No. 1 Virginia at No. 4 Florida State, 6 p.m. today, 6 p.m. Saturday, 1 p.m. Sunday
All games available on ESPN3.com
The Cavaliers travel to face the Seminoles this weekend in what is a big series for both teams, the ACC, and nationally. Virginia comes in at 35-7, 16-5 in the ACC tied with Miami in the Coastal Division; the Hurricanes are 29-13 overall and also lost two of three to Virginia earlier this season. The Seminoles lead the Atlantic Division at 16-5 and are 32-9 overall. They have a three-game lead on second-place Clemson.
Virginia took two of three from UNC last weekend and then edged VCU on the road Tuesday, 5-4 in 10 innings. Wednesday, the Cavs clocked Richmond, 13-0, hitting four home runs, three of which were in the same inning. While it did come against a lowly Richmond team, hopefully this is a sign that the bats are coming around for the Wahoos. The home runs were hit by Joe McCarthy (a grand slam), Robbie Coman, Derek Fisher, and Mike Papi. Fisher, who had a wrist injury and underwent surgery March 17, played for the first time in the finale vs. North Carolina on Sunday. Against Richmond and VCU, Fisher went 4 for 9 with two homers and three RBI so hopefully he can maintain his momentum headed into Tallahassee.
Last weekend, Florida State took two of three on the road against Wake Forest, which is having a pretty
good season. One of the victories took 13 innings. In the middle of the week, Florida State swept Stetson, 4-0, and 13-3.
Florida State's starting pitchers are expected to be Luke Weaver tonight (6-3, 2.83 ERA), Mike Compton on Saturday (3-1, 3.70), and Bryant Holtmann on Sunday (5-0, 3.24). Jameis Winston (he of FSU football fame) is the Seminoles' closer and has five saves with a 1-0 record and 1.17 ERA. Virginia's weekend rotation is Nathan Kirby tonight (8-1, 1.36), Josh Sborz on Saturday (4-2, 2.81), and Bradon Waddell on Sunday (5-2, 2.92).
Last year, Virginia went 4-0 against Florida State. At Davenport Field, the Wahoos beat FSU twice in a Saturday doubleheader 9-2 and 2-o. They beat Weaver in the first game. The next day, Virginia finished the weekend sweep with a 5-2 win. Then in the ACC tournament, Virginia topped FSU, 7-4 in 11 innings in what the Cavs' final conference tournament game before the NCAA tournament (UNC went on to beat Virginia Tech in the ACC tournament championship game). The last time UVa played at FSU, in 2012, the 'Noles swept the series.
Virginia's strength all season has been its pitching as it boasts one of the finest ERAs in the nation. The hitting has been trying to catch up to the hurling all season. FSU, meanwhile, has solid pitching -- though not as good as UVa's in my estimation -- but does hit better than UVa. The Seminoles have the second-best batting average in the ACC (Virginia is fifth) and top slugging percentage in the ACC (Virginia is second). UVa does, however, have one more home run (22) than FSU, which is second in the ACC. Wake leads in that category with 24.
FSU's main offensive threat is D.J. Stewart, who leads the ACC with a .359 average and has reached base in 61 consecutive games dating back to last season. He also has seven homers, which leads the team. Three other FSU players hit above .300, whereas UVa has just one that has over 100 at-bats (Branden Cogswell). Fisher is above .300 as well as is John La Prise, but they have had less than 100 at-bats so far this season.
This marquee matchup should make for some great baseball this weekend. Hopefully Virginia can come away with a series win and stay ahead of Miami in the division. The Hurricanes are on the road at Clemson this weekend.
All games available on ESPN3.com
The Cavaliers travel to face the Seminoles this weekend in what is a big series for both teams, the ACC, and nationally. Virginia comes in at 35-7, 16-5 in the ACC tied with Miami in the Coastal Division; the Hurricanes are 29-13 overall and also lost two of three to Virginia earlier this season. The Seminoles lead the Atlantic Division at 16-5 and are 32-9 overall. They have a three-game lead on second-place Clemson.
Virginia took two of three from UNC last weekend and then edged VCU on the road Tuesday, 5-4 in 10 innings. Wednesday, the Cavs clocked Richmond, 13-0, hitting four home runs, three of which were in the same inning. While it did come against a lowly Richmond team, hopefully this is a sign that the bats are coming around for the Wahoos. The home runs were hit by Joe McCarthy (a grand slam), Robbie Coman, Derek Fisher, and Mike Papi. Fisher, who had a wrist injury and underwent surgery March 17, played for the first time in the finale vs. North Carolina on Sunday. Against Richmond and VCU, Fisher went 4 for 9 with two homers and three RBI so hopefully he can maintain his momentum headed into Tallahassee.
Last weekend, Florida State took two of three on the road against Wake Forest, which is having a pretty
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| FSU's new logo. I prefer the old one. |
Florida State's starting pitchers are expected to be Luke Weaver tonight (6-3, 2.83 ERA), Mike Compton on Saturday (3-1, 3.70), and Bryant Holtmann on Sunday (5-0, 3.24). Jameis Winston (he of FSU football fame) is the Seminoles' closer and has five saves with a 1-0 record and 1.17 ERA. Virginia's weekend rotation is Nathan Kirby tonight (8-1, 1.36), Josh Sborz on Saturday (4-2, 2.81), and Bradon Waddell on Sunday (5-2, 2.92).
Last year, Virginia went 4-0 against Florida State. At Davenport Field, the Wahoos beat FSU twice in a Saturday doubleheader 9-2 and 2-o. They beat Weaver in the first game. The next day, Virginia finished the weekend sweep with a 5-2 win. Then in the ACC tournament, Virginia topped FSU, 7-4 in 11 innings in what the Cavs' final conference tournament game before the NCAA tournament (UNC went on to beat Virginia Tech in the ACC tournament championship game). The last time UVa played at FSU, in 2012, the 'Noles swept the series.
Virginia's strength all season has been its pitching as it boasts one of the finest ERAs in the nation. The hitting has been trying to catch up to the hurling all season. FSU, meanwhile, has solid pitching -- though not as good as UVa's in my estimation -- but does hit better than UVa. The Seminoles have the second-best batting average in the ACC (Virginia is fifth) and top slugging percentage in the ACC (Virginia is second). UVa does, however, have one more home run (22) than FSU, which is second in the ACC. Wake leads in that category with 24.
FSU's main offensive threat is D.J. Stewart, who leads the ACC with a .359 average and has reached base in 61 consecutive games dating back to last season. He also has seven homers, which leads the team. Three other FSU players hit above .300, whereas UVa has just one that has over 100 at-bats (Branden Cogswell). Fisher is above .300 as well as is John La Prise, but they have had less than 100 at-bats so far this season.
This marquee matchup should make for some great baseball this weekend. Hopefully Virginia can come away with a series win and stay ahead of Miami in the division. The Hurricanes are on the road at Clemson this weekend.
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