2012 NCAA BASEBALL TOURNAMENT: Baton Rouge Regional

screw the u

 

Yep, that regional should have gone to Kentucky (even though they lost last night too), but I guess the powers that be thought that 3 regional hosts were enough for the SEC.

 

this is from Baseball America's 2012 Preseason College Top 25 Capsules, where they graded their Preseason Top 25 with the following grading scale:

80: For the ages.

70: Elite. National Championship Favorites caliber

65: Well-above-average. National Championship caliber.

60: Above-average. CWS team caliber.

55: Slightly above-average. Conference Champion caliber.

50: Solid-average. strong NCAA Tournament team caliber.

Oregon State Hitting: 55. The Beavers might not put up flashy numbers on offense, but there are no easy outs in their lineup. Rodriguez, Hayes and Keyes give OSU a trio of line-drive machines who should rack up doubles by the bushel this spring. Dunn was a revelation after switching from the mound to the everyday shortstop job last spring, showing surprising strength in his swing and offensive maturity [this season, Dunn is #2 in the Pac 12 with 19 doubles]. Barnes is the most accomplished Beaver at executing hit-and-runs, run-and-hits, drag and push bunts, hitting in the gaps—whatever a situation calls for. Matthews is a contact hitter who uses all fields. [this season, Conforto and Smith are the best two hitters, they are #10 and #11 in the Pac 12 with .343 and .338 batting averages. the other starters hitting above .300 are Hayes, .317, and Gorton, .301]

LSU Hitting: 55. LSU must replace its most dangerous hitter—All-American Mikie Mahtook—but six everyday regulars are back in the fold. The Tigers expect to manufacture offense by grinding out at-bats and hitting situationally throughout the lineup. Rhymes is the Tigers' best pure hitter, and Slaid showed a similar knack for barreling balls up consistently during his breakout fall. Jones has loads of bat speed and is learning to control his swing better and drive the ball the other way. Quality veterans Katz, Nola and Hanover are capable of carrying the offense when they are locked in. Dozar and freshman Tyler Moore will be counted on to give this righthanded-heavy lineup some competitive at-bats from the left side.

Oregon State Power: 35. The long ball will never be Oregon State's calling card, but this team should have more pop than recent OSU clubs. The lanky Hayes has developing home run power and good pop to the alleys. Dunn also has occasional pop [this year, Dunn hit 21% of Oregon State's 34 home runs], and Barnes has added strength since last year. The righthanded Davis has the biggest raw power on the team, and his high school teammate Conforto brings intriguing power potential from the left side, but it could take some time for both players to harness their raw strength [this year, Conforto hit 38% of Oregon State's 34 home runs, and he is #1 in the Pac in both home runs and RBIs, and he is #2 in the Pac 12 with a .594 slugging pct, a hair behind the #1 guy who has .595].

LSU Power: 35. Mahtook accounted for 41 percent of LSU's 34 homers last year; no other Tiger hit more than four long balls [this season, Katz accounted for 30 percent of LSU's 37 homers; no other Tiger has hit more than four long balls]. Katz, coming off a strong summer in the Cape Cod League, is a physical presence in the middle of the lineup, though he's more of a gap hitter than a true slugger [Katz is now #4 in the SEC with a .564 slugging percentage]. Jones has Mahtook-esque raw power but is still learning to tap into it. Jr. OF Arby Fields is a switch-hitter with the best usable pop on the team, but he needs to make more consistent contact.

Oregon State Speed: 50. Though the Beavers lack blazing speed, they are well stocked with decent runners with savvy on the basepaths. Matthews, Rodriguez and Barnes fit that description well, and Dunn has worked hard to improve his below-average speed [this year, Barnes is 10-for-11 in stolen bases and Smith is 9-for-11].

LSU Speed: 45. The rangy Jones can fly but needs to be more efficient on the basepaths as a sophomore after going just 12-for-20 on stolen base attempts last year [this year, Jones is 10-for-14 and Katz is 8-for-11]. Fields brings speed off the bench—unless he can earn an everyday job—but the rest of the lineup lacks burners.

Oregon State Defense: 60. [CWS team caliber] How well the Beavers replace catcher Andrew Susac and center fielder Brian Stamps will be crucial. Gorton, a converted pitcher, has a strong arm and improving blocking skills behind the plate, where Rodriguez also figures to see some action. Matthews doesn't have Stamps' speed but still should cover enough ground in center. Dunn has a strong arm and decent range at shortstop, and Rodriguez is rock-solid at second. Keyes mostly played DH a year ago but looked good at third in the fall. Conforto has a plus arm in right, and Barnes is an instinctive outfielder.

LSU Defense: 60. [CWS team caliber] The Tigers have a nice luxury in a pair of steady seniors who make most of the routine plays on the left side of the infield. Ross' catch-and-throw skills and ability to handle a staff make him one of LSU's key players. The scrappy Yocom impressed the Tigers with his footwork and hands after making the transition from shortstop to second. Jones' athleticism helped him make the move from the infield to center, where he covers plenty of ground but is still learning. Katz has less speed but takes better routes in the outfield, and he could also see time at first.

