SB Nation Arizona: All Posts by Steven Muma

UNC Starting LHP Hobbs Johnson Against NC State

2013-06-19T18:45:17Z

Johnson also started the ACC tourney game against the Wolfpack.

The Tar Heels will start LHP Hobbs Johnson Thursday night against NC State #CWS
— Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) June 19, 2013

NC State Falls To UCLA, 2-1

2013-06-19T05:20:29Z

It didn't take 18 innings, but it felt the same anyway. NC State made a number of small mistakes, whether on the basepaths or in the field, and that allowed a punchless UCLA team to scratch across two runs under dubious circumstances. Setting aside the still-fresh bitterness, plenty of credit is due Nick Vander Tuig and David Berg, who were the antithesis of NC State, making few mistakes, and being punished little by those they did make.

The game turned in the fifth, when Logan Jernigan's daredevil act went south, as it usually does. He got the first out with no trouble but followed that up with a walk, single, and another walk to load the bases. Grant Sasser came in but couldn't put out the fire; it was a wild pitch that gave UCLA the game-winning run, and that's just typical of the Bruins in the CWS.

NC State, meanwhile, cost itself runs with a poor read and poor execution. The former came on a moon-ball throw home from left early on that went all the way to the backstop, but because Jake Armstrong hadn't gotten a good jump, it resulted in an out at home. Later on, a bad sacrifice bunt by Logan Ratledge with runners on first and second ended in a force out at third. The bunt was popped in front of the mound, making it difficult for the man at second (Bryan Adametz) to tell if it would drop in or not; that made for an easy out.

What will sting forever, though, is the rocket Trea Turner hit to left field in the eighth. He was going to make up for the bad bunt earlier in the frame. It was a sure three-run homer. Turner had his arm up in triumph as he left the box; he crushed that ball. But it only made it to the track. This ballpark is humbling like that. When it left the bat, I was right with Trea--that thing was out of here. The park held, and now we are facing an elimination game against UNC on Thursday.

College World Series Tuesday Open Thread

2013-06-18T19:39:18Z

Logan Jernigan is on the bump tonight despite the fact we're up against a soft-hitting UCLA lineup that is heavy on lefties, but I'm not surprised Avent decided to turn to a veteran rather than Brad Stone. I don't agree with the decision, mind you, but I understand it.

UCLA will start Nick Vander Tuig, who has walked 17 guys in 114 innings. That's impressive, but like the rest of the Bruins' staff, he doesn't overpower guys and generate a lot of strikeouts. But there is no question UCLA has the advantage on the mound tonight. NC State has the better offense. We'll see what happens.

LSU and UNC are underway already, and the Heels are out to a lead on this scrub starter the Tigers have in there who somehow has a sub-3 ERA despite a K-rate a hair north of four.

Anyway. NC State and UCLA get underway at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

Glancing At Trevor Lacey's Alabama Career

2013-06-18T12:00:05Z

Trevor Lacey has two years of college experience behind him, giving us at least some idea of what we might expect from him once he suits up for NC State. Coming out of high school, he was a top-100 kid, though he didn't end up being an immediate star for Alabama.

Lacey upped his workload significantly last season, which is probably one reason why his two-point accuracy dipped so much. But he also improved on his outside shooting--he hit 37.3% of his threes, up from 30% his freshman year--and if he can continue to hit threes at that rate, he is definitely going to be a good addition for us.

	ORTG	%Poss	%Shots	eFG%	Ast%	TO%	Stl%	FTR	FT%	2FG%	3FG%
2012	99.5	18.2	18.1	49.5	14.8	23.0	2.2	33.5	79.7	54.5	30.0
2013	100.1	22.9	23.5	48.3	23.4	20.1	2.9	29.9	71.8	41.0	37.3

The assist and turnover rates are interesting; I'm not familiar with Lacey's background or how he was utilized at Alabama, but these numbers would suggest that he ran the show a bit. I don't think he would be asked to do that at State since Tyler Lewis and Cat Barber figure to be around to handle the point, and maybe that's for the best.

