Baseball Articles
College World Series Preview
Posted by Huckleberry on June 9th, 2009 under Baseball
The 2009 College World Series features two strong favorites in each bracket along with a handful of capable challengers. Pitching and defense is back in full force in college baseball as this year’s field contains seven teams in the Top 16 in the nation at preventing runs. Meanwhile, five teams made it to Omaha despite being outside the national Top 16 in scoring runs. All numbers in this preview for team rankings have been park-adjusted and are based on my ratings. Offense ratings mean that the team in question would be expected to score that many runs, on average, against an average opponent. Defense ratings mean that the team can be expected to hold an opponent that many runs, on average, below their expected output. Please note that I used Boyd Nation’s park factors for all teams except LSU, for whom I recalculated the park factor based on this year’s data alone. The new Alex Box Stadium played as a fairly significant pitcher’s park this season, a big change from the previous version.
The probabilities used for this preview are calculated based on the EWP ratings available via the above ratings link, unlike the regionals preview numbers that were based only on the power ratings. The power ratings method relies solely on runs scored and allowed in each game and doesn’t account for wins and losses. While this is more in line with how betting lines are set, in college baseball there are drawbacks. In a recent extreme example, Florida State’s 37-6 win over Ohio State was exaggerated in these ratings as each run counted equally. Obviously the last 20 runs or so were completely inconsequential to handicapping who would win or lose a game in the future. The Seminoles had already proven their superiority. At the other end of the spectrum, teams that consistently win lower-scoring games are somewhat undervalued in the power ratings method because only the margin of victory is considered and not the scoring ratio. This means that if two teams both beat the same opponent but one team wins 5-1 and one team wins 10-5, the team that wins the higher-scoring game will always receive a greater overall benefit in the power ratings.
The EWP ratings, then, take into account both the power ratings and a team’s win-loss performance against the schedule played. The schedule factor for the win-loss adjustment is based on each opponent’s power rating, so the power rating is still a large factor in the overall assessment. Finally, a team’s expected winning percentage against any given opponent is determined using the log5 method based on each team’s EWP rating. I believe this method should prove to be more accurate in the long-term, but that is purely a gut feeling at this point as I’ve never run a retrodictive or predictive comparison.
Also, while I recognize that this extremely short introduction might not be sufficient to support the use of the stat, please note that I will be including GPA numbers for players and teams. But not that kind of GPA, this will be the Gross Production Average. This value will not be park-adjusted and is calculated as (1.8*OBP+SLG)/4 in all cases. The 1.8 coefficient is borrowed directly from the vast research by MLB statheads, so may not correlate perfectly with college baseball. However, my thought would be that the coefficient should actually be higher in college baseball because of the worse defense compared to the big leaguers. Regardless, 1.8 is what we’re going with.
Ratings and probability tables are available at the end of the preview. Corrections regarding pitching rotations, positions, etc. are encouraged in the comments section.
Bracket One
Bracket One is headed up by the national #2 seed Fullerton Titans. The Titans are the most complete team in Omaha, fielding the #4 offense in the nation with a 9.62 rating as well as the #2 defense at 4.64 runs prevented per game. This makes them the best offense and 2nd best defense in Omaha. Offensively they are led by a trio of hitters with GPAs over .350 – Jared Clark (.351), Josh Fellhauer (.351), and Khris Davis (.356). Fellhauer sports an impressive .485 OBP to go with respectable power while Clark and particularly Davis have impressive power numbers. Davis has 16 home runs to go with 25 doubles on the year, but Clark leads the team with his 81 RBI. I’m not sure who the Titans consider their #1 starter, but it doesn’t much matter as both Daniel Renken (11-2, 2.36 ERA, 98 K, 32 BB 118 IP) and Noe Ramírez (9-1, 2.86 ERA, 96 K, 21 BB, 107 IP) are excellent options. Tyler Pill (11-3, 3.95 ERA, 73 K, 12 BB, 98 IP) is their third starter and appears quite capable, while Nick Ramírez (3-1, 2.63 ERA, 27 K, 9 BB, 37.2 IP) leads the team in saves with 7. Fullerton has a .976 team fielding percentage.
The Arkansas Razorbacks will be the game one opponent for the Titans. By the numbers the Razorbacks look like a Texas-lite type of squad. Their offense is only #69 in the nation at 8.09 runs per game (last out of the 8 teams in the CWS) but they have arrived in Omaha on the strength of their #7 defense, which prevents 3.36 runs per game and is 4th best in Omaha. Andy Wilkins leads the Razorbacks in every offensive category, including nose hair I assume. He sports a .367 GPA for the year thanks to a .457 OBP and .644 SLG to go with his 17 home runs. His closest teammates to that number have .302 GPAs for the season. Arkansas’ pitching staff has an unimpressive 4.50 team ERA and no starters under 4.00 on the year. So why do the Razorbacks rank 7th in the nation at preventing runs? They’ve played the 2nd most difficult schedule in the country this year. Closer Stephen Richards has a 1.09 ERA and 9 saves this season and Arkansas appears to go to the bullpen early and often. They have received approximately 277 innings from their starters this year versus 255 from their bullpen. The Razorbacks have a .969 team fielding percentage for the season.
