Top 25 Chat (Feb. 27)

Teddy Cahill: Welcome to this week’s Top 25 chat after another solid weekend of college baseball. Let’s get to your questions.

Jerry (Houston, TX): Which team(s) in the Shriner's do you see taking a big step towards a top 8 seed, and which do you see leaving with some weaknesses exposed?
Teddy Cahill: Let’s start with the biggest event on this weekend’s slate, the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic in Houston. The field is loaded, featuring TCU, LSU, Ole Miss, Texas Tech, Texas A&M and Baylor. The Bears are the only team not ranked this week and they’re 9-0. I suppose the obvious answer is that TCU and LSU can take a step toward being national seeds. They have the big Friday night matchup against each other and then can build on that result the rest of the weekend. But the reality is that with this field, it’s a big weekend for all the teams. Whoever comes out with two or three wins is going to have made a loud early-season statement. Last year, TCU did that and wound up as an Omaha team. Arkansas look pretty good coming out of the weekend as well, but wasn’t able to sustain it. So the momentum has its limits, but it’ll no doubt be a fun event in Houston.

Harrison Hill (Texas): Is the Big XII a two team race between Texas Tech and Texas Christian? Can TTU challenge, given that they play in Lubbock?
Teddy Cahill: I would not count out Oklahoma State when talking Big 12 title. And I know of a few coaches in the conference who believe West Virginia can challenge this year. Baylor is 9-0 and Oklahoma and Texas are both talented teams that have started the year well. So I’m not going to say it is a two-horse race. But that series in Lubbock will be critical, as the series was last year in Fort Worth. Texas Tech can certainly challenge, but TCU is the clear favorite right now.

Keaton (Austin): I have watched most of the Longhorns games this year. Starting pitching looks to be a strong point. The offense is up and down but it is hard not to get excited about this team. how far away are they from your top 25?
Teddy Cahill: Speaking of Texas…it was a good weekend for the Longhorns against Connecticut. They have put themselves on the radar, no doubt. I’m very interested to see how they do this weekend when they travel to Stanford. The Cardinal’s pitching staff has been outstanding at the outset of the season, so it will be a good challenge for the Longhorns’ lineup.

Mike (New York): How close was St. John's to making the Top 25 this week? Off to a 7-0 start with a win at Coastal.
Teddy Cahill: The last time St. John’s started better than 7-0 was 1981, when John Franco and Frank Viola were playing for the Red Storm. So it’s been quite the start for St. John’s. They have also put themselves very much on the radar and have another big week coming up. St. John’s plays at North Carolina on Wednesday followed by the Keith LeClair Classic at East Carolina. The Red Storm have a deep, experienced lineup that is going to be tough to pitch to all season. Definitely a team to watch.

Alex (Atascocita, TX): How do you see the Keith LeClair Classic playing out this weekend? Western can hit, St. John's is white-hot and ECU has shown it can pitch but has not sure it can hit consistently with only 8.5 hits a game...only 6 hits against a bad LaSalle team Sunday (yes I know strikes were a premium in the game.)
Teddy Cahill: The LeClair Classic has a pretty solid field this year. Obviously we think highly of East Carolina and they are at home, so I would guess it will be a good weekend for the Pirates. But they’re going to have their hands full with the offenses of St. John’s and Western Carolina. And you can’t overlook Appalachian State, which is 4-3 and coming off a sweep at Gardner-Webb. It may not have the name cachet of some other tournaments this weekend, but the LeClair should be a good event again.

Warren (Hattiesburg): Thoughts on the USM/ULL series this weekend? USM has put up a ton of runs, albeit against weaker competition. Should be a raucous atmosphere.
Teddy Cahill: I think one thing you can count on is a raucous atmosphere at Louisiana-Lafayette. Southern Mississippi has swung the bats really well to start the year, but Louisiana’s pitching staff is outstanding. Southern Miss is going to need more out of its starting pitchers than it has gotten so far. Louisiana, meanwhile, needs to get the bats going a bit more. Definitely a fun series down there with some contrasting styles for the two teams.

