WE HAVE DISCONTINUED THE USE OF THIS BLOG

Hello college baseball fans. Collegebaseball360.com is no longer using this blog. We have reconfigured, retooled and redesigned our web site, so now you will find all of our blog thoughts, facts and other college baseball content at www.collegebaseball360.com.

We have a lot of new content there, like our Two-Sport Report which follows college baseball players who are starring on their school's football, soccer and even swimming teams in addition to baseball. We also have new podcast interviews on the way this fall.

We'll see you on the new site!

www.collegebaseball360.com

From Little League World Series To College Baseball

With the Little League World Series in full swing in Williamsport, Pa, I thought it would be fun to take a look at some players who graduated from the LLWS to play in college baseball and even beyond.

Any list of players who've played at the LLWS has to start at the top. There are just two, count 'em two, players who have played in the Little League World Series, College World Series and MLB's World Series: Jason Varitek and Ed Vosberg. It's amazing that with all the LLWS, CWS and Fall Classics that have been played only two have managed to achieve the career trifecta.

Varitek played in Williamsnport in 1984 for the Florida Springs team that fell to Seoul, South Korea in the championship game. Ten years later he and former Red Sox teammate, Nomar Garciaparra, were on the Georgia Tech team that lost to Oklahoma in the 1994 College World Series title game. Varitek won the big prize though as the captain of the Boston teams that won the World Series in 2004 & 2007. Varitek was also a member of the 1992 USA Olympic baseball team in Barcelona, Spain.

Vosberg is probably less known than Varitek, but his path is filled with titles as well. He first played for the Tucson, Az squad that fell to Taiwan in the 1973 LLWS title game, but seven years later he starred for his hometown Arizona Wildcats that won the 1980 College World Series. Then, in 1997 Vosburg helped the Florida Marlins win it all in their first World Series appearance.

There have been plenty of players to go from the Little League World Series, including the likes of Gary Sheffield and Derek Bell, who were Tampa, Fl teammates in 1980, and even hockey stars like Chris Drury and Pierre Turgeon. However, none of them achieved "legendary" status, like Lloyd McClendon.

McClendon played at Valparaiso University in Northwestern Indiana from 1978-1980, and went on to play in the big leagues from 1987-1994, but before that he was known as "Legendary Lloyd" at the Little League World Series. McClendon earned the moniker when he belted five consecutive home runs for his Gary, In Little League team in Williamsport in 1971.

Former Rutgers standouts Jeff Frazier and Casey Gaynor helped the Toms River, NJ squad win the 1998 LLWS Championship prior to their time in the college ranks. They helped the Scarlet Knights win the 2007 Big East Championship, while Frazier was named conference player of the year. He smacked 14 home runs this season for the AA Carolina Mudcats. Gaynor's father, Mike Gaynor, managed the '98 championship team as well as the 1995 Toms River LLWS team that included another future Scarlet Knight, Colin Gaynor.

We have also come across an interesting list of players who cut their teeth in Williamsport prior to entering the collegiate ranks. At least three current college players suited-up at the 2001 Little League World Series that featured possibly the most infamous Little League player ever-Bronx, NY pitcher Danny Almonte, who was later discovered to be too old for the team he was on.

Oregon State's Adalberto Santos was a teammate of Almonte on that Bronx team. Santos was a junior college All-American at New Mexico JC when he led the nation with a .520 batting average. He hit .320 and led the Beavers with 15 stolen bases this past season to help OSU to an NCAA Regional berth.

Stuart Tapley was the winning pitcher vs. Santos' Bronx team at Williamsport in the US Championship game. He helped Florida State to the 2008 College World Series when he hit .383 with 8 home runs en-route to earning Freshman All-American honors. Tapley batted .316 with 13 HR and 60 RBIs this past season.

Current Illinois sophomore to be, Willie Argo, faced that Bronx team as well in the LLWS. As a member of the Davenport, Ia team, Argo hit a home run vs. the Bronx that bounced off the Lamade Stadium statue in center field. He carried his home run mogo to college as well. Argo homered in his first three college at-bats in Baton Rouge against eventual national champion, LSU. He finished his freshman season with 12 home runs and 47 RBIs to go with a .355 batting average and 1.072 OPS.

Some other current college players who roamed the bases at the Little League World Series include:

Walker Kelly, who as a freshman helped TCU to the program's first Super Regional appearance as a relief pitcher. (2002 LLWS)

South Carolina native, Robb Scott, is an incoming freshman at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. Bucknell is located just 30 miles from Williamsport. (2002 LLWS)

UNC Willimington freshman, Tom Timoney, played for the Dhahran, Saudi Arabian All-Stars at the LLWS in both 2002 & 2003. His brother, Matt Timoney, holds the distinction of the being the only player to participate in the LLWS three times when he did it in 2004, 2005 and 2006. Their father, Tom Timoney, was their coach.

There are three players at the University of Rhode Island with Little League World Series experience. Tom Coulumbe, Chris Pickering and Kyle Borden will all be juniors at URI this season. They helped the Lincoln, RI team get to Williamsport in 2001. Coulumbe and Pickering helped the Rams win 37 games in 2009, while Borden joins them this season after two years at a junior college.

Another college player, Josh Keener at Coastal Carolina, didn't play at the LLWS, but his father, Steve Keener, is the President of Little League Baseball.

I can't say how many Little League World Series games I have sat and watched on TV over the years. The grand stage and the bright lights of the television cameras take a little away from the purity we attribute to baseball played by (mostly) 12 year olds, but it's still fun to watch. Part of the fun is, you just never know who you are watching will turn out to be.

While We're Young...

It's been a while since my last post, so I thought I would share a few thoughts while I'm watching the Cubs vs. Astros on WGN.

Speaking of baseball on TV, the length of the games on ESPN was one of the hottest topics to come out of the College World Series. The average CWS game time was 3 hours and 40 minutes. That is a bit long, but more commercials are a fact of life when it comes to postseason sports on television. Networks are paying big money for the rights to the games, and packing each break is a necessary evil if they're going to make money.

An average big league ball game is just under three hours, while a commercial break typically lasts between 90 seconds and two minutes. Compare that to the aforementioned 3:40 game time that is due in part to the three and a half minute breaks ESPN takes every half inning.