The LSU Tigers arrive in Omaha with a fairly well-balanced team, although relative to this field they are in a familiar position of being offense-oriented. LSU has the #8 offense in the country at 9.41 runs per game and that’s 2nd best in the field at Omaha. Their defense, while a very respectable #13 nationally preventing 2.98 runs per game, is 6th best in the CWS. The Tiger offense is led by Ryan Schimpf (.365 GPA), Jared Mitchell (.351), and Blake Dean (.342). Surprisingly, at least to me based on history, LSU has attempted 151 stolen bases this year and has succeeded 111 times. Leon Landry, who has 12 home runs, leads the Tigers with 35 steals on 44 attempts. Louis Coleman (13-2, 2.76 ERA, 124 K, 19 BB, 114 IP) and Anthony Ranaudo (10-3, 2.95 ERA, 147 K, 41 BB, 109.2 IP) lead the pitching staff along with closer Matty Ott (16 SV, 2.17 ERA, 63 K, 4 BB, 45.2 IP). Third starter Austin Ross is only 5-7 with a 4.94 ERA, leading me to wonder if the Tigers will look at another option if they get far in Omaha. LSU has a .973 fielding percentage as a team in 2009.
Virginia could be somewhat of a Longhorn fan favorite on the other side of the draw as they got to Omaha by fighting through a ridiculous draw put in front of them by the committee, something with which Texas fans are quite familiar. The Cavaliers took out the great Irvine Anteater program in Irvine before traveling to Mississippi to eliminate the Rebels. An exceptionally well-balanced team, Virginia fields the #14 offense (9.23 runs per game) and #12 defense (3.12 runs prevented per game) in the nation. Those numbers are good for 3rd and 5th in the 8-team CWS field, respectively. Their offense is led by Jarrett Parker who has an excellent .375 GPA for the year, especially considering that Virginia’s homefield plays as a pitcher’s park. Parker has a .684 SLG this season thanks to 16 home runs and 19 doubles along with a .364 batting average. Also contributing strongly is Dan Grovatt (.331 GPA). Virginia has an excellent running game as they have been successful on 116 out of 140 steal attempts this year for a nearly 83% success rate. Danny Hultzen (9-1, 2.09 ERA, 95 K, 27 BB, 86 IP) is the Cavaliers’ ace starting pitcher, and after him Virginia spreads out the starts. Anyone with insight on their rotation is invited to comment. Andrew Carraway has the same number of starts and a nice 8-1 record but has a 4.13 ERA to go with it and appeared only in relief of Robert Poutier (3-0, 2.21 ERA, 50 K, 15 BB, 36.2 IP) during the Super Regional games against Ole Miss. Kevin Arico closes for the Cavaliers and has 11 saves and a 2.06 ERA to go with 45 strikeouts and only 6 walks in 35 innings. Virginia fields .972 as a team.
Bracket Two
The other favorite, according to the numbers, is the national #5 seed Arizona State Sun Devils. Somewhat obscured in the raw totals by their offense-friendly park, the Sun Devils in reality rely on the #1 defense in the nation, a unit that prevents an average of 5.15 runs per game compared to their opponents’ average offensive capability. Their offense comes in 4th out of the teams in the College World Series thanks to a #20 national ranking at 9.09 runs per game. The previously mentioned home park should be kept in mind as the following numbers are listed, of course. Offensively, Jason Kipnis leads the way with an outstanding .405 GPA, which includes a .496 OBP and .729 SLG this year and he’s thrown in 26 steals on 30 attempts for good measure. But he’s not alone as Carlos Ramírez has a .376 GPA good for fourth in the CWS field. All told ASU has 8 players with over 50 ABs and a GPA over .300 for the season. But if we chalk up those numbers to the park, then that makes these pitching numbers more incredible. Mike Leake leads the Sun Devils staff and has posted a 16-1 record, a 1.36 ERA, and 150 strikeouts against 21 walks in 132.2 innings this year. Josh Spence (9-1, 2.33 ERA, 109 K, 25 BB, 88.2 IP) is healthy again based on his showing against Clemson and Seth Blair (7-2, 3.16 ERA, 78 K, 29 BB, 77 IP) offers a third strong starting option for the Sun Devils. The relief work is spread out but Mitchell Lambson leads the team with 5 saves and 28 relief appearances; he has posted an 8-3 record and a 2.77 ERA with 86 Ks and 23 walks in 74.2 innings. ASU has fielded .969 as a team this year.
