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The stage is set: the Oklahoma Sooners take on the Ole Miss Rebels. It’s a total paradox considering one of these teams was on my watch list pre-tournament, and the other was on the fade list. Let’s take a little preview of what is to come up this weekend.
Series Price: Ole Miss Rebels (-130) | Oklahoma Sooners (+110)
After a quick 3-0 sweep, the Sooners did a valet jog to the CWS Finals. It was Ole Miss, though, who put themselves through a drama-dripped bracket with their blow-for-blow chess match with the nearly identical Arkansas Razorbacks. Regardless, these two teams made it to the Natty, even if their paths were very different.
Oklahoma, selected to finish sixth in the Big-12 in the preseason, started off the year with a respectable 15-8 record on paper. However, those wins were against either bottom of the barrel opponents or good-ish teams in mid-week games (meaning the best pitchers usually don’t throw). They were swept in the Shriners Classic Tournament in early March by Tennessee, LSU and UCLA, all legit squads. The first two series of April -- against Texas and Oklahoma State -- resulted in losing four of six games and both series. Since April 12th, they are 27-10 and have played arguably the best baseball of any team in the country. Led by a ferocious base running attack (145 stolen bases, 4th in NCAA), the Sooners have applied tremendous pressure on opposing teams with their ability to wreak havoc on the bases. With some show ponies in the lineup like Peyton Graham (.344 avg, 20 HR’s, 34 SB), Tanner Treadway (.379 avg, 24 SB), and Jimmy Crooks (.311 avg, 9 HR’s, 10 SB), among others, this Oklahoma offense is clicking on all cylinders at the right time.
Pitching-wise, they have a tremendous advantage with how the Ole Miss-Arkansas bloodbath went. Because the Razorbacks won Wednesday, it forced both teams to burn their aces on Thursday. With the Sooners arms pretty much rested, they should have the edge if they continue to deal the way they have been. In the tournament, you would be hard pressed to find a better 1-2-3 rotation than OU’s Jake Bennett, Cade Horton, and David Sandlin, who have combined for 72 punchies, 28 earned runs and 13 walks in 56 innings across 11 appearances. For the most part, all three are LOCKED IN right now and we have not even talked about their stud closer, Trevin Michael, who boasts 10 saves, a 2.66 ERA, and 95 K’s in 71 innings this season. Battling an Ole Miss lineup who has struggled significantly more against lefties, it’s a great set up for Game 1 if you are OU. With the Rebels combining for four runs in their last two games, they have seen a lot of struggles from players who are supposed to be key contributors like Tim Elko (3-16 with 1 HR and 3 RBI’s in CWS), Jacob Gonzalez (3-18 with 0 HR and 1 RBI in CWS) and Peyton Chatagnier (2-13 with 0 HR and RBI in CWS). Also, they have stranded 31 ducks on the pond in their four games during the College World Series. As long as Oklahoma continues to pitch the way they have, they should be in good shape this weekend.
Okay, Hotty Toddy, you’re up. Although they were on my fade list, they managed to blow past expectations. Partially because they literally could not have hand-picked an easier path. I will say, if Miami (my original value pick) didn’t totally faceplant, this very well could have been them in this situation. This program has had an interesting season: they spent time in the No. 1 spot in the country until Tennessee came down to Oxford in late March and beat them to a pulp. That sent them on a spiraling journey, which seemingly left them for dead. Offensively, they didn’t have a lot of issues (103 Tanks on the year), but it was the pitching. Dylan DeLucia took charge of the rotation in early April and we quite literally saved their season, way before he threw a complete game shutout to send his team to the Finals on Thursday. DD provided much-needed stability in a rotation that was dying for consistent production. With a handful of effective relievers in the bullpen, the Rebs are set up to keep this Oklahoma offense at bay, so long as they contain the run game. The key for Ole Miss will be to see how freshman Hunter Elliott, who has been rock solid (two earned runs in three tournament starts) throws in Game 1. That could dictate the entire series.
The reason the first game is so important, aside from the obvious where the winning team is one game away from being champions, is because it has a gigantic ripple effect on the pitching. It’s almost a guarantee that Bennett and Elliott will square off. If Oklahoma can win Game 1, that means they basically force Ole Miss into throwing DeLucia in Sunday’s matchup on about two or three days’ rest after tossing 114 pitches on Thursday. Should the Rebels win Saturday, then that likely means they can save DD for Sunday against what I would imagine is David Sandlin for OU. Game 1 might very well dictate this series.
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Enjoy the taste, kid
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