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Goat Holder
Guest
I think you're right. In baseball it's better to not get too up or too down at any point in the season. Anything can happen in a short series. However, if the same problems persist for a month or more, then it's time to start worrying. One weekend is not a big deal. I have no doubt that your team will work out the kinks and be playing well by SEC play. The West title will likely come out of the state of Mississippi this year one way or another.
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Goat Holder
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I'm concerned about pitching, but it's the same staff we had last year. We outhit people last year, not outpitched them. We have to settle into a lineup sooner or later. Also last year, we had been playing well in the middle of the season, and almost completely tanked out right before and during the SEC tourney. And then just that quick, look what happened. None of this would be a big deal if Ole Miss wasn't good, I'll admit that.
The list of examples of why you shouldn't get upset over college baseball is long and distinguished. Front and center is Oregon State.
The list of examples of why you shouldn't get upset over college baseball is long and distinguished. Front and center is Oregon State.
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Goat Holder
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good pitching and great hitting. Aside from Matt Smith possibly having a horrendous injury, it was a great start.
But on the basketball side, that's still embarassing.
But on the basketball side, that's still embarassing.
I'll tell you what I'm worried about- we went 1-2 to North Florida. North <17>'in Florida and we couldn't get anyone out. THAT is reason for concern. Is the season over? No. Can they turn it around? Maybe, Polk is going to have to make changes, and we will probably burn the two decent pitchers out that we have in the process. Does that have anything to do with Ole Miss? No.
We should have swept North Florida, and instead we get lit up like a Christmas tree.
I will say that the only relevance this has to Ole Miss is that they are in the SEC and we aren't going to be able to beat anyone in the SEC- not LSU, UGA, or anyone else in the SEC if we keep pitching like this.
We should have swept North Florida, and instead we get lit up like a Christmas tree.
I will say that the only relevance this has to Ole Miss is that they are in the SEC and we aren't going to be able to beat anyone in the SEC- not LSU, UGA, or anyone else in the SEC if we keep pitching like this.
My question, don't you have some freshmen pitchers or redshirted guys that haven't pitched yet?
If so, then you never know that one of them won't step up. Twice in our past 3 seasons, we've found a great weekend starter sometime during the middle of our season. In 2005, Eric Fowler, who had been average before, pitched well during the mid-week, got a weekend job and was a stud for us the rest of the way. In 2006, the same happened with Will Kline. On Nafoom, he was the butt of a lot of jokes because he'd almost always come in and give up 5 or 6 runs in an inning. Then he figured it out and was an ace for our staff for his last year and a half.
As long as you still have more players on your bench to give a shot to, you never know what might happen. By the end of the year, you could be winning games because of your pitching. That might not happen, but one week into the season is not a reason for too much concern.
Edited to add: If Polk is smart, he'll use his mid-weeks to give starts to a lot of the younger pitchers, and he may end up finding himself an ace he didn't know he had.
If so, then you never know that one of them won't step up. Twice in our past 3 seasons, we've found a great weekend starter sometime during the middle of our season. In 2005, Eric Fowler, who had been average before, pitched well during the mid-week, got a weekend job and was a stud for us the rest of the way. In 2006, the same happened with Will Kline. On Nafoom, he was the butt of a lot of jokes because he'd almost always come in and give up 5 or 6 runs in an inning. Then he figured it out and was an ace for our staff for his last year and a half.
As long as you still have more players on your bench to give a shot to, you never know what might happen. By the end of the year, you could be winning games because of your pitching. That might not happen, but one week into the season is not a reason for too much concern.
Edited to add: If Polk is smart, he'll use his mid-weeks to give starts to a lot of the younger pitchers, and he may end up finding himself an ace he didn't know he had.
we pitched Forrest Moore and Micheal Busby this weekend. Moore did well, and Busby struggled. I don't know what Polk plans to do with Swindle, a JUCO pitcher and Paxton Pace. Marquard will likely RS, but we may need him.
Jared Wesson made his debut and struggled. He RS last year after being injured.
I think Moore is the most likely to step up, but that won't be enough.
Jared Wesson made his debut and struggled. He RS last year after being injured.
I think Moore is the most likely to step up, but that won't be enough.
Bunch of Chicken Littles around here shouting that the sky is falling...
It's a series in Florida, and typically we don't do well when we travel to Florida (FSU regional win last year being an exception that proves the rule). Someone also mentioned that North Florida has beaten teams like Miami and Florida in the past, so they're no pushover.