The North Carolina Tarheels are in Omaha for the fourth consecutive year and are looking for their first national championship having lost consecutive championship series to Oregon State in 2006 and 2007. The Tarheels stormed through their regional and super regional and are another well-balanced team. They have the #23 offense in the country (8.96 runs per game) and the #16 defense (2.91 runs prevented per game). In this tough field, however, those figures are good for 5th and 7th, respectively. Dustin Ackley leads the Tarheel offense with some filthy numbers that have been obtained in a slight pitcher’s park. Ackley has a .412 batting average, 22 home runs, 17 doubles, 50 walks, a .512 on-base percentage, and a .776 slugging percentage that all adds up to a ridiculous .425 GPA for the year. Kyle Seager is no slouch, either, with his .360 GPA being obtained on the strength of a .480 OBP of his own. North Carolina appears to be a classic station-to-station team as they don’t steal often (79 attempts), aren’t good when they do (under 70%, although Ackley and Seager are a combined 26-31), and don’t sacrifice terribly often (40 on the year). Adam Warren (9-2, 3.23 ERA, 97 K, 34 BB, 92 IP) leads the starters and Alex White (8-4, 4.13 ERA, 109 K, 41 BB, 98 IP) is the clear #2. Brian Moran doesn’t lead the Tarheels in saves but is the best reliever on the year. He has 64.2 innings pitched in 34 appearances and a 1.95 ERA with 88 strikeouts and only 8 walks. North Carolina may struggle to find starting pitching later in the tournament. Matt Harvey (7-2, 5.35 ERA, 78 K, 37 BB, 70.2 IP) has the only other start in the postseason. The Tarheels have a .970 team fielding percentage.
The Texas Longhorns are making their record 33rd appearance in Omaha and have won six national titles to date. As the #1 overall seed, coverage of the tournament is sure to make the Longhorns out to be the heavy favorite (like when the ESPN Super Regional coverage made it seem like TCU was some sort of huge underdog story), but the task ahead is daunting. Texas’ offense is rated at 8.12 runs per game, which ranks #66 in the nation and #7 in Omaha. As always, though, the focus is on the defense, a unit that prevents an average of 3.72 runs per game, good for 5th in the country and 3rd in Omaha. Put together, the Longhorns are 6th in the CWS by power rating, but their EWP rating is 3rd in the field. The player stats break down as expected, with Brandon Belt leading the Longhorns with a .336 GPA and only one other player, Kevin Keyes, above .300 for the year. Texas also does not run more than usual with only 93 steal attempts on the season, 70 of which have been successful. The Longhorns basically play a different type of station-to-station baseball where they rely on their 96 sacrifices to move runners to the next base. Where Texas gets their wins is, as usual, pitching and defense. Leading the way is a deep and consistent pitching staff led by Chance Ruffin (10-2, 3.02 ERA, 101 K, 23 BB, 116.1 IP). Freshman Taylor Jungmann (8-3, 2.27 ERA, 86 K, 30 BB, 79.1 IP) has come on late in the season to join Cole Green (5-3, 3.02 ERA, 70 K, 30 BB, 95.1 IP) as the starting mainstays. Brandon Workman (3-3, 3.45 ERA, 78 K, 25 BB, 70.1 IP) may be called on in Omaha if the Longhorns can stick around long enough. Austin Wood is the closer and has 15 saves with a 2.19 ERA, 67 Ks, and 15 walks in 78 innings pitched. Austin Dicharry (8-2, 2.40 ERA, 56 K, 20 BB, 56.1 IP) is another option and is the swingman on the staff, capable of starting if called upon. Keith Shinaberry is the real star, though. Not because of his 1.93 ERA (how has he done that with a .359 opponents’ batting average and a 1.71 WHIP?), but more because he played for Austin High. Texas leads the field with a .979 team fielding percentage.
Southern Mississippi is the huge underdog at the College World Series after winning the Atlanta Regional at Georgia Tech and then sweeping Florida in the Super Regional in Gainesville. Even after their postseason run, though, they bring only the #55 offense (8.40 runs per game) and #36 defense (2.21 runs prevented per game) in the nation to the CWS. Those numbers are 6th and 8th in Omaha, respectively. Southern Miss has a hitter’s park, and Bo Davis leads the way with a .382 GPA, third best in Omaha. He has a .488 OBP to go with his 14 home runs and 10 steals in 12 attempts. Kameron Brunty (.328 GPA) is another significant threat in the Southern Miss lineup and Joey Archer (.304 GPA) has launched 10 homers this season and has 62 RBI. Corey Stevens is the only other hitter over .300 on the year (.305). As a team the Golden Eagles run even less often and even worse than North Carolina (45 steals in 69 attempts on the year) and also have fewer sacrifices (33 on the season). The Southern Miss starters are led by Todd McInnis (9-4, 3.61 ERA, 86 K, 31 BB, 94.2 IP) and JR Ballinger (7-3, 3.89 ERA, 59 K, 35 BB, 83.1 IP). After those two the responibility for starting is spread out among several less-than-fantastic options. Jeff Stanley (4-2, 4.43 ERA, 24 K, 21 BB, 42.2 IP) would appear to be the #3 starter and Scott Copeland (2-5, 6.28 ERA, 22 K, 17 BB, 38.2 IP) has the only other postseason start but lasted only an inning before McInnis came out for the second time in the regional. Collin Cargill (13 SV, 3.32 ERA, 32 K, 20 BB, 38 IP) is the closer. The Golden Eagles’ .966 team fielding percentage is the lowest in Omaha.
