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junker-town · 5 years ago

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Vanderbilt is joining the college baseball elite

The Vandy Boys won their second national championship in program history.

Southern California, Texas, LSU. Three of the most storied programs in college baseball history.

The Vanderbilt Commodores are well on their way to joining the college baseball elite.

Eight long days in Omaha, Nebraska ended in a dog pile in TD Ameritrade Park on Wednesday night. After an 8-2 loss to Michigan in game one the College World Series final, the Vandy Boys rallied back to win games two and three and secure their second College World Series title in program history.

Freshman ace Kumar Rocker and sophomore right-hander Mason Hickman delivered on the mound with the weight of Vanderbilt’s season on their shoulders.

In game two, Rocker was dealing, going for 6.1 innings and only allowing three hits and one earned run. He also totaled a program College World Series record with 11 strikeouts. Hickman allowed three hits to the first three batters in the final game of the series, but quickly settled in. He went for six innings, allowing only one more hit and one earned run to go along with 10 strikeouts.

The SEC has long since been a baseball powerhouse, and Vanderbilt has slowly risen to the top of it. The SEC has had at least one team in the CWS final in 11 of the last 12 years to go with 11 total titles (and five in the last 10 years).

START THE CHANT! S-E-C! S-E-C! S-E-C! S-E-C! S-E-C! S-E-C! S-E-C! S-E-C! S-E-C! @VandyBoys pic.twitter.com/25RWIn28yN

— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) June 27, 2019

Vanderbilt didn’t have any NCAA Tournament appearances between 1980 and 2004. Now it has made it every season since 2006.

While Vanderbilt itself only has four CWS appearances, they all have come in the last 10 years with a national championship in 2014 and national runner-up in 2015 to go along with this year’s title.

This season, the Commodores went 59-12 — which is an SEC record for wins — and 23-7 through a rigorous conference schedule to win the regular season crown and the SEC Tournament crown.

“I talk to people who played college baseball not so long ago, and they can’t believe that Vanderbilt baseball is what it is now,” junior outfielder JJ Bleday told ESPN. ”But for my generation, this is what Vanderbilt baseball is.”

For a school with only five national championship through all sports, this year’s Vandy Boys are likely the best team in school history. Rocker — who was named the CWS Most Outstanding Player — called Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin the Nick Saban of college baseball. They tied an SEC record with 13 players selected in this year’s MLB Draft.

Corbin arrived in Nashville in 2003 and has built this program from the ground up. Wednesday night, the Vandy Boys took the stage as the new national champion and continued on their way to becoming about of the upper echelon of college baseball.

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baseballjerseynumbers · 2 years ago

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Nick Fortes switches from 54 to 4

Peyton Burdick switches from 86 to 6

Jean Segura takes 9

Jordan Groshans switches from 65 to 10

JJ Bleday switches from 67 to 25

Braxton Garrett switches from 60 to 29

Huascar Brazobán switches from 81 to 31

Andrew Nardi switches from 90 to 33

Anthony Bender switches from 55 to 37

Johnny Cueto takes 47

#Miami Marlins #nick fortes #peyton burdick #jean segura #jordan groshans #jj bleday #braxton garrett #huascar brazoban #andrew nardi #anthony bender #johnny cueto

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twins2994 · 5 months ago

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Twins Beat Up On A's 10-2!

Twins 10 Athletics 2 W-Ober (7-4) L-Sears (4-7)

The Minnesota Twins blew a late lead and lost to the A's in the series opener last night. Game 2 was this afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum. The Twins were ready from the start as they slowly loaded the bases. Ryan Jeffers got hit by a JP Sears pitch to plate the game's first run. The A's answered in the bottom of the first as JJ Bleday crushed a Bailey Ober fastball out to right for a solo homer, which tied the game at one. The Twins got back to work in the second when Willi Castro reached on a gift double and Kyle Farmer was hit by a pitch. Manny Margot belted a JP Sears fastball out to left-center for a three-run homer to put the Twins up by three. Carlos Correa kept things cooking with a single to right and Royce Lewis reached on an infield single. Jose Miranda doubled in a pair and Ryan Jeffers singled to left. Byron Buxton followed with a run-scoring double to left and JP Sears exited the game. Willi Castro walked to load up the bases and Kyle Farmer reached on a broken bat single that scored another run. This put the Twins up 8-1 after a big inning. The A's inched closer in the bottom of the second as Tyler Soderstrom plastered a Bailey Ober fastball out to left-center for a solo homer. Oakland pulled within six after two frames. The Twins got that run back in the third as Royce Lewis doubled and Jose Miranda knocked him in with a double of his own. The Twins added one more run when Manny Margot was hit by a pitch to start the seventh and Carlos Correa doubled him home. This put Minnesota up 10-2 and Bailey Ober ran with it. He threw a complete game on just eighty-nine pitches as the Twins won today in Oakland.

