Texas Tech
The Red Raiders (43-19) is coming off of its first-ever regional victory in the Coral Gables Regional.They went 3-1 in the regional, knocking off Columbia (3-2) and host Miami (3-0, 4-0) twice. What sticks out to me is how well they hit in all counts. No strikes, two strikes, it doesn’t matter. Six players on the team have walked more than they’ve struck out, so their plate discipline and knowledge of the strike zone is a big reason why the offense can be so dangerous. But the Raiders’ powerful bats were stymied for the better part of the weekend, as they scored just 11 runs and collected just 27 hits in the four games, a far cry from their averages of 6.4 runs and nearly 10 hits per game during the regular season and conference tournament. But more impressive was the pitching staff, which allowed a TOTAL of four runs in four games. And it was thanks in large part to the starters–Freshman Dylan Dusek (8 IP, 0 R), freshman Ryan Moseley (6 IP, 0 ER) and junior Cameron Smith coming through with incredible performances, Smith’s being a complete-game three-hit shutout of Miami in the regional clincher. It may be their first time, but the Red Raiders are as dangerous as any team left in the field right now with their firepower and ability to not shoot themselves in the foot (.981 fielding percentage.)
College of Charleston
The Cougars (44-17) are making their second-ever Super Regional appearance, and their first since 2006 by virtue of sweeping the Gainesville Regional, defeating host Florida (3-2) and Long Beach State (6-3, 4-2) twice. They may not look scary, as they scored just 13 runs on 18 hits in the three games, but what’s dangerous about this team is this–with a team ERA of 2.78 and a .972 fielding percentage, this team isn’t going to beat itself. The offense may not be potent, but they are opportunistic and capitalize on the mistakes you make. Case in point was their first win over Long Beach State. They scored six runs on just FOUR hits. How? The 49ers committed two errors in the game, and the Cougars didn’t miss the chance. And in their 4-2 regional final win, another error paved the way for a huge unearned run during the middle innings, and forced the LBSU starter from the game. And as has been the theme throughout these previews, the Cougars got great performances on the mound all weekend, none better than freshman Tyler Thornton’s complete-game performance in the regional final against Long Beach. Thornton was later named the Regional MVP
Pick: Texas Tech
What happened for the Cougars in the Gainesville Regional was that they took advantage of opponents’ mistakes. They really haven’t shown much of an ability to string hits together this season, with a .258 team batting average. And I simply don’t see Texas Tech, sporting that .981 fielding percentage, making enough mistakes or giving the Cougars enough opportunities to outscore the Red Raiders’ powerful offense. Now, Charleston is one of the hotter teams in college baseball, coming off their CAA championship before sweeping through Gainesville, and they have a big equalizer in their pitching staff with that 2.78 ERA. But ultimately I see the Raiders moving on to Omaha and ending the Cougars’ run. Then again, after those regionals we just saw, would any upset result REALLY shock anyone?
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