Men 2021 UConn Baseball @ NCAA Tournament’s South Bend Regional (6/4 > 6/7) Game 3 v. Central Michigan > Sunday @ 12p on ESPN3/Mixlr

[huskymedic]

 

[Rocko52]

They might be having a weaker year, but it's worth remembering the Wolverines were the CWS runner-ups in the last real year...

 

[Friarsnoop]

Good bracket for UConn. Central Michigan has the best pitcher in the bracket, which will make it hard for Notre Dame. I don't think Michigan is that good, either.

 

[huskymedic]

 

[NEforceUConn]

Toying with the idea of making the 11 hour drive from NC, but my mechanic has to fix something on my car tomorrow. It's 30/70 that this can get done.

Will tickets for the UConn games be easy to get? tia

 

[huskymedic]

Toying with the idea of making the 11 hour drive from NC, but my mechanic has to fix something on my car tomorrow. It's 30/70 that this can get done.

Will tickets for the UConn games be easy to get? tia

Post #21 ^ as ticket info.

 

[CL82]

Do any bars in hartford/manchester area show espn3?? Are they allowed to broadcast the games?

It's on the internet for free, FWIW.

EDIT: Schedule | Watch ESPN

 

[dbmill]

They might be having a weaker year, but it's worth remembering the Wolverines were the CWS runner-ups in the last real year...

Also, remember the Big 10 only played conference games this season. Makes it harder to figure out just how good their teams are vis a vis the rest of college baseball.

 

[dbmill]

UConn baseball seems to be getting familiar with a few college baseball facilities in the Cincinnati area.

 

[huskymedic]

Pender interviews are so so good. I can listen to him all day. Team tidbits/baseball philosophy galore. You can tell Dibble enjoys talking to Coach.

 

[businesslawyer]

bad mojo. Put a stop to this right now

But what’s important is that we were OUTMATCHED.

 

[JeannoCT]

It's on the internet for free, FWIW.

EDIT: Schedule | Watch ESPN

Thanks for the info. I thought one had to subscribe to get it.

 

[Samoo]

But what’s important is that we were OUTMATCHED.

DOOMED...

 

[CL82]

Thanks for the info. I thought one had to subscribe to get it.

Nope, that is ESPN+.

 

[Rocko52]

It's on the internet for free, FWIW.

EDIT: Schedule | Watch ESPN

For ESPN3 games though, you do need to input your internet service provider to get access. Almost all mainstream and even less main carriers though provide it, so you should be good. Took me a bit of tinkering to figure out today, wanted to make sure I had it ready in advance.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Ok, strategy time.

I’m very confident in both Peterson and Casparius. That said, I think Peterson starts against Michigan, just as he started first in the BET.

In these tournaments, provided you have a solid, trustworthy number two (we do), I prefer saving the highest-ceiling guy for the second game, where you’re either: probably playing the top seed for a championship slot; or playing to stay alive in the first place. Think of 2016, when we were able to start Cate against GT and saved Kay to face number one in the country Florida, in a game we were millimeters from winning.

that has always been the strategy for the double elimination tourneys done over a weekend. Pitch your #1 in the second game as a backstop against a quick double loss.

 

[huskymedic]

Ok, strategy time.

I’m very confident in both Peterson and Casparius. That said, I think Peterson starts against Michigan, just as he started first in the BET.

In these tournaments, provided you have a solid, trustworthy number two (we do), I prefer saving the highest-ceiling guy for the second game, where you’re either: probably playing the top seed for a championship slot; or playing to stay alive in the first place. Think of 2016, when we were able to start Cate against GT and saved Kay to face number one in the country Florida, in a game we were millimeters from winning.

that has always been the strategy for the double elimination tourneys done over a weekend. Pitch your #1 in the second game as a backstop against a quick double loss.

In the Dibble interview a few posts back (#36) - Penders said that Peterson is pitching game 1.

 

[HookC22]

that has always been the strategy for the double elimination tourneys done over a weekend. Pitch your #1 in the second game as a backstop against a quick double loss.

Not sure I would agree with this and it has never been our strategy. Even more so given we have Casparius as our #2.

 

[huskymedic]

 

[businesslawyer]

that has always been the strategy for the double elimination tourneys done over a weekend. Pitch your #1 in the second game as a backstop against a quick double loss.

Actually, the strategy is close to the opposite of what you said. If your goal as a 2 or 3 is to win the regional, and not see how far in it you can get, the last thing you want to do is use your best starter in an elimination game against the 4 seed. You have to assume if you can't beat the 4 seed with your number 3 you're not winning the regional anyway, and save one of your bigger arms for then having to win the next 3 games against the team that just beat you or the number 1 seed after you dispense of the number 4.

