THE WORLD'S LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE SCOUTING ORGANIZATION

| 2,072 MLB PLAYERS | 14,476 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS

2,072 MLB PLAYERS | 14,476 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS

Create Account

College | Story | 3/1/2014

Rising Eppler outduels Finnegan

Kendall Rogers

Houston Classic Coverage: UH's Garza shines MORE: Weekend preview | Perfect Game College Top 25

HOUSTON – Sam Houston State head coach David Pierce said in Baton Rouge last June that his club getting to an NCAA Regional, in that atmosphere, would pay dividends in the near future.

Little did Pierce know at the time it would do so the third week of the 2014 college baseball season. Though some teams tend to go to the Houston College Classic, on a Major League Baseball field, and play somewhat timid in the opening game, the Bearkats looked like a seasoned team who had played in plenty of potentially nerve-racking atmospheres in a dominant 9-4 win over TCU.

Subscribe today:
College Baseball Ticket

This game caught plenty of attention before Friday for one big reason – the contest pitted Sam Houston State junior right-handed pitcher Tyler Eppler against TCU left-handed pitcher Brandon Finnegan, who, barring a surprise, will be a first-round pick in the upcoming MLB draft. Eppler also should be a decent round selection.

At least on this day, Eppler was more efficient and did a much better job of making big pitches in clutch situations.

“They did exactly what you have to do against a great pitcher. They grinded out some at bats, and [Hayden] Simerly got the big trouble. They just went out there and put people in position to score,” TCU coach Jim Schlossnagle said. “They either got a hit, we had a wild pitch, whatever you want to call it. Today’s game was the first time this year we’ve had a ball hit the backstop.

“They just beat us in every phase of the game.”

This is PG 'DiamondKast' Level content.
You must be either an DiamondKast, Crosschecker Rankings & Scouting Reports, or Scout subscriber to read the rest.

DiamondKast

PERFECTGAME.TV

Give us your feedback

Week 10 Preview Pick 'Em
Things are close as we head into week 10 and with all but one series having a different prediction, this week could really open things up between Cozy and Vin.

DII/DIII/NAIA Rankings Update: April 17
While there was a lot of action across the country last week, the big news out of the small school divisions occurred in the NAIA.

College Player, Pitcher of the Week
Chase Morgan of Louisiana was outstanding on the mound as he struck out 11 over 8 while Tyler Bishop hit for the cycle for Omaha this past weekend.

College Top 25: April 15
Unlike last week, we have some changes in the Top-5 and most notably, after the dust settled, we have a new name at the top.

PERFECTGAME.TV