Here are some ideas to speed things up next year (and beyond) on ESPN in Omaha:

1. Do away with the mid-game interview with each team's head coach. I watch Major League Baseball all the time, and it's never done in the regular season, and yet I still enjoy the game. The mid-game interview is the single most useless interview in TV sports, and ESPN isn't the only guilty party. Fox does it too during the MLB postseason. They don't do it during a football game, they wait until halftime (and it's still mostly useless). It's not like the interviews are sponsored, so put us all out of our misery and get back to the game quicker rather than make us sit through an extra 30 seconds of dugout banter. However, if ESPN wants to keep the interviews how about a compromise...

2. Inset the interview in a small picture-in-picture type box at the bottom of the screen. This way viewers and ESPN all get to eat their cake and eat it too. The interview goes on at the bottom of the screen while we watch the start of play begin that inning. ESPN holds-up play to get the interviews in, but they could be easily recorded (which I know FOX has done in the past and may still do). I'm sure it won't kill Orel Hershiser and Mike Patrick if they get 30 seconds less air time. Speaking of which...

3. Do away from the in-game instructional demonstrations in the press box. Bob Brenly's doing a pretty good job of analyzing the game I'm watching right now, and he hasn't done one on-camera bit between innings to show me how Kevin Hart grips the ball when he throws his off-speed pitch. I know it's college baseball, but it's still baseball. We don't need the game explained to us like we're ten years old just because we're watching college players instead of big leaguers. However, if ESPN really thinks it needs the demonstrations see suggestion #2. Do them at the bottom corner of the screen in a small box while the game is going on. Better yet, ESPN could promote its web site by posting the demonstrations there. IE- Mike Patrick: "To see Orel show you how to throw a curveball go to espn.com, to hear him mispronounce another college player's name keep it tuned here."

4. Start the games when they're supposed to start. If the ticket says game time is 1pm start the game at 1pm and not 1:08pm. This is another network TV commercial related thing, but come on would it really be so hard to at least shoot for an :04 start time? All the chatter before the game is just lettuce on a steak sandwhich.

CWS- Before And After

We took a little time off after the end of the College World Series, but Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires is back with a few final thoughts on the 2009 event.

To start with, we have complete statistics from both the College World Series as well as the NCAA Tournament. Kudos to our resident stat guru, Pete LaFleur, who compiled this information since the start of the conference tournaments. This is data that can only be found at collegebaseball360.com...seriously.

Even the NCAA did not distribute an all-encompassing statistical data base for every NCAA Tournament game. They did update the national stat leaders, but those statistics cover the entire season, our stats tell you what teams did during the tournament itself, including the CWS.

We also have an exclusive podcast interview with LSU head coach Paul Mainieri. The Word Association segment alone is worth listening to. You don't have to be an LSU fan to appreciate the things he talked about.

Alright, enough plugging ourselves. On to some thoughts on what we saw from teams and players before and during their time in Omaha.

• Fullerton Flop...What happened to Cal State Fullerton? The Titans hit .447 (to lead all NCAA teams) and averaged nearly 13 runs a game in their five Regional and Super Regional games (all wins) prior to the CWS. Their pitching staff also turned-in a stellar 1.80 ERA in those games (9 earned runs allowed). The wheels came off in Omaha though, where Fullerton was two and out. The staff ERA was 9.00 (17 ER allowed), while the offense scored a total of 11 runs in losses to Arkansas and Virginia.

• Wither Wood...Texas closer Austin Wood received a lot of well deserved national attention for his 13 inning effort in the Longhorn's 25-inning win over Boston College in the Austin Regional. However, Wood was not the same after that outing that saw him throw nearly 140 pitches. In his two combined Regional outings Wood totaled 15.0 IP with 2 hits, 4 BB, 17 strikeouts and no runs allowed. However, in his six appearances after the famed 13-inning outing here are the lefty's numbers: 11 IP, 16 hits, 10 R, 8 ER, 3 BB, 8 K, with a 6.54 ERA. Wood made his nation-leading 41st appearance of the season when he toed the rubber for the last time in the final game of the CWS vs. LSU.
  

• Slightly Saved... Wood had 15 saves during the season, and CWS teams combined for 131 saves going into Omaha. However, Arkansas' Mike Bolsinger had the only save at the College World Series. It's the lowest save total at the CWS since 1993 when no saves were recorded. Part of the lack of saves is partially due to the fact that just six of the 15 games at the CWS were decided by three or fewer runs. Because of the best of three championship format games are also now more spaced out so that teams play only every other day, which gives coaches the chance to use starting pitchers out of the bullpen more often. Speaking of which...
  

• Nice Arm Young Mann...Texas freshman Taylor Jungmann was 3-0 on the mound in Omaha, with three relief appearances and one start to his credit. Jungmann made 12 relief appearances during the season, but the right hander had also made six straight starts going into the CWS. Jungmann totaled 15.1 IP with a 0.59 ERA, allowing just two runs on 8 hits with 15 Ks and 5 BB in Omaha. After making three relief appearances (including his third in game one of the championship series), Jungmann tossed the only complete game of the CWS in the Longhorn's 5-1 win over LSU in game two of the championship series. It was also his only CG in 2009. (North Carolina's Alex White did pitch 9 innings in the Tar Heel's 10-inning loss to Arizona State in game 3.)
  
  

• Molden-Power...How about another Longhorn who waited for the right time to get hot: Russell Moldenhauer. The Longhorn DH was batting just .250 with 4 doubles as the only extra base hits to his credit in 2009 entering the CWS. However, in six games in Omaha Moldenhauer hit .350 with four solo home runs and a double for a slugging percentage of 1.000. Moldenhauer's injury-riddled junior season saw him total just 15 hits prior to the CWS, but he had seven knocks in Omaha, and tied Arizona State's Kole Calhoun for the CWS lead with 20 total bases.

• Longhorn Longball...Texas hit 14 home runs (12 solo) in six games at the CWS for an average of 2.3 per game. That after hitting just 39 in 61 games prior to Omaha for a .63 a game average. All told, Texas scored 17 of its 36 runs at the CWS courtesy of home runs. The Longhorns had just a .413 slg% going into Omaha, but slugged at a .537 clip during the CWS.

• No Small Ball...Texas averaged 1.5 sac bunts a game (96 in 61 games) prior to the College World Series, but ended-up with just 8 in their six CWS contests. The Longhorns had just a .373 success rate advancing runners (8th of the 8 teams in Omaha), while flying-out a series high 57 times.

