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Conference USA Baseball: Outlook as regular season ends

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The 2021 Conference USA Baseball Tournament is near and a few spots are still up for grabs as the regular season draws to a close.

Last spring marked the first season in which the Conference USA Baseball Tournament wasn’t held since 1996 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s edition will be hosted at JC Love Field, the home of Louisiana Tech, and will run from May 26 to May 30. The format will consist of two double-elimination brackets with a winner-take-all championship game.

Seeding

Eight teams will make the 2021 Conference USA Baseball Tournament field. The top three teams in each division will be awarded berths, as well as the two best remaining records, regardless of division.

Six of the eight tournament tickets have already been punched. No matter what happens in the final weekend of the regular season, Charlotte, Old Dominion, Florida Atlantic, Western Kentucky, Southern Miss and Louisiana Tech are postseason bound. The remaining two slots are technically up for grabs, although  UTSA is realistically one win against Louisiana Tech away from securing one of the two remaining openings.

Last Team In

Four teams remain alive for the eighth and final spot:

Middle Tennessee
  • 10-17-1 record (.375 winning percentage)
  • Up Next: Home vs FIU
FIU
  • 9-17 (.346)
  • Up Next: Away vs Middle Tennessee
Rice
  • 9-18-1 (.339)
  • Up Next: Home vs Charlotte
UAB
  • 9-19 (.321)
  • Up Next: Away vs Marshall

Marshall is the only team that has been mathematically eliminated thus far. They’ll hope to play spoiler against UAB this weekend, the owner of the second-worst record in the conference. Should Middle Tennessee win the series over FIU, they would advance no matter how either of the remaining series ends. If FIU wins the series, they’d open the door for Rice or UAB to claim the final spot.

The remaining teams who have already clinched are playing for seeding. Charlotte (22-6), Southern Miss (20-7), Louisiana Tech (19-7) and Old Dominion (19-9) are all in the mix for the top four seeds.

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Rice Baseball 2021: Owls bounce UAB, win first C-USA series

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Rice baseball needed a strong showing against UAB and got it, with all phases contributing to the Owls’ first C-USA series win.

THREE FOR THE ROAD | Rice baseball wins series 3-1

1. The few, the proud

The Rice bullpen has been hit or miss this season. Knowing that, head coach Matt Bragga appears to have found a makeshift solution: limit their innings. Of the 31+ innings thrown by Rice pitching this weekend, starters accounted for 23 of them, roughly 74 percent.

The only game in which the starter did not go six innings was the Sunday finale. The starter in that game, Brandon Deskins, was the lone reliever the Owls utilized in the prior three games of the series, throwing two innings on Friday and another three on Sunday.

2. Strong up top

The top of the lineup has been the difference-maker for the Rice offense this season. When they’re at their best, players like Cade Edwards, Braden Comeaux, Bradley Gneiting and Austin Bulman have the capability to overcome other offensive lulls. This weekend painted that picture as clear as ever.

Rice racked up 23 RBI on the weekend, 15 of which were drive in by those top four hitters in the lineup. Nathan Becker had two RBI in the second Saturday game and Will Karp picked up a pair on Sunday, but the rest of the run production largely rested at the top.

3. The right to play another day

A sweep would have been best, but Rice baseball did their part with a series win this weekend, pushing them up one rung in the conference standings. The Owls are now tied in the win column with UAB and FIU. More importantly, Rice is within striking distance of Middle Tennessee for what will likely be the eighth and final spot in the conference tournament.

The math gets tricky with the ties thrown in, but the most likely scenario for Rice to qualify would be this: Rice wins their upcoming series against Charlotte and Middle Tennessee loses their series at FIU. Rice could also advance with a sweep and a Middle split or a split and Middle being swept. Either way, they need to make up a two-loss differential.

THE PLAY BY PLAY

FRIDAY  | Rice 6 – UAB 1

It’s been a bumpy road for starter Mitchell Holcomb, but he’s settled in down the stretch as one of the Owls’ most competitive pitchers. He a gem on Friday, tossing seven innings of one-run ball with eight strikeouts. With him keeping the UAB offense at bay, the Rice bats did the rest.

Rice scratched across single tallies in the first and second innings before Edwards added to the breathing room with a two-run RBI in the fourth. The Owls extended their lead again in the sixth before Bulman capped things off with a home run of his own in the ninth.

SATURDAY 1 | UAB 2 – Rice 1

Staked to a 1-0 lead by an Austin Bulman sac-fly, Roel Garcia delivered one of his stronger outings of the season in the first half of the Saturday doubleheader. He breezed through six innings, a season-long outing, allowing three hits and one unearned run.

Asked to return to the mound for the seventh inning, Garcia ran out of gas. He allowed three hits including the walk-off winner. The intentional decision to trust the rotation paid off in other games during this series. It came back to bit the Owls in this one as the offense tallied just six hits in seven frames.