Oregon State Starting Pitching: 55. The Beavers have many exciting—but unproven—young options in the rotation. Wetzler's [one of their 3 weekend starters this season] command of his 89-93 fastball has taken a big step forward, as has his changeup, which now looks like a good weapon to complement his quality curveball. He ranked as the No. 4 prospect last summer in the West Coast League, where Fry was No. 1 thanks to a 92-94 fastball that bumped 96, a good slider, loads of competitiveness and advanced feel [this year, Fry is their #1 starter with a 2.45 ERA and a .215 opposing batting average]. The lanky Wilkerson is a dogged three-pitch strike-thrower who had an outstanding fall, and talented Fr. LHP Carlos Rodriguez could push him for a starting spot.

LSU Starting Pitching: 65 [National Championship caliber]. The Tigers relied heavily on freshmen on the mound last year, giving them an experienced all-sophomore weekend rotation in 2012. Gausman and Eades have marquee stuff, helping them dominate last summer for Team USA and in the Cape League, respectively. Gausman's 92-96 mph fastball has armside run and sink, and he has refined his breaking ball and changeup since he arrived at LSU. Eades can run his fastball into the mid-90s as well, and he throws strikes with the heater as well as his sharp mid-70s curveball and promising high-70s changeup. McCune is a deceptive strike-thrower without premium velocity, but he has tightened up his breaking ball from a year ago, and he stands out for his moxie. Fr. LHP Cody Glenn made strides repeating his delivery and commanding his three-pitch mix in the fall, making him the likely No. 4 starter [this year, Glenn is last on the team with a 5.62 ERA and a .343 opposing batting avg. he got 3 starts, Broussard got 6, McCune got 6, and Gausman, Eades, and Nola had 15 a piece].

Oregon State Bullpen: 70 [National Championship Favorites caliber]. The unflappable Bryant, who works downhill with an 87-90 fastball and a much-improved breaking ball, gives Oregon State a reliable bullpen anchor [this season, he is #1 on their team with 9 saves]. The supporting cast is deep: Jr. LHP Matt Boyd, who spend last summer with Team USA, has superb command of a nice three-pitch mix, including an 86-92 mph fastball that plays up because of his funk and deception [this season, he is #2 on their team with 3 saves]. He could also be a factor in the rotation if needed, as could So. RHP Adam Duke, who was electric down the stretch last year in relief, working at 92-94 with serious sink and a power breaking ball. He had shoulder cleanup surgery in June but is throwing catch again and could be back to full strength by March. So. RHP Dan Child also has power stuff and could fit into a variety of roles [this year, Child is one of their 3 weekend starters].

LSU Bullpen: 60. [CWS team caliber] The undersized, max-effort Rumbelow had a breakout summer in the Prospect League and carried his momentum over to the fall, running his fastball up to 93-94 and showing an improved power slider. He'll compete for the closer job with juco transfer Nick Goody, who has similar stuff [this year, Rumbelow's ERA is 4.03, 3rd-to-last on the team. second-to-last is McCune with 4.04]. Talented Fr. RHP Aaron Nola, a changeup specialist with a low-slot who earns comparisons to former LSU star Louis Coleman, figures to be the first man out of the bullpen.

Oregon State Experience/Intangibles: 60. [CWS team caliber] Oregon State returns four seasoned infielders, a pair of bullpen studs and a talented weekend starter from last year's super regional team, but its No. 7 ranked recruiting class will also be counted upon to plug many holes instantly. The coaching staff always seems to get the Beavers to play hard and play smart.

LSU Experience/Intangibles: 55. Hanover and Nola give the Tigers a pair of holdovers from the 2009 national title team, but the rest of the lineup lacks meaningful postseason experience, especially after LSU was passed over for an NCAA tournament berth last year.

 

I posted something similar in another thread, but the reason for this is the newest (and IMO, unnecessary) changes to the bats the NCAA required after the 2009 season, where the 'sweet spot' of the bats was decreased from 4" to 2". I HATE this change. Saying that, I know that there's no longer a place in college baseball for aluminum bats. We're just lucky no one was seriously injured or killed when they were legal. And I know that the days of gorilla ball are long gone. But, these new changes have almost completely taken the power game, specifically the HR, out of college baseball and I don't think it was needed. The bats prior to 2010 were just where they needed to be. They were safer and you still had to get a hold of one to get it out of the park, so I'm not sure why the NCAA felt like more changes were needed.

 

Miami's well done on the pit, 12-2 final.

ULM eliminates Belmont 6-3.

 

In another game, it's not a typo...
> TCU beast Dayton 28 to 12
http://www.cstv.com/gametracker/launch/gt_mbasebl.html?event=1117192

 

the newest bats are great, they make it more like MLB which is great for LSU in recruiting and for making it in the pros. A-plus move by NCAA

 

last night, it was the largest postseason crowd in Alex Box Stadium history

 

so far, it is looking like Gausman didn't bring his best stuff today, as Hawthorne pointed out to everybody