It was supposed to be different. Much different. The Pirates with the first overall pick in the upcoming First Year Player Draft could have drafted and placed the young slugger with the light-tower power alongside rookie third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes and shifted the rebuild into overdrive. The Rangers at 1-02, with the new park that plays bigger than the old one, could have used his range to cover all that real estate in their spacious center field. Then there are the Tigers, who would have liked nothing more than to grab him third overall and add him to a future lineup that would have included the likes of Riley Greene, Spencer Torkelson, and Dillon Dingler. But would he even still be on the board at 3? It was supposed to be different for Jud Fabian. Much different. As we move into May, Fabian’s third college season is at a crossroads. The Florida Gators’ center fielder entered the spring as the odds-on favorite to be the first college bat selected in the upcoming draft. But he started the 2021 campaign by going 1 for 13 with 7 strikeouts against Miami and never got back on track. In fact, during a March 26-28 series against South Carolina, Fabian went 0 for 13 with 11 whiffs and was said to be playing himself out of the 1st round altogether. Fabian’s history is an interesting one. He matriculated at Florida a year early and played his entire freshman season at 18 in 2019. Although the numbers—.232/.353/.411—didn’t jump off the page, he made gradual progress during the course of that first spring and then starred for Bourne in the Cape Cod League by slashing .290/.350/.500 with 6 HR in 137 PAs. Fabian demonstrated further improvement during the abbreviated 2020 by posting a 1.010 OPS with 11 extra-base hits in just 81 PAs. Despite Fabian’s immense talent and all the progress he’d made at UF, his one Achilles Heel remained his high strikeout totals—his composite K-rate as a collegiate (including his time on the Cape) has been a not-so-stellar 25.2 percent. Still, because of his youth (with a September 27, 2000 birthday, Fabian will be one of the youngest collegians in this year’s draft), quick bat, and the gains he’s already exhibited since arriving in Gainesville, many—this writer included—were confident that Fabian would be able to significantly reduce his whiffs in 2021. Unfortunately, this hasn’t been the case for the Ocala, FL native. Fast forward to this weekend. Employing a new 2-strike approach that entails a wider base to prevent him from getting out on his front foot against outside sliders, Fabian displayed marked improvement in the contact department. In fact, entering this weekend’s series against Vanderbilt, he was 11 for his last 26 (including four walks) with six extra base hits and just five punchouts. In the opening game against Kumar Rocker & Co., Fabian was a pedestrian 1-5 with a walk and sharp single off reliever Luke Murphy in the 6th inning. Though Fabian struck out swinging to end the game, the two strikes he took earlier in the at bat were borderline calls that could have easily gone in his favor. Fabian shined on Saturday against possible 1-01 selection Jack Leiter. In the 1st inning he homered off a 94 MPH fastball, then for an encore took a Leiter slider downtown in the 3rd . What was so special about both of these at bats was that Fabian did his damage in two-strike counts, situations that had caused him so much trouble just several weeks earlier. Later, in the 4th and 6th innings, Fabian provided additional proof of his recent progress by exhibiting excellent plate discipline and drawing two walks. In the 4th, he worked his way back from an 0-2 count against Leiter by taking close 2-2 and 3-2 heaters. In the 6th, facing southpaw reliever Hunter Owen, Fabian spit on 4 consecutive 92-94 MPH heaters to draw the BB. Though Fabian K’d twice in Sunday’s rubber game, one thing became evident—he didn’t swing at a pitch out of the strike zone all weekend. While that still doesn’t fully mitigate his near 30-percent K-rate, it does speak to his pitch recognition skills. The rest of Fabian’s game offers a lot to like. He plays a strong center field, taking excellent routes to the ball, especially those hit over his head. This was apparent in the 5th inning on Saturday when Fabian deftly tracked down a deep Dominic Keegan drive. Fabian on several occasions this weekend showed off an arm that is a potential “plus” tool in scouting parlance. Going forward, it will be interesting to see whether Fabian’s new 2-strike operation will continue to pay dividends. If it does, it will help him salvage his draft status and remain a viable option for teams picking in the second half of the 1st round. Even without the complete offensive package that had scouts and analysts drooling prior to the season, Fabian still resembles a player who will have a lengthy big league career. It’s just that instead of having production that will mirror the likes of George Springer, Mitch Haniger, AJ Pollock, and Ryan Braun (all frequent comps), he may instead follow the path of someone like Drew Stubbs (minus the steals). And that’s certainly nothing to be ashamed of. As one would expect, the Gators are chock full of solid prospects who will get plucked in the early rounds both this year and next. Let’s talk about some of them: Nathan Hickey is currently Florida’s catcher. Though he’s frequently comped with the Nationals Kyle Schwarber (i.e. a left-handed hitting college catcher with an impressive bat but no chance to stay at the position in the pros), I didn’t see the connection. Hickey isn’t nearly as physical as Schwarber was in college and doesn’t boast the same juice in his bat. That said, Hickey’s 36/26 BB/K ratio indicated a tremendous eye and his .592 slugging percentage is second on the team behind Fabian’s .607. Hickey will likely try his hand at 1B once he gets to the pros later this year, and he may ultimately gravitate towards full-time DH. Kris Armstrong has more raw power than any other Gator. As we discussed earlier this week, the 6-04/235 powerplant hit a 108 MPH missile against Rocker on Friday and followed with several more line drives in excess of 110 MPH later in the weekend. One note of caution is Armstrong’s 31.5 percent K-rate. Still, we expect Armstrong to get drafted before Round 10 this July. Colby Halter had a fabled amateur career before he even stepped on the field at Florida Ballpark, playing for the 18U National Team. Halter, who will be a draft eligible sophomore next year, has a well-developed hit tool and strong eye and is equally adept at 3B and 2B. He took some nice swings against tough Vanderbilt arms and appeared to have no problems catching up to premium velocity. In what will be a loaded 2022 draft class, Halter should be off the board in rounds 2-4. Tommy Mace, Florida’s Saturday starter, put forth a yeoman’s effort against Vandy, tossing 118 pitches in 8 innings. Though Mace gave up six earned runs, he did not walk a Commodore and maintained the velocity on his fastball at 93-94 MPH for the duration of his outing. Mace’s game plan is simple—in addition to the cheddar, he goes with an 87-88 MPH cutter to lefthanded batters and a slider with similar velocity to righties. Mace turned down a seven-figure bonus to head back to Gainesville this season, and it’s very possible he’ll be off the board before the end of the 2nd round. Don’t be shocked if Mace’s future club turns him into a reliever and scraps one of his two secondary offerings. His stuff will likely play up in a bullpen role and he could eventually establish himself as a key 7th or 8th inning guy capable of missing bats in high leverage situations. Jack Leftwich is another Florida arm who forewent riches in favor of spending another spring in northern Florida. He started this season as an anchor in Coach Kevin O’Sullivan’s weekend rotation but is now the closer. The new role suits him. Leftwich was especially effective closing out Sunday’s finale. He contributed 2.2 scoreless innings and fanned three Commodores. The big righty sat at 94-95 with his heater and showcased a sharp mid-80’s slider. Like Mace, Leftwich shouldn’t last until the 3rd round and could one day emerge as a vital weapon in a major league bullpen. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

