Baseball: Five Things to Watch in UL Super Regional

Tim Buckley, The Advertiser, June 6, 2014

1. UL’S HITTERS

UL goes into this weekend’s best-of-three Super Regional against Ole Miss leading the nation in slugging percentage at .497, with the second-most home runs in the country (66, trailing only the 83 of Tennessee Tech) and with the second-best batting average nationally at .319 (only Delaware State’s .331 is better).

The Ragin’ Cajuns also lead the nation in triples per game at 0.48, and are fourth in scoring at 7.9 runs per game.

“I think certainly you have to say that Lafayette is one of the best offensive teams in the country,” said Mississippi State coach John Cohen, whose Bulldogs were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by the Cajuns at last weekend’s Lafayette Regional.

2. OLE MISS’ PITCHING

Ole Miss’ scheduled starter tonight, righty Chris Ellis (10-1, 2.16 ERA), was taken in the third round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Los Angeles Angels (88th overall).

Probable Game 2 starter Christian Trent (9-0, 2.37 ERA) is a one-time LSU signee. Rebels reliever Josh Laxer, a righty, has a 2-2 record, a 1.47 ERA and five saves in 21 appearances.

“When you face SEC pitching,” UL second baseman Jace Conrad said, “you’re gonna get good guys, good pitchers.”

3. COLBY BORTLES

He hasn’t been Ole Miss’ primary DH throughout the season, and has a batting average of just .259.

But the freshman with a familiar name – Corby Bortles is a younger brother of Blake Bortles, the ex-Central Florida quarterback taken third overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars in this year’s NFL Draft – has been swinging a hot bat recently.

The right-handed hitting Bortles both homered and had a game-tying RBI-double in the Rebels’ Oxford Regional 10-innings Regional-winning victory over Washington last Monday night.

4. UL’S BULLPEN

Cajuns coach Tony Robichaux stuck with experience out of the bullpen last weekend, using only senior Matt Plitt (three times), senior Matt Hicks (for 5.0 shutout innings), senior Ben Carter and junior Martin Anderson over five Lafayette Regional games.

Any or all of them could be called on this weekend behind tonight’s scheduled starter, Austin Robichaux; Sunday night’s likely starter, Carson Baranik, and perhaps probable if-necessarily Monday starter Cody Boutte.

“I like the way we have been pitching,” said coach Tony, whose Cajuns take a collective staff ERA of 3.38 into the Super Regional. “And we will have to pitch good – because this is gonna be, I think, personally, the second-best hitting team we’ve pitched against. The best one was us, in the fall.”

5. THE CROWD

It was a rowdy, supportive bunch at M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field for last weekend’s Regional, and there is ample reason to suspect more of the same this weekend at The Tigue.

“This atmosphere we had (last) weekend – it was just absolutely electric,” UL left fielder Caleb Adams added. “Our fans really came through for us.

“(Mississippi State) plays in the SEC. They play in front of 8-10,000 people every game. But, let me tell you: None of them were as loud or into it as our guys (last weekend). We had absolutely an amazing crowd, and our fan base really showed up and helped us.”