Notes After Two College Weekends

-- I blogged earlier with the opinion that LSU had the best starting lineup in college baseball and early season results certainly support that, as the Tigers have scored 11 or more runs in 6 of their 7 games (7-0) and 80 runs overall. They are hitting .369 as a team with 15 home runs, 5 of those by sophomore CF Leon Landry. The most impressive thing about Landry in the early going might not be the 5 dingers, but the 8:1 walk to K ratio. Landry walked only 8 times all last year while striking out 34 times. SEC pitching will be better than he’s seen thus far, but that kind of change in approach is definitely something to pay attention to.

Draft eligible soph SS D.J. LeMahieu (.625-2-10) and junior OF Jared Mitchell (.455-2-12, 9-9 steals) are both potential first round draft picks who are playing up to their potential for LSU.

-- I likewise opin’ed that Texas A&M had the best and deepest pitching staff in the country and they’ve proven up to an early season challenge, playing 9 games in 10 days to open the season 7-2. 16 pitchers have already toed the rubber for the Aggies, who have a staff ERA of 2.78 thus far. RHP Alex Wilson has been especially impressive with his mid-90’s fastball, striking out 21 hitters in 12 innings while going 1-1, 1.42. Freshman LHP Ross Hales (2-0, 1.04) may have a very short learning curve before he gets primary innings for the Aggies.

-- A&M has to take back seat in their home state to the Texas Longhorns staff, though, who have a staff ERA of 1.15 after a 9-0 start. Sophomore RHP Brandon Workman is moving himself up near the top of the 2010 prospect list and has gone 2-0, 0.00, including a no-hitter, and allowed only 2 hits in 16 innings pitched. RHP’s Cole Green and Taylor Jungeman and LHP Chance Ruffin give the Longhorns an all freshman/sophomore starting four that is impressive.

-- San Diego State RHP Stephen Strasburg hasn’t been as unhittable as Workman, going 2-0, 1.46 over his first two starts while allowing 8 hits in 12 innings. Two things do stand out, though. First, Strasburg has struck out 27 hitters in those 12 innings. Secondly, there are reports that he touched 102 mph not once but three times against Nevada on February 26.

-- Perhaps my favorite “sleeper” team in the country (i.e. a team that could pull a Fresno State/Oregon State in Omaha) is Texas Christian, which has started 5-1 with a lone one-run loss to Fullerton. They have a veteran starting line up and a deep pitching staff with a variety of different “types” of pitchers. One positive thing from the early season was appearance of freshman LHP Walker Kelly, an Aflac All-American who was hampered by injuries much of his senior season. Kelly picked up his first college W with a scoreless inning of relief and if he can build back to the stuff/performance he showed as a high school junior, that could be huge for the Horned Frogs.

-- One of my favorite players in the country is Florida State sophomore CF Tyler Holt. When I saw him play at PG events I saw a talented kid who looked like he would run over you to beat you and not look back. He’s a speed player who’s a right handed hitter, which isn’t ideal, but you can’t argue with results. Holt’s started the year 18-28 (.643) with the bat, including 11 runs scored and 8 Rbi’s out of the leadoff slot. Something that stands out for me is that he has only 3 walks and 3 K’s after 7 games. Last year Holt walked 64 times and struck out 46 times and I got the impression that he was trying to hard as a freshman to be a true leadoff hitter and was muting his natural aggressiveness. Going back to his natural approach might work better for him.

-- Rice has gone 5-2 against seven quality teams. 3B Anthony Rendon has lived up to my expectations by starting off .462-2-11. I was amazed when I saw him last summer that some team hadn’t picked him in the first 2 rounds and bought him out of Rice (maybe that wasn’t even possible). He is a superior hitter and will be a dominant force in college baseball the next three years.

-- No college in the country likely has a higher percentage of Perfect Game Alumni than Georgia, which has started 8-0 and has outscored their opponents 93-30. Two freshman we’ve seen countless times have been at the head of the Bulldogs’ start. CF Jonathan Taylor, the consummate leadoff hitter for East Cobb the last three years, hasn’t skipped a beat at the higher level, hitting .583 with 7 walks and 3 HBP’s (that’s a .706 OB%) in seven starts, leading to 13 runs scored. RHP Michael Palazzone, as unhittable as any pitcher in the history of WWBA events, also while playing for East Cobb, is 1-0, 0.00 in 6 relief innings, having only allowed 1 base runner.

-- I’m going to take it as a project one day to find a college team that has 100% Perfect Game alumni on their team. I think such a team might exist. Vanderbilt is another program that I’ll look closely at.

-- “And the Young Shall Lead Them”. Baylor gets plenty of attention for its highly talented junior/RS sophomore class but in early going it is two freshman who are leading the team. RHP Logan Verrett has started 3-0, 0.00 in middle relief and has been up to 94 mph on his fastball. Verrett went an incredible 18-0 at Calallen HS in Corpus Christi, TX, last year but according to scouts was usually only mid 80’s, although he was upper 80’s at WWBA events during the summer for the South Texas Sliders. The Bears leading hitter is IF Joey Hainsfurther, who is hitting .565-0-8. The PG staff has always felt that the day the switch-hitting Hainsfurther is moved permanently behind the plate, where he does have experience, is the day the pro scouts will realize that he’s a potential high pick.