-It goes without saying that yesterday was huge for the program. I remember some people back in 2011 downplaying our Saturday win against Florida State by saying "well, they aren't as good as they were last year." There was some truth to that then and there's some truth to it this year. But the main issue now (as was the case in 2011) was how much better we've gotten. Though we lost the series in 2011, I thought that was the weekend we really turned the corner. It wouldn't surprise me if history remembers the 2015 Florida State series the same way.
-The new baseball certainly makes the game more entertaining. I don't need home runs to enjoy a game, but it's frustrating to get down by 3 runs and have it feel like a mountain to overcome.... and that's really what it used to be.... I haven't heard a pitcher yet who doesn't like the new baseball either, and I think that's very notable. It seems to be a winner all around, which is extremely rare. Trevor Kieboom's HR in game 2 Saturday would have been a HR last year. I am tempted to say the same about Jared Walsh's, but (and I did have a different vantage point) his HR in game one Saturday looked identical off the bat to his shot against tech here last year. His swing looked the same, the arc of the ball off the bat looked the same.... But obviously the one last year was caught on the track (and we inexplicably got ourselves doubled off 1st, to boot) and the one Saturday was way up on Kudzu Hill. They say that the new ball travels 30-40 feet farther. Walsh's hit against tech last year and against Florida State on Saturday probably bear that out.
-Danny De La Calle, Florida State's catcher, wasn't too amused about Kieboom's bat flip on his HR. He had some things to say to Trevor on his way home and to our dugout as well.... I thought that the umps handled it nicely.... They didn't get too excited and start issuing warnings or any of that kind of non-sense. But then the home plate ump gave Stricklin a warning later in the game for arguing about Bowers' K.... Florida State's dugout seemed to chirp about the strike zone a lot more than ours (justifiably), but I never saw them get warned. In a lot of ways, the umpiring this weekend was a real joke.... Game two Saturday was 3 and a half hours largely because the pitchers from both sides were trying to hit an arbitrary, moving target. Two major college staffs shouldn't combine to walk 15 batters (especially if one of those staffs is ours). I get frustrated watching the umpires become that big of a factor.... And I get even more frustrated watching them handle the De La Calle situation correctly and then needless escalate things following Bowers' K. Not that I minded watching Florida State walk people in the second game, but their dugout had every right to be pissed. And to think.... David Savage didn't even work this series....
-Ryan Lawlor REALLY piled up the K's in game one.... I remember thinking during the game "wow, I can't believe he's already up to 7..." He ended with 10, of course and for the reason is striking out right at 1 per inning. And if I remember right, he's only given up 4 hits in his last 11 innings.
-I think the final tally was 39 K's of Seminole hitters this weekend. It's one thing to stack up those K's against a schedule filler, but it's another to do it against a group like Florida State, regardless of their youth.
-David Sosebee probably threw his best inning of the year in the 5th against Florida State.... Really glad to see him go out on that note. It was dicey for him early, but he hung in and really got his curveball working late. He seems to pick up a lot of early count outs when he's really dialed in.
-On that note, I've noticed this first with Sosebee this year but then with everyone else. Our tempo is MUCH better than it was two weekends in a year ago. Down at Florida State last season, it seemed to take FOREVER to get the sign from the dugout to the catcher and then out to the mound. It was hard to watch it at times.... Totally different this year. We work so much faster and that has to help the defense as well.
-It's safe to say that Drew Moody and Connor Jones have taken the proverbial "step forward".... Both of those guys are just overmatching hitters right now. I felt like Moody would take a noticeable step. He wasn't there in the fall last season, but showed up in January and won a roster spot. You could tell he was raw, but the tools were there. I can't say that I would have predicted his stuff to be this much better this quickly or that I predicted Jones to be as overpowering as he's been. Fred Corral is going to make a lot of guys a lot of money.... But I don't want to downplay the individual accomplishments there either.... both of those guys are going to be huge parts of the bullpen.
-Said this last night, but it bears repeating. Keegan McGovern is leading the team in walks and only has one strikeout on the year (which was his first AB of the season). That's phenomenal for a freshman.
-Really enjoyed the audio from the Green House.... It was neat hearing some background music and hearing the radio broadcast during the game. That added a lot to the atmosphere, for me. Also, I got a good chuckle in game one Saturday when Taylor Folsom was pulled with the bases loaded.... Matthew Kamenski, the organist, played "Folsom Prison Blues".
