The college baseball season is nearly half over, and it is time to start looking at which eight teams will be playing in the College World Series in Omaha. These are the eight teams that I think would make it to Omaha, if the NCAA tournament were to start tomorrow, along with why they should find themselves in Omaha. For the sake of not having to determine which team is most likely or least likely to make it, teams are listed in alphabetical order. Please note: the records listed are as of the end of play on April 5.
Arizona State (28-2 overall, 4-1 Pac-10): The Sun Devils, who are the No.1 team in all four polls, started out 20-0 and have blitzed everyone they've played (save for losses to Northern Colorado and Stanford). ASU boasts one of the top offenses in the country, as they have scored at least 10 runs 15 times already this season. The Sun Devils have a .332 team batting average, a .454 on-base percentage and a slugging percentage of .557. Ike Davis and Brett Wallace are as good as there are in the college game. Davis (.410/.478/.829) has 11 home runs and has driven in 47 runs, while Wallace (.394/.525/.734) has 9 home runs and 37 RBI. Jason Kipnis (.333/.468/.685) adds 8 home runs and 36 RBI. The pitching staff is solid if not spectacular. Mike Leake leads the way with a 6-0 mark, a 3.38 ERA and a 49/4 strikeout to walk ratio. The Pac-10 will leave ASU well-tested and ready for post-season play. The only thing that could keep the Sun Devils from Omaha is the selection committee. Beyond the national seeds (who can't face each other until Omaha), the committee tends to put the West coast teams together in the regional and super-regional rounds. ASU could very well have to beat Long Beach or Oregon State to reach the CWS.
Florida State (26-3 overall, 12-1 ACC): Mike Martin's Seminoles are the class of the ACC, along with their South Florida counterparts Miami. FSU is hitting .355 as a team and has outscored opponents 302-135. Buster Posey (.448/.549/.819) paces the offense with 9 home runs and 37 RBI, and he serves as the closer for good measure. Tony Delmonico (who transferred from Tennessee after his father was fired last July) (.381/.490/.619) adds 36 RBI and 7 stolen bases. Matt Fairel (7-0, 1.72 ERA, 42 K) has been virtually un-hittable at the top of the rotation. The Seminoles sport a team ERA of 3.79, and opponents are hitting .243. FSU did not make it out of the regional round last year as a national seed, and the pressure will be high not only to get back to Omaha (where they have not been since 2000), but also to win the program's first national championship.
Long Beach State (18-10 overall, 1-1 Big West): The Dirtbags (which has to be the coolest nickname in college sports) have lost seven of their last eight after starting 17-3, but thanks to some good series wins (Rice and Wichita State) to start the year, LBSU will be primed to make a run in May and June. Long Beach wins with pitching and defense. They have only scored 156 runs is 28 games, but the pitchers have only yielded 112. LBSU has a team ERA of 3.00 and Andrew Liebel leads the way (3-1, 1.93 ERA, 53 K, .222 batting average against). The Dirtbags know how to win the close games, but some more offense will be needed to get to Rosenblatt.
Miami (Florida) (25-2 overall, 11-1 ACC): The Hurricanes sit atop the ACC with in-state rival FSU. The Canes hit a ton of home runs (44) and steal a lot of bases (57). Jemile Weeks (Rickie's little brother) has a .402 average with 7 home runs and 35 RBI. Weeks also has converted 9 of 10 stolen base attempts. Blake Tekotte has a .523 on-base percentage and is 14-17 on steals. Chris Hernandez (49 K in 46 innings) leads the pitching staff with a 4-0 record and a 2.54 ERA. Miami's opponents are hitting just .223 off the Canes' staff, and Miami has a team ERA of 3.62. The Hurricanes, who have played 13 games without star Dennis Raben, are primed for a deep run (and perhaps their first national title since 2001).
Arizona State (28-2 overall, 4-1 Pac-10): The Sun Devils, who are the No.1 team in all four polls, started out 20-0 and have blitzed everyone they've played (save for losses to Northern Colorado and Stanford). ASU boasts one of the top offenses in the country, as they have scored at least 10 runs 15 times already this season. The Sun Devils have a .332 team batting average, a .454 on-base percentage and a slugging percentage of .557. Ike Davis and Brett Wallace are as good as there are in the college game. Davis (.410/.478/.829) has 11 home runs and has driven in 47 runs, while Wallace (.394/.525/.734) has 9 home runs and 37 RBI. Jason Kipnis (.333/.468/.685) adds 8 home runs and 36 RBI. The pitching staff is solid if not spectacular. Mike Leake leads the way with a 6-0 mark, a 3.38 ERA and a 49/4 strikeout to walk ratio. The Pac-10 will leave ASU well-tested and ready for post-season play. The only thing that could keep the Sun Devils from Omaha is the selection committee. Beyond the national seeds (who can't face each other until Omaha), the committee tends to put the West coast teams together in the regional and super-regional rounds. ASU could very well have to beat Long Beach or Oregon State to reach the CWS.
Florida State (26-3 overall, 12-1 ACC): Mike Martin's Seminoles are the class of the ACC, along with their South Florida counterparts Miami. FSU is hitting .355 as a team and has outscored opponents 302-135. Buster Posey (.448/.549/.819) paces the offense with 9 home runs and 37 RBI, and he serves as the closer for good measure. Tony Delmonico (who transferred from Tennessee after his father was fired last July) (.381/.490/.619) adds 36 RBI and 7 stolen bases. Matt Fairel (7-0, 1.72 ERA, 42 K) has been virtually un-hittable at the top of the rotation. The Seminoles sport a team ERA of 3.79, and opponents are hitting .243. FSU did not make it out of the regional round last year as a national seed, and the pressure will be high not only to get back to Omaha (where they have not been since 2000), but also to win the program's first national championship.
