing its at-large bid. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

#6 Texas went to Fort Worth with a mission this past weekend. And they accomplished it. Well, to an extent. The Longhorns edged out the Horned Frogs on Friday in a 5-4 win, before falling by the same margin in a 2-1 contest Saturday. Sunday was dominated by Texas as the Longhorns earned a 9-3 victory, winning the series two games to one. While Texas may have won the series, TCU kept its hold on first place in the Big 12, though its lead shriveled down to a single game. “We played a great ballgame Friday night, and then we felt like we let that one get away from us yesterday,” Texas head coach David Pierce said on the radio following Sunday’s win. “I just loved the way we responded. We were aggressive. We went for the series. We didn't sit back and expect them to hand it to us. Coming in here, winning two of three against a top ten team, that’s big-time.” With the exception of the series finale, a game in which Texas led 9-0 until the bullpen floundered in the ninth inning, the series was as it was predicted to be; evenly-matched with tight contests. The first two games of the series were literally decided on the contest’s final at-bat. Texas, who won its 11th series of the season, moved up to 38-12 on the year and 15-6 in conference play, sliding into the top five at #4. TCU, who has a 16-5 mark in Big 12 action, only fell back one spot to #6. The rest of College Baseball Nation’s Top 50 can be found here. So much of the series relied on the pitching, though both team’s offenses stepped up at times when needed most. One shining example of that came in the series opener, when, in the eighth inning with the score knotted at four, Texas center fielder Mike Antico launched a solo home run over the right-center field wall, giving the Longhorns their final lead of the game. The TCU offense was as advertised early against the pitching of Texas ace Ty Madden, who went 6.0 innings, allowing three runs, two of which were earned. After the Longhorns went up 1-0 in the first, TCU countered with a run of its own in the bottom half of the frame. In a play that should have ended the inning, Horned Frog catcher Zach Humphreys lined a ball to third base that was fielded by Texas’ Cam Williams and fired to first. But Williams’ throw was off target, allowing Humphreys to advance to second on the play. Veteran first baseman Gene Wood displayed a great piece of two-out hitting in the following at-bat, driving in Humphreys, who had stolen third, on a single to right field. The game saw three ties, though TCU never led. The Horned Frogs made a final push for a comeback in the ninth inning, as Texas reliever Tanner Witt allowed a walk and single to open the frame before Aaron Nixon was summoned from the bullpen. Nixon slammed the door shut on the Horned Frogs, notching a quick three-pitch strikeout for the inning’s first out. He did lose control on a wild pitch in the following at-bat against right fielder Phillip Sikes that advanced both runners into scoring position, but rebounded nicely, striking out the TCU slugger, who went 0-for-4 on the day, on a 1-2 pitch before inducing a flyball that was caught in left field and sealed Texas’ win. On Saturday, the roles were reversed, with TCU thwarting a Texas rally in a 2-1 win. The Horned Frogs scored both of their runs on a base hit by designated hitter Porter Brown that scored runners from second and third with two outs in the second inning. It was enough to earn the victory as Texas scored its only run in the third on a throwing error by TCU center fielder Elijah Nunez that allowed Antico, tagging from second, to score on the play. Though TCU starter Austin Krob allowed six hits and four walks through 5.2 innings of work, he moved to 7-0 on the year. The Horned Frog bullpen was on-point through the final 3.1 innings, as Marcelo Perez and Haylen Green combined to allow three hits and three walks. Texas had a chance to win the contest in the top of the ninth, as two hits put runners on first and second with two outs and first baseman Zach Zubia stepping to the plate. Zubia entered the at-bat 0-for-3 on the afternoon, but had gone 2-for-5 in the series opener. TCU’s Green fought through a tough seven-pitch at-bat to strike out Zubia and seal the deal for the Horned Frogs with a one-run win. As close as Friday and Saturday’s contests were, Sunday was a polar opposite, with Texas scoring four runs in the first three innings in a one-sided affair. That was in large part due to the pitching