• Clutch When It Counts...LSU collected 23 2-out RBIs en-route to winning its championship. The Tigers plated 26 of their 51 CWS runs in 2-out situations. While LSU outfielder Mikie Mahtook struggled at times (8 strikeouts in 6 games) the freshman also had four 2-out RBIs in Omaha, including the game-winner in the 11th inning in game one of the Championship Series.

• Theft Control...LSU stole 111 bases (on 151 attempts) in 67 games prior to the CWS, but the Tigers stole just two bags on four tries in six games in Omaha. D.J. LeMahieu had both of the thefts (he was also caught once).

It's been a great first season for us at Collegebaseball360.com. We've enjoyed being involved with you, and we hope to bring you even more unique coverage in 2010 and beyond!

Texas Forces Deciding Game 3 At CWS

The Texas Longhorns beat LSU 5-1 Tuesday night to force a third and deciding game in the College World Series Championship Series. Collegebaseball360.com's Sean Stires has some notes from Omaha...

• The last two teams to force game three in a CWS Championship Series have gone on to win the National Title. Fresno State did it last year, while Oregon State pulled it off in 2006.

• The winner of bracket two at the CWS has won every championship since 2000. Texas is the bracket two representative this year.

• Wednesday's probable starting pitchers are Anthony Ranaudo for LSU and Cole Green for Texas.

• Russell Moldenhauer hit his fourth CWS home run Tuesday to tie the College World Series record.

• Nine of the last 15 runs Texas has scored have come via solo home runs.
  

• Coming into the College World Series, the Longhorns had 39 home runs and 96 sac bunts this season. In their five Omaha games they have 11 long balls and just eight sac bunts.

• Texas has commited more errors than any other team at the CWS with eleven in five games (3 Tuesday). LSU committed its first two errors in Omaha Tuesday night.

• Texas position players and pitchers have a ritual before they take the field each inning. The eight players gather in foul territory by either first or third base (depending on which dugout they're in) and then they wait for their catcher, Cameron Rupp, to get to home plate to scatter out to their positions on the diamond.

• Speaking of Rupp, he's put together. The Plano, TX native is 6'2-235 lbs and chiseled. Think "Bull" from the '80s sitcom "Night Court".

LSU Takes Game One Of CWS Championship Series

Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires notes LSU's 7-6 comeback win over Texas to start the CWS Championship Series...

• Mikie Mahtook drove-in DJ LeMahieu with two outs and two strikes in the top of the 11th inning to give LSU the win. Mahtook started the game 0-for-4 with three strikeouts and a 4-6-3 doubleplay.

• Texas hit five solo home runs in the game, all of them came off LSU starter Louis Coleman.
  

• The Longhorns have scored ten runs in their last two games (LSU & ASU), and eight of the runs have scored via solo homers.

• Russell Moldenhauer has three home runs this season, and all of them have come in the Longhorn's four CWS games. He hit just one home run last year after belting six as a freshman.

• Three of the Texas home runs came in the 4th inning. It's the first 3-homer inning at the CWS since LSU did it vs. Mississippi State on June 1, 1998.

• Texas hit 39 home runs with 96 sacrifice bunts in 61 games coming into the CWS, but the Longhorns now have ten home runs in their four games in Omaha.

• Coming into the CWS Texas scored roughly 18% of its runs due to home runs, but they've scored about 48% of their runs in Omaha courtesy of the long ball.

• Texas starter Chance Ruffin had 10 strikeouts tonight, and he's rung-up 114 this season. He writes a "K" for each one on the bottom of the bill of his cap.

• Since the College World Series switched to a best 2 of 3 format for the National Championship the game one winner has won four of six titles. Georgia won game one last year, but Fresno State went on to win the last two games to claim the crown.

• How did Mike Patrick, Orel Hersheiser and Robin Ventura all end-up wearing some form of purple during tonight's telecast? Will the ESPN crew all wear orange tomorrow night?

• Mainieri's dad, Demi "Doc" Mainieri was in the press box tonight. He's a juco baseball Hall of Fame coach who won a national championship in 1964.

• It was Africa hot in Omaha tonight. It was sunny and 94 degrees at game time with a heat index of 107. Fans exiting the stadium after the game looked like they had either just stepped out of a sauna or just finished swimming in the Missouri River. It's supposed to be hotter Tuesday.

• My drive to Omaha from Indiana today took a bit over eight hours. When I called home after my arrival my daughter didn't even realize I was gone.

• Speaking of my trip across Illinois and Iowa...the Bob Feller Museum is in Van Meter Iowa (exit 113 on I-80).
  

• "Radar's home town rocks! Ottumwa, IA, the home of the ficticious "MASH" character has a booming classic rock station, 101.5 FM, that booms up to Des Moines.

• For the most part, Iowa drivers get out of the left hand lane to let you pass them on the interstate (unlike most drivers in Indiana and Illinois).

• The John Wayne birthplace and the covered bridges of Madison County are at exit 110 on I-80.

• Ever feel like you could be about to jump into a Bruce Willis explosion scene when you pull into a gas station behind a guy who's hanging a cigarette out the window?

More from Omaha coming-up tomorrow!

Another Day, Another CWS Blog!

Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires with some thoughts on Friday's LSU-Arkansas and Texas-Arizona State games...

• So much for Cinderella this year. LSU beats Arkansas 14-5 while Texas edges Arizona State 4-3 to each advance to this year's CWS Chamionship Series. That means teams with five and six national championships, respectively, will play for the title.

• LSU's thumping of the Razorbacks not only keeps it as the only team not to lose during the NCAA Tournament (8-0), but the Tigers have also outscored opponents 72-31 in those games. They've won their three CWS games by a combined 32-11 margin.
  

• Back to the jungle...the days of "Gorilla Ball" aren't done for LSU. Seven different Tigers have hit nine home runs in their three College World Series games in the last week.

• The Road to Omaha less traveled...Arkansas pitcher T.J. Forrest actually started his college career at LSU, but transferred to Bossier Parish Community College. He's now a junior and pitched for the Razorbacks against LSU Friday. There's no mention of his time at LSU in his bio on the Arkanas web site.

