(Image courtesy of istockphotos.com)
Every year at the College World Series, a team emerges that captures the backing of the fan base not already rooting for a certain team, most often the locals who just enjoy the game.
From Fresno State in 2018 to Coastal Carolina in 2016 and Michigan in 2019, an underdog seemingly emerges out of nowhere to not only challenge for the title, but in the case of the Bulldogs and Chanticleers, win the whole thing. It is what gives every team, every year, hope that all they have to do is make the NCAA field of 64, and then anything can happen.
In 2022, however, it seems several teams aren’t waiting until their respective conference tournaments to make that push. Throughout the latter half of this season, numerous mid-major or non-Power 5 schools have sent notice that they are ready to compete on the big stage and not as some Cinderella story.
Connecticut
Record: 40-8, 14-1 in Big East
RPI: 35
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: 14
Key wins: Louisville, Pepperdine (2), Southern Cal, Creighton (3)
How they got here: The Huskies may not have the flashiest RPI in the land, but they have been taking care of business against the teams in the other dugout. UConn has had some solid teams in the past, but this might be longtime head coach Jim Penders’ best one yet. The Huskies have mowed through the Big East, suffering just one loss, and last weekend (May 6-8) swept second-place Creighton. Hitting .298 as a team, Connecticut has five players with 38 or more RBI and three solid starters in Austin Peterson (9-0, 2.66 ERA), Enzo Stefanoni (6-1, 2.74 ERA) and Pat Gallagher (7-3, 3.03 ERA). Barring a late collapse, the Huskies appear well-positioned to make some noise in the NCAA Tournament.
Southern Mississippi
Record: 36-12, 18-6 in Conference USA
RPI: 15
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: 15
Key wins: Mississippi State, Louisiana (2), Alabama, Louisiana Tech (2), Ole Miss, Tulane
How they got here: The Conference USA race has been an interesting one, with about four teams taking turns looking like the team to beat. As it sits with two weeks left in the regular season, however, the Golden Eagles are leading the group with a two-game lead over a surprising UTSA squad and a home clash with the Roadrunners on tap for this weekend (May 13-15). Southern Miss has a couple of bombers, but the strength of the team is in the pitching staff that boasts a 3.09 ERA. Leading the way are Tanner Hall (7-1, 2.31 ERA, 109 K) and Waldrep Houston (5-1, 2.54 ERA, 93 K).
Texas State
Record: 38-11, 20-4 in Sun Belt Conference
RPI: 38
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: 17
Key wins: Arizona (2), Texas, Georgia Southern, Baylor
How they got here: The Bobcats served notice in early March that they were not going to be a flash in the pan, coming back from a disappointing home loss against Texas to defeat the Longhorns on the road the very next night. Since then, they have cruised through the Sun Belt schedule, losing only one series all year (to Georgia Southern) while sweeping five of them en route to a two-game lead over the Eagles in the league standings. Texas State has an impressive offense, hitting .300 on the year, led by John Wuthrich (.281/.377/.526, 12 HR, 38 RBI) and Dalton Shuffield (.387/.455/.683, 10 HR, 40 RBI), but it is driven by the starting pitching duo of Zeke Wood (5-1, 2.92 ERA, 73 K) and Levi Wells (6-1, 2.42 ERA, 65 K).
UC-Santa Barbara
Record: 33-11, 21-3 in Big West Conference
RPI: 30
Key wins: Oregon (2), UC-Irvine (2)
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: 24
How they got here: While the usual names on the West Coast — UCLA, Stanford, Oregon State, UC-Irvine, Arizona —all have had their expected top-notch seasons, teams like the Gauchos are giving college baseball west of the Rocky Mountains the depth of successful teams that have been missing for a while. The Gauchos have a really strong trio of starting pitchers, a necessity come NCAA Tournament time, in Cory Lewis (7-0, 2.82 ERA, 85 K), Ryan Gallagher (5-0, 2.90 ERA, 50 K) and Mike Gutierrez (6-1, 3.54 ERA, 58 K) while Ryan Harvey has been nails at the end of the game, racking up 10 saves with 33 strikeouts in 23.2 innings.