of Pete Hansen. The left-hander made his first weekend start of the year after firing 7.2 innings of flawless relief against Texas Tech last Sunday. One week later, Hansen took to the hill again, and had little trouble against the potent TCU bats, firing 7.0 scoreless innings. The southpaw moved to 6-1 on the season, allowing three walks and two hits, striking out four. The Texas bullpen did have trouble closing out the game, as Pierce used four pitchers over the final two innings, with Drew Shifflet allowing a three-run homer in the ninth off the bat of pinch hitter Bobby Goodloe for the Horned Frogs only runs of the contest. The Longhorns were also helped by three home runs on the day, two of which came from Zubia, who went 3-for-5 on the day with four RBI. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't upset about yesterday," Zubia said on the radio following Sunday's win. "We had a lot of opportunities but we didn't come through there at the very end. This win was amazing. Coming in here, and winning a series against a top-five team, you can't beat that. "I think we did a good job of staying within ourselves and not trying to do too much in a game that truly mattered." While the series win did not give Texas the lead in the conference standings, it put the visitors from Austin in a good position heading into their final Big 12 series at home against West Virginia May 20-22. Pierce also noted on Sunday that defeating a top-five opponent on the road is sure to boost Texas’ NCAA tournament resume, and said he feels his team’s resume “is as good as anybody’s in the country.” "We've taken care of business, we're in a good spot right now," Pierce said on the radio following Sunday's win. "I feel really confident about what's going to happen this week and how they select all the stuff. I'm proud of our kids, and (we) kind of keep that big picture to ourselves, but at the same time, (we) understand what we play for. We're still a game back, but at the same time, we still have an opportunity to win our first championship." TCU’s midweek contest against UTRGV, scheduled for May 11, has been canceled, so TCU will return to action with a three-game, non-conference series against ULM next weekend. The Horned Frogs close out conference play at Kansas State the following weekend. Though sixth in the Big 12 standings, Kansas State took two of three from Texas Tech in a series that spanned from April 1-3. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

John and Kyle recap Week 12 with a new Top 50. Stanford joins the top ten. Dallas Baptist joins the top 25. The guys debate whether UCLA, Louisville, and Florida State are in the running to host a Regional. John and Kyle make predictions about Week 13's best games. Get The College Baseball Nation Podcast on Apple Podcasts Get The College Baseball Nation Podcast on Spotify. Get The College Baseball Nation Podcast on Google Podcasts Have a question for Kyle and John? Send a DM to us on Twitter (@CollegeBallNat) or an email to podcast@collegebaseball.info and we might answer it on the podcast. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

By Steve Parkhurst This weekend featured a premium matchup of top teams on the west coast as the Arizona Wildcats traveled north to Stanford, California to face the Stanford Cardinal in a Pac-12 weekend contest. College Baseball Nation had Arizona ranked #8 in the country with Stanford only four slots behind at #12. The two teams wasted precious little time putting on a great show as Friday’s series opener went thirteen innings at Sunken Diamond. Arizona got on the board first in the opening frame when Daniel Susac singled to right to drive in one run off of Stanford starter Brendan Beck. The score remained 1-0 until the bottom of the fifth when a bases loaded walk tied the game. In the sixth, Christian Robinson led off with a double, part of a 4-for-6 evening which included two doubles for the cleanup batter. Drew Bowser brought in the go ahead run with a double to left-center and a wild pitch shortly after put the Cardinal in front 3-1. Back-to-back singles in the seventh by Arizona's Mac Bingham and Jacob Berry were part of a three-run inning in which the Wildcats regained the lead 4-3. Beck pitched into the seventh before being relieved with one out by Jacob Palisch. After giving up the one run in the first, Beck pitched five scoreless frames before the seventh. An error at second base in the eighth led to Stanford tying the game, and after a scoreless ninth for both teams, they went to