-Final Thoughts- Bailey Ober was sensational today and got some run support. He threw a complete game and allowed two runs on four hits with ten strikeouts. The bullpen got some much needed rest. Manny Margot, Carlos Correa, and Jose Miranda had three hits each on the day. Royce Lewis added two hits. The Twins hit 7-for-21 with runners in scoring position and left thirteen men on base. Tomorrow, Pablo Lopez faces Hogan Harris in the series finale.

-Chris Kreibich-

#Twins #MnTwins

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auburnfamilynews · 6 years ago

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#21 Auburn @ Jacksonville State

Tuesday: 14 – 2 W

It was a night for revenge Tuesday evening in Jacksonville. In the first meeting of the Tigers and the Gamecocks, the offense showed up for a true inning but that was it. Pitching was there early, but ended up allowing 11 runs in a 5 run loss. This meeting, however, was completely different. Auburn had a completely different line up, with Devin Warner, Everett Lau and Chase Hall all getting starts and before it was done Brody Moore would also get some hacks at the plate and all would cash in on them. Those four would combine to go 7 for 14 with 7 runs scored, two doubles and two stolen bases.

How 'bout it, @Dev_warner32? The freshman has three hits and three RBI in his first career start. M8 | AU 14, JSU 2 pic.twitter.com/7JxPpMyBxG

— Auburn Baseball (@AuburnBaseball) April 24, 2019

On the mound for the Tigers, Ryan Watson was exactly what Auburn asked of him, going 3.1 innings, giving up 4 hits and a run with 2 walks and 5 strikeouts. Peyton Glavine was also sharp in his first action in over a month, going 1.2 innings with a hit, a walk and two strikeouts to his credit.

OK then, Glav. He fans a pair in a scoreless fifth. E5 | AU 5, JSU 1 pic.twitter.com/7nK1Ejlqd9

— Auburn Baseball (@AuburnBaseball) April 24, 2019

It was also Auburn’s first midweek win in over a month (Mar 19th against UAB, just before the Mississippi State series) to improve the Tigers to 7-4 in midweek contests, with 2 more to play against UAB and North Alabama. As it comes down to the end of the season and selection Monday, those games are very important and can give you a leg up over another team in the seeding process. We will hit on that more next week, but this was a bigger win than one would realize, especially with the 3 games this weekend on the horizon.

Around the League

#4 Georgia

vs #12 Georgia Tech (SunTrust Park, Atlanta), TUE: 8-6 L

Not a terrible loss for the Bulldogs as Danny Hall has the Jackets back to what they normally are (as Auburn has found out). As for this weekend, this will be Georgia’s biggest test since it’s on the road. State is just coming off being swept at Arkansas and returns home where they are 6-3 in the conference. This is a big series for Georgia but maybe even bigger for State who needs to keep pace in the West.

#5 Mississippi State

vs #20 Ole Miss (Pearl, MS), TUE: 8-1 W

Big win for the Bulldogs to just get the funk they had in Fayetteville and now they turn their attention to another top ranked team in the Georgia Bulldogs. As I said above, this is almost a must win series for State right? Currently the Western Division Bulldogs are looking up at LSU, A&M and Arkansas in the rankings and have series losses against LSU and the Piggies. Meanwhile they are tied with Auburn and Ole Miss at 10-8 and while Ole Miss has A&M and Auburn tussles with Vandy, it would be a heck of a weekend to have a home series drop.

Sing it boys... #HailState pic.twitter.com/Rwb7XGd0XK

— Mississippi State Baseball ⚾️ (@HailStateBB) April 24, 2019

#9 Arkansas

vs Northwestern State, TUE: 19-2 W, WED: 10-7 L

Back when I was younger I would go up to dad and tell him the exploits of the Hal Baird led Auburn Tigers, when they would win games 14-1 or 12-3. He would respond, well I hope they don’t need some of those runs today. I would walk away confused only to see Auburn had lost the next day 4-2. Flash forward to today, and I bet Arkansas had “saved” some of those runs for Wednesday. Northwestern State isn’t a terrible loss, checking in this morning at 99 in the RPI but it definitely isn’t one Arkansas wanted to take with the role they were on. Guess its better in the midweek than Saturday or Sunday this weekend against Tennessee.

