College Baseball Regional 2019: Dates, Schedule, Bracket and Players to Watch
It's time to play college ball with the stakes raised and a trip to the College World Series on the line.
The NCAA tournament begins Friday with the opening of the regional round that will run through Monday. The 64-team field will then be trimmed to 16 for the super regionals, before eight teams travel to Omaha, Neb., for the College World Series.
Two teams will end up playing for the national championship in a best-of-three series following the double-elimination round to begin the College World Series.
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For the full bracket for this year's NCAA tournament, visit NCAA.com. Below is the schedule for Friday's opening slate of games as well as some players to watch on the road to the College World Series.
May 31 Schedule
All times ET
Los Angeles Regional hosted by UCLA
No. 2 Baylor vs. No. 3 Loyola Marymount, 4 p.m., ESPN3
No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 4 Omaha, 10 p.m., ESPN3
Corvallis Regional hosted by Oregon State
No. 2 Creighton vs. No. 3 Michigan, 4 p.m., ESPN3
No. 1 Oregon State vs. No. 4 Cincinnati, 10 p.m., ESPNU
Oklahoma City Regional hosted by Oklahoma State
No. 2 UConn vs. No. 3 Nebraska, 1 p.m., ESPN3
No. 1 Oklahoma State vs. No. 4 Harvard, 7 p.m., ESPN3
Lubbock Regional hosted by Texas Tech
No. 1 Texas Tech vs. No. 4 Army, 4 p.m., ESPN3
No. 2 DBU vs. No. 3 Florida, 8 p.m., ESPN3
Fayetteville Regional hosted by Arkansas
No. 1 Arkansas vs. No. 4 Central Connecticut State, 2 p.m., ESPN3
No. 2 California vs. No. 3 TCU, 7 p.m., ESPN3
Oxford Regional hosted by Ole Miss
No. 2 Illinois vs. No. 3 Clemson, 4 p.m., ESPNU
No. 1 Ole Miss vs. No. 4 Jacksonville State, 8 p.m., ESPN3
Baton Rouge Regional hosted by LSU
No. 2 Arizona State vs. No. 3 Southern Miss, 1 p.m., ESPN3
No. 1 LSU vs. No. 4 Stony Brook, 7 p.m., ESPNU
Athens Regional hosted by Georgia
No. 2 Florida Atlantic vs. No. 3 Florida State, 12 p.m., ESPN3
No. 1 Georgia vs. No. 4 Mercer, 7 p.m., SEC Network
Nashville Regional hosted by Vanderbilt
No. 2 Indiana State vs. No. 3 McNeese State, 1 p.m., ESPN3
No. 1 Vanderbilt vs. No. 4 Ohio State, 7 p.m., ESPN2
Morgantown Regional hosted by West Virginia
No. 2 Texas A&M vs. No. 3 Duke, 4 p.m., ESPN2
No. 1 West Virginia vs. No. 4 Fordham, 8 p.m., ESPN3
Greenville Regional hosted by East Carolina
No. 2 NC State vs. No. 3 Campbell, 12 p.m., ESPN3
No. 1 East Carolina vs. No. 4 Quinnipiac, 6 p.m., ESPN3
Louisville Regional hosted by Louisville
No. 2 Indiana vs. No. 3 Illinois State, 2 p.m., ESPN3
No. 1 Louisville vs. No. 4 UIC, 6 p.m., ESPN3
Starkville Regional hosted by Mississippi State
No. 1 Mississippi State vs. No. 4 Southern, 1 p.m., SEC Network
No. 2 Miami vs. No. 3 Central Michigan, 8 p.m., ESPN3
Stanford Regional hosted by Stanford
No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 4 Sacramento State, 4 p.m., ESPN3
No. 2 UC Santa Barbara vs. No. 3 Fresno State, 10 p.m., ESPN3
Chapel Hill Regional hosted by North Carolina
No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 4 UNCW, 2 p.m., ESPN3
No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 3 Liberty, 7 p.m., ESPN3
Atlanta Regional hosted by Georgia Tech
No. 2 Auburn vs. No. 3 Coastal Carolina, 12 p.m., ESPNU
No. 1 Georgia Tech vs. No. 4 Florida A&M, 7 p.m., ESPN3
Players to Watch
Adley Rutschman, Oregon State catcher
Rutschman is the top player in the 2019 MLB draft class, per MLBPipeline.com, and he could be the first player selected in this year's draft, which begins Monday.
The Oregon State catcher will be looking to lead the national champions to another strong postseason performance, although the Beavers are the No. 16 seed and the lowest-ranked team to host a regional in the opening round.
This season, Rutschman is batting .419 with 17 home runs and 57 RBI. If he gets hot during the NCAA tournament, it could help the Beavers make a deep run, even if they have to face top-seeded UCLA in the super regionals.
JJ Bleday, Vanderbilt outfielder
Vanderbilt has plenty of momentum entering the NCAA tournament after winning the SEC regular-season and tournament championships.
The Commodores erased an eight-run deficit in the SEC tourney championship game to rally for a walk-off victory over Ole Miss.
Bleday is the catalyst for Vandy's lineup, as he broke the school's single-season home run record. He leads all NCAA Division I players with 26 homers this season, while batting .357 with 67 RBI.
As the No. 5 player in the 2019 MLB draft class, per MLBPipeline.com, Bleday is one of the top players in this year's NCAA tournament. And as the top hitter on one of the best teams in the nation, he could play a critical role in leading the Commodores to their first College World Series appearance since 2015.
Nick Lodolo, TCU left-handed pitcher
Unlike Rutschman and Bleday, Lodolo plays for a team that won't be hosting a regional to open the NCAA tournament. However, the lefty could help TCU make a surprise run.
Lodolo, the No. 8 player in the 2019 MLB draft class, per MLBPipeline.com, is 6-5 with a 2.48 ERA in 15 starts for the Horned Frogs this season. He made the same number of starts as his previous two seasons but set career highs in innings pitched (98) and strikeouts (125) while also pitching his first career complete game.
Although TCU is a No. 3 seed in the Fayetteville Regional, Lodolo could pitch the Horned Frogs into the next round. The experienced southpaw has the skills and repertoire to lead his team to a deep run in the NCAA tournament.
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