extra innings. Arizona ranks last in fielding percentage in the Pac-12, and defensive miscues cost the Wildcats throughout the weekend. Neither team budged an inch until the bottom of the thirteenth when Brock Jones delivered for Stanford with a single to right-center that drove in the winning run in a 5-4 thirteen inning thriller. The Cardinal bullpen threw 6 2/3 scoreless innings and only allowed a pair of hits, to go with ten strike outs. Friday's opener lasted ten minutes into its fifth hour and ended Arizona's ten game winning streak. Arizona came out swinging in Saturday’s middle-game of the series. A three run first was followed by a six run second and a three run third, at which point Arizona led 12-2. The two runs for Stanford came in the second inning when Nick Breuser hit his seventh home run of the year. That was the final time the Cardinal scored a run in Saturday's drubbing. Arizona dominated Saturday's game in every sense of the word. The Wildcats scored in seven of nine innings, and they scored multiple runs in five innings. Arizona scored three or more runs on five different Cardinal pitchers. Susac (4-for-5), Ryan Holgate (2-for-4), and Nik McClaughry (3-for-5) led the Wildcats offensively. Eight of the thirteen Wildcats who recorded an at-bat, got a hit. And half of those eight hitters had multiple hits. Arizona batters were walked fifteen times on Saturday, breaking a Stanford pitching record from 2010 when their staff at the time walked thirteen batters against the Rice Owls. Garrett Irvin (4-1) picked up the win as he pitched seven innings, surrendering just the two earned runs on Breuser's home run. Gil Luna pitched the final two frames to end the game and even up the weekend series with Sunday's game to decide the winner. The last time the Cardinal had given up as many as twenty runs was just over thirty years ago, on April 28, 1991, when they again faced Arizona and the Wildcats took a somewhat closer game by a final of 21-11. Stanford reliever Joey Dixon recorded the final four outs for the Cardinal and he was their only pitcher to not allow a run, he did not even allow a hit in his 1 1/3 innings while he struck out two. Arizona claimed the 20-2 rout to even up the weekend series. Sunday's game had a decidedly different feel almost immediately. In the bottom of the first, Robinson (2-for-4) delivered an RBI-single to put the Cardinal on the board first. Arizona starter Austin Smith exited after just 3 1/3 innings having only surrendered the one run in the first. The score remained 1-0 into the fifth when Stanford's Tommy Troy (2-for-4) hit a two-run home run to left field, his fifth home run of the year. Nick Breuser extended the Stanford lead in the sixth with an RBI double and an error by the Wildcats shortstop led to another run as Stanford led 5-0 going to the seventh. Cardinal starter Alex Williams tossed six scoreless frames, allowing just three hits, a double in the third and two singles in the fifth. Williams also piled up six strikeouts in his outing. After Stanford went to the bullpen, Arizona broke up the shutout in the seventh plating two runs on a Kobe Kato sacrifice fly and a Donta Williams single up the middle, cutting the Stanford lead to 5-2. But Stanford answered right back, scoring once in the seventh on a passed ball, and then adding two more insurance runs in the eighth to take an 8-2 lead. Zach Grech worked the final 2 2/3 scoreless innings, scattering three hits by the Wildcats as Stanford took the finale. Alex Williams earned the win to even his record at 1-1. The weekend ended with Arizona 32-13 overall and 16-8 in Pac-12 play. Stanford is now 26-10 overall and 12-6 in Pac-12 action. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

Editor's Note: The College Baseball Nation Top 50 is brought to you by Press Sports. Join over 2,000 players and 1,000 coaches from all college divisions posting their highlights on Press Sports for FREE! The Press Sports App allows players to archive all the top moments from throughout their career together in one place so that anyone can go back and easily find them. On top of that, players and coaches can use profiles as scouting tools to extend careers from High School to College as well as College to Pro. Essentially the app functions similar to Tiktok to serve the purpose of LinkedIn for athletes, coaches and fans from all levels & sports. The app also features a transfer portal for college athletes that is becoming a very popular destination for coaches! Download Press Sports on iOS today! Arkansas