#10 Texas A&M

vs UT Arlington, TUE: 10-5 W

A better win that you might think. Arlington has been getting some love from a few polls this week so a nice 5 run win is exactly what Coach Childress and the Aggies wanted here. Now they take flight to Oxford where a bunch of unhappy Rebels await. The Aggies would get a first round bye in Hoover if the season ended right now and have built up a little equity going on the road, but that won’t make this any easier in one of the more hostile places to play in the conference.

We have a visual on the homer by @TyColeman7! M5 | 4-1 A&M Watch: https://t.co/pHoHmRoJHk#GigEm pic.twitter.com/lsGO7Drl6A

— Texas A&M Baseball (@AggieBaseball) April 24, 2019

#13 LSU

vs Lamar, TUE: 5-3 W

Midweekers have been scary for LSU so a good win over a team that they shouldn’t lose to. The good news for LSU is that they have a shot to get a much needed 4-0 weekend as they travel to Tuscaloosa. That said, you just never know with this LSU team.

#17 Tennessee

vs Garner-Webb, TUE: 5-0 W

The Vols just keep rolling, but it’s about to get muuuuch bumpier with the all the sudden white hot Arkansas Razorbacks. Tennessee has started to become a darling to possibly host a regional after not being in the NCAA tournament since they went to Omaha back in 2005. That would be a heck of a shift but to do that they could really use a good showing at Baum Stadium.

#20 Ole Miss

vs #5 Mississippi State (Pearl, MS), TUE: 8-1 L

This isn’t an awful loss as far as the season goes but it always hurts to lose to your rival. The Rebs head back to Swazey Field to host the Aggies in a series that they really must get a win in. in the past 2 week, Ole Miss is 2-4 against Kentucky and Auburn after starting 8-4 on the year in conference play. It won’t be easy though, A&M has only dropped one series all year and that was at LSU.

Kentucky

@ Western Kentucky, TUE: 15-4 W

Very nice road win to get above .500 on the year. The Bat Cats hope that luck heads south with them as they travel down I-75 to take on the Gators. This will be an interesting series just from the question of who wants to win it. Kentucky has proven they can win on the road (ask Ole Miss) and Florida isn’t playing great…

Florida

vs Florida Atlantic, TUE: 13-11 L

…see told ya. The fighting Lane Kiffin’s get revenge for losing game 7 of the Gainesville Regional last season with this Tuesday night victory. Florida is getting dangerously close to being out of the big dance all together. That makes this a monster series for the Gators as they head to Athens next weekend, host Tennessee and then travel to CoMo to take on the Tigers to finish the year. It’s a rough road to end for the Gators.

Missouri

vs Missouri State, TUE: 6-2 W

Another good win over Missouri State as the Tigers head back for the Battle of Columbia against South Carolina. This should be a nice bounce back series after a rough go of it on the road against Georgia. It needs to be a series win but a sweep wouldn’t hurt either.

SOUND OF THE GAME | Freshman @camswanger 1st career 2B in the 6th inning drove in two, putting the game out of reach! 2-of-3 Swanger’s multi-RBI performances this season have come against Missouri State #MIZ #ShowMe #C2E ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/TDXytl3mem

— Mizzou Baseball (@MizzouBaseball) April 24, 2019

South Carolina

vs Charleston Southern, TUE: 10-3 W

Nothing to see here really, just another midweek win. Carolina is running out of chances to make that final push to lock in to the big tournament. Both Kentucky and Alabama are misfiring so wins against Missouri and Kentucky in 2 weeks would go a long way to locking the Gamecocks in to Hoover which should be the main goal right now.

Alabama

@ Jacksonville State, WED: 6-3 W

Rough weekend for the in-state Gamecocks as Alabama finishes off Jax State the day after Auburn does. Say what you will about Alabama’s conference record (it isn’t good) but they have done what they needed to in midweek ballgames, going 11-1 on the season. There, I said a positive thing about them, there’s your Easter Week miracle. Now send LSU there way and let’s see what happens. To be honest, it wouldn’t hurt Auburn if Alabama were to win 1 or 2 here but I don’t think any of us would shed a tear if another sweep happened just before they come to the Plains.

