Wolfpack Baseball Looking for Huge Season

Baseball General NC State33

Happy Easter to all!

Easter weekend for me as a young person always meant there were baseball tournaments to be played. With the Wolfpack basketball team’s run through the NCAA tournament, we unfortunately (or fortunately for a change) found ourselves caring about basketball well into the college baseball season.

While many folks weren’t looking, the NC State Baseball team has put itself in position at the halfway mark to put itself in legitimate contention for its own magical tournament run.

Seriously, this team is poised to make the first run to Omaha by a Wolfpack team since Chris Cammack led the 1968 squad to the CWS.

Coach Avent’s 2012 team currently sits at 20-7 overall, 8-3 in conference play. The Pack beat Old Dominion 16-6 in a rain shortened game this week and travels to face Maryland in a three game series beginning tonight and finishing on Easter Sunday. For those of you who live close enough to Raleigh you can listen to the games on the student radio station, 88.1. The rest of you can follow the games via the team’s fantastic Twitter account which gives virtual play-by-play of each game. (@NCStateBaseball)

The Pack is second in the Atlantic Division only behind Florida State which boasts an almost perfect 11-1 conference record.

Freshman pitcher Carlos Rodon has been named the top freshman in the nation at the halfway mark of the season by Baseball America.

While numerous college baseball polls vary wildly, Avent’s team is currently #13 in the country in at least one poll.

In a year that has seen a lot of positive trends in Wolfpack athletics, the baseball team is poised to break a ridiculously long absence from the College World Series. With perhaps the best pitching we’ve ever had and an offense that can score runs when necessary, this could easily be Avent’s best team to date built on several strong recruiting classes in the last few years.

Get it done gentlemen!

Baseball General NC State

33 Responses to Wolfpack Baseball Looking for Huge Season

  1. TopTenPack 04/06/2012 at 7:29 AM #

    The Wolfpack is #5 in the NCAA poll…

    http://www.ncaa.com/rankings/baseball/d1

  2. Hawkeye Whitney 04/06/2012 at 8:39 AM #

    Appropriate time to acknowledge Wolfpack baseball. I remember my dad telling me that back when Easter Monday was a state holiday, the reason was that State and Wake always played baseball on that day (back before Wake moved to Winston-Salem), and it was such a big event that the holiday was recognized so that state employees in Raleigh could attend the game.

  3. GAWolf 04/06/2012 at 8:52 AM #

    Thanks for sharing that, Hawkeye. That’s great insight and something I’ve never before heard. Baseball was THE sport in North Carolina before the rise of college basketball.

  4. graywolf 04/06/2012 at 8:55 AM #

    This years freshman class and their play has saved Avent’s job and he got his 800th win this past week. Now lets keep this thing rolling and get back to the CWS for the first time in a LONG time.

  5. Hawkeye Whitney 04/06/2012 at 8:57 AM #

    A good article about the tradition here:

    http://www.alumniblog.ncsu.edu/2010/03/19/looking-back-at-easter-monday-baseball/

    “Beautiful dresses, big hats and baseball. For more than 50 years, the Easter Monday baseball game between Wake Forest and NC State was an event unlike any other on the schools’ athletics schedules. Women of all ages turned out wearing eloquent dresses, fancy hats and beautiful corsages. People from all over the state — including legislators and governors — dressed in their Sunday best to attend the game and the annual NC State Pi Kappa Alpha (PKA) ball, which by the 1920s was attracting as many as 6,000 guests.”

  6. GAWolf 04/06/2012 at 9:07 AM #

    Just read your linked article, Hawkeye. That’s indeed a fantastic story. Everyone should take 3 minutes to read it. Thanks for sharing!

  7. Hawkeye Whitney 04/06/2012 at 10:04 AM #

    Off Topic, but if you haven’t seen this, it is possibly the greatest performance of all time. Our fight song in front of the Old Well:

  8. Lunatic Fringe 04/06/2012 at 10:49 AM #

    @NCStateBaseball does a fantastic job, but you can also catch WKNC online at the following link (it works on computer or iphone).

    http://wknc.org/listen/

    …or download FStream app where you add the station with the following link (note – if you click the link below it loads it directly to itunes/player):

    http://152.1.91.207:8000/wknchq.m3u

    I actually like some of the WKNC music so I have FStream on my iPhone to make it a bit easier to load in.