• Good career choice...LSU pitching coach Dave "Red" Grewe left his head coaching position at Michigan State after last season to rejoin Paul Mainieri's staff. Grewe led the Spartans for three seasons after working for Mainieri for three years at Notre Dame from 2003-2005.

• LSU pitchers did not allow a run in their first 15 innings vs. Arkansas in two College World Series games prior to Brett Eibner's seventh inning home run Friday.

• Mainieri has a handful of former players and assistants who are now head coaches, including UCF skipper, Terry Rooney, who was his pitching coach last year in Omaha. Don't be surprised if LSU assistant Javi Sanchez leads a team to Omaha himself one day. Sanchez is a natural leader who takes leadership seriously, but at the same time he has an easy way about him that draws players to him. He also knows the game and teaches it well.

• Ever heard the saying "he's talking about how the sausage is made"? Orel Hersheiser did a bit of that during the LSU-Arkansas game when he bored viewers with the "difficulty" of his job, because of all the producers and directors talking into his earpiece during a game. Some of it was tongue and cheek, but Orel should stick to the game, because when he talks it he shows he talks it well.

• A tip of the hat to the Hogs...Arkansas had 17 comeback wins this season, including Wednesday's dramtice elimination game victory over Virgininia. The Razorback's magic ran out though with Friday's loss to LSU. You gotta give it though for a team that brought a .272 team batting average and 4.50 ERA to Omaha. Like Virginia, Arkansas had to first win a Regional on the road against a top eight national seed and then go on the road again to win a Super Regional just to get to Omaha.

• Murph's Milestone...I forgot to mention this in yesterday's blog. Arizona State head coach Pat Murphy picked-up his 1,000th career win when the Sun Devils beat North Carolina in Thursday's elimination game. North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams was there to see it.

• Great to hear Sean McDonough has his voice back. The ESPN play-by-play man labored earlier this week when his normally dulcet tones were strained by what he said were allergies, but he had the cords back for Friday's ASU-Texas game. McDonough kind of gets lost in the shuffle in the myriad of TV sportscasters these days, but I've heard he's one of the nicest guys in the business. I'll always remember him for his "Bream to the plate" call as Sid Bream chugged home when Altanta beat Pittsburgh in game seven of the 1992 NLCS. My college roomate, Randy Rosetta, and I were watching that game together in a Lawrence, KS sports bar. Last week Randy and I sat together covering the College World Series (he covers LSU for the Baton Rouge Advocate) while McDonough sat about 60 feet away in the Rosenblatt press box calling the action for viewers on ESPN.

• Arizona State pitcher Mike Leake gave-up two home runs in 132 IP during the regular season, but the Pac 10 Pitcher of the Year surrendered two long balls in two starts vs. Texas this week in Omaha.

• Rudy, really...Have you heard!?! Arizona State freshman Johnny Ruettiger is the nephew of Daniel "Rudy" Ruettiger. Oh, of course you have, because ESPN only mentioned the connection every time he stepped to the plate in Omaha. So, here are a few things they could have mentioned, but didn't so they could mention "Rudy" one more time, during any of his 17 trips to the plate during his first CWS: Johnny was Joliet Catholic Acadamey's starting quarterback on the team's 2007 Illinois State Championship team, he was the captain of both his baseball and football teams during his junior and senior seasons, as a senior in high school Johnny hit .450 and went 11-2 on the mound, he was picked by the Texas Rangers in the 35th round of last year's MLB draft and his father, John, was a pretty good athlete himself-he wrestled at Nebraska in 1977-'78.
  

• I've got a feeling those Jaguars are going to beat Visigoth State sometime soon!
  

Friday CWS Thoughts And Notes

Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires shares some thoughts from another day at the College World Series...

• Does Arizona State's Kole Calhoun remind anyone else of the character 'Ham" Porter from the movie Sandlot? Calhoun (pictured right) and his teammate, Carlos Ramirez, are built more like beer league softball players than college baseball players, but they play the part well. Neither strikes out a lot for power guys, and they both know how to work a count. Calhoun's OPS is .981, while Ramirez's is 1.126. After Thursday's win over North Carolina, Calhoun now has 3 home runs and 10 RBIs in Omaha, including a grand slam vs. the Tar Heels. Meanwhile, Ramirez has caught all 64 of the Sun Devils' games this season. Like Oakland's Billy Beane has said "We're not selling blue jeans".
  

• Speaking of movie characters...ASU's Pat Murphy reminds me of Mickey Rourke's "Marv" in Sin City. Murph was born in New York, and he brings that east coast toughness to the desert & the Pac 10. The confidence his players exhude often borders on, if not crosses into, cockiness, but given the results (3 CWS in the last five years) that's not a bad thing.

• The ebb and the flow...Arizona State jumped-out to a 6-0 lead in Tuesday's game vs. Texas, only to see the Longhorns score the last ten runs of the game. North Carolina opened Thursday's game with the first four runs of the game, to bring ASU's total to 14 straight combined unanswered runs. The Sun Devils then used an 8-run seventh inning en-route to 12 unanswered runs of their own before UNC finally got a run in the 9th in ASU's 12-5 win.

• North Carolina's Garrett Gore played in the 21st and final College World Series game of his career Thursday night. He's played in more CWS games than anyone in the history of the event.

• Gore's teammate, Dustin Ackley, collected a ninth inning double Thursday to extend his record NCAA Tournament hitting streak to 21 games. It was his 28th career CWS base hit, a CWS record.

• Robin Ventura is just a dude who knows baseball. When he talks baseball during a game as an ESPN analyst he makes me listen intently to what he has to say. Ventura speaks and explains the mechanics of the game, both pitching and hitting, in a manner that's easily understood. His breakdown of Ackley's swing during Thursday night was eye opening.

• Is it just a coincidence? Since 2000 the winner of bracket 2 has gone on to win the College World Series. Texas and Arizona State are the remaining teams from bracket 2 this year, while LSU and Arkansas reside in bracket 1.
  

Thursday Thoughts & Notes On The CWS

Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires with his thoughts from Wednesday's CWS action...

• Arkansas' Mr. Clutch is at it again...Andrew Darr's 12th inning RBI double ended-up being the game-winner in the Razorbacks' 4-3 win over Virginia in Wednesday's CWS elimination game. Darr entered the game in the 9th inning as a defensive replacement after Virginia loaded the bases. Darr's walk-off double vs. Florida State ended the Super Regional nearly two weeks ago & sent Arkansas to the College World Series. (Podcast with Darr is available by clicking HERE.)
  