The best has been saved for last. In the second to last week of the regular season, perhaps the Big 12’s best series of the year will take place, pitting #7 Texas at #5 TCU. Not only will we get to see a top 10 matchup featuring two 30-plus win teams, but the result of the series is almost certain to decide the conference’s regular season title, considering TCU and Texas are 1-2 in the Big 12 standings. The Longhorns and Horned Frogs entered last weekend tied for first place, but Texas Tech’s 2-1 series victory in Austin, and TCU’s sweep of West Virginia caused separation, as TCU moved two games ahead of Texas. It also caused Texas to slide four spots back from #3, and TCU to jump four spots forward from #9. With that said, the two opponents will have the same objective this weekend in Fort Worth, though all signs are pointing to them taking very different paths to get there. Plain and simple, the goal is to finish the weekend atop the conference standings. Texas needs to sweep, TCU simply needs to win two of the three. Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of this series lies in the variety of bats in both lineups, as each squad has shown a prolific ability to put runs on the board and create offense, even against high-level pitching in Big 12 play. TCU, led by outfielder Phillip Sikes, ranks second in the league in batting average at .302, and leads the Big 12 in hits (451), RBI (333) and walks (258). Interestingly, Texas is just behind TCU in most categories, ranking second to the Horned Frogs in walks (254), RBI (298), and third to TCU runs (318). With several speedsters in both lineups, the two teams are tied for the league lead in doubles at 91. One of those speedsters is Texas center fielder Mike Antico. The sparkplug of the Longhorns’ lineup, Antico can hit for power, with seven homers this season, but is more valuable to the Texas lineup because of his speed and aggressiveness on the base paths. The St. John’s transfer bats leadoff, and when he reaches base, in roughly 40 percent of his at-bats, he is nearly unstoppable, with a conference-best 24 stolen bases. In addition to Antico, left fielder Eric Kennedy and second baseman Mitchell Daly have also flashed a tremendous baserunning IQ. The balanced lineup features just as much power as speed, as designated hitter Ivan Melendez has dominated the Big 12 pitching during his first season at the Div. I level, and first baseman Zach Zubia continues to drive the ball past the outfield fence. Melendez is a sure candidate for Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, considering the JUCO transfer enters the weekend hitting .341 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI. He has been kept somewhat quiet as of late, but has a three-game hitting streak intact after a 1-for-3 performance in Tuesday’s 4-1 win over Texas State. TCU’s strength this season has been consistency at the plate, with five hitters batting above .300 in the lineup in Sikes, Hunter Wolfe, Zach Humphreys, and Gray Rodgers. Sikes, in his second season in Fort Worth, is coming off a phenomenal series- a road series at West Virginia- at the plate in which he went 5-for-9 with two of the series’ three triples. He leads the lethal offense in batting average, hits (57) and RBI (50). But as mentioned above, Sikes is not the only bat of which Texas’ pitchers will need to be weary. Brayden Taylor has surprised many, considering he is a freshman, and is the leading candidate for Big 12 Freshman of the Year based on the numbers he has posted. A West Jordan, Utah native, Taylor leads the Horned Frogs in home runs with 10, and enters the weekend with a 13-game hitting streak. Texas’ pitching staff took a hit last weekend when it was outdueled by Texas Tech’s powerful offense, allowing 14 runs. Yet, the Longhorns remain the conference’s best pitching team, as the lone Big 12 staff with a sub-3.00 ERA (2.93). Much of that success on the hill lies in the performance of the starters; Ty Madden, Tristan Stevens and Pete Hansen. As much as the first two games will play into the result of the series, Sunday is the contest to keep an eye on, as Hansen will get his first weekend start of the season against TCU’s Johnny Ray. Hansen relieved starter Kolby Kubichek in the first inning with the bases loaded and none out against Texas Tech last Sunday, an 11-3 victory, displaying his phenomenal slider through 7.2 innings of work. Following the contest, Texas head coach David Pierce told the media that Hansen would be in line to start this Sunday, a bold move considering the magnitude of this series. While Hansen is a sure question mark, he appears to have gotten back to the level he was at pre-pandemic last spring, with high velocity and the stamina to pitch late into games. Ray, 3-2 this season with a 4.93 ERA, is also in need of a bounce-back performance, as he allowed just one run, but five hits and two walks in 5.1 innings in Sunday’s 9-1 win over West Virginia, failing to earn the decision. One arm we will see at least once, if not twice, from the TCU bullpen is southpaw River Ridings, a freshman who has made 16 appearances this season. He has a high strikeout per nine innings ratio, at 10.9 with 28 strikeouts in 23.1 innings of work, but has also allowed 14 hits and 10 walks. Despite putting runners on base, Ridings has the lowest ERA on the team, at 0.39, having allowed just one of those 24 base runners to score. If TCU’s offense challenges Texas in the way it has other Big 12 opponents this season, the Longhorns will make several calls to the bullpen as well, with Cole Quintanilla the first name Pierce summons in relief. Quintanilla, a right-hander, is 4-0 on the year, throwing with remarkable accuracy and striking out 25 in 24.2 innings. Also pay attention to Saturday’s matchup between TCU’s Austin Krob (6-0) and Texas’ Tristan Stevens (7-2). Both pound the strike zone, and induce several swings and misses with their variety of pitches and ability to mix speeds. Game two is also critical in a balanced series such as this one, considering one team will be going for the series win on Saturday, while the other will do everything it can to tie the series at one game apiece. Prediction: TCU enters as the favorite, but these two teams look as evenly-matched as they could be. It has been a series we have been waiting for all season, and I am confident the Horns and Horned Frogs will live up to expectations. Playing in Fort Worth is not easy, but Texas is 11-4 on the road this season, so I do not know how much that will factor into the result. Texas is frustrated after last weekend, and has the pitching to hold TCU’s bats below the Horned Frogs average. I like what Hansen brings to the rotation, so I will take Texas winning the series two games to one on Sunday, but finishing one game behind TCU in the Big 12 standings. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

History repeated itself this past weekend. In 2018, it was Texas who took two of three in Lubbock, which marked Texas Tech’s last series loss until April 25 of this year. The opposite occurred in Austin now three years later, as #14 Texas Tech stunned the third-ranked Longhorns, winning the first two games of the series before the hosts earned an 11-3 win in the series finale. Texas Tech’s bats lived up to expectations, challenging the Longhorn pitching staff, especially in the series’ first two games. The result of the weekend caused a shift in the Big 12 standings, as Texas, previously tied for first with TCU, dropped two games behind the Horned Frogs with a 13-4 record. The Red Raiders gained one game on the Longhorns, and remain embedded in third with a 10-8 mark. Texas Tech’s marquee series win, especially after falling to Baylor last weekend, propelled the Red Raiders back into the Big 12 title conversation, and into the #10 spot in College Baseball Nation’s most recent rankings. Texas slid four spots back to #7. Texas Tech’s 6-3 game one victory was in large part due to its offensive performance, and the fact that Texas’ strongest weapon, starter Ty Madden, had an uncharacteristic showing on the mound. The Red Raider bats generated an early 1-0 lead in the second behind a solo home run from Braxton Fulford, and sealed the win with five runs between the fourth and fifth innings. Texas had countered with two runs of its own in the third to take a narrow 2-1 lead, but was overpowered when Texas Tech shook Madden’s composure, beginning with a triple from Cody Masters down the right field line that scored Fulford and tied the score. A passed ball in the following at-bat gave Masters time to race home from third, and with the lead now in their