Summary
What should happen – Before the tournament started my pick was Arizona State over Fullerton in the championship series. The numbers say there’s no reason to change that pick now. Look for the Sun Devils to finally win another championship after 28 years of waiting.
What’s going to happen – Texas takes advantage of the Southern Miss draw, wins a great game against ASU on Tuesday night, and closes their half out with a win over North Carolina after the Tarheels eliminate a shell-shocked Sun Devil squad. On the other side, the Cavaliers get a huge win over LSU to meet Fullerton on Monday night. The Cavaliers stun the Titans in their first meeting, but the Titans force Game 13 in the rematch. Virginia pulls it out but heads into the championship series with a slightly fatigued staff. Texas jumps on them in the opening game and holds them off in Game 2 of the series to win a 7th national championship. Right?
Obligatory Table
| Team | Power | Offense | Defense | EWP | Finals | Champs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona St. | 14.24 | 9.09 | 5.15 | 0.939 | 59.31% | 38.01% |
| Cal St. Fullerton | 14.26 | 9.62 | 4.64 | 0.933 | 53.28% | 30.56% |
| Texas | 11.84 | 8.12 | 3.72 | 0.888 | 23.31% | 9.65% |
| LSU | 12.39 | 9.41 | 2.98 | 0.885 | 19.23% | 7.19% |
| Virginia | 12.35 | 9.23 | 3.12 | 0.880 | 17.43% | 6.25% |
| North Carolina | 11.88 | 8.96 | 2.91 | 0.870 | 13.44% | 4.76% |
| Arkansas | 11.45 | 8.09 | 3.36 | 0.852 | 10.06% | 2.85% |
| Southern Miss | 10.61 | 8.40 | 2.21 | 0.782 | 3.95% | 0.71% |
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Activity
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whiskey commented on the blog post The week in news- Pariahs, Malcontents and Power Hour 53 seconds ago
I’m with you the off season is already old. I’m ready for the season to start. NDS I am completely fascinated by the Tech vs. Lech business. I can’t believe they ran off the guy that put them on the map and subsequently ended up with an arguable upgrade in Tubs.
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whiskey commented on the blog post Spring Preview: Tech Offense 5 minutes ago
Ded 9-12 wins is pretty optomistic. I like it. I’m really looking forward to seeing what Tubs can do with them this year especially on D. I’m surprised you think the QB battle between Sticks and Nick will be close. Interesting, I figured Sticks was a runaway. I hope Corndog
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dedfischer wrote a new blog post: Spring Preview: Tech Offense 48 minutes ago
Got a little time this morning and I’m rearing to talk some football. Here’s what the depth chart looks like headed into spring and a few thoughts:
Offense
QB Sr. Taylor Potts/Sr. Steven Sheffield – We’ve all annointed Sheffield as the starter, and I think that’s the case if we continue to run 99% of our snaps
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Black Scholes commented on the blog post Texas Hoops vs. Wake Forest: Post Mortem 3 hours, 43 minutes ago
lawdog – on the topic of regression, this crew can’t compare with the senior seasons Thomas and Atchley put up. Something ain’t right in this scenario. Mason topped out his sophomore year and Pittman last year.
Wangmene is ‘Manos de Piedra’ redux, so that was really never going to work out.
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Kevin Berger wrote a new blog post: Top Ten Reasons Why Cal Can Beat Duke 5 hours, 43 minutes ago
This would probably go a bit better if you read it in your Bobby Knight voice and it had two decades worth of goodwill built up from its gratuitous appearance on a popular late night television show. But oh well.
1) Interior Worries. As in the Bears shouldn’t have any defensively
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Kevin Berger wrote a new blog post: Round 2 Saturday Recaps 6 hours, 40 minutes ago
We talked about the upset of the decade in this post, but I watched some other great basketball today I’d like to comment on.
For me, the theme of the day was well-played basketball. I’m not only talking about what Northern Iowa did, I’m talking about the other seven games being really well
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Sailor Ripley commented on the blog post Madness Magic: Northern Iowa Upsets Kansas 6 hours, 53 minutes ago
Just a phenomenal game.
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Sailor Ripley commented on the blog post Recapping The South 7 hours, 4 minutes ago
Udoh was a fargging beast in that game. Very athletic player.
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Sailor Ripley commented on the blog post Because We’re Dedicated To Doing Stupid Things – Tiny Gallon Reportedly Took Payout 7 hours, 28 minutes ago
Jesus. I think I see four horseman on the horizon.
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Kevin Berger wrote a new blog post: Madness Magic: Northern Iowa Upsets Kansas 7 hours, 32 minutes ago
Today reminded me why I love this tournament so much. A good friend of mine mentioned to me that college basketball is the great equalizer of all athletic endeavors. At least of the sports we care about. He’s right.
