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D1Baseball Weekly Chat: March 11
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Kendall Rogers
12:38
Privately, anyone who has been on or is on the committee says they want to seed 1-64, but I think I'd be surprised if it happens anytime soon. The issue? Most of the committees in other sports don't have time to follow the sport throughout the season, and baseball is a very long season with 300+ teams. That means there's likely more room for error in seeding 1-64. But again, I'd love to see us make it work as a sport.
Oxford Bald Eagle
12:38
Will the ever seed the entire field where 1 plays 64, 2 plays 63, regardlesss of geography?  It just makes the Southern Miss path to Omaha so much harder than an Oral Roberts or somebody out west...
Aaron Fitt
12:38
I don't think they'll ever do that, because there are good reasons to keep geography as something of a factor -- makes it easier for visiting fans to go to games, for instance. Southern Miss playing Louisiana Tech in Corvallis in front of a smaller crowd is not as good as Southern Miss playing Louisiana Tech in Starkville in front of a rocking crowd, for instance. Obviously travel costs are another issue, though the tournament is making money and I don't think that should be the primary driver.
Clint
12:40
Early golden spikes candidates?  Or clear early favorite?
Aaron Fitt
12:40
I'll give you four early favorites, two hitters and two pitchers: Charlie Condon, Travis Bazzana, Hagen Smith and Chase Burns.
Big 12
12:41
Any quick thoughts on the Big 12 after opening weekend?
Kendall Rogers
12:41
The league continues to look very wide open. I was encouraged by the way Oklahoma played this past weekend against UCF. I'm not remotely concerned about TCU -- was more so impressed with Kansas' ability to win that series. Texas showed me something over the weekend. Still not convinced the Horns have a very good pitching staff, but time will tell. As for Texas Tech, it most certainly will hit -- but the pitching staff -- somehow again -- is an issue.
Brad
12:42
Team, I love the job your doing! Can Coastal hang with the Wake Forest’s, Duke, # 1 seeds in regionals? I know Duke was 5-3 this year, but midweek.
Aaron Fitt
12:42
Coastal's offense is good enough to beat anybody, and I think the pitching staff is shaping up to be solid enough behind that offense. I can't shake the feeling that these Chants are going to find their way to Omaha in Gary Gilmore's farewell -- it just seems meant to be. And they're good enough to do it.
WC_Drew
12:46
This Fullerton team has been quite inconsistent with their bats with two weekends of explosive offense and two weekends of virtually no offense. Which one of those offenses is the real offense for CSUF or do you see them being a very inconsistent team with their bats? Thanks!
Aaron Fitt
12:46
I have no idea what to think of the Titans now! As Eric Sorenson pointed out in his piece on Fullerton this weekend, they entered this weekend hitting .219 as a team, and then they go out and score double-digit runs three games in a row against Jacksonville. The actual Fullerton offense feels somewhere in between -- I don't think they'll be world beaters most of the time, but they're probably better than the early numbers showed. But I think we still have a lot to learn about this club.
Will
12:46
Which team do you feel the most uncertain about (weak non-con, slow out of the gate, etc.) a month into the season? On the other hand, which do you have the best gauge on?
Kendall Rogers
12:46
Most certain -- Duke. I think it's abundantly clear at this point the Blue Devils are going to have a very good regular season. Uncertain for me would be Florida. I'm not convinced the Gators are a Top 10 team right now. The good news? Sully's Gators have FSU at home and A&M at home this weekend. We'll find out in the next 6-7 days.
RazorSaint
12:48
Do you think the Razorback offense is starting to pick up or were the two wins on Saturday and Sunday more of an issue with the McNeese Defense and Pitching?
Aaron Fitt
12:48
I did not follow the games against McNeese, but I have been saying since the beginning that Arkansas is going to hit, it was only a matter of time before the Hogs get hot -- I like the personnel. And getting Peyton Stovall back now is certainly quite helpful. I don't think the Hogs will be an elite offense, but I think they'll be plenty good enough behind that elite pitching staff.
Guest
12:50
What do you think about Fresno State early in?
Aaron Fitt
12:50
Our man Mike Rooney just made a comment in our staff chat that Fresno State feels "Sun Belt-ish" to him. I don't know what that means, but I'm pretty sure it's a compliment! Fresno has played a solid schedule and currently ranks 15th nationally in ERA, so that's very encouraging. And as we saw this weekend, the Bulldogs can score runs in bunches too. Feels like the team to beat in that league, and a chance to be among the best in the West this year.
Weston
12:53
What a weekend in the Big 12. TCU and Tech drop series. UT rebounds. KU maybe better than expected? What are your thoughts? How do you make sense of it?
Aaron Fitt
12:53
I've been screaming from the rooftops about Kansas since the fall, when I really liked what I saw from that club in a scrimmage at Oklahoma State. The Jayhawks were one of my favorite sleeper teams this year -- love what they did in the portal, and they had some very nice veteran pieces back in the lineup as well. But KU got off to an uneven start so it was good to see them make some noise this weekend. TCU, of course, will be just fine -- that team remains one of the nation's best, despite its drop in our rankings. No idea what to make of Texas right now, but they showed us something this weekend, that's a heck of a bounceback from Minute Maid. That Big 12 race might just be a roller coaster ride this year; buckle up.