Didn't we start Cody Dunlop last tournament in our 2d game, having pitched Feole in game 1, and saving Kersten for when we played a tougher opponent?

 

[huskymedic]

 

[HookC22]

You have to assume if you can't beat the 4 seed with your number 3 you're not winning the regional anyway, and save one of your bigger arms for then having to win the next 3 games against the team that just beat you or the number 1 seed after you dispense of the number 4.

Yes this. And as a #2 or #2 you have to assume you will need to beat the host twice

• Either in the first matchup in Game 2 and then in the finals with two shows
• or two times coming our of the losers bracket in the finals

Normally if you lose game 1, you can think about saving you #2 starter if you are really facing a week #4 team. I dont think Penders would take this approach because his M.O. has always been you need to win the elimination first and then worry about the following games second because they wont matter if you lose anyway. However, based on all the talk about our regional, it seems like CMU is a very solid #4. Maybe they can knock off Notre Dame on day #1

 

[huskymedic]

South Bend Regional Superlatives (UConn mentions only):

Best Hitter: Kyler Fedko, OF, Connecticut. Fedko was named the Big East Player of the Year after slashing .411/.495/.697 with 27 extra-base hits, 12 of which were home runs. He sparked the offense during the Big East Tournament, batting .500 (8-for-16) in four games, scoring five times and driving in seven.

Michigan is noted to have the “Best Starting Rotation” but... “This is a very close category as UConn (Austin Peterson and Ben Casparius) and Central Michigan (Taylor and Jordan Patty) each have dominant 1-2 starting punches of their own.”

Best Offensive Team: Connecticut. It seemed as though UConn was just hitting its stride as the regular season came to a close, scoring 10 or more runs in its last five games. While Kyler Fedko is the star at the top of the order, his brother Christian more than holds his own. There’s also a pair of Winkel brothers, Pat and Chris, each of whom hit 11 dingers. Star second-year freshman Reggie Crawford also hit 11 bombs and led the team in RBIs with 56. Add in a .337/.420/.503 season from Erik Stock, and there’s no easy out, one through nine, in this lineup.

No. 1 Seed Win Probability (1-10): 6. Without a doubt Notre Dame received a tough draw and it’s hard not to play the woulda/coulda/shoulda game had it received a higher hosting seed. There aren’t too many teams as hot as UConn right now, and the Huskies might just be the most balanced team in this regional with a powerful lineup and a proven staff.

Michigan is noted to have the “Best Starting Rotation” but... “This is a very close category as UConn (Austin Peterson and Ben Casparius) and Central Michigan (Taylor and Jordan Patty) each have dominant 1-2 starting punches of their own.”

 

[huskymedic]

LOL...




Penders talked about the travel plans in his Dibble interview. Seems like they relish it.

 

[Rocko52]

Who’s got the Baseball America access (I only have D1Baseball): Anything particularly insightful?

No. 2 Connecticut (33-17)​

All-Conference Honorees: SP Ben Casparius (2nd), 1B Reggie Crawford (2nd), OF Kyler Fedko (1st), SP Austin Peterson (2nd), OF Erik Stock (1st), OF Chris Winkle (1st), C Pat Winkle (2nd), RP Caleb Wurster (1st)

Season in a sentence: UConn returned to the Big East and won both the regular-season and conference tournament titles behind a deep, talented lineup and solid pitching staff.

Best pitcher: Ben Casparius, RHP—Casparius sat out last season after the Connecticut native transferred home from North Carolina. He this year moved to the front of the UConn rotation and has excelled, going 8-4, 3.07 with 123 strikeouts and 33 walks in 88 innings. He attacks hitters with his fastball-slider combination and has piled up a lot of swings and misses on his low-90s fastball.

Best hitter: Kyler Fedko, OF—Fedko, the Big East player of the year, is hitting .411/.495/.697 with 12 home runs and seven stolen bases. He can do a bit of everything at the plate, but mostly just squares up a lot of baseballs. Even on a team that is hitting .297 as a group, Fedko stands out.

Outlook: UConn finished with a flourish, going 15-3 in May. While the Big East is solid competition, the level of play is going to rachet up this weekend. It’s nothing the Huskies haven’t seen after opening the season with series at Virginia, Southern Mississippi and Texas Tech. But UConn went just 2-8 in those games and is just 17-16 away from home this season. The Huskies will need to show that they’ve improved since those early-season road trips. Winning this regional starts with a strong effort from Casparius and closer Caleb Wurster.