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Aaron Fitt

1:14

I mean it's a negative insofar is you'd rather win than lose! But I'm certainly less concerned about a team that drops a bunch of close games than a team that gets blown out. Those things tend to even out. If you're right on the edge of a win or a loss, when you're playing a bunch of very good teams -- that means you're basically where you should be. State is just fine. More of those close games will start tilting their way soon.

Jack

1:16

Texas Tech started off fairly promising in big 12 play but can’t seem to pull out wins recently. Is it extreme to want tadlock gone based on how the last 2-3 years have gone and the trend of this year? Is there any chance tech actually does it mid season or after this season?

Kendall Rogers

1:16

There's zero shot that Texas Tech, at least in my opinion, would fire someone like Tadlock in the middle of the season. Frankly, that would be a slap in the face for a guy who took Texas Tech Baseball to a level they'd never seen in 100 years of having a baseball program. With that said, anyone with a pulse could look at Texas Tech (on the verge of missing three straight NCAA tournaments) and realize that things just aren't the same. My hunch, sitting here on April 6, is that Tech will give him one more year to right the ship. But would I blame Kirby Hocutt for moving on? Not at all.

TXST

1:16

How are you feeling about the txst bobcats and where they can end up?

Aaron Fitt

1:16

They've caught my attention for sure -- I think they're trending toward being a No. 2 or No. 3 seed in a regional. If they keep playing well, I'm tentatively planning to see them at Coastal in a few weeks -- and winning that series on the road could even propel the Bobcats higher into the hosting discussion. Sounds like a very dynamic offensive club.

Dylan L

1:18

Sorry if I missed this - are you guys tracking any names at the moment for the SC opening?

Kendall Rogers

1:18

I did a write up on this, here: https://d1baseball.com/stories/rogers-south-carolina-job-search-detail...

I would be pretty shocked if the Gamecocks don't full-court press, and ultimately hire, Coastal Carolina's Kevin Schnall. If not him, I think my next two calls, in all honesty, would be to Nick Mingione and Steve Sabins. Super impressed by the jobs those two coaches have done at their current spots.

Guest

1:18

What are your thoughts on USM's Camden Clark to this point in the season? He seems to be inhuman and one of the most dominant bullpen arms in the country

Aaron Fitt

1:18

Yeah I mean 20 innings, 0.00 ERA, only 2 unearned runs -- and 26-4 K-BB? That'll play. The fastball is just a really really good pitch, 95-97 with ride, and he commands it very well. Neat story of a local kid who wanted to play for USM but had to stat out in juco ball -- now getting a chance to thrive for the Eagles and boy is he making it count.

Toast

1:21

Did this weekend change your immediate reaction to FSU's potential losing Myles Bailey? I originally lost a lot of hope for Omaha with this team after that, but after this weekend, I think the starting pitching may be able to get them there.

Aaron Fitt

1:21

Yeah I'll confess, I mentally downgraded FSU after the Bailey injury, and I think Kendall and Mark did also -- that's why we had FSU projected as the No. 14 national seed in our midseason field of 64 last week, when their resumé definitely called for them to be seeded much higher. But the Noles showed me a lot this weekend. It won't be an elite offense, but that's fine, because the pitching IS elite, and they are well coached enough to get it done on the position player side. When it doubt, bet on great pitching and great coaching -- check and check.

Eric Simmons

1:22

Can Georgia and Georgia Tech both be Top 8 National Seeds? I think both of them very well could be

Aaron Fitt

1:22

Yes.

DMan

1:26

I know USC’s pitching got hit around like a piñata this weekend against UCLA, but is there ceiling Omaha or a Super Regional this year. Clearly they do not have the horses yet to win it all or win against the best teams.

Aaron Fitt

1:26

Frankly, I was always reserving judgment a little bit on USC, just because the level of competition they dominated during the first half of the season was not elite. I thought Cal Poly had a chance to be a regional team (but their stock is dropping) -- but nobody else USC beat will be anywhere close to an at-large type of team. Clearly you have to be GOOD to start the season 27-3 -- but exactly how good the Trojans really are felt like it was still unknown to me. I think now we know a little bit more -- they are good; they are not elite. Doesn't mean they can't host, doesn't mean they can't make a run to a super or Omaha, but right now I don't have them on my personal board of top title contenders. Let's see how they do in upcoming tests at Nebraska, vs. Purdue and later vs. Oregon.

Zach

1:28

UCF was a dropped fly ball away from a sweep in Morgantown. TCU with a series win in Manhattan, plus great weekends from ASU and Kansas. How many hosts could the Big 12 get? UCF, Arizona State and West Virginia are contenders with TCU and Kansas not far behind.

Aaron Fitt

1:28

Yeah I'd say you've got it handicapped about right. Ultimately I think two or three of those five end up as hosts; I don't expect more than three to host, but any of those five could wind up in the top two or three when the dust settles. Feels like it's gonna be a fun race.

Sad Duck

1:29

Any major concerns for Oregon after that week? Or could you just chalk it up to an off week on the road?

Kendall Rogers

1:29

I'll chalk it up as an off weekend on the road in pretty miserable conditions -- I believe the first two games of the series were played in 30 degree temperatures, which obviously is not very conducive to massive run production for a team like Oregon that really relies on offense, and to some degree, the long ball. With that said, the Ducks better buckle up because a road series against Nebraska is coming up this weekend. I'm going to take a wild guess and say UO scores more than 7 runs in three games this weekend.