Grand Canyon
Record: 33-16, 19-5 in Western Athletic Conference
RPI: 34
Key wins: Arizona (2), UC-Irvine, San Diego, Oregon State, Texas Tech (2), Stanford
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: 25
How they got here: Of all the teams on this list, the ‘Lopes may have the most impressive non-conference resume to date, earning a pair of wins each over preseason Top 25 teams Arizona and No. 8 Texas Tech as well as current No. 1 Oregon State and No. 6 Stanford. But the WAC is ranked as one of the worst conferences in the country, meaning the Antelopes likely will need to win the league’s automatic bid to ensure a spot in the NCAA tournament. Jacob Wilson (.362/.425/.602 10 HR, 54 RBI) and Tayler Aguilar (.303/.366/.674, 17 HR, 58 RBI) lead the offensive charge while Nick Hull (5-1, 3.55 ERA, 78 K) and Vince Reilly (6-1, 3.54 ERA, 10 saves, 27 K) lead the pitching staff.
Louisiana Tech
Record: 33-17, 15-9 in Conference USA
RPI: 50
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: NR
Key wins: LSU (2), Tulane, Southern Miss, Louisiana
How they got here: From the start of the season to now, the Bulldogs may be the most consistent of all the mid-major and non-Power 5 teams. They sent an early signal in late February with a win over the powerhouse of the state — LSU – and following that win up with another over the Tigers a month later. But it seems at times as though La. Tech has had trouble building on its success, dropping league series to Southern Miss, Middle Tennessee and Florida Atlantic and finding themselves three games back of the Golden Eagles in the C-USA standings. The Bulldogs could do well to have a strong finish to the season to improve their at-large NCAA chances unless they win the Conference USA tournament.
Georgia Southern
Record 32-15, 18-6 in Sun Belt Conference
RPI: 5
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: NR
Key wins: Georgia, Mercer, Louisiana, Texas State (2), Georgia State (3), Kennesaw State
How they got here: The Eagles have the most impressive RPI of all the teams that have put together unexpectedly great seasons, coming in at No. 5 in the Warren Nolan RPI. Georgia Southern opened with three losses against No. 1 RPI Tennessee but has picked up some impressive wins along the way, most notably a three-game conference sweep of in-state rival Georgia State in mid-April and a series win over Texas State the weekend prior. But the Eagles remain two games behind the Bobcats for the top spot in the conference, and the Sun Belt may get only one team in the NCAA tournament despite four in the top 54 of the RPI.
Mercer
Record: 35-12, 9-6 in Southern Conference
RPI: 33
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: NR
Key wins: Florida State, Georgia Tech, Georgia State, Wofford
How they got here: The Bears had a solid team last year and were poised to follow that up with an even better season in 2022. Mercer opened the Southern Conference season with consecutive sweeps of The Citadel and UNC-Greensboro to break into the HOF Power Poll. But since then, the Bears have lost two of their last three series to Wofford and Western Carolina, including a sweep at the hands of the Catamounts that put them three games back of the Terriers with six games in league play left. The Bears have some impressive power numbers with four players tallying double-digit home runs, led by 17 from Colby Thomas and 14 from Collin Price.
Wofford
Record: 35-13, 12-3 in Southern Conference
RPI: 21
Key wins: Dallas Baptist (2), Mercer (2)
National College Baseball Hall of Fame Poll Ranking: NR
How they got here: While Mercer took the early lead in the Southern Conference race, it was Wofford that appears to have more staying power. With a solid RPI and a three-game lead in the league standings, the Terriers could be poised to earn an at-large berth if they don’t garner the league’s automatic bid. The blight on their resume is a series loss to third-place Samford, but the overall resume is solid. Wofford’s offense has been getting the job done all season, boasting a .315 average led by sluggers John Dempsey (.366, 11 HR, 40 RBI) and Ryan Galanie (.309, 13 HR, 46 RBI). Dalton Rhadans (7-3, 3.14 ERA, 64 K) leads a solid pitching staff.
Honorable mentions: Kennesaw State, Liberty, Southeast Missouri State, UTSA, Gonzaga, Old Dominion