TCU, Cal’s opening game opponent in the NCAA baseball tournament, has a talented left-handed starting pitcher who may be first collegiate pitcher taken in next week’s MLB dtraft.
But the Bears might not see him, at least not right away. TCU coach JIm Schlossnagle, perhaps taking the Bears a bit lightly told the Texas media this week that Nick Lodolo might not start the opener.
Schlossnagle’s reasoning is that he wants to save Lodolo for a possible matchup against the Regional's top seed and host Arkansas.
Senior right-hander Jared Janczak, who had 12 strikeouts and allowed two runs over six innings in a 13-6 victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday, or Brandon Williamson, another 6-6 lefty, are the likely candidates to start against the Bears if Lodolo is held back.
The Cal-TCU game is scheduled for 4 p.m. (PDT) Friday. It follows the Arkansas-Central Connecticut contest.
A quick look at the other three teams in the regional.
Arkansas (41-17)
The Razorbacks are one of six SEC teams hosting a regional. Seeded fifth overall, the Razorbacks were runners-up in the College World Series a year ago. DH Matt Goodheart leads the team with a .347 batting average. Shortstop Casey Martin, like Goodheart a second-team All-SEC selection, has 15 home runs, tops on the team. The pitching staff is led by right-hander Isaiah Campbell who is 10-1 with a 2.37 ERA, He struck out 100 and walked just 18 in 95 innings. Closer Matt Cronin has 11 saves.
Central Connecticut State (30-21)
The Blue Devils earned an automatic bid by winning the Northeast Conference Tournament for the second time in three years. Right-hander Tom Curtin (5-3, 3.96 ERA) was named the NEC Tournament MVP after allowing just two runs over 14.2 innings of work on the weekend. Junior outfielder Dave Matthews is the leading hitter with a .297 batting average. Opponents compiled a robust .286 batting average against the CC pitching staff.
TCU (32-26)
The Horned Frogs were a preseason top 20 team that did not live up to expectations. They earned their NCAA bid by winning three games in the Big 12 Tournament, including a 15-3 win over Oklahoma (featuring a 14-run inning) and a 13-5 thrashing of Oklahoma State. This without leading hitter Jake Guenther (.347) who is expected back. This is the 14th time in Schlossnagle’s 16 years at TCU that the team has reached the NCAAs.
“Our team has shown a lot of grit, man,” Schlossnagle said. “They showed it in the Oklahoma game. Going into that 14-run inning, OU was winning 1-0. Then we beat Baylor. ... The committee is sitting in that room and they’re watching all this stuff. I know our RPI (59) isn’t pretty, but the RPI is not reflective of our team. We’re in and we deserve to be in. Now we’ve got to go play.”
Cal Athletics
The Bears catch some Zs in layover on their trip to Arkansas
The Regional Schedule
All games on ESPN 3, all times PDT
Friday, May 31:
Game 1 (#5 Arkansas vs. CCSU) - 11 a.m..
Game 2 (TCU vs. California) - 4 p.m.
Saturday, June 1
Game 3 – Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, 10 a.m.
Game 4 – Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 4 p.m.
Sunday, June 2
Game 5 – Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4, noon
Game 6 – Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 4, 6 p.m.
Monday, June 3
Game 7 – Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6 (if necessary), 4 p.m.
Winner faces the winner of Oxford, Miss, regional in one of eight Super Regionals. Those are two-team best of three series.
The eight winners advance to the College World Series in Omaha.
