A Four Seed is Just a Number

An underdog? ... Yes. A surprise national champion? … Absolutely. Cinderella? … Not even close.

Last night, the Fresno State Bulldogs completed an unprecedented run to a national championship, by defeating the Georgia Bulldogs 6-1 in the deciding Game 3 of the Championship Finals to win the College World Series. Following the game, members of the media began comparing their title run to other great upsets in sports history, and saying it may top them all.

While all the media attention is exciting, people that know baseball understand Fresno State had a damn good ball team. I understand the idea that a four seed in a baseball regional is equivalent to a 13-16 seed in the NCAA basketball tournament. If a 13th seeded team emerged from March Madness as the champion, obviously it would be a huge story and be called the greatest Cinderella run in tournament history. I get it.

The problem I have is the Fresno State is too talented to be labeled a Cinderella.

Tough Road to National Championship

They fought through what was unquestionably the toughest regional, which featured three other teams ranked in the top 25. They went on to win a pair of must win games at national power Arizona State (who was 39-3 at home prior to losing twice to Fresno in the Tempe Super Regional) to advance to Omaha.

Omaha. Prestigious Omaha. Where Fresno State looked every challenger square in the eyes and emerged victorious.

Were they the most talented team in Omaha? Of course not.

Most of the teams there had better overall talent, but the gap between Fresno and the rest of the field was not nearly as wide as people wanted to believe.

Fresno State actually matched up quite favorably with Georgia in the Championship Finals. Offensively, I would argue that Fresno put out a better lineup than Georgia. Fresno did not have the star power of a Gordon Beckham in the middle of the order, but 1-9 they presented a very prolific offense, while Georgia relied heavily on the top of its order to produce runs.

What Does Cinderella Look Like Again?

Cinderella doesn't have the best coach in the land like Fresno State's Mike Batesole, who was named the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association's inaugural National Coach of the Year.

Cinderella doesn’t have a middle of the lineup that features Steve Susdorf (.343 AVG, .600 SLG, 88 RBI) and Alan Ahmady (.386 AVG, .589 SLG, 92 RBI). You can put those numbers up against any duo in the country.

Don’t forget about the supporting cast that surrounds these sluggers, including WAC Freshman of the Year, shortstop Danny Muno, 13th round draft pick Erik Wetzel, and the best defensive third baseman I’ve seen in a long time Tommy Mendonca, who just happened to add 19 home runs this season (including 4 in the CWS).

Cinderella also can’t run out a 5th round draft pick, Justin Wilson to pitch the national championship game. How impressive was his performance last night? Cinderella isn’t supposed to give the ball to a 90 plus mile per hour left-hander with good control and command of three pitches.

Fresno didn’t have a deep pitching staff, losing WAC Pitcher of the Year Tanner Scheppers was certainly a factor in that, but their top 3 starters matched up favorably with anyone else in the CWS. They were also able to get key innings late in the tournament from down-the-line relievers, which was crucial to their success throughout the tournament. Don’t forget, the only two games Fresno lost in Omaha they led going into the eighth inning.

Fresno's victories were not flukes.

Fun to Watch

Beyond all the Cinderella talk and media sizzle, Fresno State was just a fun team to watch. They played the game the right way: hustling out every ball, playing fundamentally sound defense, and keeping an upbeat, loose attitude that was refreshing to see. Then you add that so many of their players, and key players like Mendonca and starting pitcher Clayton Allison, were fighting through injuries, and the team becomes even more likeable.

How great was it to watch Steve Detwiler hit two home runs and drive in 6 in the title game, all whilst playing with a fully torn ligament in his thumb? Baseball is tough enough to play when fully healthy, and here is a guy who never complained about the injury and was able to play the best game of his life on the biggest stage in college baseball. That is the stuff that makes amateur athletics so enjoyable.

What a great story. Not because they were Cinderella, but because a team of hard-nosed, injured, overlooked ballplayers believed they could achieve their dream, and they did so on college baseball’s biggest stage. So what Fresno State was a four seed?

You can’t tell me there were 48 better college baseball teams in the country than Fresno State. In fact, over the past two weeks in Omaha, there wasn’t one.

Rosenblogger

UPDATE: With a 6-1 victory, Fresno State took the deciding Game 3 to be crowned as the national champions, but were they really a Cinderella team?

With their backs against the wall, the Fresno State Bulldogs rallied from an earlier 5-0 deficit to beat up on their fellow Bulldogs from Georgia 19-10 in Game 2 of the College World Series Championship Finals. The win sets up a winner-take-all championship game at 7 PM EST on Wednesday night.