possession, the visitors from Lubbock did not look back. Madden was sent to the showers following a three-run fifth, his final stat line revealing just how good Texas Tech was offensively in the early goings. The junior gave up five runs, the most he had in a start this season, along with five hits, and three walks. His velocity was at its typical level, with seven strikeouts, but the Red Raiders timed up to his pitches. The second game of the series was critical for both teams, and was close for the entirety of the contest, with Texas Tech earning the series victory in a 5-3 win. It was the first series Texas had lost since the final weekend of the 2019 season, and the mood postgame at Disch-Falk Field reflected that. Texas had its chances though, notably a bases loaded situation down 5-3 with two outs in the bottom of the eighth. Pinch hitter Silas Ardoin was called upon, hitting .256 entering the at-bat as the team’s primary catcher. Then Texas Tech’s Ryan Sublette, who tallied the win on Friday, entered the game in relief, and struck out Ardoin on three straight pitches, ending Texas’ rally. The final pitch of the at-bat was on the outside edge as Ardoin was called out looking, but as Coach David Pierce said postgame, Ardoin needs to learn to be more aggressive in two-strike situations. “We didn’t overthink it, we just weren’t aggressive,” Pierce said. “I think Silas has to understand and learn from that. Bases-loaded with a strike thrower, he’s going to come at you. Whether that last pitch was a strike or not, [the umpire] called it a strike, and I think when you get in those situations with the pitch in the umpire’s hand, that’s what we want to avoid.” Texas pushed two across earlier in the inning, both coming on bases-loaded walks, to cut the deficit to 5-3, but that was as close as the Longhorns got. There was also another factor in Ardoin’s at-bat, one that does not appear on the box score. Just before Ardoin stepped to the plate, with much of the home crowd on its feet and Texas clearly maintaining the momentum, the light sprinkle of rain turned into a downpour, joined by lightning. The storm blew across central Texas, and suspended the contest...until Sunday. When the two teams met on Sunday, and the game picked up where it had left off the day before, something was different. No longer was there a clear momentum in favor of Texas. Both teams had been put on an even level, and both Ardoin and Sublette had over 11 hours to think about the next play. “It was just kind of surreal, to be honest with you,” Pierce said. “I’ve never done that. Had plenty of rain delays but to actually go the next day and start a game as the home team in that situation was a weird setting. “We knew it was going to be Sublette, and that played in their favor. If we were able to just delay that thing and play Saturday night, I think it plays in our favor whether we get it done or not.” As pivotal as Sublette was in closing out the victory, it was the Red Raiders’ bats that put Texas Tech in front early for the second straight game. The contest was a rubber match for the first five innings, but things unraveled in the sixth, as the Texas Tech offense broke out of its shell. The Red Raiders pushed across five runs in the sixth, including three straight hits, all of which scored runners, with two outs off Texas starter Tristan Stevens. With the series already decided, Texas displayed a short-term memory and put together a solid performance in game three, winning 11-3. Texas Tech’s hitters, who had been so successful in the series’ first two games, were held at bay, as Pete Hansen entered the game in relief and fired 7.2 innings with just one earned run. Hansen was called on to pitch in the first inning, after the game appeared to be getting out of hand with starter Kolby Kubichek on the mound. Kubichek was pulled after facing four batters, giving up two hits, two walks, and a run without tallying a single out. Unlike his predecessor, Hansen was on point, and though the Longhorns' bats scored the most runs in a game since April 18 against Abilene Christian, he was the story of the game. Inconsistent at times this season, Hansen did allow seven hits, but displayed excellent command, and did not walk a batter. His slider worked to his advantage as he moved to 5-1 on the year. His start not only earned him a win, but also a new role for next weekend’s series at TCU. Pierce said postgame that Hansen is Texas’ new Sunday starter. "We definitely have to go and move Pete into that Sunday role right now," Pierce said following Sunday's victory. Texas looked strong in game three, but Texas Tech deserves plenty of credit for its victories in the series’ first two games, especially considering the Red Raiders were on the road, facing a Longhorns squad that entered the series having won seven of its last eight. Dru Baker headlined the Texas Tech offense, going 6-for-14 as the leadoff hitter. He also had the Red Raiders’ final two RBI on Sunday, hitting well throughout the series with runners in scoring position. Jace Jung, who entered the weekend with a sky high .368 batting average, was quieter than expected, with a 2-for-8 weekend. Texas had contributions from several different players, including Ardoin, who battled back from his eighth-inning strikeout in game two and went 2-for-4 with three runs in the series finale. Texas has little time to stay frustrated, considering a road trip to TCU awaits next weekend. That series is likely to decide the Big 12’s regular season title. Texas Tech will take a week off of conference action, and host UIC in a four-game set in Lubbock next weekend. The Red Raiders will also face Oklahoma in a non-conference duel Tuesday in Amarillo. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

Underwhelmed. That’s the word I’d use to describe my feelings this weekend after witnessing the starts posted by Vanderbilt pitchers Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter. It was hard to type that word given all the negative connotations it carries while knowing what type of precocious talents Vanderbilt has in both righthanders. But expectations were high at 7:00 PM on Friday night, and barely 24 hours later, I was left sitting in the press box at Florida Ballpark wondering what could have been. Rocker hurled 5 innings in the Commodores 11-7 victory over the Florida Gators Friday, striking out 8 hitters but allowing four walks and posting a mediocre 49/46 strike/ball ratio. Just as concerning, the jumbo-sized righty gave up a mammoth home run to Florida slugger Kris Armstrong as well as a plethora of other well-struck balls. Leiter fared far worse on Saturday. The New Jersey native lasted just 4 innings and exited after yielding three long balls and walking four Gators. Let’s first examine Rocker’s outing. When dissecting Kumar Rocker, the first order of business is establishing the lexicon. Rocker throws two breaking pitches—the more “famous” of the two resides at about 80 MPH and occasionally has the standard 12-to-6 curveball break and other times approaches the plate at more of a slant, depending on the position of Rocker’s wrist upon release of the pitch. To the trained eye, this pitch would appear to be a curveball; however, Rocker and the Vanderbilt baseball contingent refer to this pitch as a slider. Hence, this is the terminology I’ll use for the remainder of this article. Rocker’s other “breaking pitch” travels in the 87-88 MPH range and has a much tighter break. Many would call this pitch a slider, but Rocker & Co. have labelled this offering a cutter. To each his own. The correct terminology established, let’s delve into Rocker’s start. Because of all the attention Rocker’s three-start dip in fastball velocity (from his customary 93-95 MPH to a more sedate 90-91) garnered, it’s imperative to point out that the big guy had the heat turned on Friday. Most of his fastballs sat in the 93-94 space and some touched 95 and even 96. Rocker kicked off his outing by fanning Gator leadoff man Jacob Young with some 93 MPH cheddar at the letters. He then hit 95-96 several times to induce a Jud Fabian pop up and whiff Armstrong. Armstrong’s AB was not without drama; however, as the brawny switch hitter hit a nuke off a 94 MPH fastball that was barely foul down the right field line. Three things quickly became apparent as Rocker battled his way through the Florida lineup. First, the Vanderbilt ace works fast, appearing ready to fire the next pitch immediately after