For instance, you can have a 40 inch vertical, be Iverson quick,
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Nate Heupel commented on the blog post Because We’re Dedicated To Doing Stupid Things – Tiny Gallon Reportedly Took Payout 7 hours, 36 minutes ago
Patrick,
Unless you’re completely retarded, you know precisely what I meant. The closest any Big 12 team has gotten to winning the infamous Fuller Cup is the 2007 Texas squad. I can’t remember a team being that horribly undisciplined as a whole aside from the insane OU teams of the 80’s. That’s not
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Nate Heupel commented on the blog post Because We’re Dedicated To Doing Stupid Things – Tiny Gallon Reportedly Took Payout 7 hours, 36 minutes ago
Patrick,
Unless you’re completely retarded, you know precisely what I meant. The closest any Big 12 team has gotten to winning the infamous Fulmer Cup is the 2007 Texas squad. I can’t remember a team being that horribly undisciplined as a whole aside from the insane OU teams of the 80’s. That’s not
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Sailor Ripley wrote a new blog post: This Is Sparta! 7 hours, 48 minutes ago
Please make yourself welcome and Adam will be by shortly to keep you up to date on all Michigan State Spartan happenings.
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Nickel Rover commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 7 hours, 53 minutes ago
I suppose anyone could be your “favorite Longhorn basketball player” but Ford did more than just about anyone…although Durant is clearly better. Ford’s supporting cast was better than Durant’s in his sophomore year. Durant’s had more talent (Augustin, James, Abrams) but Ford’s was more developed (Boddicker, Ivey, Mouton, Thomas) and had worked with him for
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Nickel Rover commented on the blog post Bradley or Hamilton? 7 hours, 59 minutes ago
Crazy Joe, your thoughts intrigue me and I would like to subscribe to your newsletter.
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Nickel Rover commented on the blog post Bradley or Hamilton? 8 hours, 2 minutes ago
This notion of Hamilton as being a disaster area on defense is all a bit much. He rebounds extremely well which, if it wasn’t obvious, is extremely important in this game since it secures possession of the basketball. Winning in basketball is achieved through the scoring of baskets and it’s necessary to possess the basketball
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Ojnab Bob commented on the blog post Best Opening Round I Can Remember 8 hours, 12 minutes ago
I posted earlier about how Collins’ effort just crippled Kansas today, but what amazed me the most was his complete inability to stay in front of his man on defense. UNI got a LOT of good looks out of penetration/pass after one of UNI’s modestly gifted athletes blew right by Sherron. The best
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Scipio Tex wrote a new blog post: Best Opening Round I Can Remember 9 hours, 24 minutes ago
At least it’s shaping up that way if Sunday delivers.
As disappointed as I was in last year’s opening weekend of March Madness, this one is exceeding all expectations. Putting aside the fact that my bracket now resembles Kabul after the Taliban rolled through in ‘96 – a map of ordered failure –
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J commented on the blog post Bid Dance: Day Three 9 hours, 51 minutes ago
Thanks for the kind words, Trips.
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J commented on the blog post Bid Dance: Day Three 9 hours, 52 minutes ago
You know who’s bitter and angry as fuck? This guy —> ME.
I can only hope our returning players (whoever that may be) remember this and realize they need to play motivated EVERY FUCKING GAME and put forward 40 MINUTES of effort each game.
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Raoul Duke commented on the blog post Rumor Alert–TMG 10 hours, 23 minutes ago
Kid seems like a fantastic collegiate player. I haven’t seen any NBA info. Is he a legit prospect?
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Raoul Duke commented on the blog post Bid Dance: Day Three 10 hours, 30 minutes ago
Tough day for Sherron on O and D.
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GoHornsGo90 commented on the blog post Bradley or Hamilton? 11 hours, 14 minutes ago
To leave or stay?
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Patrick Bateman commented on the blog post NCAA Tournament Open Thread: Weekend Edition 11 hours, 15 minutes ago
KSU moving on led by a hot shooting Pullen. BTW, White Mormons can shoot FTs. 22 for 25, I think. Imagine if we could shoot like that.
Wake’s coming back on Kentucky. They’re within 25 right now…..
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Trips Right commented on the blog post Bid Dance: Day Three 11 hours, 33 minutes ago
Just wanted to say I feel for you guys. As a Texas fan I know how this feels even if it’s from a football perspective.
I still think you’re the best basketball team in the country, and unfortunately you ran into a team that packed a Villanova circa 1985 type game today. Meaning they
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ghostofagroundgame commented on the blog post NCAA Tournament Open Thread: Weekend Edition 11 hours, 43 minutes ago
Wow. Wake won’t break 50. Not surprising really — we should have beaten Wake and they are not a very good team.
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Patrick Bateman commented on the blog post NCAA Tournament Open Thread: Weekend Edition 11 hours, 48 minutes ago
Kentucky doing their best to beat Wake by half hundred. Close call….
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RRR wrote a new blog post: Survive and Advance 11 hours, 52 minutes ago
We really struggled in the first half, but battled through it to get a tough win against Jacksonville. On to Oxford!
Forget what conference they play in, Jacksonville is a very good basketball team, and they got to Lubbock not because of a crazy bank shot at the buzzer in Phoenix, but by playing aggressive, intense defense for
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ghostofagroundgame commented on the blog post NCAA Tournament Open Thread: Weekend Edition 12 hours, 10 minutes ago
The shamrock is on his left shoulder. The Griffin looking thing is on his right.