Tuesday night's comeback and eventual thrashing performed by Fresno State is just another notch in the belt in the incredible journey the Bulldogs from the Valley have endured. Beating favored teams and staving off elimination might as well be put on the team's daily itinerary with the regularity this squad has performed the tasks during the postseason.

Of course, you'd also have to add playing injured to that itinerary. Whether it's torn thumb ligaments, shoulder tendinitis, or a myriad of bruised body parts, several Bulldogs have continued to show up to the ballpark and perform despite playing with injuries.

Leading the way for the walking wounded, better known as the Fresno State Bulldogs, has been third baseman Tommy Mendonca. Despite setting an NCAA record with 97 K and dislocating two fingers and severely bruising two others in regional play, Mendonca has dropped jaws in Omaha with his stellar defense and scorching hot bat.

He leads all College World Series participants in HR (a CWS record-tying 4), RBI (11), and Web Gems -- seemingly making at least one highlight worthy defensive play per night. All of this even though after the game he has to awkwardly reach out his left hand in order to shake hands with fans and the media.

When Mendonca attempted to field an infield chopper in Fresno's very first game of the NCAA tournament against Long Beach State, he came down awkwardly falling on his throwing hand when he tried to brace his fall. He had to leave the game and have x-rays taken. Doctors found no breaks, but he dislocated his middle and ring fingers and all of the sophomore's fingers were severely bruised with there still being a good possibility there are sprained ligaments that could require offseason surgery.

Nonetheless, Mendonca came back to help lead the Bulldogs out of the Long Beach Regional, over Arizona State in the Tempe Super Regional, and through Bracket Two of the College World Series to face off with their Bulldog counterparts from across the country. Against Georgia, Mendonca has hit two home runs, including a three-run homer that gave Fresno the lead Tuesday, and played Gold Glove-worthy defense that has left the UGA players and fans nearly speechless, including star shortstop Gordon Beckham:

"That third baseman ..." Beckham said. "We hit it hard tonight," Beckham said. "We hit some balls ... [he paused] ... that third baseman, he's an unbelievable player. I'm happy for that guy because I think he's playing with two dislocated fingers and just playing out of his mind." (from a great article by Matt James in the Fresno Bee after Georgia won Game 1 7-6)

Wednesday night Mendonca will try to continue to make the beginning of the season, when he was struggling to even put the ball in play (averaging around 2 K per game) and Fresno State was struggling to compete (losing 12 of their first 20 games), an all-but-forgotten memory as the UnderDogs turned WonderDogs attempt to become the supreme Bulldogs and win a national championship.

Mendonca and the Fresno bats will hope to get strong pitching support from Justin Wilson, Fresno's default #1 starter due to yet another injury the team has endured (ace Tanner Scheppers injured his shoulder prior to the NCAA tournament). Wilson gets the ball for the first time since going 5 1/3 innings against North Carolina on Saturday. Despite walking six UNC batters, Wilson held the Tar Heels to two earned runs and was in line for the win prior to Chad Flack's game-winning home run in the 8th inning.

Georgia Bulldogs vs Fresno State Bulldogs: Game 3 tonight @ 7 PM EST

Shotgun Spratling

Legendary Rice coach Wayne Graham was accustomed to facing Fresno State (Rice was in the Western Athletic Conference with FSU from 1996-2005), but he had never played the Bulldogs in such a big game.

While Graham's Rice Owls are making their 14th consecutive appearance in the national tournament and their third straight trip to Omaha, Fresno State slipped into the national tournament by winning the WAC Tournament, and the Bulldogs are making their first trip to Rosenblatt Stadium since 1991.

Nonetheless, the Mike Batesole-led Bulldogs outplayed Rice pounding them 17-5 behind a 14 hit attack and solid pitching by lefty Justin Wilson (7 IP, 2 ER). Fresno notched only 14 hits but took advantage of 6 walks and a costly error in the 2nd inning that continued a rally instead of ending the inning.

With the usage of the long ball (Danny Muno, Alan Ahmady, Tommy Mendonca, and Jordan Ribera all homered), Fresno managed to capitalize on nearly every opportunity leaving only four runners on base throughout the entirety of the game. But this is what Fresno State has been doing throughout their entire postseason run. They have been turning heads and sending home favored teams:

Long Beach Regional
After receiving an automatic bid and a regional #4 seed in the Long Beach Regional, the Bulldogs drew Long Beach State in their opening game. Behind a strong outing by Wilson and five doubles from the middle of the lineup, Fresno took down the host Dirtbags 7-3. Senior pitcher Clayton Allison followed that up with a five hit, complete game shutout over San Diego to put the Bulldogs in the regional championship.