getting the ball back from his catcher. After decades of playing and following this sport, I’ve come to notice that a pitcher who works fast is a confident pitcher and this trait certainly holds true for Rocker. Second, Rocker was repeatedly aided by the home plate umpire’s generous strike zone, particularly on high pitches. This helped him garner several high-fastball strikes. Finally, Rocker pitches with emotion. There was an assortment of F-bombs, fist pumps, and scowls. In short, the kid left it all on the mound Friday. As his outing progressed, Rocker mainly toggled between his fastball, which stayed true at 93-94 MPH for his entire 5-inning stint, and his slider, and sprinkled in some cutters when necessary. Though Rocker collected a bunch of Ks, his command was off and several Gator hitters took advantage. Nathan Hickey, Florida’s second-place hitter, drove a 94 MPH center-cut heater to center field in the 1st inning for a line drive single. Two batters later, as I alluded to above, Rocker grooved a 93 MPH heater to Armstrong, which landed barely foul some 400 feet away. In the 2nd inning, Kendrick Calilao turned around a Rocker fastball and hit a loud flyout to center field. In the 4th, Rocker once again left a fastball up to Armstrong and this time Armstrong wasn’t as forgiving, launching a 400+ foot missile that left the bat at 108 MPH. One batter later, true freshman Sterlin Thompson tagged a 95 MPH waist-high fastball for a loud lineout to right field. In that same inning, Josh Rivera swatted a Rocker fastball for a screaming one hopper to Vandy SS Carter Young. Young made a great play on the ball but couldn’t throw out Rivera. If you think you’re seeing a pattern here, it’s because you are. Though Rocker was able to get a number of swinging strikes on his high-octane fastball, it got hit hard when his command of the pitch faltered. In addition to giving up hard contact when his fastball command was lacking, Rocker’s difficulty controlling the pitch was the primary culprit for the four walks he surrendered. An example of this came in the 5th inning when Rocker walked Fabian on a 3-0 fastball. In this instance, as well as throughout most of the game, when Rocker missed with the fastball it was to his glove side. As in most of his starts this season, Rocker had more luck with his slider. What makes this pitch so effective, is Rocker’s ability to “tunnel” it with his fastball. This means the ball leaves his hand in nearly the exact same fashion with both pitches, making it nearly impossible for the hitter to discern between the two offerings. Rocker’s adroitness with the slider induced a number of swings-and-misses and also resulted in multiple called strikes. In the 3rd inning, Jordan Carrion, still reeling from swinging through a high hard one, took a high slider for strike 3. Then Armstrong and Thompson went down back-to-back waving at 80 MPH sliders to end the 5th. Though Rocker had his moments like the ones featured immediately above, his inconsistent fastball command and control are an important blemish that will have to be ironed out for him to reach his ultimate ceiling of front-of-the-MLB-rotation workhorse. Let’s now look at Leiter’s outing. Until his start on April 17, Jack Leiter’s spring had been the season dreams are made of. The 6-01/205 righty had dominated in each of his starts, and notched a 20-inning hitless streak, which, of course, included the 9-inning no-hitter he tossed on March 21 against South Carolina. Much of Leiter’s early success this season was predicated on his devastating fastball, which has been called the best pitch in the draft by scouts and analysts alike. In his well-thought out article from April 6, Fangraphs’ Justin Choi explains in great detail the keys to Leiter’s fabled heater. In a nutshell, Leiter’s low release height of 5.2 feet combined with his elite 6.6-foot extension, 95% spin efficiency, and 19.9-inch vertical break all combine to make his fastball torturous for collegiate hitters. However, after never having thrown more than approximately 60 innings in any one spring season, Vandy’s Saturday starter has seemingly hit a wall. He entered this start having given up seven earned runs and five homers in his last two outings after yielding just three of the former and one of the latter in his first eight appearances. I was curious to see if this trend would continue. Unfortunately, I didn’t have long to wait. Leiter kicked off his act with a series of 94 MPH fastballs to the Gator table setter Young and walked him on five pitches. He then walked Hickey on five pitches. Up to the plate strode Fabian. As I’ll discuss in a subsequent article, it hasn’t been the kindest of springs for Fabian. The Florida center fielder and three-place hitter entered the season as a possible candidate to go first overall in the upcoming July draft, but a strikeout rate that is parked near 30 percent may force him to fall out of the 1st round altogether. That said, he has a lightning-quick bat and one of the college game’s top average exit velocities. This would be no picnic for Jersey Jack. Leiter opened the Fabian at bat with an 80 MPH curve, which was out of the zone. He then opted for two fastballs—the first at 91, the second at 93. Fabian took both for strikes. Then Fabian implemented his new two-strike strategy, widening his base to prevent him from getting out on his front leg on outside sliders. Leiter’s 1-2 pitch wasn’t a slider, but it didn’t matter. It was a 94 MPH fastball middle in that Fabian deposited in the left field berm. 3-0 Florida. Leiter had a much better 2nd inning, striking out the side after a Jordan Butler single. During this brief show of force he was primarily a two-pitch pitcher, using a 78-80 MPH deuce early in the count to set up his 91-93 MPH heater that elicited a swinging third strike to Rivera, Colby Halter, and Young. In the 3rd, Leiter broke out his 83-85 MPH slider. He employed those early to Hickey then got the Gators catcher to fly out to center field off some 97 MPH cheese, his fastest pitch of the night. Suddenly, Fabian began to make his way to the plate again. Early in the at bat, Leiter went mano y mano with the 20-year-old Fabian, firing pellets at 96 and 97. Then, with two strikes, Leiter went with an 83 MPH slider on the inner half of the plate. And once again there was a mad scramble amongst the fans in the left field berm for a souvenir. Two batters later, Kirby McMullen made Leiter pay for another slider, this one at 84 MPH, when he jacked it out of the park. The most revealing at bat came in the 4th inning against Rivera. If you recall, Leiter had already bullied Rivera with his fastball back in the 2nd and was doing the same again with heat clocked between 93 and 95 MPH. However, instead of finishing off the Gator infielder with some more high Provolone, Leiter switched gears and went with a curve. Rivera promptly belted a line drive single to left field. This at bat was so informative for two reasons. First, the fastball has been Leiter’s bread and butter all season. With its otherworldly metrics, it’s simply too much for nearly all college hitters to handle. When right. But has Leiter’s heavy workload (he passed the 60 IP mark on Saturday) taken a toll on his heater and forced him to revert to his secondary offerings? Second, Leiter’s struggles on Saturday with his curve and slider reinforce the difficulties he has had with both of these pitches for a good part of the spring. When Leiter was able to use his fastball to force opposing hitters into submission, his inconsistent secondaries were merely a footnote; however, if his fastball has indeed lost some juice, this inconsistency will become a more prevalent theme. Though Rocker and Leiter’s starts were far less than what both pitchers are capable of, it’s vital to note that each was a mere data point. Taking each pitcher’s full body of work into consideration, it’s easy to see why both will be premium draft picks in two months. Kumar Rocker has starred against top hitters for years. He could have been a 1st rounder out of high school then threw a no-hitter (with 19 strikeouts) against Duke in a Super Regional elimination game as a freshman. And he does have a sterling 1.90 ERA and 97/19 K/BB ratio in 69 innings this season. As outstanding as Rocker has been, many scouts will tell you Jack Leiter is even better. When working with his full toolset, even the most advanced amateur hitters have no shot against his supersonic fastball, let alone his other three pitches, all of which grade out as at least above average. Bottom line: when Rocker and Leiter are picked in the top half dozen picks in July, the teams that select them will be thrilled to have landed the two best available arms in the country. And the “underwhelming” starts I witnessed this weekend will be remembered as small bumps in the road. If they’re even remembered at all. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