  9. ChemE79a 04/06/2012 at 10:57 AM #

    My experience has been that when I tried to listen to KNC on-line while they were broadcasting baseball or women’s basketball that the startion webcast throws a music feed instead of the live sports. Probably a rights issue.

    I also enjou listening to some of their music streams also.

  10. MP 04/06/2012 at 12:05 PM #

    That history of Easter Monday is one of the coolest things I’ve heard in a long time. Thanks for sharing that.

  11. PackerInRussia 04/06/2012 at 12:18 PM #

    Thanks for the brief write-up/reminder about baseball. I hope they can pull it off this year. They seem to be a legitimately good team. I wondered if 88.1 had the games online; I figured they couldn’t. Fortunately baseball is a good sport to follow on Gametracker. It takes out the excitement of basketball and football, but it’s not too bad for following a baseball game.

  12. WolftownVA81 04/06/2012 at 12:23 PM #

    Thanks for sharing.

  13. Dr. BadgerPack 04/06/2012 at 1:01 PM #

    GAWolf- Thanks for the post! I infuriate some by not posting much on baseball, but it does serve a purpose- de-emphasize individual games. I will do a mid-season update after this weekend (halfway through conference).

    Rodon is everything that has been advertised. I didn’t look but I think I pegged him or Austin as freshman of the year in my preview. I might be wrong- but this is a good problem as Trea Turner may sneak in and grab it!

    I’ve learned a few things watching this years team– yes, even I don’t know all things baseball! One is that while I have criticized Avent in the past for not running, that may have been a personnel issue and not coaching. They run like nobody’s business this year.

    And despite COWDog’s comments, I actually think the bullpen is a little more consistent this year. The last two weeks have been odd, because Overman has hit a rough patch. Still, for the first time in several (10) years I can tell you who is coming in to pitch and when.

    A cautionary note: this team will hit a rough patch; it happens. Just don’t freak out! My midseason update will have more details, but now (factoring in a 2-8 stretch) I still have us hosting a regional. Avoid the 2-8 stretch and we might be talking protected seed.

    Oh, and in three years barring injury Rodon will be the #1 pick in the draft.

  14. SaccoV 04/06/2012 at 1:24 PM #

    DBP hit the nail on the head with Rodon. He’s stellar in every aspect as a pitcher. Even with the hitters having aluminum bats, his 89MPH looks too fast for them. Awesome pick up by the staff. I brought this up in the forums, and will say it here again. This team is one, solid bullpen pitcher away from contending for a national title. Our pitching this year (starting pitching) is as good as it’s been since Sterry and Devine were on the same team. I expect us to host this year. I expect a Super Regional appearance. Without a solid closer, I’m not sure how much farther we should expect to get. Go Pack!

  15. Dr. BadgerPack 04/06/2012 at 1:26 PM #

    Overman could recover and be that shut down guy. He DOMINATED summer league last year (not to mention “regular season”).

  16. GAWolf 04/06/2012 at 1:57 PM #

    I think Trea Turner is #8, correct? That kid can fly. If he gets on, he’s going to be in scoring position. I don’t think he’s been thrown out yet while nabbing bases. That’s a huge threat that we haven’t had in a while. We’ve also had some effective hit and runs and played somewhat acceptable small ball.

    I say somewhat acceptable only because, hindsight being 20-20, we missed a few chances to move runners into scoring position by bunting during the Carolina series that might have ultimately cost us a game or two. We also occasionally fall asleep on the bases which has cost us a few runs. The point being, there is plenty of room for improvement. Regardless, only a dolt wouldn’t be psyched about what this baseball team could possibly do this year.

    I’m happy for Coach Avent. He’s had some tough breaks gambling on pro-level talent on the recruiting trail. The last few classes that actually showed up are going to be program changers I think.

  17. GAWolf 04/06/2012 at 2:32 PM #

    Also, I think whoever controls Wolfpack athletics radio shuts down all internet feeds of games via radio stations that carry the games so that if you want to hear it you have to pay for it through their single outlet online. It’s a shame, as I’ve also tried to listen online numerous times but will never pay for such.