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ghostofagroundgame commented on the blog post NCAA Tournament Open Thread: Weekend Edition 12 hours, 18 minutes ago
Everytime I see a Gumbel brother I think of “Gumbel to Gumbel”
uthookem said:
June 9th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Over/under on sac bunts against Southern Miss: 3
HenryJames said:
June 9th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
Over/under on people who read this post: 1
Huckleberry said:
June 9th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
I’ll take the under. I don’t think even I read the whole thing.
J.R.69 said:
June 9th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
I read it. The whole thing. My hair still hurts.
Spread Eagle said:
June 9th, 2009 at 2:36 pm
Saw the 3rd game of the TCU series and I, like the rest of the nation, was not impressed. Texas could make it to the finals based on the weaker bracket they have been lucky enough to draw, but, even so, their success is still doubtful. Texas can’t hit worth a shit. Your batters look so small and physically underdeveloped compared to the rest of the field in the CWS and your pitching, while it is good, it is not that good.
If it was not for that God awful starting pitcher for TCU in the third game, you guys would never have qualified for the CWS. Embarassingly enough, you guys still had trouble teeing off a guy who was throwing nothing but sitting ducks for the whole game. Doubt if you all run into a pitcher as bad in the CWS.
On the bright side – if you all need something to hang your hats on – Texas would definitely qualify as the most “All Munckin Team” of this year’s CWS.
Kevin Keyes said:
June 9th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
You talkin to me?
I spread eagled a few southern miss girls back in the day. Good times … now tell me what the fuck a Munckin is?
2009 College World Series Schedule & Information said:
June 9th, 2009 at 3:08 pm
[...] Re: 2009 College World Series Schedule & Information Wasn’t sure where to put this exactly, but here is one guy’s take on the entire CWS, predicting LSU to lose early: College World Series Preview | Barking Carnival [...]
Spread Eagle said:
June 9th, 2009 at 3:12 pm
“what the fuck a Munckin is”
How the hell is anyone dumb enough to ask this silly question? A Munckin would be those little guys everyone has seen dancing and singing on the Wizard of Oz. With the exception of Keyes – technically, there are no black munckins, even with technicolor – the rest of your batters look an awful like those little dudes on the gold brick road.
Your team this year is alot like the PG of your basketball team. It is the Doge Balbay of the college baseball and we all know how well it worked out for him in the post season. It would be reasonable to expect no better for your baseball team in the post season.
Your team can do everything else well except for the most important thing: score. Black mamba Kevin may have no problems with scoring, I’ll give you that, but the rest of your munckin crew won’t be able to say the same. The rest of your hitting lineup look like a bunch of shaved, albino Ewoks in T helmets trying to swing and hit a little white ball, with futility more often than not.
uthookem said:
June 9th, 2009 at 3:53 pm
“It would be reasonable to expect no better for your baseball team in the post season.”
Well, seeing as how we are one of the eight teams left, I’d say it’s working out pretty well for us. But what do I know?
Beaten Dead Horse said:
June 9th, 2009 at 4:27 pm
“How the hell is anyone dumb enough to ask this silly question? A Munckin would be those little guys everyone has seen dancing and singing on the Wizard of Oz.”
It’s “Munchkin” like crotch munch. Which you’d be familiar.
Facebook User said:
June 9th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
I just checked. 10,238 people have read this post. Great stuff, Huck. The Tigers seem to have dug it.
Eauxmaha.
ctex80 said:
June 9th, 2009 at 5:21 pm
Munckin. Ha.
Evil E said:
June 9th, 2009 at 6:43 pm
“Munckin?” You cannot be serious. What happened, did Ole Miss beat you up between classes and steal your “lunc” money? I know you’re familiar with the concept of “h,” your school is in H-H-H-Hattiesburg.
Then again, this may explain why your school’s most famous (only famous?) alum pronounces his last name “F-A-R-V-E”.
Spread Eagle said:
June 9th, 2009 at 7:23 pm
Okay, so I spell “munckin” about as well your pint sized team hits the ball: close but no cigar. I don’t really give a damn. It’s not my problem. I never pretended to be a contestant in the post season of a spelling bee contest.
Odds are high your team will be missing alot of “H’s”, as in hits, in the CWS. Laugh at me and my lack of H’s now. I’m cool with that, but, remember, what comes around also goes around with a vengeance. I’ll just have to sit back and laugh at your team’s lack of H’s in the CWS. Now the question is, will you guys be okay with that?
Watch your pint sized team do a Doge Balbay in the CWS. You guys should be used to by now.
Ha, Ha, Ha.
Bookman said:
June 9th, 2009 at 7:32 pm
“Ha, Ha, Ha.”
Somebody set us up the bomb?
Grammar Police said:
June 9th, 2009 at 7:35 pm
“I’ll just have to sit back and laugh at your team’s lack of H’s in the CWS.”
Two instances of proper apostrophe use, and one instance of improper apostrophe use. A spread eagle jpeg of Spread Eagle’s Mom to the first barker to identify the incorrect instance!