SATURDAY 2 | Rice 7 – UAB 0

Clearly frustrated from how the first game ended, Rice came out swinging in the nightcap. Gneiting picked up RBI hits in the first and second innings as the Owls jumped out to a 4-0 lead. Things could have gotten even further out of hand had Rice not left the bases loaded in the second.

None of that would matter, though, starter Blake Brogdon was locked in on the mound. Given a big lead, he went the distance, completing the seven-inning game without allowing any runs and scattering five hits. Some insurance runs were added in the later innings, but Brogdon was the driving force.

SUNDAY | Rice 10 – UAB 5

Rice entered Sunday with the opportunity to secure their first Conference USA series win of the season, and a necessary one if they hoped to realize any conference tournament aspirations. Deskins got them off to a great start on the bump, but it was a crooked number from the offense in the fifth inning that blew this game open.

Edwards got things going in earnest with a three run home run, but the bats didn’t slow down. Following that blast, Antonio Cruz and Hal Hughes added RBI doubles to extend the lead to 6-1 in the Owls’ favor. A three-run seventh put things out of reach, giving Rice their first double-digit run total since April 17, a win over Old Dominion.

ON DECK | Rice baseball vs Charlotte (Fri-Sun, four games).

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Rice Baseball: 2021 MLB Owls update – May 8

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The 2021 MLB season is underway and Rice baseball alums are busy on the mound and at the plate. Here’s the latest from the MLB Owls from this week.

Anthony Rendon – Los Angeles Angels

Rendon was just beginning to get going with eight RBI in his first seven games back from going on the injury list in mid-April. Unfortunately, he fouled a ball off his leg resulting in a knee contusion that rendered him “day-to-day” prior to returning to the injured list on May 6.

Through May 8, Rendon is hitting .276 with five extra-base hits, seven walks and 11 strikeouts. His OPS is .814.

Tyler Duffey – Minnesota Twins

Duffey converted holds in back-to-back appearances this week, throwing 1.1 innings scoreless innings across a pair of two-out outings. His strikeout of Adolis García in the eighth inning on Tuesday was his 198th strikeout at Target Field, moving him up to sixth all-time in park history.

It was smooth sailing until Saturday when the Tigers ambushed him for four runs in 0.2 IP, doubling his season-long ERA which had sat at 2.53 entering the weekend.

Through May 8, Duffey has a 5.56 ERA with a 1.765 WHIP. He’s averaging 7.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

Brock Holt – Texas Rangers

Holt was placed on the injured list on Wednesday, retroactive to May 3 after suffering a right hamstring strain. Like Rendon, this is his second time to miss games this season with an injury.

Through May 1, Holt has 11 hits in 44 at bats, a .250 average. He’s walked eight times, struck out 11 times and collected five RBI.

Lucas Luetege – New York Yankees

Luetege continues an impressive season. Over the past eight appearances, he’s allowed no runs, four hits and struck out seven in nine innings. He picked up his second win of the season this week.

Through May 8, Luetege has a 3.26 ERA with a 1.034 WHIP. He’s averaging 8.8 strikeouts per nine innings.

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Rice Baseball 2021: Previewing the UAB series

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Rice baseball hits the road for their final Conference USA series away from home this coming weekend where they’ll take on the UAB Blazers.

Must-win territory has arrived for Rice baseball. The Owls have completed six Conference USA series so far and have yet to record any series wins. They have a split with UTSA under their belts and single ranked wins over Old Dominion and Southern Miss. But the win total still needs to come up by a good margin in the final two weekends.

Rice has a better total record than UAB. This would be a good weekend to keep that distinction in place, and hopefully, to grow the gap.

Times: Friday 6:00 p.m. | Saturday 1:00 p.m. / ~4:00 p.m. | Sunday 12:30 p.m.
Venue: Young Memorial Field
Radio: Stretch Internet Portal
Watch: CUSAtv

How each team fared this week

Rice baseball (18-26-1) dropped a weekend series against Southern Miss at Reckling Park. The Owls blanked the Golden Eagles 6-0 in the opener but could not keep their ranked foes at bay for the final three games.

UAB (15-30) split a four-game series with UTSA last weekend, mirroring an outcome Rice had earlier in the season. Like Rice, UAB has yet to win a conference series outright.

Probable Pitchers

Friday | Mitchell Holcomb (5-4, 6.71)
Saturday 1 | Roel Garcia (1-4, 5.76 ERA)
Saturday 2 | Blake Brogdon (2-5, 5.95)
Sunday | Brandon Deskins (2-4, 3.92)

UAB Pitching

Riley Davis is the man to watch on the mound for UAB. He’s seventh in Conference USA in ERA (2.95) and is tied for first in the league with three complete games. Collin Taylor will be the first man out of the bullpen, second on the team in appearances and second in ERA (3.38). Brady Greene is another effective bullpen piece the Owls might see more than once.