• Brett Eibner more than atoned for his short start on the mound vs. LSU Monday when his 2-out 9th inning home run tied the game 3-3 to send it to extra innings.

• ESPN's Mike Patrick was half correct when he talked about the importance of Zach Cox's 2-out, 2-strike single that came just before Eibner's HR. However, Patrick said it was important, because if Cox hadn't singled Eibner's HR would have just been a solo shot. It was more important than that though, because if Cox hadn't reached base the game would have been over, and Eibner wouldn't have even come to the plate again until 2010.

• Speaking of TV...wouldn't it be nice to make as much money as ESPN analyst Orel Hersheiser makes to butcher players' names? In his time in Omaha he has incorrectly pronounced: Arkansas pitchers Dallas Keuchel and Brett Eibner, Virginia pitcher/DH Danny Hultzen, Arizona State SS Drew Maggi, and MLB's #1 draft pick Stephen Strasburg. His analysis is usually spot-on, but c'mon Orel is it too hard to just write the names pho-net-i-cal-ly? Is it a wonder Howard Cosell used to opine about the "jockocrasy" in TV sports?
  

• Speaking of TV II...it was pretty touching to see and hear business owners from the Rosenblatt area getting choked-up while trying to talk about the CWS moving to downtown Omaha after next year.

• Speaking of TV III...Pretty cool North Carolina's Garrett Gore got to man one of ESPN's TV cameras for a spell during the game. Gore said afterward "That was it, took control, my show". I'm sure Cosell would have been appalled though!

• Good job by the umpires in the Arkansas-UVA game to make sure they got John Hicks' fifth inning home run call correct. They conferred after it was originally not called a home run, but Hicks got credit for the round-tripper after they correctly decided the ball hit a fan's hat and then another fan's glove and not Arkansas left fielder Chase Leavitt's glove before it caromed back onto the field.

• Great piece of bunting by Virginia's Keith Werman. The pinch-hitter entered the game in a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the 9th with runners at first and second and no outs. Werman bunted the first two pitches of the at-bat foul and then took two balls from fellow lefty Dallas Keuchel before he finally dropped down a two-strike bunt to move the runners to second and third.

• How about Keuchel's relief appearance just two days after starting against Cal State Fullerton? The southpaw tossed four shutout innings, while fanning five and giving-up just three hits to improve to 9-3 this season. It was the junior's first relief outing this season.

• Speaking of pitching...a tip of the hat to starters Drew Smyly of Arkanas and fellow freshman left Danny Hultzen of Virginia. The two combined to pitch 11.0 innings with 14 strikeouts and no walks on 13 hits. Smyly's string of 19 straight shutout innings in the NCAA Tournament ended on the previously mentioned fifth inning HR by Hicks. He was starting for the first time since losing a no-hitter in the ninth inning of the Razorbacks' Regional Championship game vs. Oklahoma. (Podast with Smyly is available by clicking HERE.)
  

• It's been great having Green Day's musice playing into breaks during Super Regional and now College World Series games on ESPN>
  

Wednesday CWS Note And Thoughts

A few notes and thoughts from Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires while waiting for the Virginia-Arkansas game to start...

• Tonight's game between Arkansas and Virginia is the first ever on the baseball diamond between the two schools.

• Last night's game between Texas and Arizona State marked the 44th time those two teams have played. Texas owns a 26-18 series advantage.

• Virginia has broken ten school records this year. They are: wins (49), runs (504), doubles (134), at-bats (2,295), hits (571), runs (504), triples (28), RBIs (465), total bases (1,112), and innings pitched (571.0).

• The Texas-Arizona State game marked the first time that three sons of three former College World Series players were on the field at the same time. The current players are Chance Ruffin (Bruce 1985) and Brandon Loy (Darren 1983-'84) of Texas, and Matt Newman (Randy 1981).
  

• Speaking of that game. Did you see ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews' interview with ASU freshman Johnny Ruettiger's parents during Tuesday's game? Ok, so Johnny is the nephew of Notre Dame's "Rudy", but do his parents really want to answer questions like "Where's Rudy", "When will Rudy be here", and "Johnny talks to Rudy all the time, what are those conversations like"? You know, because they've never heard a question about Rudy since the movie came out 16 years ago. That's what they want to talk about while their son is playing at his first College World Series.

• ASU's loss to Texas last night snapped their 7-game winning streak, and it leaves LSU as the only team without a loss in this year's NCAA Tournament (7-0).

• Arkansas starting pitcher Brett Eibner had a tough time in his last start Monday vs. LSU when he allowed four runs in just 1 1/3 IP. That's nothing compared to what happened to an Omaha motorist at Tuesday's Arkansas practice when Eibner hit a home run during batting practice that smashed the window of a van parked on the street outside the park.

Tuesday CWS Thoughts

Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires shares some College World Series thoughts...

• How important is it to win your first round game in Omaha? Since the CWS began in 1947 just ten teams have lost their first game and gone on to capture the national championship.
  
• Since 1980 just Oregon St. in 2006, USC in 1998 and the 1980 Arizona teams lost their first round game in Omaha and then claimed national titles.
• Could Southern Mississippi head coach Corky Palmer have picked a better time to retire? USM can never match what Palmer's team did with its run to Omaha over the last three weeks, and Palmer would only be chasing a golden carrott if he weren't retiring. Just like George Costanza...Corky's leaving on a high note.
• If you don't believe how tough it is for a Cinderella to return to Omaha see: Fresno State which went 0-2 in the Irvine Regional this year after winning last year's title. There are others: Louisville-2007, Arizona-2004, Southwest Mo. State-2003, Notre Dame-2002, San Jose St.-2000. Getting to Omaha raises the expectation level of a program, but those expections are seldom met in most cases.
• Speaking of Southern Mississippi, great shot by ESPN of USM players scooping dirt from behind home plate to take home some Omaha dirt in paper cups and Gatorade bottles after Tuesday's 11-4 loss (and elimination) to North Carolina.
• When the new CWS stadium is built downtown in two years will Zesto's bring its ice cream along?
• Also, when the stadium's downtown will outfield tickets still be sold as general admission seating? If so, where will fans stand in line to get in? Fans currently stand in lone serpentine lines that go down the hill beyond the Rosenblatt outfield area. The new stadium will have just a small parking lot and a sidewalk in those same locations. Will they close off the street beyond right field?
• LSU scored eight of its nine runs in Monday's win over Arkansas with two outs. Coming into the CWS, the Tigers had just ten 2-out RBIs in five previous NCAA Tournament games.
  