by Matt Sefcovic (@MattSefcovic) Once again, Arkansas proved why they have been ranked in the top two for ten consecutive weeks, taking two games from LSU at Alex Box Stadium. For the first time this season, the Tigers were able to increase attendance for home games and welcomed greater than 5,000 fans for each game of the series. More than 7,000 fans were in attendance for the second game of the double header on Saturday. Friday night saw two quality pitchers duel it out in a game that took less than two and a half hours. The game was knotted at zero until the seventh inning when the Razorbacks bats came to life, scoring two runs in the seventh and five in the eight to take the first game of the series 7-0. Christian Franklin had an impressive day at the plate with two hits, a home run, and five RBI to lead the way for the Razorbacks. Brady Slavens chipped in with two hits and two RBI. Patrick Wicklander (W, 3-1) picked up the victory, throwing 6.2 shutout innings before turning the ball over to Kevin Kopps (S, 6) to finish the game. Tigers batters struck out 11 times and recorded just three hits for the game, all of which came against Wicklander. Landon Marceaux (L, 4-4) was cruising until the 7th inning when the Razorbacks lineup flipped over for the third time. Marceaux gave up two runs on four hits in seven innings of work against the best team in the country. He gave LSU an opportunity to stay in the game, which is all Coach Mainieri could ask for from his Friday night starter. The Tigers and Razorbacks played a double header on Saturday to decide the series. Game one was polar opposite from what fans saw on Friday night as the teams combined for 33 hits and 27 runs. Arkansas poured it on early and often, stretching their lead out to 16-2 before winning the game 17-10 and taking the series in Baton Rouge. Zack Gregory, Matt Goodheart, Cayden Wallace, Christian Franklin, Robert Moore, Cullen Smith, and Jalen Battles all tallied a multi-hit game for the Razorbacks who amassed 19 hits for the game. Franklin and Moore added four RBI apiece, while Moore had the only home run. Ryan Costeiu (W, 6-1) picked up the win for Arkansas after throwing the fifth and sixth innings, giving up one run and striking out three. The Tigers were led by Gavin Dugas who went 4-for-5 at the plate with two RBI. Drew Bianco and Zach Arnold each homered, but it was too little, too late for the LSU offense. After finding themselves in a deep hole, the Tigers scored seven straight runs but it was not enough to top a red hot Razorbacks team that has its eyes set on Omaha. The second game of the double header was the most competitive of the series as LSU escaped with a 5-4 victory and avoided a sweep at home. The Tigers jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the third inning and were able to hold off the Razorbacks comeback bid with the tying run on base in the 9th. Cade Doughty hit a three-run home run in the first inning to set the pace for the Tigers, his 10th of the season. Ma’Khail Hilliard (W, 4-0) picked up the win for LSU after keeping the Razorbacks bats at bay for five innings, giving up just one run on two hits. Arkansas tallied six hits by six different batters, with Franklin adding another RBI. He was named SEC Player of the Week with his performance against LSU with six hits, ten RBI, a double and a home run. Next up, Arkansas will host Georgia for a three-game series, and LSU will travel to Auburn. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

Kyle finally wins a pick'em. John and Kyle recap Week 11. College Baseball Nation's Bubble Watch debuts with 79 teams. The guys look ahead to Week 12. 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!

The NCAA Tournament selection is later this month (5/31), so it's time to start College Baseball Nation's bubble watch. With the Ivy League not playing an official season this year, there are 34 at-large bids to go around. As of now 79 teams from 20 conferences are on the bubble watch. When automatic bids are accounted for, that means 59 teams are vying for 34 spots; 14 of those teams are in the "need a miracle" category, so only 45 teams are in serious contention. Conference tournaments always bring a few bid stealers, so somewhere between 11-20 deserving teams will be left out. ACC (12) Locks: Notre Dame Should be in: Pitt, Miami, Louisville Work left to do: Georgia Tech, Clemson, Florida State, NC State, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Virginia Need a miracle: Duke A good weekend for Virginia keeps the postseason in sight. Louisville should be in, even after a sweep at the hands of Clemson, but the Cardinals can't afford to lose too many more games as the RPI has not been kind to them. It's time to pack it up for Boston College and Wake Forest. American (4) Locks: ECU Work left to do: Tulane Need a miracle: Wichita State, Cincinnati Tulane and ECU face off this weekend. Should the Green Wave win that series, they would have to feel pretty good about their postseason chances. ASUN (2) Work left to do: Liberty, FGCU With top 70 RPIs, both Liberty and FGCU have a path forward with an at-large bid. Liberty's 35 RPI and 30-11 record would likely be enough to get the Flames in if the season were to end today. Atlantic 10 (2) Work left to do: VCU, Rhode Island Same story as the ASUN. Rhode Island and VCU both have top 55 RPIs and a path forward should they fail to earn the Atlantic 10's automatic bid. Both of these teams have a lot of work to do, though, and especially Rhode Island, whose 17-19-1 record would not cut it. Big 12 (7) Locks: TCU, Texas, Texas Tech Work left to do: Baylor, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma Need a miracle: West Virginia West Virginia could maybe afford to lose one more game the rest of the year, and with a series at Texas looming the last week of the season, prospects are glum for the Mountaineers. The Big 12 will almost certainly get at least four teams into the NCAA Tournament, with Baylor the most likely to earn the fourth spot currently. 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 nearly perfect to earn an at-large bid. Big South (1) Work left to do: South Carolina Upstate South Carolina Upstate has seven games left on the schedule that they should be the heavy favorite in. Win them all, and an at-large bid is within sight. Big Ten (8) Should be in: Michigan, Indiana Work left to do: Nebraska, 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 next week. Big West (2) Work left to do: UC Irvine, UCSB Both UCI and UCSB have top 70 RPIs and could end up in shouting distance of an at-large bid, especially UC Irvine. 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) Work left to do: Northeastern 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 Should be in: Louisiana Tech Need a miracle: Florida Atlantic What a year for Conference USA. Barring a catastrophic collapse, the league should get four teams into the postseason Louisiana Tech is nearly a lock, but their RPI projection is slightly less forgiving. All four of the top CUSA teams should be in as long as they finish their remaining schedule around .500. Horizon League (1) Should be in: Wright State Wright State's #17 RPI is making the Raiders a near lock. They'll need to do a little better than .500 the rest of the way out to feel safe. MAAC (1) Work left to do: Fairfield With no non-conference play in the MAAC, RPI is meaningless. However, Fairfield's 28-1 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 (3) Should be in: Indiana State Work left to do: Dallas Baptist Need a miracle: Bradley Indiana State (RPI 20) is nearly a lock. Dallas Baptist and Bradley both have a lot of work left to do to beef up their at-large resume. Pac-12 (8) Locks: Arizona, Oregon Should be in: Stanford, UCLA, Oregon State, Work left to do: Arizona State Need a miracle: Washington State, California There is a cluster of top Pac-12 teams in the 20-30 range in the RPI. Many of these teams could lock in their bid this weekend. 