won another series over the weekend, this time against Georgia, and stays at number one in the College Baseball Nation Top 50. Mississippi State and Vanderbilt also remain at numbers two and three after series wins of their own. Texas rejoins the top five after winning a weekend series at TCU. After two close games, the Longhorns blasted the Horned Frogs, 9-3, in the series finale to clinch the series. Tennessee rounds out the top five. TCU, Florida, Notre Dame, Texas Tech, and Stanford comprise the remainder of the top ten. Stanford enters the top ten for the first time this season after taking a series from formerly top ten, Arizona. New this week to the top 25 are #22 Charlotte, #23 NC State, and #25 Dallas Baptist. Northeastern, winners of 17 straight games, enters the top 50 this week. The full top 50 can be found below. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

By Steve Parkhurst The teams with the top two records in the American Athletic Conference met in Greenville, North Carolina this weekend as the Tulane Green Wave made a visit to the East Carolina Pirates. The host Pirates are ranked #14 by College Baseball Nation, while the visiting Green Wave were ranked outside the top twenty-five at #36 entering weekend play. Friday saw a match-up of aces that did not live up to the billing. Tulane’s Braden Olthoff (5-1) took the mound against East Carolina starter Gavin Williams (6-0). East Carolina plated the first run of the game in the second inning as they played small ball to set up a Seth Caddell ground out to third to push across the first run. Keyed by back-to-back home runs by Bryson Worrell (5) and Caddell (12), the Pirates added three runs in the fourth to take a 4-0 lead. Olthoff was done after four innings with his team trailing. The Pirates wasted no time getting a run off the next Tulane pitcher, scoring one in the fifth. Tulane finally got on the board in the sixth, scoring two on singles by Bennett Lee and Frankie Neimann and loading the bases hoping for more. Gavin Williams exited after 5 1/3 innings pitched with nine strikeouts, and close to one hundred pitches, before loading the bases with one out. Reliever Cam Colmore got the final two outs and left the bases loaded as East Carolina led 5-2. As a light rain fell during the sixth, the Pirates loaded the bases and added a run on a walk. A two-run home run by Connor Norby (11) in the seventh pushed the Pirates advantage to 8-2, part of a 4-for-5 four RBI afternoon for Norby. Later in the same frame, as the Pirates continued to collect base hits, they added another run and led 9-2 going to the eighth. Tulane put together a two-run eighth to cut the deficit to 9-4. Any hope Tulane had of a late-inning comeback was dashed when the Pirates loaded the bases in the eighth and slowly knocked in run after run. Josh Grosz took the mound to close out the ninth for East Carolina. Williams remained perfect on the season as he improved his record to 7-0. Tulane used six pitchers out of the bullpen in the 12-4 defeat on Friday, which was problematic with a doubleheader scheduled for Saturday and a Sunday game still to follow. Saturday’s first game was scoreless into the third when Tulane got the scoring started with two outs. The Pirates responded in their half of the inning with four runs to take a 4-1 lead. Tulane added a run in the fifth to cut the lead East Carolina lead to 4-2. Green Wave starter Jack Aldrich worked five innings, gave up seven hits and was tagged for four runs while he struck out five. The Pirates plated two more in the seventh to take a 6-2 lead. Tulane added two in the eighth to get back to within two, but a Norby solo home run stretch the East Carolina lead back to 7-4 in the eighth. East Carolina closed out game one of the doubleheader, led by Matt Bridges, who recorded the final four outs without allowing a hit and striking out two. Trent Johnson went three innings in relief of starter Aldrich, the only two pitchers who pitched in Saturday’s first game after Tulane used seven total pitchers in Friday’s game. Tulane jumped out quickly and took a 2-0 lead in the first inning against Pirates game two starter Jake Kuchmaner. East Carolina roughed up Tulane starter Donovan Benoit for three runs in the third, led by a Zach Agnos (5) two-run home run to right center. Both squads added a run in their second inning. Kuchmaner exited in the third after just thirty-three pitches having allowed three runs but his team leading by one. Tulane added two in the fifth to take a 5-4 lead before the