Thoughts on Opening Weekend

[Liverpooldawg]

I know nothing of the opponent so I have no idea what conclusions you can draw from the games. I went Friday and one thing is for sure though, the stadium is incredible. We did that one right. It's a really great place to watch a game. We were in the upper deck of the grandstand all the way out on one end. I sat all over the place in the old one over the years and I thought this was the best vantage point I had ever had. It felt like you were sitting right on top of the field. The concourse is going to be something at a packed game. It's broad, it goes all the way around the field. You can see the game from all of it except behind the batter's eye. It's going to be very interesting to see just how many we can put in this place. My guess is the all time record will fall, and unlike the last one, everybody will actually be able to see the game. The look of the place is just fantastic. It's very pleasing to the eye and it has a great vibe. The designers did a fantastic job, both with the overall concept and the details. It's just stunning. Hats off to everyone involved. It's hard to believe it's at MSU.

[Ari Gold]

It's Youngstown but we did what really good teams do and that's beat their ass.

C- Hayden Jones is the varsity and Skelton jv. Jones receives better already and obviously throws better. Jones just has to hit a little and we need to be smart with his innings (Ari) so he doesn't hit a wall. Skelton is a good backup.
1B - Tanner can rake
2b - Hakter can be a good 9 hole for us if he will keep taking what pitchers give him. With Jake behind him he will have opportunities. He won't be Stovall but he will be good enough defensively and way above average 2b arm.
SS - I wanted this all last yr and he's finally the man. Westburg can be all sec.
3b - gonna be most underrated hitter in our lineup. He will get some big hits. Will play above average defense.
OF - we know what we have there.

I'm ecstatic with our pitching. Most about the tempo and the way we went right after hitters with heat. Didn't **** around at all which is a welcome change. It's a change in accountability. It's spectacular. We have a ton of great arms and it's gonna be exciting watching them develop.

Next weekend we will see better real competition and will get a better idea of where we are. This is gonna be a fun year. 6th in the West My ass...

I.S.I.D is the 2019 version of T.W.I.B.
Good stuff...

[Mjoelner34]

In my opinion, this is like playing SFA in football. Lose a couple or squeak out a couple of wins, it probably means you're pretty bad but, beating the brakes off of them doesn't necessarily mean you are good. However, we did what good hitting teams should do to weak pitching. I've seen us have to scratch and claw to get runs against bad pitching before but not this weekend. Hopefully that bodes well for the future when the pitching we'll see drastically increases in ability. I also like the size and strength that it looks like we have added. Pitchers attacking the strike zone and going straight after the batters was also pleasing to see. And, as Liverpool stated, the stadium is beyond belief and hearing Palmeiro and Polk talk about the stadium from not just a fan's perspective but from their experiences when speaking about the amenities for the players just further drives home the fact that we have the best facility in college baseball by far.

[ShotgunDawg]

In my opinion, this is like playing SFA in football. Lose a couple or squeak out a couple of wins, it probably means you're pretty bad but, beating the brakes off of them doesn't necessarily mean you are good. However, we did what good hitting teams should do to weak pitching. I've seen us have to scratch and claw to get runs against bad pitching before but not this weekend. Hopefully that bodes well for the future when the pitching we'll see drastically increases in ability. I also like the size and strength that it looks like we have added. Pitchers attacking the strike zone and going straight after the batters was also pleasing to see. And, as Liverpool stated, the stadium is beyond belief and hearing Palmeiro and Polk talk about the stadium from not just a fan's perspective but from their experiences when speaking about the amenities for the players just further drives home the fact that we have the best facility in college baseball by far.

I understand what you're saying but some of us aren't looking at scores or how we played but rather at the talent of individual players. It doesn't matter who we play when you're looking at talent.

[I seen it dawg]

I.S.I.D is the 2019 version of T.W.I.B.
Good stuff...

Haha thanks. I'll do my best but that's tough.

[I seen it dawg]

In my opinion, this is like playing SFA in football. Lose a couple or squeak out a couple of wins, it probably means you're pretty bad but, beating the brakes off of them doesn't necessarily mean you are good. However, we did what good hitting teams should do to weak pitching. I've seen us have to scratch and claw to get runs against bad pitching before but not this weekend. Hopefully that bodes well for the future when the pitching we'll see drastically increases in ability. I also like the size and strength that it looks like we have added. Pitchers attacking the strike zone and going straight after the batters was also pleasing to see. And, as Liverpool stated, the stadium is beyond belief and hearing Palmeiro and Polk talk about the stadium from not just a fan's perspective but from their experiences when speaking about the amenities for the players just further drives home the fact that we have the best facility in college baseball by far.

I get it. But my analysis wasn't based on score. Hell i don't even remember the scores. I reiterate shotguns post above.

[Bothrops]

From what I've seen so far, I'm impressed. Our lineup looks to be better situated for league play than last year. Pitching looks promising, let's just hope for health and continuity.