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 8-1 to finish at .500 in SEC play, the Tigers' remaining conference schedule (at Auburn, Alabama, at Texas A&M) sets up favorably for a hot streak to end the season. LSU could make it in the NCAA Tournament at 13-17 in conference. Southern (3) Need a miracle: Western Carolina, Mercer, Samford Western Carolina still has Mercer and Wofford on the schedule. If the Catamounts can win these series and sweep The Citadel on the road, maybe they could earn an at-large bid. Sun Belt (2) Work left to do: South Alabama Need a miracle: Georgia Southern Both South Alabama and Georgia Southern would need to be nearly perfect to keep a top 50 RPI. South Alabama has a little more wiggle room and could lose up to two games. West Coast (2) Should be in: Gonzaga Work left to do: San Diego Gonzaga's series win at TCU is looking better and better. The Bulldogs are nearly a lock in the NCAA Tournament. Likely one-bid leagues: America East, MEAC, Mountain West, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot League, Southland, SWAC, Summit League, WAC 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! Wash, rinse, repeat. Arkansas is once again the top-ranked team in the country after winning a series on the road at LSU. Mississippi State moves up to number two after a sweep of Texas A&M, and #3 Notre Dame earned a sweep of their own against North Carolina. Vanderbilt slips to the fourth spot this week. The Commodores fell to Florida in a series at Gainesville. TCU, who swept West Virginia on the road, rises to number five. Tennessee, Texas, Arizona, Florida, and Texas Tech comprise the remainder of the top ten. Several teams entered the top 25 this week. Arizona State earned a sweep of Rhode Island in a late-season non-conference series, and enters the top 25 at #22. UCSB returns to the top 25 at #23, and fellow southern California resident, San Diego rises to #24. Fairfield saw its perfect season come to an end, but the Stags still won the weekend and earned a spot in the top 25. Clemson enters the top 50 after sweeping Louisville. 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 Three notable streaks were on the line as the Houston Cougars traveled to New Orleans for a four-game American Athletic Conference (AAC) set this weekend with the Tulane Green Wave. Tulane as a team entered play with a ten-game winning streak. Tulane leadoff hitter Collin Burns entered with a seventeen-game hitting streak and catcher Bennett Lee entered with a sixteen-game hitting streak. There was also a great pitching matchup to open the weekend between Tulane's Braden Olthoff and Houston's Robert Gasser, two premiere pitchers not only in the AAC, but in all of college baseball. Robert Gasser retired Collin Burns to open the bottom of the first before three straight singles plated the first run of the game, and Tulane led 1-0. Houston did not get its first hit off Olthoff until the fourth inning, the first of only five hits in the game. Meanwhile, Gasser was cruising as well, striking out eight as he went six complete innings and left trailing 1-0. Tulane added two runs in the seventh off Houston relief pitching, including the final run on a bases loaded walk that made it 3-0. While Tulane's offense was adding some runs and taking walks in that lengthy seventh inning, Olthoff was in the Tulane bullpen throwing and staying warm. After a scoreless eighth for Olthoff, Keagan Gillies closed out the Cougars in the ninth for the 3-0 five-hit, shutout win, and his second save. Olthoff had a season-high twelve strike outs as he improved his record this year to 5-1. Gasser and the Houston bullpen were able to end Burns’s hitting streak at seventeen games. Jack Aldrich took the mound for Tulane in the Friday nightcap and Houston struck first when they scored a run in the top of first on a Ryan Hernandez bloop single into right that scored Brad Burckel from second. The Cougars added a run in the second on a sacrifice fly by Luke Almendarez to score Will Pendergrass and give the Cougars a 2-0 advantage. In the third, Cougars outfielder Tyler Bielamowicz lined a one-out triple to right-center, and he was brought home moments later on a Ryan Hernandez single into center to put the Cougars in front 3-0. Tulane plated a run in the third off Houston starter Jaycob Deese to get back in the game. Aldrich left the game with one out in the sixth and two Cougars on base. Houston added a run moments later on a bizarre play at the plate on a wild pitch allowing Dylan Post to score and extend the Cougars lead to 4-1. Post broke for home on a wild pitch, but the pitch ricocheted quickly back to Tulane catcher Haydan Hastings and he recovered the ball and raced back to the plate. Post went right at Hastings, but he snuck his left leg around the catcher and managed to touch home plate before he was tagged. The Green Wave got a two-run home run in the sixth to get to within one at 4-3. Collin Burns tied the contest at four in the seventh with a one-out home run to straight-away center field. Deese went 6 1/3 innings before exiting in favor of reliever Layne Looney, and the game got away from the Cougars at that point. A few pitches later, Bennet Lee hit a liner down the first base line to drive in Tulane's go-ahead run at 5-4. For Lee, the hit was part of a 2-for-5 evening that extended his hitting streak to eighteen games. Tulane put up six in the eighth while they scored ten unanswered runs and led 11-4. Tulane’s David Bates, who took the mound in the eighth, also handled the ninth to close out the contest and secure the 11-4 victory for the Green Wave while extending their win streak to twelve games. Hours after the final out of the Friday game, it was announced that Sunday's game was being rescheduled because of the high likelihood of rain, this meant the two teams would play a doubleheader on Saturday to close out their weekend series. Tulane starter Donovan Benoit got things started by striking out the side in the first inning to open Saturday's first game. Then Tulane's offense wasted no time getting on the board, scoring one in the first. A comedy of bizarre defensive miscues, plus a single, loaded the bases with no outs for the Cougars to start the third. Ryan Hernandez doubled to left-center to drive in two runs. Houston scored seven runs in the third, eventually chasing Benoit after only 2 2/3 innings pitched. The Green Wave added a run in their half of the third to close the gap to 7-2, aided by a Bennett Lee (3-for-5) single, one of three hits for Lee as his hitting streak reached nineteen games. Then Tulane's Luis Aviles homered in the fourth to again cut into the deficit making it 7-3. Ben Sears went 5 2/3 innings and reliever Derrick Cherry took the mound to get the final out of the sixth. Cherry allowed Tulane to add a run in the seventh to get the deficit down to three at 7-4. Tulane's Trent Johnson threw six strong innings after relieving Benoit in the third, allowing only four hits and keeping Houston from adding to the lead, Johnson left the mound to a standing ovation with two outs in the ninth. Cherry let Tulane load the bases in the bottom of the ninth with two outs, but he caught Aviles looking to end the game. Houston's 7-4 win ended the Tulane twelve-game winning streak. Tyler Hoffman took the ball for Tulane in the weekend finale. He put the Cougars down in order in the opening frame, striking out the last two batters. The Tulane offense jumped out in front with a big second inning, plating three runs with the help of sloppy Houston defense. Ethan Groff (3) added a two-run home run in the third for a 5-0 Green Wave lead. Trailing 6-0 in the sixth, the Cougars loaded the bases with one out and Tulane went to the bullpen as a light rain fell on New Orleans. A walk plated Houston's first run, their only run of the inning. A slightly heavier rain was falling in the seventh as Houston added three runs, highlighted by a Ryan Hernandez (2-for-4) single to right-center scoring runners from second and third and getting Houston to within two at 6-4. Two batters reached base for Houston and Tulane went to the bullpen again to end the threat and preserve the two-run lead. Bennett Lee, 0-for-3 at the time, got one last chance in the eighth to extend his hitting streak, but he bounced out weakly to the pitcher as the streak came to an end for the freshman at nineteen games. Keagan Gillies took the mound for the second time in as many days and closed out the Cougars in the ninth, though not before a solo home run by Tyler Bielamowicz (6) to get Houston to within one. Houston got two more runners on base on two consecutive singles, but Gillies countered with two consecutive strikes outs to end the game and give Tulane the series win. For Gillies it was his third save of the season and his second of the weekend. Two trifectas played out this weekend at Turchin Stadium in New Orleans: Houston ended all three of the streaks that Tulane and its players entered the series with, but Tulane took the bigger prize winning three of the four games. Tulane improves overall to 24-14 and 13-2 in the AAC, while Houston leaves town 16-23 overall and 4-12 in the AAC. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