Tom (Austin, Texas): Have you learned enough about either Oregon or Mississippi State to predict their series this weekend? The Bulldogs can swing the bat, but the pitching staff is inconsistent at best.
Teddy Cahill: I don’t think so. Mississippi State has been a very exciting team, but the Bulldogs are also still figuring some things out. And, not only are they traveling to the West Coast, it is their first road trip of the season. Oregon has had some mixed results at the start of the season, but is still pitching well. It should be a telling series in a lot of ways. Last year, this was Mississippi State’s breakout weekend and the Bulldogs rode the momentum from their sweep through conference play to an SEC title. Conversely, it was the start of a stretch where Oregon lost nine of 12. I don’t think either team’s season will turn on this series this year, but I think we’ll know a good bit more about them this time next week.

Bill (Atlanta): I'm concerned about GT's starting pitching since only one of the three could even make five innings this weekend. Have you had a chance to look at the Jackets? I'm not too worried about the offense.
Teddy Cahill: Georgia Tech’s starting pitching is a concern, but not because of this weekend. It’s just a young group that has been the team’s weak point the last couple years. Xzavion Curry and Jonathan Hughes are both really talented and as long as they’re healthy, I think they’ll be fine. The Jackets may need to work some things out on Sunday if Keyton Gibson isn’t able to stay there, but they have options. A big part of the reason we ranked Georgia Tech coming into this year is because of the pitching staff’s talent. I still believe in it, they just have to work out some early-season issues.

Craig (Tempe,AZ): Why is Arizona State not ranked at least at the bottom of the rankings? We played TCU very tough and quite frankly should've won the game yesterday, but committed a few costly errors to lose it in the latter innings. We are young, but very talented. Where's the love? Thx!
Teddy Cahill: While Arizona State showed something this weekend (which we talked about on the podcast which will post soon), it is very hard to imagine moving a team into the Top 25 after a 1-3 week, even if all four games were against ranked opponents. I like the Sun Devil’s potential this season and think there will be a time they are ranked this season, but they’ve got to win some series first. Arizona State has a tough Loyola Marymount team coming in this weekend followed by two midweeks against Fullerton and a series with Long Beach State. I’ll be very interested to see how the Devils handle that stretch leading up to Pac-12 play, which they begin against Oregon State.

DHOO (Charlottesville, VA): Thoughts on UVA so far this year? We haven't really played stud competition yet, but I gotta say the bats are still surprising to me.
Teddy Cahill: I’ve been impressed. Virginia has the makings of a solid lineup and the Cavs have shown that so far this season. Preseason All-Americans Pavin Smith, Ernie Clement and Adam Haseley are all off to strong starts, and Robbie Coman has been huge for them. They’re definitely looking like a team that can contend for the ACC title and make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

Mark (United States): Why do big college right handers bust at a higher rate than everyone else? Is it because teams overemphasize them because they think they can reach the majors faster than other prospects, or because their bodies take more wear and tear because of the heavier weight involved behind the delivery?
Teddy Cahill: I assume you mean high-profile righthanders as opposed to large righthanders. And high-profile college righties fare much, much better than their high school counterparts. This has actually been subject of significant discussion in the office this winter. Since 2003, the high school righthander who was drafted in the first round with the most WAR is Chad Billingsley (16.6 on B-Ref). So, yes, college pitchers have their flameouts, but that same time period has also produced Tim Lincecum, Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Justin Verlander, just to name a few college guys with more career WAR than Billingsley.

Darren Leblanc (Baton Rouge, LA): I know it's still early in the season, but how good can Jared Poche be this season?
Teddy Cahill: What Poche’ has done so far has been remarkable. Opening the year with 15 hitless innings is unbelievable. He can be very good – he’s got plenty of big-game experience and the savvy of a senior lefty. The one-two punch LSU has with Alex Lange and Poche’ is one of the best in the country without a doubt.

Teddy Cahill: That’ll do it for today. Thanks to everyone for the questions. And if I didn’t get to yours, leave it in the comments and I’ll come back and answer it there.