Long Beach State (18-10 overall, 1-1 Big West): The Dirtbags (which has to be the coolest nickname in college sports) have lost seven of their last eight after starting 17-3, but thanks to some good series wins (Rice and Wichita State) to start the year, LBSU will be primed to make a run in May and June. Long Beach wins with pitching and defense. They have only scored 156 runs is 28 games, but the pitchers have only yielded 112. LBSU has a team ERA of 3.00 and Andrew Liebel leads the way (3-1, 1.93 ERA, 53 K, .222 batting average against). The Dirtbags know how to win the close games, but some more offense will be needed to get to Rosenblatt.
Miami (Florida) (25-2 overall, 11-1 ACC): The Hurricanes sit atop the ACC with in-state rival FSU. The Canes hit a ton of home runs (44) and steal a lot of bases (57). Jemile Weeks (Rickie's little brother) has a .402 average with 7 home runs and 35 RBI. Weeks also has converted 9 of 10 stolen base attempts. Blake Tekotte has a .523 on-base percentage and is 14-17 on steals. Chris Hernandez (49 K in 46 innings) leads the pitching staff with a 4-0 record and a 2.54 ERA. Miami's opponents are hitting just .223 off the Canes' staff, and Miami has a team ERA of 3.62. The Hurricanes, who have played 13 games without star Dennis Raben, are primed for a deep run (and perhaps their first national title since 2001).
Missouri (22-8 overall, 5-4 Big 12): The Tigers are the Big 12's only entrant in this edition of the Eight for Omaha. Aaron Crow is much better than you are. Crow, who is bidding to be the first pitcher taken in the 2008 MLB draft, is one of the top pitchers in the college game. He boasts a 7-0 record (in 7 starts) with 3 complete games. Crow has 64 strikeouts in 52 innings and he boasts and ERA of 0.67. Ian Berger has been almost as good, with a 3-1 record and a 0.81 ERA in 7 starts. These two have had to be good, because Mizzouri's offense is nothing special. Aaron Senne leads the way with a .360 average and 37 RBI. Senne and Jacob Priday each have belted 6 home runs. For the Tigers, who have lost five of their last seven, to get to Omaha, Crow and Berger will have to continue to be outstanding. Of this edition's eight, Mizzou is the most likely to fall short.
North Carolina (25-6 overall, 10-4 ACC): The Atlantic Coast Conference's third entrant is the team that has finished as runner-up at the College World Series in the last two years. Mike Fox has a team that can once again reach Rosenblatt, and this edition has a good balance of offense and pitching. UNC has a .325 team batting average, and Tim Fedroff leads the way. Fedroff (.409/.477/.667) has a team-high seven home runs. Kyle Seager (.405/.456/.643) has a team-high 40 RBI. Dustin Ackley, last season's Freshman of the Year, is not having as strong a season as last year, but he has 13 stolen bases. UNC has a team ERA of 2.25, with Alex White leading the way. White is 5-2 as a starter with a 1.93 ERA and 43 strikeouts. North Carolina has six relievers with at least 10 appearances and an ERA below 2.25, which is nearly unheard of in college baseball.
South Carolina (20-10 overall, 6-6 SEC): The Gamecocks, the SEC representative, squeeze in over Vanderbilt because of the injury to Pedro Alvarez. However, after being swept at Georgia, USC's hold on this spot is tenuous. The Gamecocks feature a roster with a lot of home run-hitters. Reese Havens and James Darnell each have hit 10, and South Carolina has 49 total home runs. Darnell leads the way with 41 RBI, while Havens has 38. The Gamecocks sport a team batting average of .307. Nick Godwin (2-2, 2.88 ERA, 34 K, .184 opponent's BA) leads a solid, but not spectcular pitching staff. At 3.76, South Carolina has the second-highest team ERA of all the teams on this list. The offense will have to be good for the rest of the year.
UC Irvine (20-5 overall, 3-3 Big West): The Anteaters (easily one of the best nicknames in college baseball) have won in the same way that Missouri has. UCI has a fantastic pitching staff and specializes in opportunistic hitting. Scott Gorgen is making a serious run (actually, he's probably the favorite at this juncture) at national player of the year. Gorgen (5-2, 1.92 ERA, 58 K, .147 opponent's BA) has been masterful all season. Bryce Stowell (4-1, 1.96 ERA) is better than most Saturday starters in the country. The Eaters boast a 2.48 team ERA, and opponents are hitting just .241. UCI has scored just 162 runs this season, but the pitching staff has given up only 86. Ollie Linton (.343, 24 of 28 on stolen base attempts) gets things going at the top of the line-up, and Jeff Cusick (.420/.510/.568) moves Linton around the bases. UCI has 64 stolen bases this year, so they take advantage when runners get on base.
UC Irvine (20-5 overall, 3-3 Big West): The Anteaters (easily one of the best nicknames in college baseball) have won in the same way that Missouri has. UCI has a fantastic pitching staff and specializes in opportunistic hitting. Scott Gorgen is making a serious run (actually, he's probably the favorite at this juncture) at national player of the year. Gorgen (5-2, 1.92 ERA, 58 K, .147 opponent's BA) has been masterful all season. Bryce Stowell (4-1, 1.96 ERA) is better than most Saturday starters in the country. The Eaters boast a 2.48 team ERA, and opponents are hitting just .241. UCI has scored just 162 runs this season, but the pitching staff has given up only 86. Ollie Linton (.343, 24 of 28 on stolen base attempts) gets things going at the top of the line-up, and Jeff Cusick (.420/.510/.568) moves Linton around the bases. UCI has 64 stolen bases this year, so they take advantage when runners get on base.
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