Spread Eagle said:
June 9th, 2009 at 7:53 pm
Is this a fucking sports site or some sport site impersonating as a fucking grammer class?
I would guess it would be the “H’s”, but then how the fuck else are you supposed to express the plural of “H” in the English language, in a concise and convenient manner, if it’s not as “H’s”. It so uncool to spell it completely out as “Heches”.
Also, my mom is fucking dead and has been so for over a decade, you sicko creep. I guess only a person who likes to look at spread eagle poses from 10 year old, dead fucking corpses would also be someone who is so anal about “proper apostrophe use”. It’s so forensic.
Spring Branch Horn said:
June 9th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
At least you have a mom. I am a test tube baby. Even with that I once caught Henry James looking at jpegs of two test tubes, a beaker, and a bunson burner
bat said:
June 9th, 2009 at 8:20 pm
Missing any question marks?
They learn ‘em to talk real good at Attiesburg, dont’ they.
Horn Brain said:
June 9th, 2009 at 8:25 pm
Oh boy. Ya’ll keep going, I’m going to go make some popcorn…
DecentEagle said:
June 9th, 2009 at 8:42 pm
Sorry about the douche Southern Miss fan. Every team has a few. Coming from a Southern Miss alum living here in Austin and attending grad school at UT, good luck Horns.
SEC rules said:
June 9th, 2009 at 9:38 pm
Horns likely don’t get past by Southern Miss, but if they do eek out a bracket win they will have to meet the superior LSU squad.
These littlest horns don’t stand much of a chance in Omaha.
Black Scholes said:
June 9th, 2009 at 11:06 pm
“eek”?
SEC rules, still upholding the SEC’s fine reputation for academic excellence.
Kriess said:
June 9th, 2009 at 11:33 pm
Oh this is good. Real good.
The General said:
June 10th, 2009 at 2:33 am
So, did Spresd Eagle win the pic of his mom, or is it still up for grabs?
D D D said:
June 10th, 2009 at 4:06 am
I should start every morning with a read like this.
ctex80 said:
June 10th, 2009 at 4:16 am
“Is this a fucking sports site or some sport site impersonating as a fucking grammer class?”
There are just so many great things about this munckin of a sentence. The mind boggles.
Bob Stoops said:
June 10th, 2009 at 5:38 am
“This means that if two teams both beat the same opponent but one team wins 5-1 and one team wins 10-5, the team that wins the higher-scoring game will always receive a greater overall benefit in the power ratings.”
I like how this works.
Grammar Police said:
June 10th, 2009 at 5:40 am
Yes General, Norman Bates…errr…Spread Eagle won the jpeg.
It is being shipped on a floppy disk inside a fresh copy of the Holt Handbook from the Co-Op.
Nordberg said:
June 10th, 2009 at 5:50 am
I appreciate whichever of you is going to the trouble of manufactoring smack.
The Wood Shed said:
June 10th, 2009 at 6:08 am
Spread Eagle, it’s “grammar,” not “grammer.” Good god. Get it together, son.
The General said:
June 10th, 2009 at 6:38 am
Ohh, well. I wanted those pics. Maybe I’ll win the Henry James Memorial July 4th Thai Ladyboy Sweepstakes Extravaganza Jamboree-off.
exuLt said:
June 10th, 2009 at 7:02 am
“Is this a fucking sports site or some sport site impersonating as a fucking grammer class?”
The schoolmarm wearing cleats was a dead giveaway.
CloseToJumping said:
June 10th, 2009 at 7:09 am
Am I the only person that is glad that Spread Eagle’s mother is dead? That certainly removes any further chances of something else like him being produced from the same maternal loins.
I always enjoy the shittalking about things like our team’s size from mouthbreathing jugheads like LSU and Southern Miss fans. The Tigers break out their syringes for old time’s sake this season and now they’re going to dominate us. Right.
The Longest Horn said:
June 10th, 2009 at 7:34 am
The Longhorns have the most heart in the field as evidenced by the 25 inning win against BC and superb performance by Austin Wood. So we are going to get this thing started on Sunday by giving the Wood to Spread Eagle!
jc25 said:
June 10th, 2009 at 7:35 am
I just found out Kevin Keyes was a black dude.
dutchhorn said:
June 10th, 2009 at 7:51 am
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=munckin
you’re welcome.
Evil E said:
June 10th, 2009 at 8:09 am
I’m not very familiar with non-SEC/-ACC academia (oxymoron alert!) in the Deep South. Is Southern Miss akin to Aggy? If so, that would explain a lot. (It also bodes ill for them in Omaha …)
Black Scholes said:
June 10th, 2009 at 8:31 am
That was cool dutchhorn.
BatesHorn said:
June 10th, 2009 at 8:32 am
Huck-
I’m a big believer in sabermetrics, and don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re a dork.
Huckleberry said:
June 10th, 2009 at 8:40 am
Compliment accepted.
Parlin Hall said:
June 10th, 2009 at 9:09 am
Nice write-up, HJ.
How to Make Thousands of Dollars Posting Links on Google said:
June 10th, 2009 at 9:52 am
Thanks for posting, I’ll definitely be subscribing to your blog.
