Previewing Alabama Baseball's draw in the Tallahassee Regional
The Alabama Baseball team is headed to the NCAA Tournament after a few difficult days as a potential bubble team. The Crimson Tide are heading to Tallahassee in the Tallahassee Regional hosted by the Florida State Seminoles. The Crimson Tide will have one of the toughest regions to overcome but, the Tide could easily knock these three teams off if things go right.
Florida State Seminoles
The Florida State Seminoles enter the NCAA Tournament as the nation's eighth overall seed after losing to Duke in the ACC Championship Game. The Seminoles boast one of the Nation's best offenses with a team batting average of .316. The Seminoles have six batters hitting above .300 with the power-hitting trio of Cam Smith, James Tibbs III, and Jamie Ferrer combining for 56 Home Runs and 194 RBIs.
The pitching staff for the Seminoles is impressive as well and can shut down any team on any given day. The Seminoles rotation is led by one of the Nation's best pitchers Jamie Arnold who owns a 2.45 ERA and went 10-3 in 15 starts while also picking up a save. The rotation also has a few starting pitchers with the ability to shut an opponent down in Cam Leiter and Conner Whittaker. In the back end of the bullpen, Brennan Oxford and Connor Hults are the go-to arms combining for nine saves with Oxford sporting a 3.04 ERA.
The Crimson Tide will likely be tasked with facing Jamie Arnold as the Seminoles will likely save him for a potential matchup with the winner of Alabama and UCF's game. The Tide pitching staff will be forced to slow down a red-hot Seminoles that is scoring ten runs nearly every day.
UCF Knights
The UCF Knights like Alabama Baseball are headed to the NCAA Tournament in year one of a new regime as head coach Rich Wallace has led the Knights to the NCAA Tournament in their first year in the Big 12. The Knights went 35-19 this season going 14-15 in Big 12 Play en route to an NCAA Tournament birth. The Knights and Stetson Hatters faced each other once this season with UCF taking the game in a 7-1 victory.
Offensively, the Knights don't have the power hitters that will blow teams away but, they have plenty of capable hitters. The Knights have three hitters hitting near .300. Matt Prevesk is batting .347, Jack Zyska is hitting .299, and Danny Neri is batting .297. Zyska is the power threat of the trio with 10 home runs on the season while Neri and Andrew Estrella have each hit seven home runs.
The rotation is led by two high-end starters in Dom Stagliano who's pitched to a 3.73 ERA in 13 starts and Ben Vespi pitched to a 4.44 ERA in 15 games started. The Crimson Tide will likely face the UCF ace Stagliano who on any given day could shut down some of the best lineups in the country. At the back of the bullpen, Dominic Castellano is the Knights' go-to with three saves and a team-best 2.73 ERA across 56.0 Innings pitched.
Stetson Hatters
Non-College Baseball fans may be unfamiliar with the Stetson Hatters however, the Hatters will stand out to College Baseball fans for their run to the Super Regional in 2018. The Hatters may be the best four seed in the entire NCAA Tournament. The Hatters got here with a 40-20 record, going 20-10 in the conference while winning the ASUN conference tournament.
Offensively, the Hatters are led by Kyle Jones, Isaiah Barkett, Lorenzo Meola, and Logan Hughes all of whom are batting above .300. The power offensively comes from Yohann Dessureault, Meola, and Hughes with the trio combining for 29 home runs and 133 RBIs. If the Hatters get on base look out as the team went 93-115 stealing bases this season.
The pitching staff for the Hatters is where teams in this region will look to take advantage as Stetson is allowing a team 4.95 ERA. The most impressive pitcher for the Hatter this season has been Zane Coppersmith as the reliever has pitched to a team-best 1.55 ERA across 29 innings of work. The Hatters also have a true closer in Cole Stallings who pitched to a 3.38 ERA picking up 3 wins and 11 saves.
The Hatters have the offense to make serious noise in this Regional while their pitching staff will provide doubters something to point to. If the Hatters are to advance to the Super Regional it will need massive performances from starting pitchers Anthony DeFabbia, Daniel Paret, Dylan Jacobs, and John Modugno.
Where does Alabama Baseball have an advantage?
The Alabama Baseball team will have a massive advantage over teams in this region in terms of power. Alabama's 87 home runs far surpass any team in this region except for Florida State. Closing Pitcher Alton Davis II has struggled at points this season however, when he's at the top of his game there are few pitchers you'd want over Davis. The Tide has five deadly hitters atop its lineup and if they win this Region it will be because they made it a nightmare for opposing pitching staffs.