College World Series Primer

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The moment that Beaver fans have been waiting for all season long have finally arrived. The College World Series.

The Beavers headed to Omaha on Thursday for what they hope will be about a 12-13 day stay. OSU opens play with Cal State Fullerton on Saturday at 12:00 pm Pacific time to start the CWS action. If OSU wins that game, they will play the winner of the LSU-FSU game. If they lose, they will play the loser of that game. As always, BeaversEdge.com has you covered with a complete breakdown of the three other teams on OSU’s side of the bracket.

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Here is the complete breakdown of the four teams in bracket 1 of the CWS.

RPI: 1

Last 10 games: 10-0

Streak: Won 21

How they got here: The Beavers went 3-0 in the Corvallis Regional, defeating Holy Cross in game one and Yale in games two and three. OSU then went 2-0 in the Corvallis Super Regional defeating Vanderbilt in two games.

Stats to know

.296 batting average (2nd in Pac-12)

.412 slugging percentage (3rd)

.388 OBP (2nd)

101 doubles (4th)

18 triples (2nd)

279 walks (1st)

343 strikeouts (11th)

61 stolen bases (1st)

1.80 ERA (1st)

.197 opp batting average (1st)

485 strikeouts (1st)

Spin -> The Beavers were dealt a blow to their pitching staff when Luke Heimlich wasn’t made available to pitch against Vanderbilt. Now, Heimlich hasn’t traveled with the team to Omaha. Losing the nation’s leader in ERA is a big loss, but the Beavers can still win the CWS without him. Drew Rasmussen, and Jake Thompson were both drafted in the MLB Draft, and Bryce Fehmel pitched an amazing game against Vanderbilt to complete OSU’s new look rotation. The Beavers will need to continue to get big at-bats from guys like KJ Harrison, Nick Madrigal, and Steven Kwan to create offense, but if the Beavers can score runs, their pitching staff is good enough to keep any opponents at bay for the majority of the game.

Did you miss our videos from OSU's practice on Tuesday?

Check them out here ---> OSU players and coaches discuss CWS and more

RPI: 22

Last 10 games: 6-4

Streak: Won 2

How they got here: The Titans went 3-0 in the Palo Alto Regional, defeating BYU in game one and Stanford in games two and three. CSF then went to the Long Beach Super Regional, and defeated the Dirtbags in three games to move to Omaha.

Stats to know

.270 batting average (5th in Big West)

.403 slugging percentage (2nd)

.359 OBP (2nd)

307 RBI’s (1st)

44 home runs (2nd)

96 doubles (1st)

22 triples (1st)

3.57 ERA (2nd)

458 strikeouts (2nd)

146 walks (2nd)

216 ER (5th)

Spin -> In my opinion, Cal State Fullerton is a classic case of getting hot at the right time. The Titans weren’t particularly impressive in the regular season, but got an at-large big and were sent to Palo Alto to take on BYU and eventually the No. 8 National seed Cardinal. Bottom line, Fullerton is playing great baseball right now. They’ve only lost once in the postseason and that was a 3-0 decision to LBSU. This is their 18th appearance in Omaha, and they know what it takes to make a deep run. OSU will offer a stiff test, but don’t expect the Titans to lay down quietly, they are a severely underrated squad.

Matchup prediction: Every time I’ve bet against Oregon State this season, I’ve been wrong. This team has only lost four times all season, and you can’t go against those numbers. I believe that runs will be a premium in this game, and the Beavers will need a great performance from Jake Thompson to win their first game in Omaha. OSU is more complete team top-to-bottom and that will propel them to a win against the Titans. Beavers win 6-3

RPI: 4

Last 10 games: 10-0

Streak: Won 16

How they got here: LSU won the Baton Rouge Regional by defeating Texas Southern, Southeastern Louisiana, and Rice. The Tigers then won the Baton Rouge Super Regional by defeating Mississippi State in two games.

Stats to know

.294 batting average (2nd in SEC)

.440 slugging percentage (3rd)

647 hits (3rd)

424 RBI (2nd)

61 home runs (3rd)

99 hit by pitch (1st)

3.54 ERA (2nd)

.230 opp batting average (3rd)

238 walks allowed (12th)

54 home runs allowed (13th)

50 wild pitches (5th)

Spin -> Other than Oregon State, LSU might be the hottest team in the nation. The Tigers have won 16 straight which is 2nd best active streak in the nation. LSU wins games with their bats, which have been mighty impressive. They have scored double digit runs in seven of their last 10 games and their offense is perhaps the best in the country. On the mound, they are no slouch either as their 3.54 ERA ranks 2nd best in the ultra-competitive SEC. If there is weakness with this team, it’s that they walk a lot of people. A team like the Beavers make you pay for free passes and if they and the Tigers do meet up in the second round, it will be a key thing to keep an eye on.

RPI: 7

Last 10 games: 9-1

Streak: Won 6

How they got here: The Seminoles lost the opening game of the Tallahassee Regional to Tennessee Tech, before bouncing back with wins against UCF, Tennessee Tech, and Auburn (twice) to win the regional. FSU then dispatched of Sam Houston State in two games in the Tallahassee Super Regional.

Stats to know

.272 batting average (9th ACC)

.430 slugging percentage (9th)

488 runs scored (1st)

443 RBI (2nd)

72 home runs (4th)

380 walks (1st)

3.72 ERA (4th)

.241 opp batting average (5th)

618 batters struck out (1st)

Spin -> Florida State is a curious case this season. They weren’t particularly impressive in ACC play, going a paltry .500, but turned on the juice once the postseason. I am surprised that they hosted a regional with a .500 conference record, but that east coast bias argument is for another time. Statistically speaking, they aren’t very impressive offensively, but they play the game very very well. The rank near the bottom in batting average, but rank first in runs scored and RBI’s. They just do all of the little things very well. If there is one weakness with this FSU team, it’s their batting average. If they get down in a game, there is usually little chance they have the 1-9 hitting power to come back in a game.

Matchup prediction: This is an interesting matchup because both teams are playing very good baseball as of late. LSU’s winning streak is only matched by Oregon State’s and nobody other than the Beavers are playing better baseball than the Tigers right now. However, Florida State has been extremely efficient the last two weeks. Outside of a puzzling loss to Tennessee Tech, they have been flawless. This matchup is going to come down to who can pitch better, and I have to give the nod to LSU in this one.

LSU wins 7-2

Bracket 1

Oregon State vs Cal State Fullerton - June 17, 12pm PT, ESPN

LSU vs Florida State - June 17, 5pm PT, ESPN

Bracket 2

Louisville vs Texas A&M - June 18, 11am PT, ESPN

Florida vs TCU - June 18, 4pm PT, ESPN