• After Monday's win over Arkansas, LSU is now 35-3 this season when a right-hand pitcher starts.
  
• With its 2-0 start, LSU now waits until Friday afternoonto play either Virginia or LSU. I know the steaks in Omaha are good, and the pitching will be rested, but three days in between games at the most important time of the year is just too much.
  

Sunday College World Series Thoughts

Collegebaseball360.com Editor, Sean Stires, shares some thoughts from a day of baseball at Rosenblatt Stadium...

Quite a Sunday afternoon game between North Carolina and Arizona St. UNC’s Alex White: 9 IP-7H-1 ER- 3 BB – 12 K & ASU’s Josh Spence & Mitchell Lambson combine for 10 IP-11H- 2 R – 1 ER – 3 BB – 13 K.

There were still a lot of people outside the stadium today, but it wasn’t nearly the mad house it was all day yesterday before the Arkansas-Cal State Fullerton & LSU-Virginia games. Probably a lot of LSU fans sleeping-off yesterday’s tailgating.

One of the coolest shirts I’ve seen…burnt orange Longhorn Texas logo with simply the word “OMAHA” above it. No other school has a shirt like it in any of the vendor shirts outside Rosenblatt Stadium (and there are dozens of tents and hundreds of shirt styles). The shirt vendor says it’s because Texas considers Omaha their destiny…even though they haven’t been here for four years.

This is the 50th anniversary of ASU baseball. Members of the Sun Devil’s 1969 National Championship team are in Omaha for a reunion.

Don't call it a "Jeter" play, ASU 1B Riccio Torrez with great effort crashing into the wall going for foul ball. Didn’t make the catch, but took a big tumble into the photo pit next to the ASU dugout in the 3rd inning.

Another Sportscenter Web Gem…Texas shortstop Brandon Loy with a lazar beam thrown to first after a diving stop in the hole to throw out Southern Mississippi’s Taylor Walker.

Is there no green paint left in Omaha? The CWS logo on the Astroturf semi-circle behind the plate this year looks as bad as I’ve ever seen it. You can still read “Omaha Royals” underneath the "College World Series 2009" logo that's painted over it.

If the lines for the restrooms inside Rosenblatt are any indication, maybe they DO need a new CWS stadium in Omaha.

Saw this sign by a Southern Mississippi fan today: O-M-A-H-A = Ole Miss At Home Again

Southern Mississippi’s last two coaches have been Corky Palmer and before that Hill Densen. Maybe I’m in the minority, but I have never known a Corky and I have never known a Hill.

My daughter, Baylee, was in the stands again for tonight’s game. She has a mascot phobia. The USM Mascot had her frozen stiff and crying after Golden Eagle Michael Ewing hit his 5th HR of the season against Texas.

My son, Jesse, wanted to come to the Texas-Southern Miss. Game to see the Longhorns in person, but in the 6th inning he was singing the Golden Eagle’s fight song along with their fans in section “R”.

M & M’s and fresh popcorn are two of the more popular snacks among the media in the Rosenblatt press box. They give us paper boats that are about the size of your hand to put them in. The boats are too small for me to get enough popcorn, but big enough that I always fill them with way more M & M’s than even my sweet tooth needs. (Why do I always eat them ALL though)?

Texas LHP Austin Wood gained fame for his 12 1/3 no-hit innings & 13 total innings two weeks ago in the 3-2 25 inning win over Boston College. However, since his 169 pitch effort his command has been erratic, and his fastball has dropped from the high 80s to the mid to low 80s. Wood threw a wild pitch and issued a bases loaded walk Sunday vs. USM to contribute to the Golden Eagle's 3-run inning.

May 30th, 1981 was the last catcher's interference at the College World Series prior to the 8th inning interference by Texas backstop Cameron Rupp that gave Southern Mississippi's Brian Dozier first base.

Dozier was pinch-hitting in that at-bat. He had missed 29 games since fracturing his collarbone on April 14th.

The total attendance for this weekend’s four games was 96,868 for an average of 24,217 per game. The new CWS stadium that will open in two years will seat 24,000.

Texas-Southern Mississippi Starting Line-Ups

Here are the line-ups for the Texas-So. Miss Game...

Southern Miss

1. CF Bo Davis .371
2. 2B James Ewing .314
3. LF Kameron Brunty .342
4. RF Corey Stevens .330
5. 1B Joey Archer
6. DH Michael Ewing .231
7. SS BA Vollmuth .236
8. C Travis Graves .246
9. 3B Taylor Walker .305

RHP-Todd McInnis (9-4, 3.61 ERA)

Head Coach Corky Palmer

Texas

1. 3B Michael Torres .304
2. 2B Travis Tucker .286
3. 1B Brandon Belt .336
4. DH Russell Moldenhauer .234
5. RF Kevin Keyes .305
6. SS Brandon Loy .294
7. C Cameron Rupp .287
8. LF Preston Clark .264
9. CF Connor Rowe .275

RHP Cole Green (5-3, 3.02)

Head Coach Augie Garrido

Umpires

HP Chuck Lyon
1B Mark Chapman
2B Tony Maners
3B Perry Costello

ASU-UNC Starting Line-Ups

Here are the starting line-ups for today's North Carolina-Arizona State game...

ASU

1. SS Drew Magi .319
2. CF Jason Kipnis .385
3. C Carlos Ramirez .349
4. LF Kole Calhoun .292
5. 1B Riccio Torrez .298
6. RF Matt Newman .315
7. DH Johnny Reuttiger .356
8. 3B Raoul Torrez .250
9. 2B Zack MacPhee .266

LHP Josh Spence (9-1, 2.33 ERA)

Head Coach Pat Murphy decides not to start Pac 10 Pitcher of the Year Mike Leake. I may be sunning myself with Sparky yet! Will Leake pitch in relief today?

