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D1Baseball Weekly Chat: April 11
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Aaron Fitt
12:18
Yeah, pretty impressive for Pitt to be sitting here at 7-7 in the ACC after starting 1-5. I've always been high on that veteran position player group, and they might have just enough pitching to battle their way into a regional. On the Top 25 map, but still a little short right now. If they can win that Virginia series this weekend, however, I'd look for them to be in. No easy task, but at least it is at home, and Pitt has played well at home.
Geaux
12:18
LSU’s bullpen seems to be really putting it together. What do you guys think about Reyzelman and Gervase?
Kendall Rogers
12:18
Geaux -- It's good to see that group finally putting all the pieces together. If you remember in the fall, I was really high on Gervase and his potential. He's just such a funky look to go with that 94-95 mph heater. It's not remotely surprising to see him having that kind of success. Reyzelman is a guy I wasn't quite as high on - I just always thought his heater was a little too straight for my liking. But he's getting it done right now. It sure as hell makes life a lot easier when your bullpen is clicking.
Red
12:20
Even though you bumped them up a slot in the rankings, any worry over the Ok St pitching staff after the weekend? Gave up 19 runs to a middle-tier Oklahoma squad. Martin blew 2 saves in 2 chances vs the Sooners including the non-con game
Aaron Fitt
12:20
No concern for me right now; I still really like the talent on the mound, and I think they'll bounce back and clamp down on opposing offenses. It's baseball, it's a long season, and sometimes even very good staffs will have weekends where they give up some runs. If it is a sustained trend, we can revisit, but right now I remain a believer in that OSU staff.
Cow
12:20
What is the post season outlook for Texas A&M? Do they have a shot? They team has been getting hot with the bats, but pitching is still needing work.
Kendall Rogers
12:20
Cow -- I actually think this weekend is massive for A&M's postseason hopes, and it might get lucky if Jonathan Cannon doesn't go on the mound again this weekend. If the Aggies can steal 2/3 from the Bulldogs on the road, that schedule suddenly looks pretty favorable with South Carolina and Mississippi State, along with Arkansas, all at home. Honestly, if they make the postseason with that MASH unit, that's an impressive job for that staff in year one.
Beaver from Eugene
12:21
More of a comment, rather than a question. It sure seems Mitch Canham is building something special. What Pat Casey established as a culture of family, Canham has continued. Especially with Darwin Barney, Ryan Gipson and others from his era as assistants. Really good vibe in Corvallis! Mitch is a pretty steady guy.
Aaron Fitt
12:21
Yeah I think you're right here. Hanging around Mitch and the Beavers at the Fort Worth Regional last year, I definitely got a Casey-era vibe. We had some questions when Mitch got the head job without any college coaching experience, but at this point I think it's fair to say those questions have been answered. He's very even keeled and a natural leader, and he's doing a great job.
Giovanni Morialli
12:23
I have a problem with Southern Miss and Gonzaga being ranked over LSU. They have almost identical records but LSU has a way better Strength of Schedule than both of them. Just wondering why that was a thing.
Kendall Rogers
12:23
Gio -- Gonzaga swept a top five team on the road earlier this season and has been ultra-consistent. It has some very very legit, front-line SEC caliber arms. As for Southern Miss, an outstanding weekend rotation and a sweep over Charlotte and a series win over La Tech is loud. The Eagles absolutely pass the eyeball test.
Matt
12:23
Is it just me or does dropping Arkansas from 2 to 6 seem a little harsh? It’s their first regular season series loss since 2019, it was on the road, against a talented Gator team in a hostile environment, and the series came down to being decided in the 8th inning of the rubber match. That’s not a bad loss at all.
Aaron Fitt
12:23
Yeah, maybe a little harsh -- I can see an argument for leaving Arkansas a spot or two higher. We just had good teams right behind them that had strong weeks, and a series loss is still a series loss, even though I agree it wasn't "a bad loss" at all.
Red Raider
12:25
While I am ecstatic that you kept Tech at number 4 in this weeks rankings, I figured you would actually drop them for the mid week sweep at the hands of Grand Canyon. Did the weekend sweep of K-State help or did nobody do enough behind them to make the jump?
Aaron Fitt
12:25
Weekend series matter most to us, so sweeping a conference series allowed TTU to hold its ground despite losing those two midweeks. If they had at least split with GCU, they probably would have moved up a spot instead of holding steady.
Guest
12:26
Is the sunbelt conference looking like a one or two bid league right now? Which teams are most likely to come out?
Kendall Rogers
12:26
Guest -- I'd have the Sun Belt as a two or three bid league for sure. I think there's a chance for three with two a given right now. How about the two Peach State schools? Georgia Southern dang nears sweeps Texas State on the road, and Brad Stromdahl (who accurately predicted by the way) is doing an outstanding job at Georgia State. The top of this league is pretty good IMO.
Mobsquad
12:27
Please help me understand what is going on with Florida State. Didn’t think the offense would be THIS bad
Aaron Fitt
12:27
I thought they'd be a little better offensively too, and their lack of consistency there has been disappointing. They still have some guys putting together nice years, like Albert, Ferrer, Tibbs and Greene, but there's not a lot of real star power in that lineup, and there's a lack of length. I still believe Tyler Martin will provide a big boost as he gets more at-bats and finds his rhythm, because he's the guy that makes them go. But right now, it's all just lackluster.