We went 1-2 on a Florida trip-- not unusual. At least it didn't count towards our conference record.
It's a series in Florida, and typically we don't do well when we travel to Florida (FSU regional win last year being an exception that proves the rule). Someone also mentioned that North Florida has beaten teams like Miami and Florida in the past, so they're no pushover.
We went 1-2 on a Florida trip-- not unusual. At least it didn't count towards our conference record.
In all seriousness, I've long believed MSU baseball doesn't do well on the road in Florida. While I know North Florida isn't SEC-caliber, it's safe to say that:
1. The Ospreys have been looking forward to this series for months.
2. North Florida has done well against other prominent D-1 colleges in the past.
3. The Atlantic Sun is a good college baseball league.
I think a lot of people thought MSU would sweep the Ospreys. When we go on the road for a 3-game series, I hope to go at least 2-1 regardless of who we play. 1-2 is only slightly disappointing when you consider it's the beginning of the season.
I'm not going to worry until conference play starts. That's when you separate the pretenders from the contenders.
Edited Point 1 for clarification.
1. The Ospreys have been looking forward to this series for months.
2. North Florida has done well against other prominent D-1 colleges in the past.
3. The Atlantic Sun is a good college baseball league.
I think a lot of people thought MSU would sweep the Ospreys. When we go on the road for a 3-game series, I hope to go at least 2-1 regardless of who we play. 1-2 is only slightly disappointing when you consider it's the beginning of the season.
I'm not going to worry until conference play starts. That's when you separate the pretenders from the contenders.
Edited Point 1 for clarification.
They finished 24-32 last year. Boyd ranked them #161 in his final rankings last year.
Boyd ranked the Atlantic Sun #17 in his final conference rankings last year.
You can't seriously be comparing this North Florida team to the Florida, Miami, and Florida St. teams we've played in Florida in the past. That's laughable.
I'm not particularly surprised we lost 2 of 3. I said last week that might happen. But I'm very disappointed in the way we lost 2 of 3, giving up 23 runs in the last 11 innings of the series. Especially when an All-SEC pitcher didn't even pitch in the series until we were down 11-4 in the 7th inning on Sunday and 3 pitchers who threw a combined 4 shutout innings on Friday night all sat in the dugout and watched.
I've said all pre-season that our pitching would be a problem. It's very early, but so far, I couldn't have been more right about that.
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Goat Holder
Guest
1. Polk will be replaced at some point. Thinking that losing to N. Fla. is okay b/c it was in Fla will always be ridiculous. So nothing wrong with discussing his replacement.
2. Seeing as how this was the first 3 games of the year, I would hope we've been looking forward to this for months.
2. Seeing as how this was the first 3 games of the year, I would hope we've been looking forward to this for months.
Which is good for a team in their third year of D-1 baseball. I expect UNF to do well.
#17??? I've always considered the Atlantic Sun to be a Top 15 conference and good for three berths in the regionals each year.
Looking... okay, they only had two regional participants last year, and a couple of their good baseball playing schools recently went to the Sun Belt (FAU and Troy to name two). I still think of FAU baseball as a Trans American, er, Atlantic Sun team.
That's where my first point in my previous post comes to play. I don't think we're that far apart.
Point taken.
If this were a midseason series, I would have called this past weekend's games a trap series. I think the Bulldogs overlooked the Ospreys, and they went 1-2.
To say we lost would be a disservice to them.
The last 2 days of the weekend, they had our way with us, federal pound-me-in-the-*** prison style en route to a combined 2 day score of 28-15.
If the games were even remotely close, I can understand making excuses as to where we played and how we overlooked them, but getting beat by that much over 2 games leaves no room for any of that ****. We shouldn't be giving up double-digit runs to teams like that.
Those kinds of excuses after *** beatings is the same kind of **** the sheep gobble up like when Croom said he figured Maine would beat us by 2 touchdowns at home and was surprised it was so close.
The last 2 days of the weekend, they had our way with us, federal pound-me-in-the-*** prison style en route to a combined 2 day score of 28-15.
If the games were even remotely close, I can understand making excuses as to where we played and how we overlooked them, but getting beat by that much over 2 games leaves no room for any of that ****. We shouldn't be giving up double-digit runs to teams like that.
Those kinds of excuses after *** beatings is the same kind of **** the sheep gobble up like when Croom said he figured Maine would beat us by 2 touchdowns at home and was surprised it was so close.
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