Weekend Preview: Wake Forest Faces Tougher Road Ahead

Weekend Preview from Michael Lananna and Teddy Cahill dives into the college baseball weekend’s biggest stories.

Wake Forest, to this point, has checked off all of the boxes of being a regional team—and then some. In our latest Field of 64 projection, the Demon Deacons project as a regional host.

TOP 25 SERIES

Utah at (1) Oregon State

(17) Wake Forest at (2) Louisville

Murray State at (3) Texas Christian

(4) North Carolina at Boston College

Virginia Tech at (5) Clemson

Baylor at (6) Texas Tech

(7) Auburn at Texas A&M

Tennessee at (8) Florida

(9) Oklahoma at Texas

(10) Arizona at Washington State

Vanderbilt at (11) South Carolina

UC Davis at (12) Cal State Fullerton

(13) Kentucky at (22) Mississippi State

(14) St. John’s at Creighton

(15) Louisiana State at (16) Arkansas

(18) Florida Gulf Coast at Stetson

UC Riverside at (19) Long Beach State

(20) Stanford at Southern California

Florida International at (21) Southern Mississippi

Pittsburgh at (23) Virginia

(24) Florida State at North Carolina State

(25) Maryland at Nebraska

They rank No. 15 in the RPI on WarrenNolan.com, have gone 22-8 overall, 8-4 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and they’ve won each of their first four ACC series.

The first half of Wake’s season has been, undoubtedly, a resounding success. But from here on out, it’s only going to get harder.

That starts this weekend as the No. 17 Deacons travel to No. 2 Louisville (25-3, 10-2 ACC), a team that is a perfect 18-0 at home and has the best player in the country in two-way stud Brendan McKay.

“We’re playing a Louisville team that hasn’t lost at home yet, and they’ve got possibly the No. 1 overall pick who pitches on Fridays, so it’s certainly going to be a tough task,” Wake Forest head coach Tom Walter said. “And Louisville, I just have so much respect for their program, because you follow their scores and you watch their games, and they can win in all sorts of different ways.

“They can play from behind. They play defense. They don’t walk people. There’s not a whole lot of chinks in that armor, so you’re gonna have to go down there and play your best baseball to win.”

The Louisville series is the first of three ACC road series against Top 25 opponents. The Demon Deacons will also travel to Clemson later this month and to Florida State near the end of the season.

But Walter is confident his veteran club will be prepared for those challenges. While the Deacons have struggled in past years away from the hitter-friendly confines of their home ballpark in Winston-Salem, N.C., they’re 8-4 in road games this season, and they’re coming off of a series win at Miami last weekend.

“We have a veteran team, guys up and down the lineup that have been three- and four-year starters in college baseball, so playing on the road for an older club is not as daunting a task as it is for a younger club,” Walter said. “So we’re not going to go in there and panic. So that’s one of the strong points of our ball club. Winning a series at Miami against them and that tradition and their pitching staff is certainly a shot in the arm heading into a series like this.”

Among those veterans, senior outfielder Jonathan Pryor has taken a jump in his fourth year, leading the team in hitting at .408/.503/.560 and setting the table for middle-of-the-order bats Stuart Fairchild and Gavin Sheets. Infielder Johnny Aiello has blossomed in his sophomore year after giving up switch-hitting and batting righthanded exclusively. He leads the team with 10 home runs and is batting .310/.436/.649 overall.

“It’s been remarkable,” Walter said. “His numbers against righthanded pitching are about every bit as good as his numbers against lefthanded pitching, so for him to have made that adjustment so quickly is impressive, and to have done it on the fly. He did it while he was in the Cape Code League facing probably the best righthanded pitching in the country, with a wooden bat no less.

“His work ethic is the separator for him. If it’s something he can control, he’s going to find a way to get it done.”

On the mound, senior righthander Connor Johnstone has made a jump, as well. Rotation mates Parker Dunshee and Donnie Sellers have firmer stuff and are the more appealing pro prospects, but Johnstone has produced the best results of the group, going 4-0, 2.68 and throwing two complete-game shutouts—including one on Sunday at Miami. The Deacons have faced rubber matches in each of the last four Sundays, and Johnstone has led them to victory in all four of them.