UAB Hitting

The Blazers ranked dead last in conference play with a .231 batting average. They don’t score a lot of runs, don’t hit for power and don’t get on base well. Chandler Simpson (.317/.359/.366)has been the most consistent producer in the lineup, followed by Colton Schultz (.289/.381/388) and Zack Davis (.288/.331/.451) but after that, things drop off precipitously.

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Rice Baseball 2021: Southern Miss decisively soars past Owls

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Rice baseball stole an opening win, but couldn’t sustain the momentum, dropping a home series to a ranked Southern Miss team over the weekend.

THREE FOR THE ROAD | Rice baseball loses series 3-1

1. Nine runs are not enough

The six-run opener was a positive start for the week, but it in itself was only a hair better than the conference average. C-USA schools average 5.93 runs per game. At the conclusion of this weekend’s games, Rice baseball averages 5.07 runs per game. Had Rice won 2-0 instead of 6-0 on Friday, that number would have fallen below five runs per game.

The best offenses in Conference USA score eight runs an outing. Only three average worse than five runs, but only one, Marshall, is below Rice in the overall standings. The bats aren’t doing enough, and the pitching staff isn’t strong enough to bail them out more often than a night or two on any given weekend.

2. There’s no one else to call upon

Micah Davis has served as an “opener” in three consecutive series. He’s walked multiple batters twice and allowed at least one run twice. Prior to those outings, he’s had a couple of strong relief appearances, but it hasn’t worked out well so far with him as the first man on the bump.

But it would be a mistake to put the weight of the Owls’ pitching struggles on his shoulders. He’s there because of failures among other members of the rotation. Will West made his first appearance of the season in the Friday night rout. That came after more familiar faces like Alex DeLeon and Drake Greenwood had allowed things to get out of hand.

The pitching staff many had hoped would be deep enough to weather long weeks in Conference USA play hasn’t lived up to those expectations. Outside of Brandon Deskins, Blake Brogdon and a few others, it’s become a dicey proposition.

3. It’s now or never for any sort of postseason

The top three teams in each division clinch a spot in the conference tournament with two additional spots given out to the best remaining teams by winning percentage. Sitting at six wins, Rice is four games behind Middle Tennessee for the eighth spot in the tournament. That’s a ton of room to make up in two weeks.

Rice draws UAB next. The Blazers are just above the Owls in the West standings. Should Rice win the series (or even sweep), they’d have something to play for on the final weekend of the regular season against Charlotte. Middle Tennessee, who Rice is chasing, visit Southern Miss the weekend before closing at home against FIU. It’s a tall order, but if Rice can win this weekend series, there’s a chance.

THE PLAY BY PLAY

FRIDAY  1 | Rice – Southern Miss

Things couldn’t have gotten off to a much better start for Rice in the first half of the weather-induced Friday doubleheader. The Owls struck first, taking the lead in the first inning on an RBI single from Bradley Gneiting and extending it with an RBI single from Will Karp shortly after.

Up 2-0, Mitchell Holcomb cruised through four innings. With two men on in the fifth, Deskins entered and induced a pop-up to end the threat. A three-run fifth inning and an insurance run courtesy of a Cade Edwards sixth-inning triple helped Rice close out the opener with relative ease.

FRIDAY 2 | Southern Miss 12 – Rice 1

After being silenced in the first game, the Southern Miss bats woke up in a hurry for the Friday nightcap. The Golden Eagles scored two in the first inning, four in the second and two more in the third. The Rice pitching trio of Davis, DeLeon and Greenwood had no answers, and before Greenwood was replaced to start the fourth inning, Rice was already in an insurmountable hole.

Rice would out-hit Southern Miss 10-0, only failing to reach base in one of the seven innings. It wouldn’t matter as the Owls hit safely in 2-of-10 situations with runners in scoring position.  Guy Garibay drove in the only Rice run.

SATURDAY | Southern Miss 10 – Rice 1

Roel Garcia battled through five innings on Saturday, allowing five runs on seven hits. Southern Miss just kept putting the ball in play whereas the Rice bats did not hold up their side of the bargain. While Garcia labored, the Rice offense was silent, collecting just two hits while he was on the mound.

Trailing 5-0 at the time of Garcia’s exit, the bullpen quickly allowed the lead to double over the next three innings in what felt like a carbon copy of the previous evening’s blowout loss.

SUNDAY | Southern Miss 8 – Rice 1

Garibay drew the start on Sunday and after sending the first three Golden Eagles down in the first inning, ran into trouble in the second. Southern Miss struck for four runs in the frame, adding two more in the third and forcing Garibay to exit in favor of Brogdon, who navigated 4.2 innings reasonably well, striking out five and allowing two runs.

A leadoff home run from Austin Bulman in the second was all the offense could muster. Their six hits were the fewest in any game of the series.

ON DECK | Rice baseball vs UAB (Fri-Sun, four games).

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