After falling to San Diego 15-1, Fresno responded with a 5-1 victory the following day to send the Bulldogs to the Tempe Super Regional, only the second time a regional #4 seed had advanced to the super regionals. Holden Sprague pitched 5 1/3 effective innings before giving way to Brandon Burke, who was lights out. Burke picked up the save with 3 2/3 innings of one hit ball.

Burke Does It Again
The Bulldogs lost the first game to the #3 national seed Sun Devils of Arizona State in the super regional opener, but in game 2, it was again Burke starring in relief.

With Fresno clinging to a 7-6 lead in a win-or-go-home situation, Batesole inserted Burke, and he slammed the door shut. He collected his second save with another 3 2/3 scoreless innings.

Do-Or-Die
The Bulldogs win forced a do-or-die, winner advances, loser goes home Game 3. The game was a back-and-forth contest until the seventh inning when Fresno broke a 5-5 tie with 6 runs thanks in part to a bases clearing double by Erik Wetzel and a 2-run home run by Steve Susdorf. The Bulldogs would tack on an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning, and then held off a late rally by the Sun Devils to win 12-9 and advance to the College World Series in Omaha.

Winning Without Ace
With the win, Fresno State became the first regional #4 seed to ever make it to the College World Series. What makes their run even that more impressive is that the Bulldogs have done all of it without ace Tanner Scheppers. Scheppers, who was drafted in the second round despite being out, has been sidelined with a shoulder injury since the middle of May.

What's Up Next?
The Bulldogs will now face off with the North Carolina Tar Heels, the #2 national seed and our favorite to win the CWS, on Tuesday at 7 PM EST. As if that task weren't tough enough, it appears Fresno will be without the services of Allison. According to Batesole, the senior pitcher has been unable to complete a bullpen session since he last threw in Game 2 of the super regional against Arizona State.

Batesole said they could possibly try to work him into a reliever's role if his arm responds by Tuesday morning, but the coaching staff doesn't want to risk ruining the career of the 27th round pick. Therefore, the ball will likely be given to Justin Miller.

If the Bulldogs want to continue their miracle run, Miller is going to have to step up. The 16th round pick has yet to pitch past the fourth inning in the national tournament, but with this squad, who's to doubt Miller stepping his game up?

Shotgun Spratling

Starting at 4 o'clock today, 12 college baseball teams will attempt to stave off elimination and extend their seasons for at least one more week.

While Miami, Arizona, North Carolina State, Wichita State, North Carolina, Coastal Carolina, UC-Irvine, LSU, Rice, and Arizona State have already solidified their spot in next weekend's Super Regionals, today there will be 12 other squads fighting to join them. Coaches will have to make tough decisions as almost every team is running low of quality arms at this point in a regional tournament.

One of the biggest decisions is whether or not to bring back the ace of the staff on only two days rest, especially if you are a team such as the San Diego Toreros or the Tulane Green Wave, who have two of the top starters in college baseball (and two first round draft picks) in Brian Matusz and Shooter Hunt. It is highly unlikely a starter that has already thrown this weekend will get significant innings, but it is possible, depending on the resiliency of the young man's arm, for him to come in and give an inning or two of relief.

Of course, if a coach makes the risky move and brings back Friday or even Saturday's starter, there is always the possibility he doesn't quite have his normal stuff, and it backfires ala the national #1 seeded Vanderbilt last season when college baseball's most dominant pitcher, David Price, came on in the 9th inning against Michigan in the regional. Price got Vandy out of a jam in the 9th but surrendered a home run in the 10th that ultimately gave Michigan the victory.

Of the 12 teams that will play Monday, five are regional #1 seeds, four (Georgia, Cal State-Fullerton, Stanford, Florida State) of which had to go through the loser's bracket of their respective regional and win two games Sunday just to have the opportunity to play on Monday. The only game that will not feature a #1 seed will be the 9 PM EST matchup between second seeded San Diego and fourth seeded Fresno State as the host of the regional, Long Beach State, was eliminated yesterday by the Toreros. The Bulldogs of Fresno State will look to do what is rarely accomplished and advance to the super regionals from the #4 regional seed.

Including San Diego/Fresno State, five of the contests will feature in-state rivalries: Texas A&M/Houston, Cal State Fullerton/UCLA, Stanford/Pepperdine, and Georgia/Georgia Tech.