North Carolina

1. LF Ben Bunting .333
2. 1B Dustin Ackley
3. 3B Kyle Seager .386
4. SS Ryan Graepel .279
5. 2B Levi Michael .298
6. C Mark Fleury .315
7. RF Garrett Gore .307
8. CF Mike Cavasini .260
9. DH Jacob Stallings .216

RHP-Alex White (8-4, 4.13 ERA)

Head Coach Mike Fox

Umpires

HP Jeff Henrichs
1B Joe Burleson
2B Darrin Sealey
3B Steve Manders

Pre-Day Two CWS Thoughts

Yesterday was a day for mostly "big boys" with LSU, Fullerton, Arkansas, and Virginia all in action. Arkansas and Virginia have just three trips to the CWS between them in the last ten years (and obviously this is UVA's first trip), but they're still from power conferences.

Three more "big boy" teams are in action today, but Cinderella makes steps up to center stage tonight when Southern Mississippi plays #1 Texas. (North Carolina and Arizona State play the matinee). Some thoughts on today's action...

• As of last night, we still had not heard who Texas will start tonight. Fullerton went with Noe Ramirez over Daniel Renken, and now Dave Serrano's team is in a Monday elimination game vs. Virginia. Will that decision make it that much easier for Augie Garrido to go with Chance Ruffin if he was even thinking about anyone else?
• Southern Mississippi starting pitchers have made it past the fifth inning just once in their six NCAA Tournament games, but the Golden Eagles are still 5-1 and in Omaha. Their offense has scored 8.8 runs a game to counter the lack of pitching longevity. (Remind you of a team from California last year?)
• Seriously, isn't it cool to have a head coach named Corky Palmer in the CWS?
  
• Speaking of starting pitching, as of last night ASU's Pat Murphy still hadn't announced his starter for today's game vs. North Carolina. If it's not Pac 10 Pitcher of the Year Mike Leake (16-1, 1.36 ERA, 150 K), I'll go sun bathe with Sparky in the left field bleachers (trust me, you don't want to see that).
• The last time Mike Fox and North Carolina failed to make it to the College World Series was 2005 when his Tar Heels were eliminated by Paul Mainieri's Notre Dame team at the Gainesville, FL Regional. The Florida team that won that regional went on to finish as the national runner-up with a loss to Texas in the CWS Championship Series.
• As noted last night, LSU used all three of its weekend starter in its opening win over Virginia. SEC Pitcher of the Year Louis Coleman pitched just an inning, and with a day off Sunday, it was essentially a bullpen workout on a big stage. Mainieri says he and Austin Ross will still make their next scheduled starts.
• The crowds inside and outstide Rosenblatt Stadium as well as on the streets and in the press box itself were enormous yesterday. I don't think I've seen as many people here. I wonder how much that fact that Rosenblatt's days are numbered (along with LSU and Texas as well as homeboy Brian O'Connor being here) have to do with it?

You ready for day two?

Arkansas Player Makes ESPN's Top 10 Plays

OMAHA, Neb. – Arkansas freshman Bo Bigham’s diving stop and throw from his knees cracked ESPN SportsCenter’s top 10 plays, ranking No. 4 on the list Saturday night.

Bigham made the diving stop in the third inning and limited what may have been a big Cal St. Fullerton inning to just a pair of runs. With a runner on first base and no one out, Bigham made a diving stop to his left, turned and threw a strike to Ben Tschepikow from his knees to get the lead runner on the play. The Titans would eventually score two runs in the inning on a hit and one Razorback error, but the two runs only cut into Arkansas’ lead and kept the Razorbacks on top.

Bigham’s play is the third Razorback play to get recognition on ESPN’s top 10 plays this season and fourth in the last two seasons. Last weekend, Andrew Darr cracked the daily and weekly top 10 for his one-out game-winning double against Florida State in the Super Regional and Brett Eibner was featured the day before for a leaping catch while crashing into the center field wall in Tallahassee. Chase Leavitt was the story in 2008 when he made a diving catch in right field.

Bigham's play helped Arkansas down Cal State Fullerton 10-6 in their 2009 CWS opener. The Razorbacks must now take on the LSU Tigers who defeated the Virginia Cavaliers on Monday night in the second round of the College World Series. Game time is set for 6 p.m. Central. Virginia plays Fullerton at 1p.m. that same day.

College World Series Day One Thoughts

Two well played games on day one of the 2009 College World Series. Arkansas downed Cal State Fullerton 10-6 in the opener, while LSU downed Virginia 9-5. A few thoughts/facts on the action from Rosenblatt Stadium.

• The four teams that were playing today's games (Arkansas, Fullerton, LSU, & Virginia) had a combined 20-1 record in the NCAA Tournament coming into today's action. Virginia's game one Super Regional loss to Ole Miss was the lone blemish.
• As I speak, LSU head coach Paul Mainieri is getting post-game hugs on the field from his daughters Sam and Alex.
• The result of Arkansas' win over Fullerton isn't necessarily shocking, but the way they did it is. The Razorbacks put ten runs on the board against a Titans team that had given-up a total of just 11 runs in their five previous NCAA Tourney games this year.
• Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn finally has his first CWS win. He was 0-4 in 2001-02 trips with Nebraska, and 0-2 in 2004 with the Razorbacks.
• LSU's win gives the Tigers their first victory in a CWS opener since 2000.
• LSU used asll three weekend starters in tonight's game. Anthony Ranaudo pitched just 3.1 innings in his 17th start of the year, Austin Ross had 2 IP in relief, and SEC pitcher of the Year Louis Coleman pitched the 8th inning.
• Coleman pitched in relief on Friday in SEC play vs. Georgia and Kentucky during the regular season and then made Sunday starts to end those series.
• Virginia plays Cal State Fullerton Monday at 1pm Central. The Cavs are the home team.
• LSU plays Arkansas Monday at 6pm Central. The Razorbacks will be the home team.
• Virginia freshman Steven Proscia hit his 10th HR of the year. It's the most for a Cavs freshman since 2005 when Sean Doolittle hit 15.
• Chicago Cubs GM Jim Hendry was in the press box and in the stands for a while tonight. Hendry was Brian O'Connor's head coach on the 1991 Creighton CWS team. He also gave Paul Mainieri his first coaching job at Miami's Christopher Columbus High School.
• I sat in the press box between two really nice guys tonight. Marc Davis, the Sports Director at WCDV Channel 19 from Charlottesville, VA and Jason Cole from Burntorangebeat.com. Had a lot of good baseball conversation.
• I know it's been overstated all week, but Mainieri and O'Connor are two of the best class acts in the game. They are both great guys, and their staffs and teams embody how the game should be: play hard with no excuses.
• My dad, son, daughter, and wife were all in the stands tonight. My son was with a few of his Scrappers baseball teammates. It was their first CWS experience. I hope they had a good time.
• Sat for part of the game with my great friend, Randy Rosetta, from the Baton Rouge Advocate....he's still Randy.