Pirates manufactured two runs of their own in the sixth as yet another lead change put them in front 6-5. The Green Wave retook the lead for good on a no-doubt two-run blast to left from Ethan Groff in the eighth. Tulane reliever Keagan Gillies pitched the final two innings and Tulane walked away winners, 7-6. With Saturday's result being an even win-loss split, East Carolina head coach Cliff Godwin saw mostly good in his team's performance on the day, "We didn't play clean enough baseball to win game two." But Godwin quickly pivoted, "It's the best our guys have been with energy. You get down 2-0, then you put up a three spot, they score a run, we score a run, our guys were fighting for sure." "We split and we're 2-1 so we got a chance to win the series tomorrow. You put yourself in a situation to win the series against the first-place team and that's all you can ask for going into Sunday," Godwin said. East Carolina had another task in front of them going into Sunday. Left-hander Carson Whisenhunt got the mound start, but he was coming back from injury, having not started since April 9th, so he was on a set pitch count. This meant Cliff Godwin and his staff might be going to the bullpen early and often in a series that had already taxed the pitching staff. East Carolina struck first in the finale, scoring one in the first off Tulane starter Tyler Hoffman. They added a run in the third on a solo home run off the bat of Thomas Francisco (9) to expand the lead to 2-0. Tulane was scoreless into the fourth but, after Whisenhunt’s departure at the end of three innings pitched, the Green Wave used a single by Chase Engelhard to get back to within a run. As they often did throughout the weekend, the Pirates got the run back in their half of the fourth on a single to center by Caddell for a 3-1 lead. Thomas Francisco (3-for-5) added a second home run in the fifth, a pitch that was absolutely crushed for his tenth home run of the season. Moments later, a two-run home run by Alec Makarewicz increased the Pirates lead to 6-1 and chased Hoffman from the game. Going into Sunday’s contest, in 2021 East Carolina was 24-1 when leading after the fifth inning, Sunday's five run lead going into the sixth was a good omen for the Pirates. The Pirates tacked on a run after the seventh inning stretch. Then Agnos led off the Pirate eighth with an opposite-field home run to right. Then, after two one-out walks, a passed ball plated a second run in the inning and East Carolina led 9-1. Colmore, who took the mound for the Pirates in the eighth, stayed in to get the first two outs of the ninth before Bridges took the ball to close out the Green Wave and preserve the 9-1 win and the 3-1 series win. East Carolina used eight pitchers in the game, seven pitchers for the final six innings, but with a multiple-run cushion for most of the day, it did not matter. East Carolina took the lead in the American Athletic Conference standings by mere percentage points with an overall record of 33-10 and 15-5 in the AAC, to Tulane’s 25-7 overall record with a 14-5 AAC record. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

In this current powerball era of our national pastime, Vanderbilt true freshman Enrique Bradfield Jr offers an exciting set of tools so unique in today’s game. Bradfield’s talents were on full display last weekend when his Commodores visited SEC archrival University of Florida. Bradfield is a 6-01/165 lefthanded hitter and thrower known for his 80 speed, which enhances his game on both sides of the ball. The Hialeah, FL native was expected to be a 3rd-5th round selection in last year’s First Year Player Draft, but the COVID-inspired shortening of the draft to five rounds all but assured his matriculation at Vanderbilt. With his blazing speed, refined approach at the plate, and polished defense in center field, Bradfield has emerged as a fixture in Coach Tim Corbin’s lineup. The 19-year-old started in CF and led off for the Commodores in each of the series’ three games, going 8 for 15, scoring five runs, swiping four bags, and playing superb defense. The first thing I noticed about Bradfield was his mature approach at the plate—the kid simply does not give away at bats. He was especially impressive against Florida’s tough Sunday starter, southpaw Hunter Barco, whose 91-94 MPH fastball/vicious slider combo can be hellish on lefty hitters. But Bradfield handled this challenge with aplomb. At no point was this more indicative than Bradfield’s at bat in the 3rd. Barco opened Bradfield up with three straight