Texoz said:
June 10th, 2009 at 10:37 am
It’s fitting that Spread Eagle is talking about merkins.
Bo Jackson said:
June 10th, 2009 at 11:01 am
Spread Eagle: “I would guess it would be the “H’s”, but then how the fuck else are you supposed to express the plural of “H” in the English language, in a concise and convenient manner, if it’s not as “H’s”. It so uncool to spell it completely out as “Heches”.”
Try “Hs”.
Bo Jackson said:
June 10th, 2009 at 11:03 am
I think the Royals are gonna win it all.
DecentEagle said:
June 10th, 2009 at 11:21 am
@ Evil E:
I wouldn’t really compare Southern Miss to the Aggies. Mississippi State would fit the Aggie comparison better. The Bulldogs are an ag. college much like A&M. Southern Miss is a Liberal Arts school with a prestigious writing program, believe it or not. They also have a pretty well respected nursing school and a top ranked Polymer Science program.
follow the moon ...and the stars said:
June 10th, 2009 at 11:37 am
Superb article. Informative and insightful.
Marilyn manson wears a burka said:
June 10th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
I’m afraid to leave a comment on this blog because I do not want my comment to be laughed at or viewed as being “stupid” because my grammar is not all that “grand”. Your intellectual bullies. Hate that!
11 herbs & spices said:
June 10th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
‘burka- you worry ’bout the wrong things. Barking carnival is all about learning how to do things correctly. Whether its about sports or writing skills. If you feel so uncomfortable about Barking Carnival you are free to go elsewhere. However, when you engage in this blog you have to take the whole ball of wax.
ctex80 said:
June 10th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
Burka,
Herbs & Spices is correct. Barking Carnival is all about learning how to do things correctly. Proper usage of the word “your” is among these things.
Burka drag said:
June 10th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Damn you! This blog gives me a complex.
Vasherized said:
June 10th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
Marilyn manson wears 11 spicy burkas in drag,
perhaps a multiple personality complex?
Stick with one, life is much easier. Blogging too.
Bookman said:
June 10th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
What about our intellectual bullies?
Huckleberry said:
June 11th, 2009 at 6:40 am
Burnt Orange Nation linked to this excellent article concerning bunting and stealing in the college game. Once again, an overall look at the college game and not specific to Texas. I might use his tools to examine only the 2009 Longhorns in a little bit.
Bornahorn said:
June 11th, 2009 at 6:51 am
OK, so much for bunting. Any thoughts on the taking of two strikes? Last Sunday, against TCU, Horn batters consistently were down in the count – often 0-2. It was like the pitcher knew he could groove the first two pitches.
On Sunday, we were first pitch swinging and the pitcher was under pressure to throw quality first pitches.
Horns taking strikes goes back to Gus – especially the first two guys in the order.
BatesHorn said:
June 11th, 2009 at 7:19 am
Taking pitches can sometimes not work out, but generally, Ted Williams had it right: Never swing at the first pitch.
Trips Right said:
June 11th, 2009 at 8:47 am
Thanks for the post Huck. With the Astros tanking and the NBA remaining as predictible as a Tim post, I’m as excited about Texas Baseball as I’ve ever been.
I think we handle Southern Miss, but that second starter for ASU looks damn salty. Looks like we’ll have to get into their pen to have a chance.
Vasherized said:
June 11th, 2009 at 11:18 am
Huck,
You and TucsonRoyal speak the same language. Was it love at first sight? Augie would get a good chuckle over those stats. Then just to spite you send Kevin Keyes out to bunt down 3 runs in the 8th with 2 outs and nobody on base.
Trips,
Another option is hoping UNC takes down ASU and then runs out of pitchers against us. After their first two starters, the Tar Heels don’t have many options as Huck mentioned in his preview.
You know the Tar Heels will want to make up for not closing the deal two years in a row.
RR said:
June 11th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
I’m beginning to think Vash and Doperbo and Shaggy Aggy, etc. are all one in the same. Or they switch writers behind their code names. Deceptive writing practices.
RR Dallas said:
June 11th, 2009 at 2:36 pm
Because Sooners want to kick their asses in the worst way, perhaps.
clek said:
June 11th, 2009 at 2:55 pm
Baloney! Vasherized is really Vasherized, Shaggy Aggie is really Shaggie Aggie, Doperbo is really Doperbo…and the sky is really blue and the clouds are really white…and The Sooners REALLY SUCK!
Twitter Trackbacks - College World Series Preview | Barking Carnival [barkingcarnival.com] - Topsy said:
August 18th, 2009 at 7:48 pm
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Mike O said:
January 12th, 2010 at 10:41 pm
Off topic question for Huckleberry. I read a post you made a couple of years ago where you used the log5 method to calculate UT’s expected points against OU in football. I have a basic understanding of the log5 method as it relates to winning percentage but its use to calculate points was new to me. Could you post the formula? Btw, the numbers you used for 2007 were UT Off – 37.23, OU Def – 20.3, Nat Avg 27.06, Exp Pts 28.94. Thanks, and sorry to intrude.
Mike O
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