[Todd4State]

I understand what you're saying but some of us aren't looking at scores or how we played but rather at the talent of individual players. It doesn't matter who we play when you're looking at talent.

Also how we went about things from an approach standpoint will play up against better opponents as well. Attacking the strike zone attacking good pitches to hit when we're at the plate, solid defense, and etc. We had a couple of baserunning mistakes but we still improved in that area as well.

Add that to the talent we have and that's a really good combination for us.

[shoeless joe]

Did what we were supposed to do. Was there Friday...enjoyed the game and new stadium. But wake me up when we play someone with a pulse

[Mjoelner34]

Also how we went about things from an approach standpoint will play up against better opponents as well. Attacking the strike zone attacking good pitches to hit when we're at the plate, solid defense, and etc. We had a couple of baserunning mistakes but we still improved in that area as well.

Add that to the talent we have and that's a really good combination for us.

I don't mind one of those baserunning mistakes. I don't blame Mangum for trying to score when the ball got away from the catcher. We had the game in hand at that point and it would've been a helluva play. It was closer than I thought it was going to be. In a close game I don't think we try to score there.

[Ari Gold]

I get it. But my analysis wasn't based on score. Hell i don't even remember the scores. I reiterate shotguns post above.

I stopped reading it when it said like playing SFA in football.
Football should be compared to football not basketball or baseball.
Not even close to being the same.
Example we could play SFA in football 100 times and beat them 100 times
We could play Youngstown state in baseball 100 and might lose 15 times or more

Football comparison should be done between August and Jan and about football only.

[Mjoelner34]

I stopped reading it when it said like playing SFA in football.
Football should be compared to football not basketball or baseball.
Not even close to being the same.
Example we could play SFA in football 100 times and beat them 100 times
We could play Youngstown state in baseball 100 and might lose 15 times or more

Football comparison should be done between August and Jan and about football only.

I get that. Just stating that beating them like we did provides a lot more optimism than squeaking out a series win against them. Others had already provided specific player breakdowns in this thread which I thought were accurate. I was impressed with the team size, how we swung the bats and the pitching approach. The only negative all weekend was the way our offense started the Friday game but I think a lot of that was jitters and being a little too aggressive early in the count. Even then we were putting good balls in play which required outstanding defensive plays or we hit it right at them.

As far as individuals:
Really impressed with the sophomores at the plate. Westburg and Allen already appear to be in mid season form and I don't doubt that Rowdy will get there too although he didn't have a bad weekend. Just not as productive as the other two. Small and Ginn appear to be who we thought they were. I was really interested in seeing Cerantola and he didn't disappoint. Just needs more time on the mound. He's going to be special. I also agree with I Seen It that Jones will be the catcher before long.

[I seen it dawg]

Did what we were supposed to do. Was there Friday...enjoyed the game and new stadium. But wake me up when we play someone with a pulse

Yeah but we have not done what we are supposed to do a lot early in the season the last few yrs. Not crowning us title winners but we look different than before.

[maroonmania]

I don't mind one of those baserunning mistakes. I don't blame Mangum for trying to score when the ball got away from the catcher. We had the game in hand at that point and it would've been a helluva play. It was closer than I thought it was going to be. In a close game I don't think we try to score there.

Yea, I don't really have a problem with him doing that when its 14-2. But we all know he will do some of those stupid baserunning things in a 2-2 game as well. Love Jake but he has been doing head scratching things on the bases for 3 years now so no reason to think he will stop as a SR.

[shoeless joe]

Yeah but we have not done what we are supposed to do a lot early in the season the last few yrs. Not crowning us title winners but we look different than before.

Agree 100%.

[RougeDawg]

Early In the season pitching is always ahead of hitting. To score that many runs opening weekend tells me this team can play with anyone. Our games were never in doubt and other teams in our region lost to some lesser teams.

[Ari Gold]

To add ...
when is the last time we had our weekend SEC rotation already established in Feb????
That’s so big .. get to work guys in the mid week to see who separates themselves and can make the sec weekend roster.
Shit we didn’t even know our Sunday starter on Friday of sec play last year for the most part

[Commercecomet24]

I was interested to see how Lemonis ran things in game. I've heard so many good things about him and was really ready to see his management of the game. It may have only been YSU but how he managed the games told me a lot about his ability. We got a good one. He lets the players go out and make plays(ie agressive at the plate, base running and pitching agressively). He let his coaches do their thing(he's not a micro manager) and I'd heard this from a bunch of sources. He plays for the big innings not one run at a time. He used a ton of players(especially pitchers) which will pay huge dividends down the road. I was extremely pleased with what I saw from HC! Bright future!

[Mobile Bay]

I am not that worried about us being young because Mangum is such a great leader. It's almost like we have an extra coach out there.

[Mjoelner34]

He used a ton of players(especially pitchers) which will pay huge dividends down the road. I was extremely pleased with what I saw from HC! Bright future!

Amen!