low-80’s sliders, two of which Bradfield took for balls. After seeing several 92-93 MPH fastballs, Bradfield hung in and slashed a 92 MPH heater to right field for a single. Later, in the 9th inning against Florida’s flame-throwing closer Jack Leftwich, Bradfield proved his mettle. He took a 94 MPH fastball just inside for Ball 1, decided to pass on a snappy 83 MPH slider that dropped in for a strike, then lined a single—his fourth hit of the day—into right field. As I indicated earlier, Bradfield’s calling card is his grade 80 speed. He currently leads the nation with 34 steals (in 36 attempts) and it’s easy to see why. He doesn’t just take advantage of his wheels—he’s adept at reading pitchers and taking healthy leads, and even when he gets a late jump (like in the 4th inning on Friday) his first-step quickness and acceleration keep him out of harm’s way. Bradfield’s defense in CF is on par with his offense. His speed and deft ball-tracking ability allow him to play shallow and cut off hits. It also enhances the impact of his strong, accurate arm. For instance, in the 3rd inning on Sunday, the Gators’ Sterlin Thompson laced a single up the middle. Kris Armstrong, who was on first and runs well, challenged Bradfield’s arm and took off for 3rd. Charging the ball, Bradfield was able to intercept it in relatively shallow center field and threw a bullet to nab Armstrong. At a time when the outcome of baseball games is often determined by the team with the most thump, Bradfield offers a fresh and exciting alternative—an alternative that fosters a winning brand of play. Though comps often get sportswriters in trouble, I couldn’t help myself from thinking of a young Kenny Lofton when I first laid eyes on Bradfield. Lightning fast. Excellent instincts. Great ball-tracking ability. Polished hit tool. Burgeoning power. Yeah, I think I’ll stick with that one. The 2022 draft is shaping up to be one of the best in recent memory, primarily because of the plethora of high-quality college position players that will be available. One of these is Vanderbilt SS Carter Young. Young is well known to amateur baseball fans. His .429 OBP led the fabled 2017 18U National Team, a collection of players that included the likes of Jarred Kelenic, Kumar Rocker, Nolan Gorman, and Ryan Weathers and won the 18U Baseball World Cup in Thunder Bay, Canada. Then, after arriving in Nashville in the fall of 2019, Young promptly beat out eventual 2020 1st rounder Austin Martin for the Commodores coveted starting SS role. In the abbreviated season, Young acquitted himself nicely, hitting .328. Young has had an impressive 2021 campaign so far, and the weekend series against Florida provided a nice glimpse of the kid’s all-round ability. Defense is currently Young’s strong suit and he showed why in Sunday’s series finale. On three separate plays, Young looked like a big league shortstop. In the 1st inning, Gators leadoff man Jacob Young kicked things off with a hard grounder into the “5.5 hole.” Carter made an excellent stop though couldn’t complete the play. Three innings later, on a slow Nathan Hickey roller, Young charged in, showed soft hands and a quick transfer, and made an on-the-money throw to nail Hickey. Finally, in the 7th inning, Young ranged all the way to his right to hoover a grounder off the bat of Jordan Butler. His strong throw nabbed Butler by a step. Young’s no slouch at the plate either, as his team-leading 10 home runs indicate. He attacks pitches from both sides of the plate and uses the electricity in his wrists and forearms to generate power that one would not expect from his slender 6-00/180 frame. While Young’s steep swing path enables him to inflict tremendous damage against pitches below the waist, it’s made it difficult for him to have success against high heat. During the course of the weekend, Young got beat on a series of 93+ heaters that were above his swing path. So far, that pitch has been his kryptonite, and SEC hurlers have begun to adjust their game plan accordingly—in conference play, the Selah, WA native is hitting .220 with a 32-percent K-rate. Young’s difficulties with elevated fastballs notwithstanding, he has an excellent chance of following in former Commodore SS Dansby Swanson’s footsteps as a premium draft pick next year. Young’s excellent work ethic, raw skills, high baseball IQ, and the fact that he still has over 500 PAs in front of him to iron out the kinks before next year’s draft all work overwhelmingly in his favor. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!