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D1Baseball Weekly Chat: Feb. 28
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Ted D
1:26
Would love your take on whether the challenges posed by COVID are behind us this season? Have there been changes in protocols?
Aaron Fitt
1:26
So far, it seems like COVID protocols are far more relaxed than they were a year ago. As one indication that normalcy is returning, in-person interviews are back for most schools (UNC is still doing postgame zooms, but I can't imagine that will last much longer). And I don't really anticipate that we'll see the kind of COVID schedule disruptions we saw last year. Where I live here in Durham, mask mandates remain in effect everywhere -- but feels like the rest of the country has pretty much decided to move on and not worry about COVID anymore. Really doesn't feel like COVID pauses are coming this spring.
FittsMagic
1:30
The ACC, as a whole, has scheduled lots of cupcakes (yes, UM-UF is this weekend) prior to conference play. How do you think this will be looked at later in the year by the committee?
Aaron Fitt
1:30
Well, let's  give credit where it's due -- beyond Miami/Florida, we've got Georgia Tech/Georgia, Clemson/South Carolina, UNC/Coastal and FSU/Cal this weekend; and we just had UNC/ECU and Duke/Baylor this past weekend. The ACC only has three nonconference weekends, and I have to imagine the other power conferences didn't schedule many more difficult nonconference series than those.
FtWorth
1:32
TCU feels like it's just lurking as a sleeping giant at #16...is there a path to #1 for them?
cool 1
Kendall Rogers
1:32
FTW -- I've been pretty pleased with TCU through two weekends. Austin Krob has been outstanding as the staff ace, Brett Walker is proving to be a quality addition and Riley Cornelio put together a strong start this past weekend against Nebraska. Furthermore, Tommy Sacco, not Brayden Taylor, is TCU's leading hitter right now. That's a good sign moving forward.
Roger
1:33
What team/player are you looking most forward to seeing this weekend in Houston?  What about matchup?
Kendall Rogers
1:33
Clearly, the game of the weekend is LSU vs. Texas Saturday night. As for the player/team, I'm just really intrigued to see new-look LSU against good competition with that offensive lineup.
BeaverBeliever
1:33
The Beavs look mature and deep, and are heading back to Corvallis this weekend with Irvine heading in. How big of a statement can they make in that series?
Aaron Fitt
1:33
Big weekend for sure, against an Irvine team that was very good last year and was a preseason Top 25 team this spring. Right now, Oregon State's best wins are two against WCC favorite Gonzaga in week one -- those are nice wins, but adding a couple more against Irvine would be big for OSU's nonconference resumé. And it will be a big test if the Beavs are indeed without Jake Pfennigs; we'll see on that. If Will Frisch is indeed out for a while, as KR suggested above, Oregon State really needs Pfennigs healthy soon. That projected rotation was a huge reason I liked OSU to win the Pac entering the year. As impressive as that team has been so far, I would be much less bullish on its chances if that rotation gets more depleted.
Alex from Atascocita
1:36
ECU's offense has been abysmal through 7 games, single handedly costing them 3 wins. (IMO). Do you see this as just a slow start or more so along the lines of guys no longer having the protection of players like Norby, Fransico and Caddell.
Aaron Fitt
1:36
I think it's both. We absolutely expected some kind of offensive dropoff after losing All-America-caliber bats like Norby and Francisco... but it's not like the cupboard is bare. Worrell, Agnos, Moylan and Makarewicz are all much better hitters than they've shown so far. They'll get it going. Cliff Godwin was clearly unhappy with his team's offensive approach after Saturday's loss, but something tells me Cliff will find a way to get his message across. That was a pretty huge bounceback win last night to avoid getting swept. Plenty of time for the Pirates to get going.
Pokes
1:38
Any news on Hueston Morrill? Did Roc Riggio take his spot already or do we think he is injured? This question obviously stems from Marcus Brown and Roc Riggio playing middle infield with Nolan McLean at 3B for both games this weekend.
Aaron Fitt
1:38
I haven't heard if Morrill is injured; I can inquire about that. But I do know that Josh Holliday said last week that he planned to experiment with some different lineup combinations, including McLean at third base. Brown is really a middle infielder by trade, so sliding him back to the middle makes sense, even though I thought he played well at third base in Nashville. Anyway, this OSU team has a lot of depth and versatility, and it wouldn't surprise me to see them move guys around a good bit to find out which combinations work best.
Phil
1:39
Which team has exceeded expectations the most so far and who has disappointed the most?
Kendall Rogers
1:39
Phil -- Maryland on the positive side. We as a staff thought the Terps would be pretty solid, but to go 6-0 against Baylor AND Campbell on the road? That's really loud. That result surprised me a little. As for the biggest disappointment so far, it would have to be Nebraska. We strongly considered and struggled with the idea of not having the Huskers ranked coming into the season. But they've been dreadful if I'm being honest.
Wilbur
1:42
How concerned should I be after the Miami loss and a 2-1 win against Harvard? Rosario has regressed greatly and the bats cant seem to figure out lefties these past two years. Is hoping for an apperence in Omaha too much?