FittsMagic
12:29
Vandy is 5-7 (0-3 in SEC series) since the school announced its brand refresh. With the new V looking suspiciously like the History Channel H, are the Dores winning ways a thing of the past?
Aaron Fitt
12:29
What a cleverly crafted question, FittsMagic. But no, I agree with Kendall -- Vandy will figure it out and make a run. I still love the talent on that roster.
Bob
12:30
What impressed you most about Miami this past week? 5-0 is pretty impressive and holding the best hitter in the country hitless was quite unexpected.
Kendall Rogers
12:30
Bob -- Yeah, the biggest takeaway from the weekend was Miami's pitching, but I also think the Miami offense has shown some versatility. Good production on Friday and the Canes showed a killer instinct offensively in the series finale. I love that trait out of a championship-caliber club.
cool 1
Murph
12:31
Fairleigh Dickinson (last or 2nd to last in the NEC every year since 2017) swept Bryant to vault into first place in the NEC. This may be more of a question about ECU’s prospects, but can we get some love for Rob DiToma’s Knights?
Aaron Fitt
12:31
How about first-place Fairleigh Dickinson!?! I certainly did not see this weekend coming. I know heading into the season, the FDU coaches liked their athleticism and team speed and energy but were a little concerned about a lack of experience. Feels like the newcomers have made a nice adjustment to the D-I level.
Beau
12:31
How worried should I be, as a Notre Dame fan, with Florida State struggling as they are, that Link Jarrett will go home when the opportunity presents itself, to do so?  He did sign an extension before the season, but we all know that there are buy outs in all contracts.
Kendall Rogers
12:31
Beau -- So, I absolutely love Link Jarrett as a coach, so I'll go ahead and say it as the resident Coaching Carousel expert (a title Aaron is more than willing to let me have). Notre Dame really needs to enjoy Link Jarrett while they have him. He's an outstanding coach and will have some much bigger opportunities (likely in the near future).
Grant
12:33
When do we start taking WVU seriously? Huge showdown at home against the Pokes this weekend.
Aaron Fitt
12:33
I made a case for ranking WVU this weekend, I rather like their resumé, with the series win at TCU, a sweep of Baylor and a series win at Charlotte. Kendall, as you know, hates all teams but especially hates West Virginia, so they're still on the outside looking in... but I am taking WVU seriously already. If they can win that OK State series, they should vault well into the Top 25.
Matt P.
12:33
Where does CUSA stack up in the conference RPI rankings and what teams can you see stepping up to help improve that index?
Kendall Rogers
12:33
Matt -- Conference USA is sitting at 9 right now, which isn't very good. With that said, I think ODU and Charlotte will end the season with much better RPIs than 130 and 113, respectively. We will see. The problem with C-USA is that you have ODU/CHAR in that situation RPI-wise, and then you have other teams ranked 214, 226, 226 and 197. That's killer for the league's average RPI.
GregM
12:34
So Vandy loses a series on the road to Auburn, the new #17 team, You drop Vandy out of top 25.  Why move Auburn into top 25 if their series win over Vandy is no big deal based on your ranking of Vandy?  (Vandy has issues, no question)
Aaron Fitt
12:34
Because Vandy hasn't done anything; no series wins against anything remotely close to an at-large team, and has lost four of its eight weekend series. That's just not a Top 25 resumé. But it's not like this was Auburn's only good weekend; they went 2-1 at State Farm with a win against Texas Tech, and have now won three straight SEC series (at A&M, at LSU, vs. Vandy). And all three of those teams are viable at-large contenders.
John Sanders
12:36
how about old dominion losing a series at home?
Kendall Rogers
12:36
John -- UTSA is actually a pretty solid club. Pat Hallmark has the Roadrunners rolling right now with back-to-back series wins over Charlotte and ODU. The problem for ODU right now is that even at 22-8, its RPI is in the 130 range. Basically, I think it's win the conference tournament or bust for the Monarchs at this point if I'm being honest.
Sam Arcamone
12:36
With 4 top 10 teams and several more worthy of the rankings, are we ready to discuss the ACC as the best conference in college baseball? The ACC’s top 4 are better than the SEC’s top 4 on average, and the middle of the conference looks better as well.
cool 1 yawn 1 laughing 1
Aaron Fitt
12:36
You know, it's been a long time since any conference but the SEC has been the best in college baseball, but I think I actually agree with you -- the ACC looks stronger this year, for all the reasons you laid out.
Jimmy Geez
12:37
No Big 10 clubs in the Top 25. How far away are my Scarlet Knights from being ranked? Is there any small possibility that they could host?
Kendall Rogers
12:37
Jimmy -- Rutgers was definitely in the discussion as I said earlier in the chat. Right now, the RPI is sitting at 37. I will say that if Rutgers can get around 20, it would at least put them in striking distance of hosting as a Top 16. Same goes for another strong Big Ten, Maryland, which is at 22 in the RPI.
Sammy
12:38
Why is Grand Canyon not ranked? Sweeping Texas Tech did not shoot them into the top 25?
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