“It’s been huge to have Connor in that role,” Walter said. “And his stuff is better now than it was a year ago, and he’s throwing a little bit harder, his breaking ball is a little bit better. He’s got better stuff than he had in the past, and I give Connor credit for that. He worked hard in the offseason on his strength and conditioning program. He didn’t pitch this summer . . . He’s a guy, when he’s on the mound, we feel really good about it.”

Where he would once live in the mid- to upper-80s with his sinker, Johnston now works more around 89-91 mph, can touch 92 and holds that velocity deeper into games, allowing him to pitch off his fastball more. The emergence of sophomore closer Griffin Roberts (1.14, 36 strikeouts in 23.2 innings) has taken pressure off of the entire staff as well, Walter said.

Of course, that Wake Forest staff will have to contend with one of the more dynamic and balanced lineups in the country. McKay leads the team in hitting, batting .409/.522/.659 with five home runs. Combined with shortstop Devin Hairston, third baseman Drew Ellis and catcher Colby Fitch, Louisville’s top of the order is an imposing one.

Meanwhile, McKay also continues to dominate on the mound, as he has his entire Louisville career, going 4-1, 1.18 and forming a potent one-two punch with junior righthander Kade McClure (3-1, 2.87).

Clearly, it’ll be a difficult challenge for Wake—and the first of many to come.

— Michael Lananna

MVC Leaders Meet For Critical Weekend

Either Dallas Baptist or Missouri State have won the last three Missouri Valley Conference championships, and appear to be on track to extend that streak this year. Headed into this weekend’s series in Springfield, Mo., the Patriots and Bears are both 18-10 and coming off sweeps on opening weekend of MVC play. Only one other team in the conference has an overall record above .500 (Indiana State at 13-12) and only one other team has a top 100 RPI (Bradley, No. 68), making this weekend one of the last opportunities for both schools to pick up a marquee series win this season.

Missouri State has been strong on the mound again this season and comes into the weekend with a 2.68 team ERA. The Bears offense is led by Preseason All-American third baseman Jake Burger, who is hitting .385/.478/.761 with 11 home runs. DBU hasn’t been quite as good on the mound this season, posting a 4.06 team ERA, but has a high-powered offense. The Patriots are averaging 7.39 runs per game, led by sophomore outfielder Jameson Hannah (.341/.423/561, 6 HR).

— Teddy Cahill

Arkansas, LSU Set For SEC West Showdown

Louisiana State was the lone team from the Southeastern Conference West Division ranked in the Preseason Top 25. After three weeks of conference play, however, the division looks much more open. No. 15 LSU (20-10) and No. 16 Arkansas (24-6) are two of four teams in the division ranked this week, and Arkansas and Auburn, which both missed the SEC Tournament last season, are the surprise division leaders, tied at 7-2. LSU is two games back at 5-4.

The Tigers have a chance to make up some ground this weekend when they travel to Baum Stadium to take on the Razorbacks. LSU has lost back-to-back series, while Arkansas is looking to win its first four SEC series for the first time since 2009.

— Teddy Cahill

Oklahoma, Texas Clash In Rivalry Series

First-year Texas coach David Pierce will get his first taste of the Red River Rivalry this weekend when No. 9 Oklahoma travels to Austin. The series will also be a homecoming for first-year Sooners pitching coach Skip Johnson, who spent the last 10 seasons serving in the same role for the Longhorns under Augie Garrido.

Texas (20-12, 4-5) is looking to bounce back after losing a series at Kansas last weekend. Oklahoma (26-6, 4-2) has not had a losing weekend all season and is tied for second in the Big 12 Conference.

— Teddy Cahill

Off the Wall

Louisiana-Lafayette (17-12, 7-3) has won three straight Sun Belt Conference championships. But with Coastal Carolina, the defending national champion, moving into the league this season, there is a new challenger to the Ragin’ Cajuns’ Sun Belt supremacy. The two heavyweights will meet this weekend at Coastal (19-10, 7-2) for a series between the conference’s division leaders.

I caught up with Chanticleers righthander Cole Schaefer (1-0. 5.28), who pitched out of the bullpen in the College World Series last season. I also declared his warmup music (Flume’s remix of “Tennis Courts” by Lorde) to be the best in the country last year.

RHP Cole Schaefer on for Coastal. Those who have followed me all year know Schaefer has the best entrance music in the country.