by Steve Parkhurst There is no one, ever, who has figured out baseball, and especially the game of college baseball. This weekend's series between the UCLA Bruins and Oregon State Beavers was evidence for that statement as the two schools got together at Jackie Robinson Stadium in Los Angeles for a Pac-12 series. Friday night got started with a matchup between Oregon State starter Kevin Abel and UCLA starter Zach Pettway. Both starters pitched well, and well enough to win, but neither would be around when this game was settled. Abel went 4 1/3 allowing two hits, while Pettway went six innings and allowed three hits. Tied at one going into the eighth, the Beavers scored three runs and took a late 4-1 lead. In the top of the ninth, Oregon State added another run. UCLA was down 5-1 headed to the bottom of the ninth and Oregon State seemed poised to steal an opening road game. They just needed three more outs to put the game away, and the Beavers had Jake Mulholland on the mound, one of the Pac-12's toughest closers. With one out, UCLA batters put together three straight singles. UCLA's JT Schwartz walked on seven pitches to get the Bruins to within 5-2. Jack Filby came off the bench to bat for UCLA. Down to the last strike, Filby walloped a ball to the wall in right-center scoring three and tying the game on his double. After a scoreless top of the tenth, the Bruins needed one run to end the game. UCLA began their half of the tenth with a single and a walk. A sacrifice bunt moved the runners along, at which point Oregon State opted for an intentional walk to load the bases. Before another pitch was thrown, Jack Washburn ended the game when he balked and the runner on third walked down the third base line to give UCLA a 6-5 win in ten innings. Two batters. Zero pitches thrown. One batter reaches base. One run scores. Baseball! Saturday night saw the Beavers send left-hander Cooper Hjerpe to the hill while the Bruins sent Sean Mullen to do their bidding. Hjerpe and Mullen were both outstanding. Hjerpe gave an inch and UCLA made it seem like a mile with Mullen on the mound. Bruins shortstop Matt McLain (1-for-2) doubled to the wall in left in the fourth inning. McLain then stole third. He scored moments later on a wild pitch as UCLA took a 1-0 lead. For Oregon State, Garret Forrester provided much of what little offense the Beavers had on Saturday night, going 2-for-3 with a double and a walk. In the Bruins half of the eighth, Matt McLain walked to lead off the inning. He then stole his third base of the night to get himself into scoring position. Left-fielder Kyle Cuellar sent a base hit through the left side to bring in an insurance run. The Bruins led 2-0 and Matt McLain had scored both runs and had three stolen bases. After a leadoff single in the ninth for the Beavers, UCLA reliever Max Rajcic retired the next three batters to end the game and pick up his third save of the season. Cooper Hjerpe took the tough loss, dropping to 2-4, after 6 2/3 innings and just three hits and nine strikeouts. Baseball is unfair sometimes. The 2-0 win for Mullen improved his record to an impressive 8-1 on the year, while also giving UCLA the series win before Sunday’s final game. Jesse Bergin took the hill for UCLA and Jake Pfennigs opposed him for Oregon State on a typical, sunny Southern California afternoon. The Beavers jumped out to an early lead after the first two batters were retired by Bergin. A fielding error was followed by four straight singles and a 3-0 lead before the Bruins got their first chance at the plate. In their half of the first, after a batter reached on an error, UCLA cleanup hitter JT Schwartz sent the first pitch he saw over the wall in center to get the Bruins right back in the game 3-2. Designated hitter Greg Fuchs (3-for-4) pounded a home run to right field with two outs in the third and the Beavers added to their lead, 4-2. Quiet into the fifth, third baseman Kyle Karros got a run back for UCLA on a solo home run to deep left-center. Oregon State made a call to the bullpen in the sixth, with Mitchell Verburg taking the mound. Pfennings threw five complete innings and allowed just one earned one while striking out six. UCLA went to the bullpen with two outs in the seventh. Jesse Bergin exited having only allowed one earned run of the four Beavers runs. He rebounded after the tough three-run first to go 6 2/3 and he gave his team a chance to win the game and sweep the series. Bergin said after the game, "The first inning was rough, felt a little sped up. Once I got back to the dugout, I just collected myself and got my breath under control and got back to attacking them and just making pitches." Adrian Chaidez came on to strike out the final out of the seventh inning. With one out in the bottom of the seventh, the Beavers made another pitching change; they would use five pitchers on the afternoon to four hurlers for UCLA. The Beavers added a run in the eighth on a Troy Claunch base hit to right field which made it 5-3. That would be the final score as Oregon State avoided the road sweep. Looking at the weekend as a whole, UCLA head coach John Savage was pleased, "It's big. You beat a very good team, twice, that's a big deal in this league. We just didn't do enough to win today.” “It was a very successful weekend. Whenever you lose on Sunday and win the series it feels like you lost the series but you didn't, you won the series. It just doesn't quite feel that way." It is just one of those quirks, how losing can feel like winning and winning can still feel like losing. And it is why the game of baseball is never figured out and never will be. Oregon State goes back to Corvallis with a record of 29-14 and 11-7 in the Pac-12 while UCLA is now 25-14 overall, 12-9 in the Pac-12. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

History in reverse. That is a key storyline entering this weekend’s critical Big 12 series as #14 Texas Tech (28-10, 8-7 Big 12) takes a road trip to Austin and faces #3 Texas (34-9, 12-3 Big 12). The result of this series has the potential to boost one team’s RPI while lowering the other’s, considering how evenly matched the two opponents are, and the fact that both have remained in the top 20 in every set of rankings this season. In 2018, Texas upset Texas Tech at home. It left a lasting impact on the Red Raiders, who did not lose another home series until last week at Baylor. The week before, Texas lost a series to West Virginia 2-1. An opposite scenario is set up now, considering Texas Tech lost to Baylor 2-1 last weekend, and heads to Austin to face a Longhorn ballclub that has yet to lose a series at home since the final weekend of the 2019 season. Texas has been dominant throughout this season, and looked the part of a top five team for the majority of the 2021 campaign, excluding the miserable 0-3 showing to open the year at the Globe Life Field Showdown. Since that opening weekend in February, the Longhorns have gone 34-6, and won eight of their last nine Big 12 contests. The same could be said for Texas Tech, who has the same level of talent found at Texas, but not a similar record. The Red Raiders proved their worth as a top 10 team entering the Baylor series, defeating then-#12 TCU as well as West Virginia in back-to-back series. Yet, Texas Tech stumbled against the Bears of Baylor, struggling to keep up in two high-scoring affairs. The relief pitching lacked and the bats failed to connect late in the game. Those are two areas that Texas Tech head coach Tim Tadlock must address entering this weekend’s showdown in Austin, as they will be critical in the Red Raiders’ chances to pull off the series win. Tadlock has three consistent starters in Patrick Monteverde, Micah Dallas, and Mason