• After falling 5-4 to Houston Sunday, Texas A&M, the #1 seed in the College Station Regional, will try once again to send the Cougars home. The Aggies hope to repeat their 22-4 drubbing of the Cougars earlier in the regional, though they have a definite advantage in a close game as Houston has a glaring bullpen deficiency outside of closer Chase Dempsey. (Game slated for 7:30 PM EST.)
• The key number in the 11:00 PM EST contest between the Fullerton Titans and UCLA Bruins may very well be 11. Fullerton won their opening contest of the regional 11-0, UCLA then turned the tide by defeating the Titans 11-4 on Saturday, but with their backs against the wall, Cal State Fullerton came back to defeat the Bruins 11-8 last night to force today's winner take all match.
• Danny Sandbrink gave the Stanford bullpen a reprieve last night by going the distance pitching a complete game and allowing only one run. That extra rest could be a huge factor in today's 4 PM EST game. Pepperdine's closer Nick Gaudi threw Friday and Saturday but did not pitch yesterday. Expect multiple innings out of him today.
• The most anticipated in-state matchup is the 7 PM EST game between bitter rivals Georgia and Georgia Tech. Georgia won impressively 8-0 Sunday behind a four hit, nine strikeout complete game shutout by Nick Montgomery. The hope for the Bulldogs is to take a lead into the late innings. When leading after 7 innings, they are 31-2; after 8 innings, 31-0 this season. Much of that can be attributed to stud closer Joshua Fields. However, Fields has allowed 6 ER in his last two outings after allowing only 2 ER the rest of the season.

The other matchup features the highest national seed, one of three national seeds still competing (the other two being Cal State Fullerton & Georgia), that has not made arrangements for the Super Regionals as of yet. Florida State, the national #4 seed overall, will take on Tulane once again after mauling the Green Wave 17-8 last night.

Since being shutout by Matthew Wilson in their regional opener against Bucknell, the Seminoles have been pounding out hits and scoring runs in bunches. In three games, the Seminoles have amassed 58 runs on 64 hits, including 9 home runs. Ten times they have scored multiple runs in an inning and seven of those innings have included 5 or more runs. Collegiate Baseball Player of the Year, Buster Posey, has led the way with 5 home runs and 12 RBI.

Interestingly, according to NCAA.com, Shooter Hunt (9-3, 2.60 ERA), who threw 5 1/3 innings Friday, and Matt Fairel (10-2, 3.64 ERA), who only lasted 3 innings Saturday against Florida, are listed as the starters. (This is also the only game where both starters are listed at this time.)

Needless to say, it is going to be an fun and interesting day/night of baseball, and I highly recommend that if you are within driving distance of any of these regional sites, you go check out the amazing atmosphere and enjoy what should be some high scoring affairs where the game won't be over until all 27 outs are recorded.

Shotgun Spratling

The 2008 Division I college baseball regular season wrapped up last weekend, and each of the conference tournaments, including the Southeastern Conference, concluded this past weekend. Then early Monday afternoon, the NCAA's national tournament field was announced.

When all 64 teams had been announced, nine of the names were familiar SEC names: SEC tournament #1 seed Georgia (35-21-1) - a team that will host a regional, #2 seed LSU (43-16-1) - another team that will host while looking to continue their 20 game win streak, #3 seed Florida (34-22), #4 seed Kentucky (42-17), #5 seed Alabama (34-26), #6 seed Vanderbilt (40-20) - after they fell a single run short of the SEC championship game, #7 seed South Carolina (38-21), #8 seed Ole Miss (37-24) - who became the first #8 seed to make it to the SEC title game, and Arkansas (34-22) - a team that made the national tournament without even making their own conference tournament.

One of the three SEC teams that did not make the national tournament is a Tennessee baseball team that finished 27-29 overall (the first losing season since 2002) and failed to even make the SEC tournament after having previously making the national tournament in three of five seasons from 2001-2005, including twice making the College World Series during that span.

As far as this season, many point to this being the first year of a rebuilding project under Coach Todd Raleigh, and it may very well be a couple of seasons before the program can be restored to national prominence. The question I ask myself, however, is 'What was wrong with the University of Tennessee baseball program before Raleigh got here? '

True, in the past, when you arrived at Lindsey Nelson Stadium, you never really knew whether Jekyll or Hyde would take the field under the mentoring of former Coach Rod Delmonico. On the other hand, you did know every couple of years there was a good possibility there was going to be an opportunity to take a trip out to Omaha in June.

Having no cable TV growing up as a child, I ate all of my vegetables at dinner during the spring and early summer in anxious anticipation of turning on the radio to hear John Wilkerson call the games for the Vols. I even had the pleasure of attending the preseason banquet hosted at Thompson-Boling, where Brett Butler gave a very inspirational speech that has stuck with me to this day. Point being, I was a bigger fan of that program than any major league or minor league team growing up.

Coach Delmonico built the program I idolized growing up into something all college baseball fans in this area could be excited about. His .638 winning percentage beats is second best all time at Tennessee for any coach that spent more than one season at the university. The only coach with a higher percentage coached at the turn of the 20th century (Frank Moffett - .656 winning percentage in 8 seasons between 1903 and 1918).