— Teddy Cahill (@tedcahill) June 28, 2016

You guys started a little slowly this season, but you’ve won seven of your last eight games. What’s clicking for you now?
“Last year when we were struggling and started getting hot, (pitching coach Drew Thomas) would play a little video or give a little speech to pump us up a little bit. He only did one before it all started working. It was kind of like those little dinker hits that we’d give up, those weren’t falling for us. So he played Jocko Motivation, it’s like this ex-MMA fighter and he motivates people. He was talking about ‘Good.’ Look at everything as good. So he was like, ‘oh, so you didn’t get promoted? Good, now you’ve got time to get better.’ So everyone kind of adopted this ‘Good’ mentality. ‘Oh, Wood Myers, you just had four line drives that had an exit velo of 100 mph where the guy could barely react to it, but you lined out? Good, you got a good barrel on it.’ So everyone, instead of playing uptight and getting down on themselves, everyone’s adapted that good mentality.”

What did you think when I called your warmup music the best in the country?

“I take a lot of pride in that. Other guys on the team give me a little flack for it. But I always joke around saying I’m going to put that on my resume when I hand it out. You tweeted something about our BP music and I know (director of gameday experience and promotions) Alex Souza took pride in that also. He said the same thing that he wanted to put that on his resume. I take a lot of pride in that. Honestly, a lot of guys take so much time thinking about that kind of stuff. So once you kind of get recognized a little bit for it – obviously you’re doing it for yourself, but you’re also kind of doing it for the crowd, too. So it’s kind of cool, obviously, seeing you tweet that last year and obviously this year too, put me as the front runner again. I always smile when I see that kind of stuff.”

You’re using it as your warmup music again this year. How did you make that decision?
“Knowing how much you liked it and the little attention that it got from your tweet – I know people are always asking about it. It’s kind of different. I remember last year the infielders when I would come in, like I said they always try to give me flack for it, but I always looked around after a few (warmup) pitches just to get visuals and I see them head bobbing a little bit. I was like, ‘No way these guys are hating on this song and then trying to head bob to it.’ So I took that into account. Even though it’s more so for me, I know the infielders, they like it too, so I just kind of kept it. I personally enjoy that song a lot. But I always pick feel-good music that kind of gets you ready to go.”

What is the best warmup/walkup music you’ve heard?

“(Second baseman) Cam Pearcey and (outfielder) Kieton Rivers, when we go on the road, when guys walk up for the opposing team, we always give thumbs up or thumbs down what we think of them. You can’t go wrong with Andrew Beckwith for our own team. When you hear that “Seven Bridges Road” (The Eagles’ version), how calm it is, you know everything’s going to be all right no matter the situation because you’ve got four-one coming in the game. For opposing teams, it was (Quincy) Nieporte from Florida State two years ago. He had this Nelly song, “Hot in Herre.” But it was a remix. Their entire lineup and BP music was remixes. I played with summer ball with two of those kids, Alex Byrd and Dylan Busby, and after the first game I texted them saying, ‘I need every single song, all your hitters, everything. That music’s so good.’ Knowing Nieporte’s personality, seeing him on Twitter and whatnot, “Hot in Herre” fit him perfectly and I thought that was a pretty good one.

Who is the best hitter you’ve faced in your career?

“Trea Turner. I remember my freshman year going (to North Carolina State). The one weekend against us he was 9-for-10 or something like that over the whole weekend with three dingers a couple doubles, almost 10 stolen bases. I just remember the one time I faced him it was almost a 14, 15 pitch at bat. Anything I threw up there he was either fouling off or working on it. It was the second time that weekend that I’d pitched out of the bullpen. They called fastball in the middle and I was praying it wasn’t going to leave the park again. It was a missed pitch location, but luckily he chased it. I threw my best stuff up there and that guy could just foul everything off. He’s legit. It’s kind of cool to see him in the pros. I get texts from (former Coastal closer) Mike Morrison every once in a while, like Trea Turner hits a walk-off or Trea Turner hits two home runs in this game with the Nats and he’ll text me, ‘Hey, remember that one time you struck Trea Turner out?’ I’ll text him back because Mike Morrison, his first batter in his college career was Kris Bryant and he struck him out. I always joke around with him about that, too.”

What is your go-to Chipotle order?

“You got to go with the chicken bowl with brown rice, double meat with corn salsa, hot sauce, sour cream. And then you’ve got to pay the extra $1.90 I think it is now for guac. And then you’ve got to get a side of chips and mix it up and eat it with the chips.”

— Teddy Cahill