-If you're a casual baseball fan, this team offers something for you. If you like home runs, we can hit them. If you like speed, we have it. If you like seeing pitchers throw hard, we have several. If you like defense, watch Stephen Wrenn in CF. Watch Brandon Stephens behind the plate. If you like a game to go by quickly, we play fast (unless the umps start squeezing us). And if you like watching a team play HARD, you'll love this group. Stricklin was right. Fans will love this team.
-The new baseball certainly makes the game more entertaining. I don't need home runs to enjoy a game, but it's frustrating to get down by 3 runs and have it feel like a mountain to overcome.... and that's really what it used to be.... I haven't heard a pitcher yet who doesn't like the new baseball either, and I think that's very notable. It seems to be a winner all around, which is extremely rare. Trevor Kieboom's HR in game 2 Saturday would have been a HR last year. I am tempted to say the same about Jared Walsh's, but (and I did have a different vantage point) his HR in game one Saturday looked identical off the bat to his shot against tech here last year. His swing looked the same, the arc of the ball off the bat looked the same.... But obviously the one last year was caught on the track (and we inexplicably got ourselves doubled off 1st, to boot) and the one Saturday was way up on Kudzu Hill. They say that the new ball travels 30-40 feet farther. Walsh's hit against tech last year and against Florida State on Saturday probably bear that out.
-Danny De La Calle, Florida State's catcher, wasn't too amused about Kieboom's bat flip on his HR. He had some things to say to Trevor on his way home and to our dugout as well.... I thought that the umps handled it nicely.... They didn't get too excited and start issuing warnings or any of that kind of non-sense. But then the home plate ump gave Stricklin a warning later in the game for arguing about Bowers' K.... Florida State's dugout seemed to chirp about the strike zone a lot more than ours (justifiably), but I never saw them get warned. In a lot of ways, the umpiring this weekend was a real joke.... Game two Saturday was 3 and a half hours largely because the pitchers from both sides were trying to hit an arbitrary, moving target. Two major college staffs shouldn't combine to walk 15 batters (especially if one of those staffs is ours). I get frustrated watching the umpires become that big of a factor.... And I get even more frustrated watching them handle the De La Calle situation correctly and then needless escalate things following Bowers' K. Not that I minded watching Florida State walk people in the second game, but their dugout had every right to be pissed. And to think.... David Savage didn't even work this series....
-Ryan Lawlor REALLY piled up the K's in game one.... I remember thinking during the game "wow, I can't believe he's already up to 7..." He ended with 10, of course and for the reason is striking out right at 1 per inning. And if I remember right, he's only given up 4 hits in his last 11 innings.
-I think the final tally was 39 K's of Seminole hitters this weekend. It's one thing to stack up those K's against a schedule filler, but it's another to do it against a group like Florida State, regardless of their youth.
-David Sosebee probably threw his best inning of the year in the 5th against Florida State.... Really glad to see him go out on that note. It was dicey for him early, but he hung in and really got his curveball working late. He seems to pick up a lot of early count outs when he's really dialed in.
-On that note, I've noticed this first with Sosebee this year but then with everyone else. Our tempo is MUCH better than it was two weekends in a year ago. Down at Florida State last season, it seemed to take FOREVER to get the sign from the dugout to the catcher and then out to the mound. It was hard to watch it at times.... Totally different this year. We work so much faster and that has to help the defense as well.
-It's safe to say that Drew Moody and Connor Jones have taken the proverbial "step forward".... Both of those guys are just overmatching hitters right now. I felt like Moody would take a noticeable step. He wasn't there in the fall last season, but showed up in January and won a roster spot. You could tell he was raw, but the tools were there. I can't say that I would have predicted his stuff to be this much better this quickly or that I predicted Jones to be as overpowering as he's been. Fred Corral is going to make a lot of guys a lot of money.... But I don't want to downplay the individual accomplishments there either.... both of those guys are going to be huge parts of the bullpen.
-Said this last night, but it bears repeating. Keegan McGovern is leading the team in walks and only has one strikeout on the year (which was his first AB of the season). That's phenomenal for a freshman.
-Really enjoyed the audio from the Green House.... It was neat hearing some background music and hearing the radio broadcast during the game. That added a lot to the atmosphere, for me. Also, I got a good chuckle in game one Saturday when Taylor Folsom was pulled with the bases loaded.... Matthew Kamenski, the organist, played "Folsom Prison Blues".
-If you're a casual baseball fan, this team offers something for you. If you like home runs, we can hit them. If you like speed, we have it. If you like seeing pitchers throw hard, we have several. If you like defense, watch Stephen Wrenn in CF. Watch Brandon Stephens behind the plate. If you like a game to go by quickly, we play fast (unless the umps start squeezing us). And if you like watching a team play HARD, you'll love this group. Stricklin was right. Fans will love this team.