Coach Delmonico’s teams won the SEC tournament 3 times and made the College World Series three times (the last time only two years before he was let go). Several MLB players came through the program under his guidance. Todd Helton, Chris Burke, R.A. Dickey, and the 2006 #1 overall pick Luke Hochevar are just a few former Volunteers that represent the Vol program at the highest level of their chosen profession.

Sure, the Vols were hit or miss from year to year, but it is a unique challenge in college baseball to produce a consistent winner. Unlike most other major sports, a high percentage of the most talented baseball players in high school forgo college and enter into the professional ranks in the minor leagues.

When Delmonico left, it is not as though the cupboard was left bare with the outlook bleak for the Tennessee program. Returning was to be a group of young talent led by shortstop and son of Coach Delmonico, Tony Delmonico Jr. While I am not advocating that coaches should be kept on or fired based on family situations or that one position player can carry a baseball team, Delmonico Jr. has been stellar in the middle of the infield and middle of the lineup for the Florida State Seminoles. He has hit .370 for the 48-win FSU squad that has been tabbed as the #4 overall seed in the national tournament.

Along with him, there was a core of other young players that, given time, would have made a solid nucleus with the potential to push to get back to the prior Omaha standards. Some times it takes “new blood” to energize a program, and only time will tell if Raleigh will be able to build a consistent winner that can return to the College World Series. As a Tennessee Volunteer baseball fan and a baseball fan in general, I certainly wish him the best in trying to fix what actually might not have been broken to begin with.

For now, however, I am resigned to watch as nine other SEC teams will take the field in the national tournament while my Volunteers and I watch from home.

Heisman

We've previously previewed each of the NCAA college baseball Regionals and the Super Regionals, and with the College World Series set to begin Saturday, it's time we preview the teams that will be playing at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha for the chance to be crowned national champions.

Today, we preview Bracket One giving you each teams' projected starting lineup and projected pitching rotation, "Road to Omaha," and some keys to success: UPDATE (Schedule/Results):

• Game 1: Stanford (1-0) defeats Florida St. (0-1) 16-5
• Game 2: Georgia (1-0) defeats Miami (0-1) 7-4
• Game 3: Miami (1-1) eliminates Florida St. (0-2) 7-5
• Game 4: Georgia (2-0) defeats Stanford (1-1) 4-3
• Game 5: Stanford (2-1) eliminates Miami (1-2) 8-3
• Game 6: Georgia (3-0) eliminates Stanford (2-2) 10-8
  • GEORGIA advances to College World Series Championship Finals

Miami Hurricanes (52-9)

Projected Starting Lineup:
1. Blake Tekotte (CF)
2. Jemile Weeks (2B)
3. Yonder Alonso (1B)
4. Mark Sobolewski (3B)
5. Ryan Jackson (SS)
6. Dennis Raben (RF)
7. Dave DiNatale (DH)
8. Adan Severino (LF)
9. Yasmani Grandal (C)

Projected Pitching Rotation:
1 - Chris Hernandez (L)
2 - Erik Erickson (L)
3 - Enrique Garcia (R)
4 - David Gutierrez (R)

CL: Carlos Gutierrez (R)

Miami’s Road to Omaha:
As a result of their outstanding regular season, along with winning the ACC Tournament, the Miami Hurricanes were rewarded with the number one national seed. The Hurricanes survived a pair of tight contests to open regional play, and then breezed past Ole Miss to win the Coral Gables Regional.

Next came a super regional date with the dangerous Arizona Wildcats, who began the season as the top team in the country in some polls. Arizona upset the Canes in the opener 6-3 in a thrilling extra-inning affair. Miami went on to win a 14-10 slugfest in game two to force the pivotal game 3. The Canes got a huge outing from starter Enrique Garcia and closer Carlos Gutierrez was able to close the door on a 4-2 victory and punch Miami’s ticket to Omaha.

The Hurricanes are loaded with talented ball players all over the field. They had 3 players taken in the first round of last weeks draft (1B Yonder Alonso - 7th, 2B Jemile Weeks - 12th, and P Carlos Gutierrez - 27th), with a total of 6 players taken in the first four rounds. Miami will certainly be one of the most talented teams in Omaha, but they will still need to play sound, fundamental baseball to advance deep in the tournament.

The big question mark for the Canes will be starting pitching. Freshman Chris Hernandez has been Miami’s best starter, but there will be a lot of pressure on the young lefty to perform on college baseball's biggest stage. The rest of the starting staff has been inconsistent, but with the offensive fire power Miami possesses, the Hurricane pitchers won’t have to shut teams out to win.

