2018 Gopher Baseball

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The potential #8 seeds are wetting all over themselves

The #8 seed "contenders" have yet to win a game this weekend. With Maryland's loss today, it's now Michigan State that controls its own destiny. My guess is that doesn't last long, probably about 3 hours.

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John A ties Siebert with his 11th Big Ten title. Congrats to the boys.
 

Congrats to coach Anderson and the boys on winning the Big 10 title! :clap::clap:

Hopefully, more hardware to come!
 

Gophers missed a few chances to really open up the game late leaving the bases loaded in the 7th and not capitalizing on leadoff double in the 8th and single in the 9th but it did not matter as they nailed it down with pitching and defense late today. Patrick Fredrickson got the win going 6.1 innings allowing 3 runs(2 earned) on 4 hits walking 1 and striking out 4 on just 74 pitches. Brett Schulze went 1 inning allowing 1 hit walkin 1 and hitting 1 batter. Max Meyer picked up the save going 1.2 innings and striking out 3 and getting a double play off the bat of the 1 other batter he faced. Micah Coffey led the offense with 3 hits including a double and a solo homerun. Eli Wilson had a solo homerun as well. Guys have been pretty consistent all year and deserve everything they have achieved so far and will achieve going forward. I have no doubt they will be excited with the outright championship but also know it is just step 1. They will be ready to go for the sweep tomorrow morning.
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What a season so far. These guys control their own destiny in that if they win tomorrow and have a solid tournament showing (make the championship game) they should be hosting sub-regionals. It would really help depth wise for pitching heading into tournament play if Stevenson could solidify his presence as a decent third starter especially when talking crucial 3rd games in B1G tournament and pool play in sub-regionals. I feel great about the depth and quality of our bullpen and feel that it should be a point of advantage in postseason play.
 


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Brackets are posted. Gophers play Sparty in game 3 on Wednesday. Here are the seeds and current RPI.

1. Minnesota - 16
2. Purdue - 40
3. Michigan - 55
4. Illinois - 50
5. Indiana - 23
6. Iowa - 67
7. Ohio State - 41
8. Michigan State - 188

That first game against Iowa and Michigan is huge. Loser is likely off the bubble.
 

DarrenTheGreek said:
Brackets are posted. Gophers play Sparty in game 3 on Wednesday. Here are the seeds and current RPI.

1. Minnesota - 16
2. Purdue - 40
3. Michigan - 55
4. Illinois - 50
5. Indiana - 23
6. Iowa - 67
7. Ohio State - 41
8. Michigan State - 188

That first game against Iowa and Michigan is huge. Loser is likely off the bubble.
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Wednesday Schedule
9:00 #3 Michigan vs. #6 Iowa
1:00 #2 Purdue vs. #7 Ohio State
5:00 #1 Minnesota vs. #8 Michigan State
9:00 #4 Illinois vs. #5 Indiana
I think Michigan has to at least make it to Sunday to have a chance I don't like their resume very much. Iowa's RPI isn't very good mostly because of the bad series loss to Northwestern but every other category is pretty solid.
Indiana and Illinois to wrap up Wednesday could be very fun. Tough break for the Gophers with both of them being on their side of the bracket as I think they are 2 of the top 4 teams.
Think Iowa is the most dangerous team on that side of the bracket. Not a believer in Michigan or Purdue. Plus Ohio State struggled badly this last weekend although they have been kinda streaky at times so could see them make a run.
 



I would not be surprised to see Indiana make a run. They had a great season but a bad Big Ten season. We'll see. Pitching depth is critical in these tournaments.
 

Goldy Gopher said:
Wednesday Schedule
9:00 #3 Michigan vs. #6 Iowa
1:00 #2 Purdue vs. #7 Ohio State
5:00 #1 Minnesota vs. #8 Michigan State
9:00 #4 Illinois vs. #5 Indiana
I think Michigan has to at least make it to Sunday to have a chance I don't like their resume very much. Iowa's RPI isn't very good mostly because of the bad series loss to Northwestern but every other category is pretty solid.
Indiana and Illinois to wrap up Wednesday could be very fun. Tough break for the Gophers with both of them being on their side of the bracket as I think they are 2 of the top 4 teams.
Think Iowa is the most dangerous team on that side of the bracket. Not a believer in Michigan or Purdue. Plus Ohio State struggled badly this last weekend although they have been kinda streaky at times so could see them make a run.
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I don't mind Illinois and Indiana being on our side. At this point it's all about the RPI and beating them will clinch a regional host while losing to them will not necessarily kill our chances either. Just don't lose to Sparty and we should be fine.

I agree 100% about Michigan and Iowa. I think the NCAA will reward Iowas resume if they make it to the semi finals.
 


First round it's team with the highest seed. That's all I have.
 



Question for anybody who can answer - I am hearing that the U has to bid to host a regional. Don't they get this automatically if they are one of the top rated teams?
 

GopherMike said:
Question for anybody who can answer - I am hearing that the U has to bid to host a regional. Don't they get this automatically if they are one of the top rated teams?
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Have to put in a bid to show you meet qualifications like enough seating, good enough facilities, etc. Bids do go to the top rated teams though as decided by the selection committee.
 


Stevenson starting B1G Tournament opener?

According to MSU's web site, Jake Sevenson is getting the start vs. the Spartans. Anyone know if that is accurate?
 

SelectionSunday said:
According to MSU's web site, Jake Sevenson is getting the start vs. the Spartans. Anyone know if that is accurate?
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That would be very interesting. Not a strategy I'd like as it is a big gamble. You do not want to lose to MSU. Going 0-2 would be about the only thing that could lose us a regional host. However; if it pays off then you'd have your 2 big guns in games 2 and 3 and will be looking really strong.
 