  18. WV Wolf 04/06/2012 at 4:20 PM #

    The blackout of the radio internet feeds during games isn’t just unique to NC State, I’ve run into the same issue trying to listen to WVU games online or radio station apps on my phone.

    GA mentioned the baseball team’s Twitter feed, I appreciate that they have stepped up their coverage. They went from barely even giving final scores to now posting updates every inning.

  19. tjfoose1 04/06/2012 at 4:22 PM #

    I used to travel almost every week. There was a time you could catch all Wolfpack sports online, for free, via Broadcast.com (Mark Cuban’s baby, sprung from his desire to listen to Indiana basketball games, and make it available to others) that made him his money.

    All it did was make available the local radio broadcast (via the internet) to others out of listening range.

    But noooooo, couldn’t have that. Universities saw another chance to pluck more dollars from the fans. “Screw the fans, we want money”.

  20. tjfoose1 04/06/2012 at 4:26 PM #

    ^ Broadcast.com was later sold to Yahoo! for billions, thus giving the world the Mark Cuban we all know today.

  21. GAWolf 04/06/2012 at 4:44 PM #

    I think it’s garbage that the radio commercial revenue isn’t enough to justify the game being internet broadcast available. It’s a double dip.

  22. ADVENTUROO 04/07/2012 at 9:50 AM #

    Realize that this is TOTALLY OFF TOPIC and apologize for “Hijacking”, Have been trying to get info on the Kentucky Derby All-Star Basketball game. Here is a great link.

    http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/04/07/amile-jefferson-tj-warren-terry-rozier-jakarr-sampson-lead-derby-classic/

    If you follow it, there are two paragraphs dedicated to the Wolfpack and T. J. Warren got top billing in the headline.

    Back to Baseball

  23. TheCOWDOG 04/07/2012 at 3:16 PM #

    “ADVENTUROO Says:”

    What the hell possessed you to do that in a good baseball topic?

    DBP…please tell the folks that I didn’t say the bullpen was bad. I said that Avent was messing with some heads down there. Big difference. OK? Thanks.

    Now, I will say that GaWOLF also upbraided me last week when I pissed and moaned about some very poor base running. I said something to the tone that it was history as I’d seen it under Avent.

    He retorted that, that shit should have been learned by high school.

    Well, f…me Freddie, GA put my ass in place. Duh!! My bad.

    Turner brings another level to a team that is pretty much comprised of my favorite types… grinders.

    Prior to last season, we spoke of how the bat rule changes would affect the college game. State is playing a fantastic brand of station to station ball…when the kids remember stuff that they should have learned from high. LOL.

    Because of my kid’s unruly softball sched, I’ve caught one live and one TV game so far. Stream feeds just don’t seem to cut it.

    Make sure you click on Ga’s link to Cammack. He’s an unknown legend, but well known by those in the know.

    I like this club.

  24. TheCOWDOG 04/07/2012 at 5:04 PM #

    ” ADVENTUROO Says: ”

    Please don’t do that again, it’s a baseball piece.

    DBP, let the folks know that I wasn’t ripping the bullpen, I wasn’t. I was questioning the handling of the BP. Big diff. OK? OK.

    See, GA already upbraided me last week when I referred to bad baserunning under the reign of Elliott. He put me in my place by simply sayin’ that the kids should have learned it by high school. Yep.

    This club is showing the meaning of station to station ball that was discussed last year at the onset of the bat changes. I love it as long as they remember how to do it, or in cases, never knew because of the aluminuuuuminum factor.

    Turner kid stirs the drink. I like this club.

  25. Dr. BadgerPack 04/07/2012 at 7:05 PM #

    Oh I know what you mean COWDog- I actually meant that the usage is what appears to be a little more consistent this year. Aside from Overman being off a bit- you can trace that back to what I thought was a pretty bad move at the time; extending him to two innings in a midweek game against ECU. Not that important of a game.

    Of course, we KNOW why the usage is a tad more consistent this year… when you have Ogburn and Rodon pitching 7, 8 or 9 innings there ain’t but so many ways to go with those last few innings!

    The biggest problem this year could well be not getting enough work for people.

    I wish this team had that one monster power bat in the middle. Ciencin, Senay or Canela could step up and do it- but I don’t see it happening. Love Turner and Fincher in there. Speed don’t slump.

1 2

Leave a Reply