Aaron Fitt
1:42
Not a great start for Rosario but I think it's too early to say he's "regressed"; it's February, let's give him a little time to find his footing. On the flip side, I think you should be encouraged by how well Palmquist has adapted to a starting role, and by how well Garland has pitched on Sundays. There is a lot of exciting young talent in that lineup, and I do think Miami has Omaha upside if it comes together. Excited to see how that team fares against Florida, should be a fun series.
cool 1
RollWave
1:42
Tulane took a series in Rustin against a very good LaTech team, and has the national champs coming to town this weekend. Any chance they move into the Top 25 with a series win?
Kendall Rogers
1:42
RollWave -- I would feel very confident in saying that Tulane will be in our Top 25 if it wins that MSU series. Strong weekend at the Love Shack. That is not an easy place to play, as LSU found out. And the Green Wave double dipped the DH on Sunday to win the series. Dylan Carmouche has been outstanding on the mound, and I'm excited to see what he does against his former team (MSU) this weekend.
BigTex
1:43
With the toughest week of the non conference schedule on tap this week for Texas, what should my expectations be for the Horns in four games against SHSU, Tennessee, LSU and UCLA? Does 4-0 feel like a huge ask?
Kendall Rogers
1:43
Temper your expectations, Big Tex. I would say a 2-2 (going 2-1 in Shriners) or 3-1 week would be satisfying if I am being honest. That's a tough slate for the Horns this week.
Greg
1:44
Has Tulane jumped ECU as favorites in the American?
Aaron Fitt
1:44
So much depends on whether Carson Whisenhunt returns or not, and right now that's just an unknown. With him, ECU has a first-team All-America ace with top-five-pick upside; that's just a huge difference maker. Without him, I still think ECU will be better than it has been so far -- but I would regard the AAC race as wide open. Tulane, UCF and USF would all be right there in the discussion for me.
Random123
1:46
Thoughts on OVC teams such as Tennessee Tech, Belmont, SEMO and Murray State having early success? Are these solid baseball teams or is it a result of weaker schedules, minus SEMO series vs DBU?
Aaron Fitt
1:46
Good question; I'm reserving judgment, but those clubs have put themselves on the radar. SEMO and Tennessee Tech in particular, because both of them beat some good competition in week one (TTU went 3-0 against Oral Roberts, Radford and South Alabama -- that's a solid slate there).
Tony in Raleigh
1:48
NC State is obviously off to a great start with Tommy White and all...but the one thing that concerns me is the fielding. I am not sold on Cozart behind the plate, and the infield defense seems shaky to me. Any cause for concern? Love D1 Baseball guys....great site!
Aaron Fitt
1:48
I haven't seen the Wolfpack in person yet, so I can't weigh in on the defense, but I will say that having a true freshman at catcher and shortstop is not ideal, and that's probably the reason we had NC State just outside our preseason top 10, rather than ranked higher. I do think Cozart and Payton Green have bright futures, but those are two positions you'd love to have a little more experience, in a perfect world.
RFBleacherCreature
1:49
Tigers and Gamecocks this weekend in the one of the best rivalries in college baseball.  Early thoughts?  Winner jumping into the top 25? It's odd seeing both teams unranked going into the series
Aaron Fitt
1:49
It is odd, you're right. But yes, I suspect whichever team wins the series will break into the Top 25; both teams have talent, and both have gotten off to strong starts.
Andrew
1:52
Who’s the biggest sleeper that could make a big impact come tournament time? Any high ranked teams that you could see fading out?
Kendall Rogers
1:52
Not sure about ranked teams fading out. Hard to predict that. But one team I do think will be a very tough out, assuming they make a regional, is Louisiana Tech. Anytime you have a veteran team with all three weekend starters back, you catch my attention. Add in the fact the Bulldogs are battle-tested in a regional and that intrigues me even more.
Eddie
1:53
What impressed you the most about the Tarheels
Aaron Fitt
1:53
I already liked their position player group coming into the season, and I particularly liked Vance Honeycutt, a guy I've been talking up since October. So the success of the lineup is no surprise to me. I wanted to see how the rotation would shake out, and I've been very impressed with how strong Max Carlson has returned (I wrote about him on Saturday), and how Brandon Schaeffer has fared in the Friday starter role. Also really like how their bullpen pieces fit together. UNC feels like a legit contender to me; they've answered the questions I had about their pitching to my satisfaction.
BigBlueFan
1:54
What does Clark Elliott at Michigan have to do to work his way into day one category?
Aaron Fitt
1:54
Really good player off to a strong start. If he keeps performing, I could see him being a day one guy, maybe a Jackie Bradley Jr. type profile?
Doug
1:56
Baylor bounced back after a tough opening weekend.  How do you see them doing this weekend in Houston?
Kendall Rogers
1:56
This weekend will be interesting. I was encouraged by Baylor's pitching for much of the weekend against Duke. Tyler Thomas tossed six shutout innings and allowed just one hit and Jake Jackson, who if you read my stuff, is a guy I was high on before the season. He allowed one run in seven innings. That's a good development going into a tough tourney field.
Andy
1:57
Thoughts on Rutgers?
Kendall Rogers
1:57
ANDY -- Rutgers was improved last season, and the Scarlet Knights are off to the best start in school history -- at least I'm pretty sure RU tweeted that out the other day. Steve Owens is an outstanding coach, so it's not surprising to see this program continue to make strides. Outscoring UNCW 14-5 in two games is pretty impressive. Richie Schiekofer, Nick Cimillo and Evan Sleight are off to fantastic starts. Schiekhofer in particular is hitting .520!
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