Tigerbait Baseball Recap: Week of 4/4/13

Non-Conference

At one point, we were saying "Hey, that Maryland team that LSU swept is actually pretty good." Well...that idea dies a little more each week. The Terps are still hanging around with a decent RPI of #50, but they're just 4-8 in the ACC, having lost two of three each weekend. Last week, they lost a mid-week game to George Mason before losing a road series to NC State.

BYU continues to build a decent, but not great resume. They're just 14-14 overall but the RPI is at #49. Last week, they lost a mid-week game at Utah before taking two of three from Pepperdine. They also blanked Utah Valley 8-0 this Tuesday.

Southeastern has a perfect conference record and is 21-9 overall with a RPI of #53. But they're losing outside of the conference. They dropped a game to ULL last week and lost 9-1 to Alabama on Tuesday.

Brown was 2-11 when I wrote last week's update. Now, they're 2-15. So...yea.

The Huskies of Washington haven't fared much better. They traveled to Oregon and got swept last week, but bounced back to pound Seattle 14-1 on Tuesday. They're just 7-19 overall and 2-7 in the PAC-12.

Louisiana-Lafayette has had a rough couple of weeks. After seeing their RPI climb into the 30s, they have lost five of their last six conference games, including a sweep at the hands of Middle Tennessee a couple of weeks back.

Tulane dropped two of three to Rice last weekend and lost to Nicholls State on Tuesday. That is, of course, after getting mercy ruled by LSU last week. Overall, they're now 15-16 on the season with a RPI of #106.

The SEC

Mississippi State

Despite being a pretty good team, the Dawgs have lost all three of their SEC series thus far and stand at 3-6 in the conference. Regardless, their RPI is at #11. Their first three opponents were awfully tough in LSU, Kentucky, and Arkansas. When you consider two of those three were away from home, the slow start in SEC play is easy to understand. Their schedule doesn't get a whole lot easier though. They don't draw Georgia, Tennessee, or Missouri from the East. They host Florida this weekend in what must be considered a "must win" series for them.

Auburn

Auburn managed to take one game from Alabama this weekend, but they're in deep trouble with a 1-8 league mark. Next up, they travel to College Station to face a pretty good Aggie team who is looking to get well after getting broomed at South Carolina last weekend.

Missouri

We know that LSU handled Mizzou last weekend and helped turn their 2-4 SEC record into a 2-7 one. At just 8-16 overall, there is not much to get excited about right now for Missouri baseball. This weekend, they travel to Georgia in a very winnable series.

Kentucky

The Wildcats have won each SEC series and sit at 22-6 overall and 6-3 in the conference. Somewhat quietly, they're ranked #7 in the nation according to Baseball America. Their RPI is a bit lower though, at #31. Last week, they took two of three from Georgia at home and had to feel a bit disappointed they couldn't get the sweep. They also defeated a very good Louisville team on Tuesday. Of course, they travel to Baton Rouge this weekend.

Arkansas

It's still tough to tell just how good this Arkansas team is. But they have won five of their last six conference games, including a sweep on the road against South Carolina, and they have won seven of their last eight overall. Their RPI is way down there at #63. With a 6-3 SEC record, they travel to Alabama this weekend to face the Tide who surprisingly sits at 7-2.

Alabama

Speaking of the Tide, they have really found a groove after struggling earlier in the year. Following a sweep at the hands of Louisville, the Tide are 11-3 overall and 7-2 in the SEC. Granted, they have built that conference record at the expense of Tennessee, Georgia and Auburn...but 7-2 is still 7-2. As would be expected, their schedule picks up considerably in the coming weeks.

South Carolina

The Cocks have been a little tough to figure recently. After a blistering start, they shockingly let Arkansas come into Columbia and sweep them. But they bounced back and swept Texas A&M only to turn around and lose to Furman on Wednesday night. At the end of the day, they are still 23-7 overall with a RPI of #19. Their 5-4 conference mark will likely get a boost from playing Tennessee this weekend.

Florida

Florida took two of three from Ole Miss last weekend, including shutout wins on both Saturday and Sunday. They travel to Starkville this week and a series win there could really demonstrate that they've righted their ship a bit. Some of the teams that beat them earlier this year have turned out to be pretty good, including Florida Gulf Coast (with a RPI of #37), Indiana (#8), Miami (#18) and Florida State (#4). It's no wonder that the Gators' RPI is #20 despite having an overall losing record. I suspect they'll be playing very good baseball by the time they head to Baton Rouge in early May.

Texas A&M

The Ags began conference play 5-1 but got knocked back to Earth after getting swept by South Carolina. However, they can certainly get well this weekend as Auburn comes to town. At 19-11 overall and a RPI of #19, they're sitting in pretty decent shape for a team coming off a sweep.

Ole Miss

Ole Miss is having a nice season. They are 23-6 overall with a RPI of #14. But they only have a 4-5 conference record and they play the conference co-leader Vanderbilt this weekend. After Vandy, their schedule eases up quite a bit until the season finale at LSU.