For those that want to see the Big Ten get as many bids as possible, here are some high level things to root for heading into the conference tournaments:

Big East: St. John's is their only team with a tournament resume. We want them to win their tourny. if they don't, then the Big East becomes a 2-bid conference.
Atlantic Sun: 4 of their 6 teams are 70+ in the RPI. We don't want one of those teams to win their tourny. Pull for Stetson or Jacksonville to win.
CAA: They have 1 team in top 40, the other 5 are 60+. We want Northeastern to win that tourny.
OVC: TN Tech is a lock but nobody else in that conference is close. We want TnTch to win.
 

SelectionSunday said:
According to MSU's web site, Jake Sevenson is getting the start vs. the Spartans. Anyone know if that is accurate?
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Yep just looked at the Gopher game notes. Makes some sense with his last outing being cancelled, keeps Meyer and Fredrickson on full rest, also guaranteed to have a fully rested bullpen available and usually you can tell early with Stevenson if he has his control or not which is the key for him. Also had probably his best outing of the year in his last start a week and a half ago against Michigan State. I've seen a couple of the D1baseball.com writers say even if the Gophers go 0-2 they should host. I don't anticipate that happening and wouldn't feel real safe about hosting if that were to happen.
 

Goldy Gopher said:
Yep just looked at the Gopher game notes. Makes some sense with his last outing being cancelled, keeps Meyer and Fredrickson on full rest, also guaranteed to have a fully rested bullpen available and usually you can tell early with Stevenson if he has his control or not which is the key for him. Also had probably his best outing of the year in his last start a week and a half ago against Michigan State. I've seen a couple of the D1baseball.com writers say even if the Gophers go 0-2 they should host. I don't anticipate that happening and wouldn't feel real safe about hosting if that were to happen.
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Also wouldn't be surprised to see Stevenson on a possibly short-leash if things get shaky. My impression is that the bullpen has been pretty fresh all season due to Meyer and Fredrickson having been so good, especially these last few weeks. A lot of quality arms down there and I would think they would be ready to step in if need be.
 

Game 1 of the Big Ten tournament is in the books and Michigan eeks out a 2-1 win over Iowa in 10 innings. That win keeps Michigan's faint NCAA hopes alive (it's pretty much assumed they need a championship appearance) and it hurts Iowa in a big way. I still think Iowa will have a chance if they can claw back to the semi-finals.
 


Game 2 result is in: Purdue slugs out a 8-2 win over Ohio State. Would Ohio State been in trouble if they go 0-2? I doubt it but you never know. An RPI of 41 is not a guarantee.
 

Both teams have had a chance to pull ahead only to run into a brick wall.
 

Gophers grind out a win in game 1 of the B1G tournament. Gophers had opportunities to really open things up early but couldn't come through with the key hit. 1st and 2nd 1 out in the 1st double play ends the inning and bases loaded in the 3rd with 2 outs were the 2 big ones. Gophers hit into 4 double plays a couple of them were hit pretty hard just unlucky, Gophers had 5-6 balls like that. Jake Stevenson only gave up 1 hit and it was to the last batter he faced but struggled with control walking 4 and hitting 1 in 3.2 innings of work. Stevenson also struck out 2 and allowed 2 runs. Brett Schulze picked up his 9th win going 3.2 innings scattering 4 hits walking 1 and striking out 3. Max Meyer picked up his 15th save going 1.2 innings walking 1 on a borderline pitch and striking out 2. Michigan State couldn't handle his slider at all tonight. Don't know why B1G doesn't allow umpires to review plays on the bases. Gophers got lucky as Ben Mezzenga should've been called out when he stole 3rd in the 5th and that ended up being the winning run. 3rd base ump blew his only other call of the night though too as he called Alex Boxwell out in the 8th at 3rd when his hand beat the tag so I guess one went each way but they were both wrong. Ben Mezzenga, Terrin Vavra, Alex Boxwell, and Jordan Kozicky each had 2 hits. RBI for Vavra, Eli Wilson, and Kozicky. Gophers get the winner of Illinois and Indiana in tomorrow nights nightcap.
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Saving the 2 starters is looking brilliant right now...although we did have to burn through our 2 best relievers. A win is a win.
 

Have to imagine Fredrickson will be on the bump tomorrow with Rose and Fasching likely the first two out of the pen. A win tomorrow and its hard to imagine the Gophers not getting a regional.
 

GameDay said:
Have to imagine Fredrickson will be on the bump tomorrow with Rose and Fasching likely the first two out of the pen. A win tomorrow and its hard to imagine the Gophers not getting a regional.
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I’d be pretty surprised if it isn’t Reggie Meyer starting tomorrow. If Meyer were to struggle either Nick Lackney or Josh Culliver would probably get the call. I think ideally your hoping Meyer gives you 7 solid innings and Rose is the first guy out of the pen. Fasching really struggled with control his last time out,the young guys like Thoresen, Duffy, and Horton would also be options.
 

Goldy Gopher said:
I’d be pretty surprised if it isn’t Reggie Meyer starting tomorrow. If Meyer were to struggle either Nick Lackney or Josh Culliver would probably get the call. I think ideally your hoping Meyer gives you 7 solid innings and Rose is the first guy out of the pen. Fasching really struggled with control his last time out,the young guys like Thoresen, Duffy, and Horton would also be options.
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Agree. They almost gave away the game yesterday. Couple of bad calls by the third base ump.
 

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