You are viewing the chat in desktop mode. Click here to switch to mobile view.
X
Return toD1Baseball
D1Baseball Weekly Chat: April 26
powered byJotCast
Prev Page View Full Chat Next Page
Kendall Rogers
1:29
Host sites only for regionals. But the super sites will have to come from those 16 sites, so those sites, too, essentially.
Adam
1:30
I know Miami lost 2 of 3 up at Chapel Hill, but is there hope for this team to turn a corner and do some damage come post season? Or is this going be another season of 2 and out or being at home come tourney time
Aaron Fitt
1:30
It's just been a wild up-and-down season for this young Miami squad -- and the same goes for most of the teams in the ACC, really. Those teams are all just beating up on each other over this 36-game conference slate. Miami has its flaws, and it doesn't feel like an Omaha team to me, but heck they do have some exciting young talent and some accomplished veterans who have been around the block. They could absolutely get hot at the right time and make a run. Not much of an answer, but I just don't have a ton of conviction in most of those ACC teams -- but many of them have shown enough flashes to make you think they're capable of doing something. It's just a matter of who will play well at the right time.
Burt
1:32
Tennessee's next two weekends are at home vs UK and at Mizzou.  Assuming they win those series, it seems as though they should be a lock for a top 8 seed since they are being released the week of May 10th.  I know the committee probably wants to stay away from 4 SEC national seeds, but you can't deny the resume.  Do you think they get a national seed?  Or does geography, tradition, and politics keep them out of the top 8?
Aaron Fitt
1:32
"Politics" are a non-factor here, and I don't think tradition or geography will hurt them either. The Vols have built a no-brainer top-eight resumé, and if they win those next two series (they'll certainly be favored to win both), you can take it to the bank. Even if they lose one of those series they'll be one of the 16 hosts, and then it will just depend on the final couple of weeks to determine whether or not they're a top-eight.
Roll Wave
1:33
Floating around Twitter yesterday was the idea that La Tech, Tulane & New Orleans could all make the tourney but not LSU. What are the odds that happens?
Kendall Rogers
1:33
It's certainly possible. I'm not a fan of Tulane's RPI, but the Green Wave is on a roll and would certainly get in if the season ended today. Same with UNO (leading the SLC) and Louisiana Tech. Just like the other SEC teams, LSU needs to get to 14-15 overall wins, including the conference tourney, to feel OK about getting into the tourney.
Aggie74
1:34
I know it is easy to be really negative towards A&M right now, so I have a different question for you Kendall. After watching A&M-Tenn this past weekend, what are some positives for the Aggies heading into the end of the this season and entering next season? Also, wow, Tennessee's mentality at the plate is second to none. That was a fun team.
Kendall Rogers
1:34
Tennessee is really impressive. Its offense reminds me a little bit of Arkansas in its offensive approach. They just don't miss mistake pitches. As for the Aggies and positivity -- Bryce Miller is a positive, and I continue to be really impressed with Will Frizzell. He didn't have a loud Sunday for me, but he's been ultra-consistent this year with limited help around him.
David
1:34
Thoughts on Gonzaga and their post season potential? This looks like a tough team I wouldn't want to play in a regional.
Aaron Fitt
1:34
Yeah the Zags are dangerous! Just look at the body of work -- series win on the road at TCU is very loud, a four-game split at DBU, two tight one-run losses in Lubbock (in a park that plays like the polar opposite of every WCC venue). Gonzaga has proven it can play with anybody. Our man Roons saw them a few times early and raved about their pitching and defense and toughness. Heck, they've got a shot to host, if you ask me -- and I would love to see that happen.
Oxford Bald Eagle
1:36
With the hosts being announced so early will we see teams tank on purpose in conference tourneys?  If you know you are safely in as a 2 and no matter what you do you can’t be a 1 on the road (even though somebody will) do you go two and que to get rest?
Aaron Fitt
1:36
I don't think coaches are wired to ever actively "tank"... but you may very well see some teams rest their top arms that week, sure. They'd still try to win those games, but they'd invest less pitching capitol in trying to do it.
Raider down
1:38
Have the injuries finally caught up with Tech? The team just looked deflated this weekend. I don’t know if they would make it out of a regional at this point.
Aaron Fitt
1:38
The only part of that series I got to watch was the game Tech won, so I obviously didn't get the deflated vibe... but it certainly makes sense to me that the injuries might have caught up with them. That's just so much to overcome. That said, there's no way I'm writing off Tech's chances to get back to Omaha. Feels like they'll pull some levers in the next month and get some other guys going and be ready to roll come June. Just so much respect for that coaching staff and the depth of that roster.
cowtownBill
1:38
The Frogs hitting and starting pitching had another good week. Do you think that TCU may have found the missing piece of the puzzle with the emergence of some dependable arms out of the pen?
Kendall Rogers
1:38
cowtown -- Yep. I actually wasn't as down on the TCU bullpen as some. Yes, it had some issues at times, but it's one thing to struggle and NOT have the personnel, and struggle and HAVE the personnel. Their situation was the latter. I think I've been most impressed with TCU's balance from an offensive standpoint. This is a club now that is hitting up and down the lineup, and they're able to hit for power when it's needed -- looking at you, Phil Sikes!
Ethan
1:40
Do you think Notre Dame is a legit contender this year? How far can they go?
Aaron Fitt
1:40
At this point it just feels like it would be foolish to bet against the Irish -- that team just refuses to lose a weekend series! Even this week, when they looked down and out, they somehow found a way. You can question whether they have the arms -- I know I have harbored that question for much of the season -- but at some point, doubt these guys at your own peril.
