2014 baseball schedule is out....much better than this year.

[CadaverDawg]

No Florida, South Carolina, or Kentucky.

Home against Vandy, Arkansas, Ole Miss, A&M, Tennessee. Road against Georgia, LSU, Mizzou, Auburn, Alabama.

The good thing is the more manageable schedule. The bad thing is that we will have to win more in order to keep our RPI up ,more than likely. But with that schedule, we SHOULD win more. I think it sets up very nicely for next season.

[CadaverDawg]

Here's the actual series by series schedule...

http://www.secdigitalnetwork.com/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=KSq4B-kWs-0=&tabid=472&mid=2563

[Coach34]

I'll take that. We should be an 18 win+ team in the SEC next year with that schedule

[CadaverDawg]

I'll take that. We should be an 18 win+ team in the SEC next year with that schedule

I agree. That 4 game stretch early in the year against Vandy, Ark, LSU, OM, will be a crucial part of our season. We also get 3 of those at home. I'm thinking Vandy, Ark, and OM will all take at least a small step back next year too. We could have a big year next season but we can't afford our yearly slow SEC start.

[Coach34]

playing Kentucky at their place in 35 degree weather probably cost us a national seed. We would have swept them later on

I do agree in that Cohen's team seem to start off slow and then pick up steam- while it's good to play your best baseball at the end- it does the hurt the resume'

[Duke Silver]

I'll take that. We should be an 18 win+ team in the SEC next year with that schedule

Yeah I think so too. Only two series next year that we don't have a good chance of winning.

[CadaverDawg]

We SHOULD have a better pitching staff next year...especially from a starting standpoint. And I think our hitting will be better by average next year, but we will have a drop off in power with the loss of Renfroe obviously. If Frazier returns, we could potentially be a much better team next year than we are this year. That is awesome to think about.

[dickiedawg]

Yeah I think so too. Only two series next year that we don't have a good chance of winning.

Which two? Lsu on the road, ??

[messageboardsuperhero]

That's great for a good SEC record or potentially making a run at the conference championship, but our RPI will probably take a hit. Considering how much the committee took into account RPI this year, I say it's time to set up a marquee non-conference series with somebody worth a damn... Also, we may want to schedule a couple more road games too for early in the year.

Not to get sidetracked, but this is where Stans screwed up. It's time to elevate our program by playing maybe one series a year against a non-conference school that should finish with a top 25 RPI. I'm not talking about have the toughest schedule in the country next year, but to compete for a national seed without the toughest SEC schedule, we should make an effort to play one series against a Clemson, etc. to bolster our non-conference SOS. The committee loves that.

[CadaverDawg]

If we win the games we're supposed to win...it won't hurt our RPI at all. If we shit the bed and lose to shit teams like Arkansas did midweek this year, you are exactly right.

[Coach34]

I agree- with a conference schedule like that- we should play someone OOC thats a name. Call Byrne up and let's play in Arizona or something like that

[Bigedawg]

More than likely, OM will be Super Bulldog Weekend. That will be a pretty big weekend.

[gravedigger]

why the (&*(&! that hasnt happened before now is beyond me.

[messageboardsuperhero]

Just take a look at the host team's RPI and that tells you everything you need to know about how important it is. Clemson was the only team in the top 16 that didn't host, and that was only because there were already five ACC hosts. No national seed had an RPI outside of the top ten.

RPI is clearly the most important thing in most of these committee's eyes (I know they change committees, but this seems to be true every year.), so we need to do whatever we have to do scheduling-wise to make sure we've got a legitimate shot at the RPI top ten again. That probably means setting up at least one really good series non-conference.

[Coach34]

With our pitching- we shouldnt give a shit. Get a Pac-12 team on the schedule- schedule a home and home with them for '14 and '15

[Saltydog]

we lose this year? Losing Renfro and Frazier is gonna hurt big time. You may be right and I hope so but 18 wins is gonna be a huge task.

[Coach34]

we lose this year? Losing Renfro and Frazier is gonna hurt big time. You may be right and I hope so but 18 wins is gonna be a huge task.

Yes- and here's why:

1. Woody
2. Mitchell
3. Lindgren
4. Fitts
5. Cox
6. Holder
7. Bracewell (maybe)
8. Gentry
9. Shelley
10. Preston Brown
11. Norris
12. Plus a freshman or two

Our pitching, provided its reasonably healthy, will be the best staff we have ever had top to bottom

[Hump4Hoops]

That's a schedule that will set us up for a ton of wins. Need to get 1 top level marquee matchup OOC.

[messageboardsuperhero]

The bullpen is going to be stout again and should have even more depth with Shelly, Brown, and Norris, not to mention the play of Gentry lately. If we get Woodruff and Lindgren healthy and playing like they can, this could be our best staff ever. This is all without even mentioning all the really good pitchers we should have coming in, if the draft doesn't get them.

The offense is going to be better than people think. Wes Rea and Brett Pirtle (he's quietly been outstanding in the second half of this season) will both be better and are going to have big years. I also expect Robson to have a breakout year. He just looks like a ballplayer in the batter's box and his speed is incredible; Robson could be our leadoff guy next year. A lot of people also don't notice the balance in our lineup. Just about every person in our lineup should be able to hit for average next year. We'll miss Frazier and Renfroe, especially his power. No doubt we'll need some other guys to step up and hit some more home runs. That will probably be our biggest challenge offensively, but in today's college baseball, I think we can score runs without a ton of homeruns. Honestly though, I'm more concerned about the catching situation than anything.

Like I said, 2014 is the year to play better non-conference teams. Given what we've seen from the selection committee and how our team sets up, there's no excuse not to schedule a good series out of conference next season.

[CadaverDawg]

I'm not convinced Frazier is gone. If he keeps kicking it around out there at short...he'll play his way out of early rounds.

[messageboardsuperhero]

Well, if Frazier does end up coming back, then we'll be just that much better. I still expect him to be gone, so if he does come back then it's just gravy.

[Coach34]

It's kind of a weak year for middle infielders in the draft- I think Frazier leaves too