Miami is making its 23rd trip to Omaha, so expect veteran skipper Jim Morris to have his squad ready to go when they open up with Georgia on Saturday.

Georgia Bulldogs (41-23-1)

Projected Starting Lineup:
1. Ryan Peisel (3B)
2. Matt Olson (RF)
3. Gordon Beckham (SS)
4. Rich Poythress (1B)
5. Bryce Massanari (C)
6. Matt Cerione (CF)
7. Robbie O' Bryan (DH)
8. Lyle Allen (LF)
9. David Thoms (2B)

Projected Pitching Rotation:
1 - Trevor Holder (R)
2 - Nathan Moreau (L)
3 - Nick Montgomery (R)
4 - Stephen Dodson (R)

CL: Joshua Fields (R)

Georgia’s Road to Omaha:
The Bulldogs stumbled into the national tournament losing 4 out of 5 games, including a two and out showing in the SEC Tournament, so after they lost their regional opener to Lipscomb, Georgia had many fans shaking their heads thinking the season was all but over.

However, UGA responded by winning 4 consecutive regional games, including the final 2 against hated rival Georgia Tech to advance to the super regionals where they hosted NC State. After splitting the first two games, Georgia jumped out to a huge 9-0 lead in the first inning that saw NC State use three different pitchers. Riding the arm of senior Nick Montgomery (6 IP, 3 ER) and Gordon Beckham's bat (3-4, 3 R, 2 HR, 4 RBI) in the finale, Georgia advanced to the College World Series with a 17-8 victory.

The 'Dawgs have been swinging the bats well in the national tournament (11.3 runs per game) and will need to continue to do so in order to compete in Omaha. They have ample starting pitching with a trio of juniors drafted on day two: Trevor Holden (10th round), Stephen Dodson (10th round), and Nathan Moreau (11th round).

The real surprise in the postseason has been the performances of Montgomery. The senior, who has battled with injuries, was lights out in the regional throwing a complete game shutout and threw five scoreless innings in the super regional before a pair of home runs ended his scoreless innings streak at 14 1/3.

However, the key to the Bulldogs success in Rosenblatt Stadium could very well be their pitching at the end of the game rather than at the beginning. Joshua Fields HAS to be the All-American closer he was for the entire regular season, minus his final regular season outing, if Georgia wants to advance to the championship series. In his last four appearences: 4 IP, 7 H, 8 ER, 8 K. Prior to that: 28.2 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 51 K.

Stanford Cardinal (39-22-2)

Projected Starting Lineup:
1. Cord Phelps (2B)
2. Joey August (LF)
3. Jason Castro (C)
4. Brent Milleville (1B)
5. Randy Molina (DH)
6. Sean Ratliff (CF)
7. Brendan Domaracki (RF)
8. Zach Jones (3B)
9. Jake Schlander (SS)

Projected Pitching Rotation:
1 - Jeremy Bleich (L)
2 - Erik Davis (R)
3 - Jeffrey Inman (R)
4 - Austin Young (R)

CL: Drew Storen (R)

Stanford’s Road to Omaha:
Stanford seemed to fly under the radar for most of the season. The Cardinal finished the regular season with a 33-21 record and went 14-10 in Pac 10 play. Their difficult schedule earned the Cardinal the opportunity to host a regional, but Stanford was upset 4-2 in the regional opener by UC Davis behind a complete game effort by Davis ace Eddie Gamboa. The Cardinal rallied back, winning four straight, including two straight over Pepperdine to advance to the super regionals.

Stanford drew the difficult task of traveling to Fullerton, California to take on the perennial CWS participant Titans of Cal-State Fullerton. Stanford swept the Titans earlier in the season at home and were able to carry that momentum to defeat the Titans in two closely contested games to become the first team to advance to Omaha.

The Stanford Cardinal bring a very talented ball club into Omaha. Like nearly all Mark Marquess coached teams, the 2008 Cardinal club is led by its strong pitching staff and solid defense. Stanford is very deep on the mound, which helped them overcome an early loss in the regionals, and should work to their advantage if they can advance deep in Omaha.

Playing behind that pitching staff is a very talented group, led by first round pick Jason Castro (#10 overall) and Sean Ratliff. The Cardinal still execute offensively as well as anyone, but they have also slugged 76 home runs this season. This is a very dynamic club that has the pieces in place to make some noise in Omaha. Stanford will open CWS play on Saturday against Florida State.