Jimbo11

1:30

Kendall, I got a bone to pick with you, my friend. FSU was #14 in your Regional Projections yet we were #7 in D1 and #8. RPI. With the series win at UVA, do you still keep us out of a national top 8?

Kendall Rogers

1:30

Having a bone to pick with a week-old NCAA Tournament projection seems a little odd, but if you were projecting FSU's path a week ago without Myles Bailey, pretty much anyone would agree with where we had the Noles slotted. Now that the RPI figures look better AND the Noles have proven they can win big without him, that allows us to project the pathway ahead to include more success. Heck of a weekend for your Noles, Jimmy.

Mustard Buzzard 2015

1:31

Thoughts on Southern Miss going forward? Still feels the potential of this team is super high and the early season quality wins are holding up, but the recent stretch of .500 baseball is very concerning. Is it creeping towards the time to hit the panic button?

Aaron Fitt

1:31

Keep that hand away from that button! Here's the thing: it's baseball! It's almost never gonna be smooth sailing for 15 straight weeks. Everybody has ups and downs -- and in USM's case, the Eagles are still grinding out series wins during one of those dip phases when the game is coming a little harder. I think that's encouraging, actually. That bullpen and that veteran lineup will make Southern Miss very very dangerous in the postseason. I think Oz will figure out how to get more consistency out of the rotation.

Aaron Fitt

1:31

Friends, that's all for me today. See you next week!

Pokes Fan

1:36

Oklahoma State’s fan base has had a pretty negative outlook all year long. Between pitching injuries and a lineup that strikes out in magnitude, is there any reason to expect more than another 3 seed regional appearance?

Kendall Rogers

1:36

I mean, at this point, the Pokes are pretty deadlocked on going to a regional as a three, and maybe a two seed if they finish really strong. I don't think they have the consistency needed to remotely get into the NCAA hosting discussion, but you never know. With that said, I was super encouraged by what the Pokes did this past weekend against Cincinnati at home. Cincy is a good club, and the Pokes put themselves in a MUCH better spot in the Big 12 pecking order.

Guest

1:38

Do you have UTSA in a regional right now? What does Pat Hallmark and crew need to improve on?

Kendall Rogers

1:38

I would continue to say that the pitching staff just has little margin for error. The Roadrunners have definitely pitched exponentially better since that ugly UT Arlington series a few weeks ago. They gave up 11 runs in three games to ECU, and then pitched insanely well last weekend in the series against Rice. If UTSA pitches at all -- that is a super dangerous team for me.

Guest

1:40

How many Big 12 teams end up hosting? UCF, Arizona State and West Virginia would be contenders now but TCU and Kansas are not far behind.

Kendall Rogers

1:40

I'm going to go with two Big 12 hosts as of right now. WVU and .... My money would be on Arizona State being the other team at the moment, while UCF is obviously strongly in the mix.

SmartMuffin

1:42

Beavers just quietly stacking up road wins, again. Despite the initial concerns about the offense early on, is the strength of schedule the rest of the way strong enough that if they keep winning, they can secure a top 8 again?

Kendall Rogers

1:42

Smart -- going to be tough to stay in that 8-12 range with that upcoming schedule, but you really really need to make sure you sweep Long Beach State on the road later in the season (RPI: 241). The bad news is the RPI will slip, the good news is the overall record is going to look insanely good. And I do think Oregon State has cachet with the committee, which has been earned.

Ryan

1:44

UCLA is obviously awesome and there's no reason to think they are going to stumble the rest of the regular season, but baseball is a funny sport. With a relatively weak schedule the rest of the way maybe hurting their metrics, what kind of stumble do you think it would take for them to fall out of the top eight? Or maybe to make it simpler - how much margin for error have the Bruins built themselves?

Kendall Rogers

1:44

I'm actually more curious to see if UCLA loses two or more conference games than I am the Bruins falling out of the top eight. UCLA is in insanely good shape for a Top 8, and would probably need to drop 2-3 series to drop out of a top five seed in the NCAA tournament. That's a damn good baseball team across the board.

Chris

1:47

Thoughts on Texas A&M’s thin pitching staff going into a big weekend series against Texas?

Kendall Rogers

1:47

Chris -- Still pretty concerned with the way Shane Sdao and Weston Moss pitch at times, but feel very very good about where Aiden Sims is from a stuff and results standpoint. I'm very curious to see if Michael Earley shakes up the rotation this weekend. I would not pitch Sims on Friday, but I do like him on Saturdays if I'm being honest.

Go Frogs

1:56

Two series wins against top offenses in the Big12, the starting rotation has been good, highlighted by James 8 inning shutout. Offensively, the bats are alive, racking up 78 hits (averaging 13 per game) across both series. Still too many runners left on base, but overall the Frogs seem to be trending up. What’s your take on this group right now?

Kendall Rogers

1:56

I'm feeling much better about TCU. The one thing that stands out to me about the weekend at Kansas State is that the Frogs pitched MUCH better in the final two games of the series. Not only is that a tough place to pitch, but Kansas State has a very potent offense. TCU is heavily favored to win its next three series. Do that and the Frogs will head into the final few weeks of the season squarely in the mix for a Top 16 seed. That possibility is in TCU's sights, for sure.

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