PG College Baseball Top 25 | Video Vault
The
irresistible force met the immovable object when No. 23 Nevada
traveled to Omaha to face Creighton. Despite its national ranking
and glitzy 38-11 record, Nevada only had a No. 45 RPI ranking
according to Boydsworld.com, so the non-conference matchup was
vitally important to their NCAA tournament health. Creighton, sitting
in second place in the Big East, were 27-14 with the 62nd best RPI.
The
irresistible force was the Nevada offense. Although no doubt buoyed
by playing at an elevated altitude in Reno, they were among the
national leaders in both doubles (133) and home runs (52) while
scoring over eight runs per game, including 16 games with over 10
runs.
The
immovable object came in two different forms. The Creighton pitching
staff had allowed only three home runs all season, with the last one
having come on March 7. Of course, the Creighton offense had only
produced six itself all year. That is in part due to the team's
offensive approach, which is very opposite-field heavy, but also due
to the other immovable object; TD Ameritrade Park. The home of the
College World Series has dimensions and prevailing winds that
conspire to limit runs just as much as Reno's 4,400 foot elevation
promotes them. There had been four home runs hit in 19 games this
spring at TD Ameritrade heading into the weekend.
In
this battle, the irresistible force won, but not without conceding
the terms of the match to TD Ameritrade Park.
Nevada
took the first game 5-4, with most of the runs being connected to
walks and well-timed singles rather than extra-base hits. Wolf Pack
third baseman Bryce
Greager
drove in the tying and leading runs with an eighth inning single and
side arming closer Adam
Whitt
notched his 14th save of the year with two near-perfect innings.
Saturday
was more of the same, as Nevada got a combined eight-hit shutout from
lefthander Christian
Stolo (five
innings) and righthander Evan
McMahan
in a 4-0 victory.
Sunday's
game was cancelled due to weather and Nevada's travel schedule.
While
Nevada's hitting approach is definitely power oriented, the Bluejays
pitchers very consistently executed their plan of keeping the ball
down in the zone while changing speeds, very rarely missing anywhere
but down low or outside. There was only one ball hit that looked
like it may have been a home run at a "normal" field, such
as Nebraska's Haymarket Park. That, ironically, was hit by Creighton
third baseman Harrison
Crawford
and that ended up as a double to left-center field on Saturday.
Here
are some impressions on the individual players:
Nevada
first baseman Austin
Byler
was a ninth round pick last year by the Nationals and will likely go
higher this year as a premium senior sign. He's every bit of his
listed 6-foot-3, 225-pounds, but shows very good athleticism for his
size and has been a primary third baseman much of his life. He
picked up a few singles when the ball shot through the infield
quickly but was often left reaching with an early commit swing
against Creighton's off-speed/low zone approach. Byler is hitting
.328-13-49 with 52 walks.
Christian
Stolo is
an interesting southpaw who has been up to 91 mph this year per an
area scout and showed a nice curveball on Saturday. He's 7-1, 2.74
this spring and has only allowed two home runs, notable numbers while
pitching in Reno.
Nevada
sophomore lefthanded pitcher and outfielder Trenton
Brooks
is both the team's leading hitter (.364-3-51, 37 walks) and new
Friday night starter (4-1, 3.23 in 30 inning). He's very athletic in
all regards and has reportedly been up to 91 mph on the mound,
although his command and secondary pitches were erratic in Friday's
five-inning stint due to an out-of-sync cross-body delivery. The
6-footer doesn't have the true carrying tool to say he's going to be
a high pick next year, or as a senior, but he is one of the best
two-way players in the country now.
Junior
second baseman Ryan
Howell
has posted some eye-opening numbers (.322-15-62, 34 walks) and there
is no doubt he has real bat speed. It's a hand dominated uppercut
approach that sells out for pull and lift power and he continuously
put the ball in the air, mostly in the form of pop-ups, during the
two games.
My
favorite swing on the Nevada team belonged to third baseman Bryce
Greager (.353-5-41,
26 walks). It was short and crisp and attacking, similar to Howell's
in many ways but with better barrel plane.
Freshman
Jordan
Pearce,
a veteran of many PG events, served as the designated hitter on
Saturday and crushed a double up the right-center field gap that was
one of the hardest balls all weekend. He's been playing both ways on
a part-time basis for the Wolf Pack and will be a factor for them
over the next couple of years.
Redshirt
junior first baseman Reagan
Fowler
is Creighton's best player and was named the Big East co-Player of
the Year in 2014 when he hit .362-0-27. He's posting similar numbers
this year (.333-0-31) and has good bat speed and strength from the
left side but the combination of Creighton's team swing approach and
the realities of TD Ameritrade pretty much preclude him showing more
than doubles power.
It
should also be noted that Saturday's game was Creighton's fourth
annual Military and First Responder's Appreciation Game and drew a
huge crowd of 10,302 fans, a huge number of which were 8-12 year old
boys and girls with their parents. The national anthem, sung with an
acoustic guitar by a Master Sergeant from nearby Offutt Air Force
Base, and accompanied by three sky divers landing at the conclusion,
was one of the best that I've ever heard regardless of venue. It
would have been acclaimed at a World Series game.