What's encouraging for a team starving for defensive help is his ability to generate steals--he ranked 311th nationally in steal rate last year, placing him higher than any NC State guard not named Lorenzo Brown.

All told it looks like we're getting someone who can do a little of everything, though no one statistic really jumps off the page. Which is fine. He should be a solid secondary scoring option right away, and he will give NC State an additional three-point threat. He's also an important roster bridge since Desmond Lee and Ralston Turner will be seniors in 2014-15 (Lacey's junior year).

And Then There Were Seven

2013-06-18T00:11:30Z

Oregon State sent Louisville home today with an 11-4 win, leaving three teams left in the bracket opposite ours. Mississippi State and Indiana face off in the winners' bracket tonight, though Oregon State might be the most dangerous team of the three.

OSU-Louisville recap

OSU-Louisville box

World Golf Rankings 2013: Tiger Woods checks in at No. 1 once again

2013-06-17T15:22:43Z

There is no movement at the top in this week's World Golf Ranking (pdf), as Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy remain first and second. Justin Rose is up to third following his victory at the U.S. Open over the weekend, while Adam Scott and Matt Kuchar round out the top five.

Rose's move included, there was minor shuffling within the top 10. Phil Mickelson made a four-spot leap to sixth following his runner-up finish at Merion, but no one else gained or lost more than one position. Elsewhere, Jason Day and Billy Horschel made double-digit jumps after strong weekends -- Day is up 10 spots to No. 16, while Horschel is up from 50th to No. 34.

Woods and McIlroy, on the other hand, are coming off poor showings, but they had enough of a cushion to avoid losing ground in the rankings.

The full top 10:

1. Tiger Woods
2. Rory McIlroy
3. Justin Rose
4. Adam Scott
5. Matt Kuchar
6. Phil Mickelson
7. Luke Donald
8. Brandt Snedeker
9. Graeme McDowell
10. Louis Oosthuizen

British Open 2013 odds: Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy favored to win

2013-06-17T14:42:57Z

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are the favorites to win the 2013 British Open next month, according to early odds released by Jeff Sherman of Golfodds.com. Woods is getting 7/1 odds, while McIlroy is next at 12/1; those two remain first and second in the World Golf Ranking (pdf) despite weekends to forget at the U.S. Open.

More: Visit SB Nation's golf hub for coverage of the approaching British Open.

Woods hasn't claimed a major tournament title since 2008, and he hasn't won the British Open since 2006. McIlroy has two major championships to his name, though he has yet to break through in the British Open.

Masters winner Adam Scott and U.S. Open champion Justin Rose both have 20/1 odds, and they're followed by Phil Mickelson, Luke Donald and Lee Westwood at 25/1. All of those players except Westwood rank among the world's top 10 golfers.

Carlos Rodon's Streak Of Brilliance

2013-06-17T12:00:09Z

If my math is right, Carlos Rodon has allowed a grand total of six hits and one earned run over his last 19 innings pitched against UNC, which might have the best lineup in the country. There was his one-hit masterpiece in the ACC tournament, of course, and then there was Sunday. Rodon doesn't seem to mind the big stage too much.

He didn't get enough help in the conference tournament, but in Omaha yesterday, that was no issue whatsoever. State scored five runs over the first three innings and Rodon took it from there. Carolina couldn't manage a base hit until the fifth inning and didn't score a run until the ninth, when Rodon was still hitting 95+ on ESPN's radar gun.

His postseason stat line, including the ACC tournament start, looks like this:

Postseason	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO
Carlos Rodon	36-1/3	19	5	4	6	41

Eleven of those hits and three of those runs came in his start against Rice in the Supers. In the other three starts, he has taken a no-hitter into the fifth inning.

NC State's big-picture fate, to a large extent, hinges on Rodon because of the lack of depth behind him. He must know this on some level. I'm sure he also understands what it means to beat the Tar Heels in any context, not to mention what it means simply to reach the College World Series after such a lengthy drought. How one blocks all that out and throws the way he did Sunday, I don't know. But I have learned this much by now: don't ever skip out on an opportunity to watch Carlos Rodon pitch.