UCLA vs Rutgers game 1
This is technically Week 9, but I’m not waiting to write about what might be the new best baseball game I’ve ever attended. On Friday, I went up to New Brunswick with my dad to see the future national champions and future Golden Spikes winner, Roch Cholowsky, take on Rutgers, looking for their 25th consecutive win. Little did I know, I was about to get an experience that only happens in college baseball. Rutgers started off with a 1 run lead after a Charlie Meglio single scored Tristan Salinas from second. Then, in the third inning, UCLA tied it up after Zack Konstantinovsky hit Roch Cholowsky, Mulivai Levu, and Payon Brennan, while walking Roman Martin for a total of 4 walks in just one inning. Then, after that, 10 innings of nearly nothing on offense from either team. The star of this game was obviously Logan Reddemann, who struck out 18 Scarlet Knights in 8 innings, allowing just 3 baserunners total. Both teams combined for 45 strikeouts, with 30 coming from UCLA and 15 from Rutgers. Finally, Cashel Dugger was able to score Roman Martin from third to give UCLA the lead. Aidan Espinoza added in two insurance runs, and that was enough to finally end this game. If you’ve never been to a college baseball game, you’re missing out. You might not be treated to a 14 inning showdown, but you’ll get an experience you can’t get in any other sport.
Bethune Cookman
Strange is probably the best word to describe this LSU season. The defending national champions have taken losses to McNeese, Northeastern, Louisiana, Sacramento State, and, most recently, Bethune Cookman. Then they followed up that loss by being swept by new arch rival Ole Miss, with a fight breaking out in the stands. That week 3 game this fall might need the national guard to keep the peace.
Georgia Tech-Florida State
One of the most anticipated series of the season so far went down in Atlanta between the Seminoles and Yellow Jackets. Game 1 was the battle we expected this series to be, with Tech pulling out the win after a three run 6th inning and some bad baserunning from Florida State. The next two games weren’t as competitive. Tech won game two 8-3, and ended game three in the 7th inning with a final score of 17-3. FSU is a strong team, but they have some things to work on before they can be considered a title contender.
Jim Schlossnagle gets a warm welcome from College Station
A&M’s former manager had to have expected this response when he made the decision to leave the national champion runner up Aggies for the rival Texas Longhorns. Schloss was greeted by loud boos before game 1, and that harassment continued throughout the series. The Aggies took games 1 & 2 of the series, with Jim Schlossnagle’s nightmare ending early due to game three getting rained out.
Golden Spikes Update:
Roch Cholowsky: .331/.464/.699 with 1.134 OPS and 13 home runs
Justin Lebron:.266/.394/.545 with .999 OPS and 11 home runs
NPOTY:
Cameron Flukey: Still injured
Underrated: Troy
The Trojans are still under .500, but they did pick up a series win over a very solid Arkansas State team in early April. The tournament seems out of reach without winning the Sun Belt, but anything’s possible.
Overrated: Georgia Tech
This take peaked after Georgia State’s upset win in February and has gotten worse by the game. This team is a strong National Title contender that has been dominating the ACC since conference play began. An early exit in regionals is the only way to salvage this pick.
National Champions: UCLA
It was an honor to see the future National Champions in person. Since my last college baseball article, the Bruins went on a legendary 27 game winning streak that just ended recently to UC Santa Barbara. While Georgia Tech and North Carolina might have something to say, this team is obviously the best in the country.