Rebelfan2021
1:43
What are your thoughts on Ole Miss? They’ve lost 4 series in a row now. Bullpen issues continue to grow. Fielding errors consistently every game now. They looked terrible for most of this past weekend against LSU minus 2 innings on Saturday during the comeback.
Aaron Fitt
1:43
I don't get why the bullpen isn't better. I know Max Cioffi is a significant loss, but they still have so many good arms back there, so I don't understand why that unit is struggling. I figured losing Elko would really hurt their offense, but I still thought they would defend, and I thought the bullpen would be a strength. I like Gonzalez and Chatagnier in the middle, but sounded like Chatagnier's defense hurt them this weekend. They just need to play better. If Hoglund is out for an extended period, I'm definitely concerned about this team.
Sam Smith
1:45
Is there any chance after this weekend that Tennessee can keep Tony Vitello away from Texas A&M this off season?
Kendall Rogers
1:45
Not just A&M in general here, but generally speaking, if a big-time job comes open and they want Vitello, it's going to be hard for Tennessee to keep TV. WTS -- Tony loves the culture at UT and maybe he's a different person in that regard, so you never know. My best advice for UT would be to be very aggressive with a contract extension and let the chips fall where they may.
dgd28
1:45
How is Georgia not ranked in the top 25?
Aaron Fitt
1:45
They've won three straight series, but before that they lost three straight series so they're just back to 9-9 in the SEC -- decent but not overwhelming. A 5-4 record combined against A&M, Kentucky and Missouri is frankly a little too modest; I think Georgia needed to make more hay in those three weekends. Also their nonconference schedule was really soft.
MissStDawg
1:49
By what metric is Texas ranked ahead of Miss. State? State won the head to head matchup beating Texas’ projected 1st round ace. MSU’s RPI is better (6 v. 8), strength of schedule is better (3 v. 35), and they have more Q1 and Q2 games and wins. Texas has four more wins (29 v. 33), but has played three more games against an easier schedule. The same analysis can be done for Texas and Tennessee - in no metric other than overall wins is Texas better. How is Texas ranked ahead of the SEC teams?
Kendall Rogers
1:49
Here's my deal with MSU fans pointing out a single win in Dallas. It was opening weekend, and fans in the SEC just conveniently choose to ignore (for some reason) that Texas swept South Carolina -- in a series, that frankly, Texas was really never in danger of losing a game. UT has been one of the most consistent teams in college baseball this season and leads the Big 12 with TCU. I don't really see any argument against Texas' ranking at this point.
Guest
1:50
Can you please give us your spin on potential west coast Hosting sites and any top 8 seeds that may come from the west ?
Kendall Rogers
1:50
Guest -- For West Coast sites, I feel like Oregon and Arizona are absolute slam dunks, and I feel like Stanford and UC Irvine are the other two teams I'm keeping an eye on hosting-wise. I would throw Oregon State in that mix, too, but I think the NCAA will want to spread it out a little bit this spring. Maybe I'm wrong? We'll see.
MissStDawg
1:50
What is the basis for Louisville’s high ranking? Seems to be only reputation.  Their RPI is 46! SOS is 113! And they have played only five games against top 50 RPI teams.
Aaron Fitt
1:50
I'll remind you again that the ACC teams have been forced to play a 36-game conference schedule and only 50 games overall, which means RPI is not a useful tool to evaluate those teams -- you need more inter-conference cross-pollination for the RPI to mean anything. But also, Louisville had a few weak matchups and bad losses early in the year -- but they have taken care of business in conference, they're in first place, only have one series loss. It's more than just reputation; they've done very well in conference, you just can't lean on the metrics as much this year as you might have in years past, because all the COVID schedule changes make everything wonky.
Luke
1:52
Kendall,  a few weeks ago you reported a story on Connor Prelipp being back for Alabama baseball and he is not available.  He never did get to pitch @ Kentucky this past weekend and on top of that Alabama's 2 best pitchers were out this weekend, Connor P. and Antoine J.
Kendall Rogers
1:52
Luke -- Yeah, that is not a great development. The plan with Prie going into the weekend was to get him an inning or two. At this stage, it's going to be Prie's choice on if/when he pitches in games, so it's a waiting game for Bo and his staff. Certainly not optimal in the midst of a race to make the postseason.
David
1:52
How are the major conferences dealing with missed games due to COVID issues. Are they requiring them to be made up, especially conference games. Just wondering because they may impact rpi and conference standings come selection time.
Aaron Fitt
1:52
The reality is there's just no way to make up a lost conference series, in most cases. You can try to add nonconference games when possible, but I think we're just gonna have to deal with unbalanced conference standings situations.
Guest
1:53
What CUSA team do you feel most confident about in a regional?
Kendall Rogers
1:53
Guest -- That's really tough. I actually prefer Charlotte's rotation over LA Tech, but I 'love' the fact that LT has so many veterans in that lineup. That's such a crucial piece come postseason team. So, give me LT....
Max
1:54
Is Georgia close to being ranked?
Kendall Rogers
1:54
MAX -- You bet. Georgia and Fairfield were probably our next two teams for the Top 25. I love the fact Georgia has won three-straight series, including a series win over Vandy, and I particularly like the trajectory of the Webb-Cannon duo. They're close ... keep winning.
JoshFSU
1:54
How far out of the top 16 is FSU (on hosting consideration)? Looking at resumes, if FSU had beaten GT on Sunday and swept, our resume might have looked better than a team like Louisville. We didn't - so it doesn't atm - but how close are we? Or is it too little, too late?
Connecting…