Tim P.
12:54
As a longtime fan, painfully watching the Jayhawks, it looks like they have a lot of really good baseball players on the Kansas team.  Lots of talk about some players but looks like Brooks may be the most complete player on that team offensively and defensively.
Kendall Rogers
12:54
The thing I really like about Michael Brooks is that not only is he talented, but he has seen and gone through a lot of baseball in his career. For my money, I think Jake English is the most dangerous player in that lineup -- at least when I saw those guys up close. Seems like Lenny Ashby has been pretty dangerous, too. On the mound, heard murmurs of Hunter Cranton touching 99-100 over the weekend.
TxBaseball
12:56
The poll inertia for TCU is... formidable. Hard for me to understand how the Frogs keep getting the benefit of the doubt despite a pretty lackluster start to the season.
Kendall Rogers
12:56
I wouldn't call TCU's start to the season lackluster. It's 8-0 against the Pac-12, went 3-0 Opening Weekend, and until this past weekend, had taken care of business against every team it had faced. I think the Frogs have a very solid offensive lineup. And while the pitching staff is far from a finished product, there are plenty of intriguing pieces present. I'd argue we probably hit TCU a little too harshly this week.
Arch
12:57
Is there a reality where SBC baseball gets 5-6 bids a year in the postseason? They have 4 a piece in each of the last 2 seasons. Is the SBC be recognized as a power baseball league?
Aaron Fitt
12:57
You know, 5-6 still feels a bit ambitious, but it is encouraging that most of the league has gotten off to good starts, and there aren't any teams with dreadful records in nonconference play dragging down the other regional contenders. In fact, right now the Sun Belt ranks fourth in nonconference winning percentage, behind only the ACC, SEC and Big 12. And that feels about right for where the Sun Belt fits in the pecking order right now; it feels better than the Pac this year, on the whole. Feels like the No. 4 conference.
Guest
12:59
Is Nebraska in consideration to be ranked?
Aaron Fitt
12:59
Certainly -- I like that body of work so far, with quality series wins at Grand Canyon, CofC and vs. South Alabama. We just didn't have any open spots in the rankings this week, but I'd put Nebraska on the short list of teams just outside the Top 25, along with Florida State, Georgia, Northeastern, Virginia Tech, a few others.
Danny
1:00
Really excited for SEC play to begin.  A&M at Florida is the headliner this weekend.  What other series are you most interested in?  Any we should keep an eye on that will fly under the radar?
Kendall Rogers
1:00
The only bad series this weekend is probably Missouri against Arkansas. For under the radar, I think South Carolina vs. Ole Miss is intriguing. I think we find out a bit about both teams this weekend. I also have my eye on how Georgia looks this weekend. I've seen UK, so I know what it is capable of.
MW
1:01
Does the Big Ten still run through Maryland? They haven't seemed to have lost a step under Swope
Aaron Fitt
1:01
Heck, maybe so, huh? Iowa was the clear favorite heading into the year but obviously they Hawkeyes have not gotten off to a good start, albeit against a tough schedule. I still like Indiana and Rutgers also, but there's Maryland at 12-4 with solid series wins at Charlotte and Ga Southern, plus decent wins against Pitt and Georgetown. I certainly don't think Maryland is as good as it was the last two years, but it does appear the Terps will remain right there in the hunt for the Big Ten title. Plenty of talent on that roster, especially in the position player group.
Aaron Fitt
1:01
OK folks, that's all I have time for this week, thanks for all the great questions! See you next week.
cool 1
Tennyson
1:05
Hey Kendall, fellow Ag here, what are you looking for from the boys against Florida this weekend, and how concerning was last night? I think that’s just baseball, and it’s hard to dominate every single game… but, supposedly we should have a deeper bullpen on Sunday than R.I. Thoughts?
Kendall Rogers
1:05
Tenny -- Obviously, it will be a big test this weekend for A&M to go on the road against Florida. I feel like the Gators haven't played to their expected level, so they'll be looking to make a statement this weekend. I think A&M's bullpen will be fine. I'm more so curious to see how the backend of the rotation fares this weekend. Prager/Jones/Lamkin have been really good, but Florida is a sizable step up in competition.
Hardball Fan
1:08
Indiana has sputtered after a nice start down at Coastal. Hoosiers haven't played well at home, either. What do you make of them?

Likewise, what do you make of Indiana State this season? Very Early RPI has them at 33 and Indiana in the 50s.
Kendall Rogers
1:08
The common denominator for Indiana in all of those losses has been very iffy pitching to say the least. That'll need to improve as Big Ten play nears. As for Indiana State, the Sycamores went on the road a lot in non-conference and played good teams in the process. Thankfully for ISU, it won some of those games. I actually think the Sycs are in a pretty solid spot right now.
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