Florida State Seminoles (54-12)

Projected Starting Lineup:
1. Tyler Holt (CF)
2. Jason Stidham (2B)
3. Buster Posey (C)
4. Jack Rye (RF)
5. Dennis Guinn (1B)
6. Tony Delmonico (SS)
7. Stuart Tapley (3B)
8. Tommy Oravetz (DH)
9. Mike McGee/Ohmed Danesh (LF)

Projected Pitching Rotation:
1 - Matt Fairel (L)
2 - Elih Villanueva (R)
3 - Ryan Strauss (R)
4 - Geoff Parker (R)

CL: Buster Posey (R)

Florida State’s Road to Omaha:
The 'Noles bashed their way to a 46-9 record during the regular season with a 24-6 ACC record that gave them claim to the ACC Coastal Division title. After going 2-1 in the ACC Tournament, including a victory over national #2 seed North Carolina, Florida State was awarded with the #4 national seed and named a regional host site.

The national tournament shockingly started off with a shutout of the FSU offense, which leads the nation in runs per game, by Bucknell's Matthew Wilson. With their backs against the wall, a recurring theme for the Seminoles, the host team won four striaght using an offensive blitzkrieg. They scored 74 runs in four routs to advance.

But in the first game of the super regional against Wichita State, the offense was somewhat stymied, and FSU was again forced to fight to stave off elimination. With back-to-back games of double digit scoring while holding the Wichita St. Shockers to four runs in each contest, Florida State proceeded to the College World Series.

If the Seminoles are to lay claim to their first ever College World Series title, they will have to receive contributions from the entire pitching staff. Jack Rye, Tony Delmonico, the fifth overall pick, Buster Posey (7 HR in national tournament), and company are going to hit the ball and are going to score runs, but how well the pitching staff performs will be the ultimate deciding factor in Florida State's championship aspirations.

Matt Fairel is the southpaw ace of the staff while Elih Villanueva is capable of throwing a gem but is usually either really on or really off. The best pitcher on the staff is probably Ryan Strauss (also the first FSU pitcher selected in the MLB Draft - 9th round), and he gives coach Mike Martin the added flexibility of being either a starter or a reliever. Posey is also a viable option if the Seminoles make it deep in the tournament. He has yet to allow a run in and has 6 saves in his 8 appearances this season.

Rosenblogger
Shotgun Spratling

• Game 1: Fresno St. (1-0) defeats Rice (0-1) 17-5
• Game 2: North Carolina (1-0) defeats LSU (0-1) 8-4
• Game 3: LSU (1-1) eliminates Rice (0-2) 6-5
• Game 4: Fresno St. (2-0) defeats North Carolina (1-1) 5-3
• Game 5: North Carolina (2-1) eliminates LSU (1-2) 7-3
• Game 6: North Carolina (3-1) defeats Fresno St. (2-1) 4-3
• Game 7: Fresno St. (3-1) eliminates North Carolina (3-2) 6-1
  • FRESNO STATE advances to College World Series Championship Finals

North Carolina Tar Heels (51-12)

LSU Tigers (48-17-1)

Projected Starting Lineup: 1. Michael Hollander (3B) 2. Jared Mitchell (LF) 3. Blake Dean (DH) 4. Micah Gibbs (C) 5. Matt Clark (1B) 6. DJ LeMahieu (SS) 7. Leon Landry (CF) 8. Derek Helanihi (RF) 9. Ryan Schimpf (2B) Projected Pitching Rotation: 1 - Ryan Verdugo (L) 2 - Jared Bradford (R) 3 - Blake Martin (L) 4 - Jordan Brown (R)

CL: Bradford

LSU’s Road to Omaha: The Tigers entered the NCAA Tournament as the nation’s hottest team, having won 20 straight games, including sweeping through the SEC Tournament. LSU was named the number 7 national seed, and the Tigers had no problem advancing through the Baton Rouge Regional, outscoring their opponents 36-9 in the 3 victories.

They would then host last year’s CWS Cinderella UC Irvine. The Anteaters came into Baton Rouge and stunned the Tigers in the Super Regional opener 11-5. With their backs against the wall in game two, LSU rallied from down 7-2 in the eighth inning to score 7 runs in the final two frames, including 5 in the ninth to win 9-7. Game 3 was all LSU, as they broke it open early en route to a 21-7 victory, earning the Tigers another trip to Omaha.

Left-hander Ryan Verdugo will get the start in the opener for LSU as they take on a talented North Carolina squad. If the Tigers can pitch the baseball, they will have a chance to advance deep into the tournament. The bottom bracket is loaded with pitching depth, so if the LSU pitchers do not perform well, it will put a lot of pressure on the Tiger bats to outslug their opponents.