On Deck (with SEC Schedule)

Auburn @ Vanderbilt (THU-SAT)

Texas A&M @ Ole Miss (THU-SAT)

Georgia @ Mississippi State (FRI-SUN)

Tennessee @ Arkansas (FRI-SUN)

LSU @ Alabama (FRI-SUN)

Kentucky @ Florida (FRI-SUN)

South Carolina @ Missouri (FRI-SUN)

Massive weekend for baseball in the conference, headlined by Georgia visiting Mississippi State, which will be my Sunday entertainment since the Tigers will be heading back home from West End, Saturday evening. The other series I will be checking lines on is Tennessee and Arkansas but my eyes will be directly on Hawkins Field, literally, as I will be there. Auburn has won 3 of their last 4 and has gotten the reinforcements for the season in the person of Jack Owen. Steve Smith and Butch Thompson know who they can count on out of the young arms (Brooks Fuller and Richard Fitts) and can mix that with others from the bullpen (Ryan Watson Elliott Anderson) that can get the game to the Bull, while the offense seems to be getting back to the form we remember them at back in early March.

This weekend though will be the toughest test of the season, bar none. Vanderbilt has an embarrassment of riches, at the plate, in the field and on the hill. On offense, they currently have 6 hitters batting over .300 in Austin Martin (.400), JJ Bleday (.363), Ethan Paul (.348), Cooper Davis (.336), Stephen Scott (.313) and Philip Clarke (.307). Bleday is the guy that is on fire right now after hitting 4 bombs against Alabama last weekend and far and away leads the team with 20 dingers on the year. It doesn’t get any easier when you go to the mound as the Dores will trot out Drake Fellows (8-0, 3.39 ERA) and Patrick Raby (6-1, 2.94 ERA) in the first two games without question. Both will pitch in the big leagues, it’s just a question of when. The game 3 starter is a bit of a question mark for Vandy but it doesn’t mean it’s an easy win by any means. Last weekend it was Kumar Rocker getting the start and going 5 innings for the Dores but they could aslo go with Mason Hickman in this spot just as easily. This will be an up hill series for the Tigers, but one that they desperately need to at least get a win in. Auburn has done a fantastic job to not get swept in a series so far this season and that really needs to continue if Auburn hopes to stay in contention to host a regional this season, which is still very much within their grasp, especially with the series they still have on the schedule. It starts Thursday night in Nashville though. As Coach Thompson said, “If you want to get respect, go play good this weekend. If you really want to get respect from our league and really national, this will be a great weekend to play well.”

from College and Magnolia - All Posts https://www.collegeandmagnolia.com/2019/4/25/18515721/midweek-round-up-jacksonville-state

#IFTTT #Blogger #auburn #auburn fast #wareagle #AuburnFamilyNews #war eagle #sec #football news #aubu

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ultrasportsmedia · 6 years ago

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Vandy's Bleday standing out in MLB4 tourney

Vandy’s Bleday standing out in MLB4 tourney

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — JJ Bleday could be the first college outfielder selected in the 2019 MLB Draft in June. During this weekend’s inaugural MLB4 college baseball tournament, the Vanderbilt standout is showing why that’s a strong possibility.

Bleday, MLB Pipeline’s No. 24 2019 Draft prospect, demonstrated his 55-grade hitting tools with five hits over the Commodores’ first two games, while also…

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#Baseball #College World Series #MLB.com

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junker-town · 5 years ago

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The most exciting potential College World Series title matchups

Eight teams are in Omaha. Here are the most compelling championship matchups.

The college baseball season always feels like it will last forever, but the 2019 edition is heading toward a dramatic climax at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb

Eight teams remain vying for the College World Series trophy: Arkansas, Auburn, Florida State, Louisville, Michigan, Mississippi State, Texas Tech, and Vanderbilt. The Razorbacks and Commodores are far and away the betting favorites, but anything can happen in Omaha.

There are many possible title matchups among those remaining — from SEC rivalries and a redemption tour to an iconic coach looking to end his career on a high note — but these are the ones I would most like to see because they have the greatest potential for excitement:

Florida State vs. Anyone

Any college baseball fan who doesn’t have a dog in the hunt is probably on the Florida State bandwagon and rooting for a Mike Martin victory in Omaha.

