College World Series 2018: Arkansas vs. Oregon State Game 2 TV Schedule, Pick
An excellent start from ace Blaine Knight and a four-run top of the fifth inning gave Arkansas a 4-1 victory over Oregon State on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the 2018 College World Series finals.
Now the Beavers will look to even the score on Wednesday night to force a decisive Game 3 with the national championship on the line.
Ahead is a look at the TV schedule for this year's finals, along with some analysis and a predicted winner for Game 2 of the best-of-three series.
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2018 College World Series Schedule
Game 1: Arkansas 4, Oregon State 1
Game 2: Wednesday, June 27, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Game 3 (if necessary): Thursday, June 28, 6:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
Game 2 Analysis and Pick
Arkansas did not have an extra-base hit during the decisive fifth inning on Tuesday night, as they sent 10 batters to the plate and recorded two singles, two walks, two hit by pitches and a fielder's choice to seize control of the game.
For an offense that has relied heavily on the long ball this season, that ability to go station to station to break the game open makes them that much scarier.
Meanwhile, the Oregon State offense actually had the advantage in hits (9-5), but they just weren't able to deliver any of those base runners after scoring a single run in the bottom of the second inning.
At any rate, both of these offenses are still capable of catching fire at any point, so don't be surprised if we see a few more fireworks at the plate in Game 2.
As for the pitching matchup, Game 2 will feature two of the most underrated pitchers in the country.
Left-hander Kacey Murphy will get the start for Arkansas.
The 6'0", 190-pound junior is 8-5 with a 3.15 ERA and 81 strikeouts in 97 innings on the year, and he was an 11th-round pick by the Detroit Tigers. His opponents' batting average (.222) is better than Knight's (.230).
Barrett Loseke (2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 22 pitches) and closer Matt Cronin (1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 15 pitches) were efficient in relief of Knight in Game 1, so they should both available if needed on Wednesday.
On the other side, Bryce Fehmel will get the start for Oregon State
The junior right-hander went undrafted, meaning he'll return to campus for his senior season when he will likely take over as the Friday night starter.
He doesn't light up the radar gun, and he's fanned just 63 batters in 111 innings, but his 10-1 record and 3.16 ERA has made him a consistent No. 2 option all season behind ace Luke Heimlich.
Christian Chamberlain pitched 4.2 innings in relief of Heimlich on Tuesday, racking up 11 strikeouts to go along with five walks. He'll no doubt be unavailable after throwing 94 pitches, but everyone else in the Beavers' bullpen is rested.
Oregon State lost their first Super Regionals game and battled back to reach the finals, so they're no stranger to stepping up with the season on the line.
We'll say Fehmel outduels Murphy and the Beavers offense makes good on a few more of their opportunities this time around to even the series and force Game 3.
Stats courtesy of team sites.
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