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D1Baseball Weekly Chat: April 26
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Aaron Fitt
1:54
If hosts were determined at the end of the season like usual, I'd say there's a lot of opportunity left for FSU to make some hay, with series at the end vs. Clemson and at NC State. But with hosts announced on May 10, it may be too late... Still, if FSU can win that road series at Notre Dame next weekend, it will be 17-13 in the ACC, and you'd imagine its RPI will make a big jump -- but maybe not enough? If they sweep that series in South Bend, feels like they could leap right up in there. Tall order, but you never know.
Pat
1:57
Tulane for real or just getting wins by playing a terrible Memphis team eight times?  Does the American get two bids?
Aaron Fitt
1:57
Hard to tell! Facing Memphis will definitely help a team get right. But still, we really liked Tulane's pitching heading into the year, and also that's a quality sweep of a pretty good Wichita State team last weekend. I do think AAC has a shot for two bids, and I'm liking Tulane's chances.
Jim from ACC Land
1:58
Do you think the Covid-related pause at this time of the year and missing a road series vs. Louisville will hurt Pitt's hosting chances?
Aaron Fitt
1:58
I do think so, because now they've got four games coming up against Northern Kentucky, and those won't be good for the RPI. Pitt could have used that trip to Louisville, assuming it won at least one game there.
VUWMF
1:59
Carter Young seems to have everything Dansby Swanson had plus he switch hits.  Where do you project him in a year for the draft?
Aaron Fitt
1:59
I don't know that he's quite as twitchy as Dansby, but I need some more looks to get a better feel for that. I do know that Young is a really good player and an easy first-round prospect for next year, definitely a candidate to be a very high pick in my mind.
JEL
2:01
Gonzaga getting some attention in this week's poll. Do you still see Zags as a #2 Regional seed?
Kendall Rogers
2:01
JEL -- Yep. Gonzaga is looking like someone's VERY STRONG No. 2 seed right now. That's a good looking club.
Don Robinson
2:01
I had a great time this weekend at the Doak,, watching the Wolfpack. The pitching rotation is finally set. And that defense is something to behold. The only perplexing thing is, whenever they beat a ranked team, they get dropped from your rankings. Just kidding — I understand
Aaron Fitt
2:01
I will say this: NC State has managed to play itself right into the Top 25 conversation, and that felt awfully unlikely after that 1-8 start in the ACC. But I always felt like this team would make a run, I said that over and over -- the offense and the defense were just too good, they just needed to get the pitching figured out, and it looks like they have. I think the Wolfpack is extremely dangerous the rest of the way, and I have a feeling we'll see them in the Top 25 very soon.
Dorefan
2:01
Who are some teams that are likely to end up as #4 seeds with a bigtime ace that could scare a host team?
Kendall Rogers
2:01
Dorefan -- One name and one name only -- Matt Mikulski. You do not want to face Fordham in the opening game of a regional with Mikulski on the mound. He's been up to 97 from the left side with filthy stuff this season.
KD
2:03
Suddenly with all the injuries starting to hit home, Tech has been struggling a bit. Oddly enough, it is the offense that has taken a step back now. Do you still see them as a host squad or more likely a 2 seed?
Kendall Rogers
2:03
KD -- I actually think if Tech loses that series at Texas this weekend, it will probably end up hitting the road as a non-host, but we'll see. RPI is 19 right now and league record is at 8-7. The good news for Tech is it gets UIC at home for four games before hosts are announced.
Wesley Wells
2:06
Why is Kevin Kopps not in the Top 100 Draft Prospects list? Does it have to do with velo? I know his velo isn't elite, but he has other plus pitches, as we have seen repeatedly this season.
Aaron Fitt
2:06
Well, he's a sixth-year senior, first of all. MLB clubs do not get excited about 24-year-old righthanders with 90-91 mph fastballs in the draft. You're right, he does have other stuff besides that absurd cutter -- he's an awesome college pitcher, one of the greatest weapons in all of college baseball. But he's gonna have to really scrap and claw and grind to get himself to the big leagues if he starts his pro career at age 24 and doesn't have a big fastball. Major league hitters can make adjustments to that cutter if you don't have a big heater to keep them honest.
Bill
2:08
Does ASU hang on and make regionals?
Aaron Fitt
2:08
I think they will! They've shown a ton of fight this year considering they've lost their best, what, four arms? Incredible coaching job there by Tracy Smith and Jason Kelly to hold that club together. Feels like they can grind their way to the postseason.
Steve
2:09
A month ago, I was in this chat asking if Travis Jewitt was on the hotseat...flash-forward to today, and the Green Wave are leading the AAC and look to be on the right side of the bubble. What happened in the past few weeks to turn this season around, and where do you see Tulane finishing the season (both within the AAC and in the final field of 64)?
Kendall Rogers
2:09
Steve -- It would be tough to bet on Tulane not making the postseason with the way it is playing right now. Jewett is a solid coach, and they were off to a terrific start last year. So, it's not that surprising to me that Tulane has figured it out. It had the personnel coming into the season to make some noise in that league.
Big 12
2:11
Texas and TCU are starting to separate themselves from the rest of the conference.  What needs to happen over the next couple of weeks (regardless of who wins the series in Fort Worth) for both to secure a top 8 seed?
Kendall Rogers
2:11
Big 12 -- If Texas wins those two home series against Texas Tech and WVU (even with a TCU series loss), it's hard to imagine the Longhorns aren't a top eight national seed. The same goes for the Frogs if they take care of business in all those series, and even lose the Texas series. We'll see, though. Whoever wins that TCU-Texas series is a dead-set lock in my book.
SCott Gorgen
2:13
UCI moves into the top 25 this week after taking down the Pac's #3 team (OSU). They are now 7-6 against the Pac-12 with key series coming up (LBSU-UCSB). Is there a path to the Eaters potentially hosting?!
Aaron Fitt
2:13
Heck, that's starting to become a possibility, with an RPI of No. 36, and series upcoming vs. Long Beach, at UCSB. Let's say they win 5 of those 8 games to get to 21-7 in the Big West on host announcement day (May 10). Feels like the road games at UCSB will help them in the RPI. There's a shot!
Willie M
2:14
What is Nebraska’s ceiling? Could you see them hosting a regional even as a low to mid 2-seed
Kendall Rogers
2:14
Willie -- I was just talking to a coach this morning about Nebraska, and he thought NU was the most 'complete' team in the Big Ten with the most upside of any team he has seen in that league. I thought that was pretty illuminating.
SEC Fan
2:19
Who has been the most surprising player in SEC play for you guys this year? Either good or bad?
Kendall Rogers
2:19
SEC -- Bad: Jud Fabian (so far) -- though Jud is still hitting for power,  Good: Tyler Miller. Miller would be in the POY discussion if he wasn't playing for the last place team in the league.
Kendall Rogers
2:19
All right gang -- that's all the time we have this week. We hope you enjoyed it!
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