College World Series 2018: TV Schedule and Predictions from Omaha
Eight teams are left standing in the hunt for the 2018 College World Series title.
The Florida Gators became the final team to punch their ticket to Omaha, Nebraska, with a walk-off, extra-inning win over Auburn on Monday night.
The final eight teams will now be split into two brackets in a double-elimination format until just two teams are left standing, setting up a best-of-three series to determine this year's national champion.
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Play begins at TD Ameritrade Park this weekend with the following slate of games:
- Saturday, June 17: Oregon State vs. North Carolina, 3 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- Saturday, June 17: Washington vs. Mississippi State, 8 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- Sunday, June 18: Arkansas vs. Texas, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN)
- Sunday, June 18: Texas Tech vs. Florida, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
An overview of the brackets and the full College World Series schedule can be found at NCAA.com, with the matchups beyond this weekend determined by who wins and loses on Saturday and Sunday.
Predictions
Oregon State vs. North Carolina
The Beavers and the Tar Heels are no strangers to meeting up in the College World Series. The two schools faced each other in the 2006 and 2007 finals, with Oregon State coming out on top both years.
This time around, they'll square off in the opening game.
Senior Luke Heimlich is the probable starter for Oregon State, fresh off an excellent Super Regionals start against Minnesota where he allowed just one run while striking out nine over 8.2 innings.
It's the Beavers offense that might be the bigger story in this one, though, as they ranked among the national leaders in team batting average (.317, third) and runs per game (7.5, ninth). Second baseman Nick Madrigal (No. 4 overall) and outfielder Trevor Larnach (No. 20 overall) were both first-round picks earlier in June.
For North Carolina, junior right-hander Cooper Criswell has been fronting the postseason rotation after going 5-2 with a 2.89 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 77 strikeouts in 65 innings during the regular season.
In his Super Regionals start against Stetson, he allowed one run over five innings to earn the win.
Leadoff man Kyle Datres (.344/.440/.500, 65 R, 12 SB) and slugging first baseman Michael Busch (.333/.478/.548, 13 HR, 63 RBI) lead a Tar Heels offense that averaged seven runs per game.
Prediction: Oregon State 5, North Carolina 2
Washington vs. Mississippi State
The Washington Huskies are the biggest surprise of this year's College World Series field.
They closed out the year at No. 63 in the RPI rankings after going 30-23 in the regular season. They then knocked off UConn and regional host Coastal Carolina to advance to Super Regionals, before eliminating Cal State Fullerton in three games to punch their ticket.
Joe DeMers, an 11th-round pick by the Oakland Athletics, will likely take the ball for Washington. He went 7-3 with a 2.46 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 89 strikeouts in 113 innings during the regular season. The Huskies pitching staff finished 37th in the nation with a 3.61 ERA, and closer Alex Hardy (33 G, 8 SV, 2.08 ERA) will continue to play a key role.
JUCO transfer Joe Wainhouse (.314/.364/.614, 17 HR, 56 RBI) leads the offensive attack.
Mississippi State is one of three SEC teams left standing. They played their way out of the loser's bracket in the Florida State Regional, then took two of three from Vanderbilt to advance to Omaha.
Konnor Pilkington has been the Bulldogs' ace this season, and he was a third-round pick by the Chicago White Sox after posting a 4.61 ERA with 97 strikeouts in 91.2 innings.
The offense lacks an elite power-hitting threat and the pitching staff has posted a combined 4.38 ERA on the year, but they've continued to find ways to win games.
Prediction: Washington 7, Mississippi State 3
Arkansas vs. Texas
A balanced Arkansas Razorbacks team closed out the regular season at No. 2 in the RPI rankings.
They finished in the top 30 in the nation in team batting average (.300, 18th), runs per game (7.0, 22nd) and team ERA (3.53, 29th), and they've gone 5-1 so far this postseason.
Blaine Knight, a third-round pick by the Baltimore Orioles, headlines the Arkansas rotation after going 11-0 with a 2.74 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 88 strikeouts in 95 innings to earn Third Team All-American honors.
He tossed six strong innings against South Carolina in the Super Regionals.
Opposing them will be a Texas Longhorns team that is appearing in the College World Series for a record 36th time.
The Arkansas pitching staff will be tasked with slowing Kody Clemens and the rest of the Longhorns offense.
After posting mediocre numbers during his freshman and sophomore seasons, Clemens exploded this spring to hit .346/.443/.706 with 14 doubles, 21 home runs and 68 RBI as a junior.
Nolan Kingham is the Longhorns' ace after going 8-3 with a 4.10 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 90 innings during the regular season. He allowed two earned runs in 7.2 innings against Texas A&M in his regional start.
Prediction: Arkansas 9, Texas 4
Texas Tech vs. Florida
This might be the most exciting matchup of the opening weekend.
Texas Tech brings one of the most potent offenses in college baseball into Omaha, having posted a team batting average (.309, eighth) and runs per game tally (8.4, third) that both rank among the top 10 nationally.
No. 74 overall pick Grant Little (.380/.480/.670, 12 HR, 70 RBI) is one of five players with double-digit home runs and at least 50 RBI, as they finished 12th in the nation with 74 home runs.
On the mound, senior Dylan Dusek earned the opening-game starting role in regionals and Super Regionals, so he could be called on again against a tough Florida Gators team.
The Gators are the national champions, and they've been the No. 1 team in the nation all season.
Brady Singer (11-1, 2.27 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, 98 K, 95 IP) outdueled No. 1 overall pick Casey Mize in the Super Regionals, and he'll likely take the ball again to get things rolling on Sunday.
No. 5 overall pick Jonathan India (.360/.500/.729, 19 HR, 47 RBI) and sophomore outfielder Wil Dalton (.269/.339/.574, 19 HR, 58 RBI) lead a Gators offense that averaged 6.8 runs per game and is coming off a dramatic win over Auburn in the Super Regionals.
Prediction: Florida 7, Texas Tech 5
All stats courtesy of The Baseball Cube, unless otherwise noted.
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