2016 AAC Baseball Championship

[ATLDYKA]

Not liking what I am seeing so far. Where have the bats gone?

 

[huskymedic]

Not liking what I am seeing so far. Where have the bats gone?

Say it again, say it again...

 

[ATLDYKA]

Apparently they heard my cries. 3 straight hits

 

[uconnbaseball]

Great defense behind Kay vs. defense behind the opposing pitcher is the main reason we are up 3-1. Keep dealing Kay!

 

[ATLDYKA]

Nice to see the one guy who struggled last weekend Daniello with 2 doubles already.

 

[uconnbaseball]

More excellent defense as we head to the btm of the 5th. Kay's pitch count is looking pretty good as well.

 

[uconnbaseball]

Sundberg almost went yard, but the score remains 3-1. Their pitcher looks worn down.

 

[HuskyHawk]

It's very nice that we can stream this.

 

[ATLDYKA]

TOPPA!!

 

[uconnbaseball]

6-1, toppa is a beast.

 

[ATLDYKA]

78 pitches thru 7. 6-1 lead. Pull Kay and save him for possible Sunday start or even relief appearance on Saturday if needed.

 

[Baseballguy]

Please take Kay out Penders

 

[dbmill]

78 pitches thru 7. 6-1 lead. Pull Kay and save him for possible Sunday start or even relief appearance on Saturday if needed.

Seeing how well Kay has done in relief in his career, I wouldn't mind seeing Kay being the first guy out of the bullpen on Sunday assuming UConn gets to the championship game.

 

[uconnbaseball]

6-2 vs a soft hitting Memphis club in the top of the 9th. We should be alright.

 

[dbmill]

Anthony Kay is still in for the 9th inning. This does not bother me in the least. I hope it doesn't get to the point where Ruotolo needs to come in. He's going to see enough action the rest of the tourney.

 

[dbmill]

Easy 9th inning for Kay. Great thing as it is always great to save the bullpen in a tournament set up like this. UConn wins 6-2.

 

[huskymedic]

Kay - 101 pitches.

 

[uconnbaseball]

I am fine with this. Kay threw barely over 100 pitches so it's not like je cannot come in relief Sunday if need be. Good, clean performance despite the bottom of the order not contributing. Keep it up.

 

[dbmill]

In a double elimination tournament set up like this, it's just a big advantage to stay in the winners bracket. That goes double for the first two games. Not only do you get to breathe easier about not being on the brink of elimination at any given time, but winning these first two games means you don't have to play Friday. Not having to play Friday gives a big boost to a pitching staff in that it is one less starter you have to use, and the bullpen also gets a day off before a possibly crazy weekend of elimination baseball. It's a nice set up if you can get it.

I view today's East Carolina loss as both good news and bad news for the Huskies. Now UConn doesn't have to face the Pirates tomorrow, which. It certainly makes the path to the championship game easier. However, in terms of looking for an NCAA at large bid, beating Memphis doesn't appear that it will be a big mover in terms of the RPI, and I'm not sure playing South Florida will give much of a boost to the RPI as well. Playing East Carolina would certainly take care of the RPI question, but as UConn has found out this season, it isn't exactly easy to beat the Pirates.

 

[uconnbaseball]

It also isn't that hard, if ecu drops 2 of those 5 close wins vs us they are squarely on the bubble.

 

[HuskyHawk]

In a double elimination tournament set up like this, it's just a big advantage to stay in the winners bracket. That goes double for the first two games. Not only do you get to breathe easier about not being on the brink of elimination at any given time, but winning these first two games means you don't have to play Friday. Not having to play Friday gives a big boost to a pitching staff in that it is one less starter you have to use, and the bullpen also gets a day off before a possibly crazy weekend of elimination baseball. It's a nice set up if you can get it.

I view today's East Carolina loss as both good news and bad news for the Huskies. Now UConn doesn't have to face the Pirates tomorrow, which. It certainly makes the path to the championship game easier. However, in terms of looking for an NCAA at large bid, beating Memphis doesn't appear that it will be a big mover in terms of the RPI, and I'm not sure playing South Florida will give much of a boost to the RPI as well. Playing East Carolina would certainly take care of the RPI question, but as UConn has found out this season, it isn't exactly easy to beat the Pirates.

So we beat USF, ECU beats Memphis, and we have at least one, possibly two games against ECU, with a possible game against Tulane. It's good that they lost, no matter what.

 

[huskypantz]

Great day for us. Only one pitcher used and ECU gets upset by a team we really should beat. Getting 2 shots at the finals with a rested pitching staff would be perfect.

 

[huskymedic]

2016 Baseball Championship Day 2 - UConn Head Coach Jim Penders Interview

 

[dbmill]

TOPPA!!

6-1, toppa is a beast.

John Toppa ended up with the left field job when he was literally the last outfielder standing. He was sharing time with Stefanski and Krueger until they went down with injuries, and that got Toppa into the everyday lineup pretty much by default. He has been getting better and better ever since. And judging from the interview that Huskymedic posted above, I would say that Coach Penders is rather pleased with how he has done. Toppa has now gotten his batting average up to .298, and in the last few weeks constantly seems to be in the middle of many Husky rallies. It's probably way too early to think about next season, but if Toppa continues to play like this, in my mind he is the likely candidate to succeed Sundberg as the leadoff batter.

 

[huskymedic]

Cincy eliminated.

American_BSB 10:42pm via TweetDeck
Brooks Morgan lifts @UCF_Baseball to a 7-6 win over @GoBearcatsBASE with a walk-off homer in the bottom of the 10th!