Florida State’s coach is a no-doubt Hall of Famer with an NCAA-record 2,028 wins in 40 seasons but no national championships. Before the 2019 season, he announced that he would be retiring following this one last hurrah and here he is with a last crack at the title.

The Seminoles rolled through the Athens regional and upset No. 7 overall seed Georgia. They then swept LSU in the Baton Rouge super regional the following week. The last three teams to eliminate LSU — Coastal Carolina in the 2016 super regional, Florida in the 2017 CWS final, and Oregon State in the 2018 regional — went on to win the title.

Martin wants to ride off into the sunset on a high note. The players want to win it for their coach. The fans are along for the ride. Florida State has all the tools to win a title in Omaha.

Arkansas vs Mississippi State

This would be a battle of two recent Southeastern Conference superpowers. The two schools have 19 CWS appearances between them, but neither has lifted the trophy at the end of it.

Arkansas is looking to redeem itself after a missed pop fly ruined the Razorbacks’ chance in the 2018 CWS final. Mississippi State, meanwhile, is hoping to win it all with its third coach in three years.

LIFE. pic.twitter.com/reNs6CQaiJ

— NCAA Baseball (@NCAACWS) June 28, 2018

Led by SEC hits leader Jake Mangum and a dominant pitching combo in Ethan Small and JT Ginn, this is probably the most talented and deepest Mississippi State lineup Starkville has seen in years.

This is by far the most exciting possible matchup, and I would expect a series between the two to go the full three games.

Arkansas vs Vanderbilt

Vanderbilt — the No. 2 overall seed — is the only team on its side of the bracket with the pitching and hitting to take down Mississippi State. That same pitching staff could possibly roll through the Razorbacks.

The Commodores, who were the only team of the preseason top-three to make it to Omaha, took two of three games in the regular-season matchup back in April. With freshman right-hander Kumar Rocker — who pitched a no-hitter against Duke in the super regional round — on the mound and fourth-overall MLB draft pick JJ Bleday leading the offense, Vandy brings explosive potential to any series.

This is the most likely matchup, and I would expect more excitement if they face each other again.

Michigan vs Anybody

Everybody loves a good Cinderella story. It happens in March Madness every year and we all find ourselves inexplicably cheering for whoever that may be. In this College World Series, the Michigan Wolverines are that team.

Michigan went from one of the “last four in” teams to upsetting the reigning national champion Oregon State in the Corvallis regional and then No. 1-overall seed UCLA in the Los Angeles super regional on their way to Omaha.

The Wolverines have proven they can beat anybody, but they will need to limit errors and walks in order to do so again. Timely hitting and pitching could carry them to their first national championship since 1962.

Louisville vs Texas Tech

Louisville and Tech Tech have been two of the most consistent teams all season, both entering the NCAA tournament as national seeds. Each team arrives in Omaha with one big star leading the way.

Cardinals shortstop Tyler Fitzgerald believes this 2019 team is even deeper than Louisville’s 2017 lineup, the last time the program appeared in the CWS.

“Once we get going, it’s kind of like a train,” Fitzgerald told The Courier Journal. “We just have guys that step up from top to bottom. And I think we’re a little bit deeper in our hitters (than) the ’17 team. Not that those guys weren’t good; they had some amazing hitters. But I think the gap between our bottom hitter and our top hitter is smaller than it was back then. We’re just pretty deep 1-through-9.”

Similarly, Texas Tech has hit its stride as a program in recent seasons — reaching the CWS four times in the last five years — but has yet to lift the trophy. The Red Raiders, led by first-round MLB draft pick Josh Jung, have showed that they have what it takes to compete.

Both teams are out to prove they are among the elite of college baseball to stay, and they would combine for a compelling matchup.

Auburn vs Arkansas

Auburn may be the biggest surprise of this year’s NCAA tournament. The Tigers went 14-16 in conference play and were bounced in two games in the SEC Tournament before sweeping through the Atlanta regional and upsetting North Carolina in the super regional.

Auburn has turned around its offensive production and an injured pitching staff has persevered to close games.

Arkansas took two of three games from Tigers during the regular-season series, including a 15-inning 6-9 victory. But, like Bruce Pearl’s basketball team, this Auburn team is peaking at the right time and has shown up in big games.

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