Fresno State Bulldogs (42-29)

Projected Pitching Rotation: 1 - Ryan Berry (R) 2 - Chris Kelley (R) 3 - Mike Ojala (R) 4 - Matt Langwell (R) CL: Cole St. Claire (L)Rice’s Road to Omaha: The Rice Owls will be taking the familiar trip north to Omaha for the 7^th time since 1997 and 3rd consecutive year. After losing their first two games in the Conference USA Tournament, the Owls have gone unblemished in NCAA Tournament play. The number 6 nationally seeded Owls swept through the Houston Regional, including defeating in-state rival Texas to advance.

The Super Regional brought another in-state foe to town in the Aggies of Texas A&M. Rice won two close, hard-fought contests, including a 6-5 victory in game two, which saw catcher Adam Zornes blast a game-winning two-run homer in the eighth to earn a spot in Omaha.

Offensively, Rice will need to execute and play small ball, as they do not feature much power in their lineup. Rice is not a big inning type team, but they will put pressure on their opponents from the first batter and will capitalize on teams' mistakes. Many CWS games are won in the final three innings, and nobody in Omaha will be better equipped to win close ball games than Rice. With their strong bullpen, and ability to manufacture runs, Rice will be a tough opponent for anyone in Omaha.

Rosenblogger Shotgun Spratling

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Also, check out our other regional previews: Ann Arbor, Athens, Baton Rouge, Cary, College Station, Conway, Fullerton, Houston, Lincoln, Long Beach, Palo Alto, Raleigh, Stillwater, Tallahassee, Tempe

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On Monday, the NCAA announced the 64 collegiate baseball teams to earn the honor to be a part of the Division I national tournament, which will begin Friday at noon when the Missouri Tigers take on the Ole Miss Rebels.

In preview of the regional tournaments that will be held this weekend, throughout the week our resident college baseball fanatic Rosenblogger will examine each individual regional.

Ann Arbor Regional

1. Arizona Wildcats (38-17) vs 4. Eastern Michigan Eagles (25-32)
2. Michigan Wolverines (45-12) vs 3. Kentucky Wildcats (42-17)

Winner to take on champion of Coral Gables Regional.

The University of Michigan was chosen by the NCAA's tournament committee as a host site, despite being a number two seed in the regional. Instead of playing in front of a home crowd, the top seeded Arizona Wildcats have to travel north to Ann Arbor.

Arizona features an extremely talented ball club that began the season as the number one team in some national polls. The Wildcats played good ball early but finished the Pac 10 schedule with a 12-12 conference record. Despite their conference struggles, the 'Cats were rewarded with a number one seed and a matchup with MAC tournament champion Eastern Michigan in the opening round.

While the Eagles will be playing close to home, Arizona will have no problem advancing past EMU, who comes into the game sporting an egregious 7.65 team ERA. The Wildcats feature two quality starters in Preston Guilmet (6-4, 3.89 ERA) and David Coulon (7-3, 3.54 ERA), who should have no problem stopping the offense of the 25-32 Eagles.

Host Michigan is looking to return to the super regionals one year after defeating top seeded Vanderbilt and #1 overall pick David Price in Nashville to advance. All of the key players return for the Big Blue, including dangerous hitters Nate Recknagel (.372, 23 HR, 68 RBI), Adam Abraham (.342, 7 HR, 52 RBI), and two-way star Zack Putnam (.309, 9 HR, 47 RBI). Putnam (8-0, 2.64 ERA) will be joined on the hill by imposing right-hander Chris Fetter (10-1, 2.39 ERA).

The Wolverines will face a solid University of Kentucky ball club in the opening round. Kentucky will not dazzle you with talent, but they fielded .973 this season and play a very sound brand of baseball. Sawyer Carroll leads the Wildcat offense with 16 home runs, 78 RBI, and a .416 AVG, and pitcher Chris Rusin (6-2, 2.84 ERA) will be a tough matchup for Michigan in the opener.

I think Michigan is the better team and will defeat Kentucky in a well-played game. On paper, Arizona is the most talented team in this regional. They have several top prospects on their roster, but they have struggled down the stretch this year and were given a tough draw being sent to Michigan. The Wolverines are an experienced team that knows how to get it done in a regional, and being able to play at home this year will be a huge advantage in helping them advance to the super regional.

Rosenblogger

Also, check out our other regional previews: Athens, Baton Rouge, Cary, College Station, Conway, Coral Gables, Fullerton, Houston, Lincoln, Long Beach, Palo Alto, Raleigh, Stillwater, Tallahassee, Tempe

Rosenblogger

Also, check out our other regional previews: Ann Arbor, Athens, Baton Rouge, Cary, College Station, Conway, Coral Gables, Fullerton, Houston, Lincoln, Long Beach, Palo Alto, Stillwater, Tallahassee, Tempe