Preseason Discussion Thread

[WuDrWu]

As always, starting healthy and staying healthy is a huge key to long term success, and I don't care how much "next man up" mentality you have hammered into the guys. Your best guys are your best guys, period.

Interested/impatient to see the rotation this weekend. Will it be somewhat as expected or will we see a surprise or two?

If we can be consistent up the middle (Cadena, Sigrist, Stewart, Stroh) and great at the corners (expecting big things from Kocis and Casserilla) along with being good at RF LF & DH (where I expect Tolle to be really strong) then we'll return to the tournament and perhaps be a dangerous team if the pitching can round into form.

I expect nothing less than their best from this coaching staff, and neither do they. Let's get it on!

[Shocktoberfest]

As always, starting healthy and staying healthy is a huge key to long term success, and I don't care how much "next man up" mentality you have hammered into the guys. Your best guys are your best guys, period.

Interested/impatient to see the rotation this weekend. Will it be somewhat as expected or will we see a surprise or two?

If we can be consistent up the middle (Cadena, Sigrist, Stewart, Stroh) and great at the corners (expecting big things from Kocis and Casserilla) along with being good at RF LF & DH (where I expect Tolle to be really strong) then we'll return to the tournament and perhaps be a dangerous team if the pitching can round into form.

I expect nothing less than their best from this coaching staff, and neither do they. Let's get it on!

So if we are really good at every position?

[WuDrWu]

I don't think we have the front line pitching to be a 1 seed or host. I can easily see this team a 2 seed. You have to be top 16 to host and that's an awfully high bar when you consider how many programs are out there with top line talent. To say nothing of ECU in our own league.

It ain't the mid 90s anymore. We will have to start with knocking ECU off the mountain top, and that's not going to be easy, to say the least.


Getting in as a 2-3 seed, getting to the finals of the AAC tournament, winning 40+ games and at least 1 in the big dance would be checking an awful lot of boxes in what is essentially season 2 of the rebuild. That would be a heck of a season imho.

[ShockerFever]

So are those your expectations for the year or is that just the max potential?

[WuDrWu]

So are those your expectations for the year or is that just the max potential?

My personal expectations are post season games. But I admit that we need a pitching surprise somewhere and to stay mostly healthy. A repeat of last year’s injuries won’t bode well even though I believe we’re considerably deeper. The schedule and league are very deep.

[WuDrWu]

College Baseball released their tournament field projection and one of their 2 guys has La Tech going to Omaha.

https://www.collegebaseball.info/post/staff-picks-eight-for-omaha

In their field of 64 they have future opponents:


ECU, OSU and La Tech as 1 seed/hosts

Oklahoma as a 2 seed

ORU as a 4 seed.

And WSU as a 3 seed in Lincoln. No other American teams make their field.

They have the SEC with five 1 seeds (and half the National seeds), three 2 seeds and two 3 seeds. Only Missouri, Texas A&M, Kentucky and Alabama don't make their field. Wonder what happens when OU and UT get added? You know UT is in every year.

[WuDrWu]

My personal expectations are post season games. But I admit that we need a pitching surprise somewhere and to stay mostly healthy. A repeat of last year’s injuries won’t bode well even though I believe we’re considerably deeper. The schedule and league are very deep.

Even though we haven't played a game yet, I would have to admit that seeing Payton Tolle as our projected number 2 starter qualifies in my book as a pitching surprise. We waited a couple of weekends into last season to hand the ball to Jace. We had guys like Stumpy, LJ, Gifford & Hynes available last year, and now. And Eric and Pelf decide on a freshman to be our Saturday guy.

That seems to be a pleasant surprise.

I expect Will Stevens to be strong. He can be a mid 90s guy with movement. If Tolle is the real deal, our weekends just got a lot more interesting, in a good way.

[WuDrWu]

XC is D1 Baseball's #58 impact freshmen on their top 100 frosh list. Tulane has several on that list.

[WuDrWu]

D1 Baseball announces their field of 64.

La Tech is a 2 at the Austin Regional.

Oklahoma is a 3 at the Starkville Regional.

East Carolina hosts.

Oral Roberts is the 4 at the Stillwater Regional (Oklahoma State hosts).

Iowa is the 3 seed at the Gainsville Regional.


I just can't see the American getting only 1 team in, even if it's a host in ECU and even if WSU doesn't get in. But to ensure more than one team gets in, we have to win a lot of games non conference.

[pogo]

XC is D1 Baseball's #58 impact freshmen on their top 100 frosh list. Tulane has several on that list.

XC is still THE guy until I see someone else to move him from my #1