We'll have more tomorrow.

Good Times Before The Rain

College Baseball 360 Editor Sean Stires is in Omaha preparing for the start of the 2009 College World Series.

Friday wasn't necessarily an overly eventful day in Omaha, but it had its share of events. It was practice day at Rosenblatt Stadium the day before the College World Series, but only a few of the teams actually got on the field to take batting practice and shag balls.

Three of the four teams that are set to play today took their hacks on the Rosenblatt turf, but Virginia didn't. Neither did Texas, North Carolina, Southern Mississippi, or Arizona State. Just as LSU was winding-down the third practice session of the morning, and just after Tiger skipper Paul Mainieri exchanged jokes on the field with Virginia head coach Brian O'Connor (Mainieri's former Notre Dame assistant) rain started pelting the field, and they pulled the tarp at Rosenblatt.

That was a little before noon Central Time, and it rained for most of the afternoon after that. It rained pretty hard as well. Not Noah's Ark hard, but it rained enough that games scheduled for the Omaha Slumpbuster Tournament (Thursday's blog) had to be scrapped.

Fortunately, the rain did hold long enough for CWS Opening Ceremonies and fireworks Friday night at Rosenblatt.

Probably the biggest highlight of the day for everyone is when the different teams arrive for practice. LSU and Virginia both took teams pictures with the "Road To Omaha" statue in front of the stadium, and afterward they signed autographs and took pictures with kids of all ages.

My son's team got to mingle with LSU players for quite some time, and Mainieri even said a few words to them later on inside the stadium. Welcome to Omaha!

We did manage to talk to a few of the LSU, Virginia and Arkansas players and coaches Friday, and some of that is now posted on our new "CWS Video" page at www.collegebaseball360.com.

Well, it's Saturday...let the games begin!

Things Are Getting Started Today At The CWS

College Baseball 360 Editor Sean Stires is in Omaha preparing for the start of the 2009 College World Series.

It's Friday, and we're still a day away from the start of games at the College World Series, but the activity at Rosenblatt kicks-up a few ticks today. If you saw the video on the front page of our web site yesterday, you know the vendors were setting-up their tents yesterday, and some of them had already begun slinging T-shirts, hats and other items to paying customers. Most of the rest of them will be open for business at some point today.

All eight teams will be on the field at Rosenblatt for quick practices throughout the day, and each team's practice will be followed by an autograph session. The best part is: It's all Free to the public.

There's an all day fan fast outside the stadium with interactive games for kids as well as face painting (yes, my dauther Baylee plans to be there) and the like. Opening ceremonies with the parade of teams and then capped-off by fireworks (one of the best fireworks displays I've ever seen) is inside the stadium later tonight. Fanfest runs from 10am-9pm, and the ceremonies is from 9-10pm.

Here's a quick rundown of today's practice schedule inside Rosenblatt Stadium:

Cal State Fullerton 9-10 am, autographs 10:30-11 am.
Arkansas 10-11 am, autographs 11:30 am-12 pm.
LSU 11 am- Noon, autographs 12:30 pm.
Virginia Noon-1 pm, autographs 1:30 pm.
North Carolina 1pm-2pm, autographs 2:30pm.
Arizona St. 2pm-3pm, autographs 3:30pm.
Texas 3pm-4pm, autographs, 4:30pm.
Southern Mississippi 4pm-5pm, autographs 5:30pm.

Baseball's Back In Omaha

College Baseball 360 Editor Sean Stires is in Omaha preparing for the start of the 2009 College World Series.

We're less than two days away from the start of this year's College World Series, but I saw two games in Omaha today. I mentioned yesterday that my son's 13U team, the Michiana Scrappers, is in a big tournament here in Omaha.

Before I go further, I should explain the name "Michiana". As many of you know, I live in South Bend, IN, which sits right on the Indiana/Michigan state line. Michiana is a combination of those names, kind of like "Texarkana". I've never favored the name Michiana, but that's another story.

Anyway, turns out this isn't just a "big" tournament his team is playing in. It's a REALLY big tournament. 2009 is the seventh year of what's known as the "Omaha Slumpbuster". Last year 462 teams competed in the Slumpbuster, with kids ranging in age from 8 to 18.

Ft. Collins, CO based Triple Crown Sports runs the event, which draws teams from across the country for games that are played on more than 40 complexes in the greater Omaha and Lincoln areas. My son's team played one from the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and another from Illinois today. Tomorrow they'll play a team from Colorado.

They held what they called a "bonfire" tonight, but it was really a fire that set off a cluster of explosions and fireworks in the middle of a baseball diamond. I think my eyebrows were singed from my face.

The cool thing from the kids' perspective is, the tournament organizers aren't just using the College World Series to get teams here, and then leave them on the outside looking in. The people who run the Slumpbuster actually include CWS tickets in the packages for teams that participate (I should also say, the entry fee ain't cheap).

They schedule games in the morning and early afternoon though, so kids and parents have a chance to see CWS games while they're in town. Another perk is the fact that there are open practices and by the eight participating CWS teams Friday (the day before the first games) at Rosenblatt Stadium. Each practice is followed by a 30 minute autograph session with each team.

Can you imagine being 10, 11...12 or 13 years old and being up close and personall with some of the best college players in the country? Five of the players who are here this week were taken in the first round of this week's MLB draft, and a barrel-full more were taken in later rounds.

Our Indiana team alone has fans of Cal State Fullerton, LSU and Texas. I'm guessing that after the kids watch some of the Friday practices each team will have more young fans in its base. (My son, Jesse, might have to actually choose between burnt orange and purple tomorrow.)

Call me a kid at heart, but I am like a kid in a candy store right now as we get set to count down the hours to Saturday's 1pm (Central) game.

Check back in Friday for video and more blogging from Omaha at the College World Series!