Montgomery, who have demonstrated an ability to pitch late into games. Friday night starter Brandon Birdsell suffered a season-ending injury against TCU, pressing Monteverde into action. Monteverde had been Texas Tech’s Saturday starter, and has started a team-best 10 games with an ERA of 3.20. Dallas (3.23 ERA) is set to throw Saturday and Montgomery (4.00 ERA) has filled the role of the Sunday starter. Yet Texas Tech lost a close game to TCU due to its bullpen, and gave up nine runs over the final three innings, all charged to the bullpen, in a 13-3 loss to Baylor last Sunday. One reliever that will be critical in the Red Raider bullpen changing its past pattern is right-hander Ryan Sublette, who has appeared in 12 games, often as a late reliever or closer. Sublette has a strong fastball that regularly hits in the mid-90s, and has limited runs, with a 3.20 ERA in 26 innings of work. Texas has a reliever to combat Sublette, especially considering the games he pitches are often low-scoring. Cole Quintanilla is the Longhorns’ go-to reliever out of the bullpen, considering his 2.08 ERA and consistent performances throughout 15 outings. In fact, he was called upon to pitch on consecutive days against Oklahoma State. Also, freshman Tanner Witt, the son of former MLB standout Kevin Witt, has made his mark early, having registered three saves and closed out several games strong for Texas. Pete Hansen is another reliever that is almost certain to make at least one relief appearance during the series. A converted starter, Hansen is a quality middle reliever, with good stamina and a high-powered fastball. It helps that Texas has what Oklahoma State head coach Josh Holliday called “the No. 3 starter in college baseball” in Friday night starter Ty Madden. Madden is untouchable when he is at his best, currently ranked second in the Big 12 (min. 39.0 innings) in ERA at 1.68. Oklahoma State managed to knock him out of the game in the sixth inning last week, but Madden still picked up the win, as Texas emerged victorious 4-3. Madden is in for another challenge this Friday, as Texas Tech’s bats are strong, statistically better than Oklahoma State's. The Red Raiders have a good mix of power hitters and hitters who hit for average, fifth in the Big 12 in team batting average at .283...tied with Texas. If that is any indication of how crucial the pitching will be, we should expect at least one pitchers' duel. Both teams will have their pitchers ready to go against the opposing lethal offensive attack. While Texas Tech was outscored by Baylor 26-11, it would be a mistake for Texas to underestimate the Red Raiders. Jace Jung highlights the lineup, a notable power hitter who enters the series tied with Oklahoma State’s Christian Encarnacion-Strand for the league’s home run lead at 15. But when it comes to average, Jung does not lead the team. That title goes to left fielder Dru Baker, a sophomore who seldom launches the long ball with just two homers on the year, but is second in the Big 12 in average at .391. Texas has an identical scenario with arguably its top two hitters in second baseman Mitchell Daly and third baseman Ivan Melendez. Daly has just two home runs, but a team-high .358 batting average, and is tied for the team lead in hits (44). Melendez earned attention earlier this season when he hit seven home runs in six straight games, displaying his power like never before. He currently has nine homers on the year and a .352 batting average. Prediction: The series in Austin will undoubtedly shape the Big 12 standings and the conference title conversation. I think we will see pitching play a key role, though a high-scoring contest appears to be in the cards as well. Considering how evenly matched these two teams are, it is hard to make a prediction, but I am going to take Texas, as the Longhorns seem to have the edge, both on the mound and with the home crowd behind them. I will take the Horns winning games one and three, but Texas Tech handing Texas its first Big 12 loss on a Saturday this season. Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!

by Matt Sefcovic (@MattSefcovic) The best way to build your resume for the postseason is to beat the best team in the country, which is exactly what LSU (25-15, 6-12 SEC) will have the opportunity to do this weekend as they host #1 Arkansas (32-7, 13-5 SEC) in Baton Rouge. After taking the series against a gritty Ole Miss team on the road, the Tigers will get their shot to make their case as to why they belong in the NCAA tournament. As it currently stands, LSU is the last team in but still has work to do to make a run at their ninth consecutive tournament appearance. Coach Mainieri is not one to make excuses, but his roster is filled with freshmen and they are without Jaden Hill, the Tigers Friday night starter, who is out for the season with a UCL injury. LSU had a very front-heavy SEC schedule but will end with Auburn, Alabama, and Texas A&M, all very winnable series. Landon Marceaux has taken over the Friday night role with a record of 4-3 and a 2.10 ERA. Marceaux has amassed 72 strikeouts compared to just 13 walks on the season. With a little more run support, he could easily be sitting at six or seven wins right now. Marceaux has started six SEC games this season and has allowed one or fewer earned runs in four of those starts. AJ Labas has been consistent for the Tigers this season with a 3-0 record in ten starts with a 3.15 ERA. Last weekend against Ole Miss, Labas recorded his best outing of the season with a complete game, allowing just two runs against a high-octane Rebels offense. Like Marceaux, Labas has six SEC starts and has allowed two or fewer runs on four occasions. Coach Mainieri has started multiple pitchers as the third starter but is still searching for someone to step up and solidify that role. Two freshmen, Will Hellmers and Blake Money are the likely candidates, but Hellmers has been unable to record more than three innings in an SEC game while Money has a 7.20 ERA. There is work to be done as LSU is 0-5 in their last five series finales. The Tigers have five batters above .280 on the season with three of them being freshman, starting with Dylan Crews, who leads the way with a .362 average. Crews is also the team leader in stolen bases with 11 and is second in home runs with 10. Fellow freshman Tre’ Morgan, who was recently named SEC Freshman of the Week for his performance against Ole Miss, is second, batting .358. Gavin Dugas leads the Tigers with 12 home runs and 44 RBI. Coach Dave Van Horn has the Razorbacks hitting on all cylinders as they are gunning for the program’s first ever national championship. Arkansas has yet to lose a series this year and have separated themselves in the SEC West with a two game lead over Mississippi State. Five starters are currently batting over .280 on a team that is first the country in home runs and walks. Matt Goodheart leads the way with a .325 average and 11 home runs, followed by Brady Slavens and Robert Moore with ten home runs apiece. Slavens is eighth in the country and second in the SEC with 47 RBI. Patrick Wicklander and Peyton Pallette have settled into the weekend rotation, but like LSU, Arkansas is still searching for a third weekend starter. Wicklander is 2-1 with a 2.20 ERA on the season, striking out 44 batters and walking 14. Pallette, is just 1-2 with a 3.98 ERA, but has given up fewer than two runs in four of his five SEC starts. Reliever Kevin Kopps has been lights out for the Razorbacks bullpen this season, shutting down nearly every offense he has faced. Kopps is 6-0 with five saves on the season in his 18 appearances with a 0.97 ERA. The Arkansas pitching staff is currently ranked 58th in the country with a 4.08 ERA, the one concern of Dave Van Horn’s team as they progress in the season. In order for Razorbacks fans to feel comfortable making a deep run in the postseason, Coach Van Horn will need to solidify a third starter. Matt’s Prediction: If LSU wants to make a late run to secure their place in the postseason, winning the series against Arkansas would be a heck of a start. Coach Mainieri will have his club ready and Alex Box Stadium will be rocking this weekend. Both teams are still searching for a third starting pitcher to emerge so Sunday could be a tossup. I’m going out on a limb and taking LSU in Baton Rouge over the Razorbacks Thanks for stopping by! Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram to keep up with all of our content!