Learn about the three teams Wake Forest could play in the four-team group, which begins this weekend in Omaha
No team has ever outscored its opponents by a wider margin than Wake Forest entering the Men’s College World Series.
The Deacons are plus-59, having won five games in the NCAA baseball championship by a combined 75-16.
And if you’re going by what’s on paper — which is all we’ve got until Saturday — the blowouts are going to end.
The Deacons are grouped with the team that spent most of the regular season ahead of it in national polls (LSU), last year’s super team who the Deacons scrimmaged in the fall (Tennessee), and the team that won the Pac-12 regular season title by five games (Stanford).
The easiest way to think of the format of what will play out in Omaha is that it’s a miniature version of what teams just spent the last two weeks doing. There are two four-team, double-elimination pools — similar to regionals — that start games Friday. The winner of each pool plays a best-of-3 series — super regional, if you will — to crown a national champion, with that series going June 24-26.
Wake’s Omaha action begins with a Saturday afternoon game (2 p.m. eastern, 1 p.m. local) against Stanford.
Here is a short breakdown of each team in Wake’s side of the bracket in Omaha:
Stanford
Record: 44-18 (23-7 in Pac-12)
Offensive number to know: Six — how many players the Cardinal has between 14 and 18 homers this season.
Defensive number to know: 6.34 — Stanford’s team ERA in the 440 innings this season that Quinn Mathews hasn’t pitched this season (he’s pitched 120 innings and his ERA is 3.60).
Key batters to know: Outfielder Eddie Park (leadoff hitter, slashing .340/.418/.485, 37 walks and only 24 strikeouts, on a 10-game hitting streak in which he’s 18-for-42); catcher Alberto Rios (Pac-12 player of the year, slashing .387/.491/.715, team-high 18 homers, second with 71 RBI); third baseman Tommy Troy (typically bats second, team-leader in hits, total bases and steals, slashing .397/.479/.711).
Key pitchers to know: Quinn Mathews (Pac-12 pitcher of the year, 10-4, 152 strikeouts and 39 walks in 120 innings, has two complete games, including his 156-pitch performance in Game 2 against Texas last weekend); Ryan Bruno (has nine of team’s 18 saves, 54 strikeouts in 33 innings, 12 of his 35 walks have come in last eight appearances); Drew Dowd (4.76 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, 30 appearances and three starts, has appeared to face one or two batters but is usually stretched out for multiple innings).
History against Wake Forest: These teams have never played. Stanford is 20-19 all-time against other ACC teams with half of those coming against Florida State (9-11) and another chunk against Miami (3-5).
Against shared opponents this season: None.
Extra bases: This is Stanford’s 19th appearance in the Men’s College World Series and third straight. It’s the Cardinal’s 12th berth since the last national title, which was 1988. … Last season, Stanford lost its opening game 17-2 to Arkansas and lost the elimination game 6-2 to Auburn. … Coach David Esquer is in his sixth season at his alma mater. He played at Stanford when it won the 1987 national championship and coached California to a national championship in 2011, where he spent 18 seasons until called upon to replace his former coach, Mark Marquess.
LSU
Record: 48-15 (19-10 in SEC)
Offensive number to know: 9.3 — runs per game, which is fifth in the country and the only team with a better scoring clip is Wake Forest, at 9.4.
Defensive number to know: 10 — shutouts, tied with Wake Forest for the most in the country.
Key batters to know: Outfielder Dylan Crews (likely No. 1 pick in next month’s draft, slashing .433/.570/.732, 61 walks, 12 HBPs and 40 strikeouts, second on team with 17 homers and 64 RBI); third baseman Tommy White (transfer from N.C. State, team leader with 22 homers and 97 RBI, slashing .377/.439/.750); first baseman Tre’ Morgan (slashing .312/.425/.502, had a two-homer game against Kentucky in super regional).
Key pitchers to know: Ty Floyd (4.50 ERA, 7-0 in 17 appearances, 15 of those were starts, 93 strikeouts and 32 walks in 78 innings, 89 flyouts and 44 groundouts); Riley Cooper (top reliever, 6-2, 270-pounder, 54 strikeouts in 52 innings, 5.02 ERA, 1.44 WHIP).
Paul Skenes gets a category of his own. He’s 12-2 with a 1.77 ERA and 0.78 WHIP; in 107 innings, has 188 strikeouts and 18 walks; opponents’ batting average is .170, he’s thrown two complete games.
History against Wake Forest: LSU leads series 3-0, having swept the Deacons to begin the 2011 season.
Against shared opponents this season: LSU swept Alabama in the three-game series that came under scrutiny later, ultimately leading to Brad Bohannon’s firing as the Crimson Tide’s coach (there is no reported LSU involvement).
So LSU beat Alabama three times by a combined 33-25 score; Wake Forest beat Alabama twice by a combined 27-9 score.
Extra bases: LSU and Wake Forest are two of the three teams in Omaha that haven’t lost a game in the postseason (the third is TCU). … Skenes is from Lake Forest, Calif. … LSU and Tennessee play in the later game Saturday; when they played a series from March 30-April 1, LSU won the first two games 5-2 and 6-4 and Tennessee won the finale 14-7.
Tennessee
Record: 43-20 (16-14 in SEC)
Offensive number to know: 7.6 — runs per game, 54th in the country and worst of the eight teams in Omaha.
Defensive number to know: 11.8 — strikeouts per nine innings, second-best in the country behind Wake’s 12.2 (LSU is third at 11.6 and those are the only three teams above 11).
Key batters to know: Outfielder Griffin Merritt (team-leading 18 homers, slashing .315/.397/.532, transferred from Cincinnati); second baseman Christian Moore (team-high 1.085 OPS, slashing .313/.458/.627, hit four of his 17 homers in the Clemson regional); third baseman Zane Denton (team-high 58 RBI, slashing .274/.410/.587, transferred from Alabama).
Key pitchers to know: Chase Dollander (7-6, 4.50 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 118 strikeouts and 28 walks in 86 innings); Drew Beam (9-4, 3.78 ERA, has allowed three runs combined in his last three starts, with 21 strikeouts across 18 innings); Andrew Lindsey (2.79 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, part-time starter, opposing avg. of .219).
History against Wake Forest: Series is tied 1-1; Tennessee knocked the Deacons out of the NCAA tournament in 2001 after Wake Forest had beaten the Vols to force a decisive final game of the regional.
Against shared opponents this season: Tennessee went 2-1 against teams Wake Forest also played, losing 7-6 in 10 innings to Boston College, beating Wofford 13-3 in seven innings, and beating Clemson 6-5 in 14 innings.
Wake Forest was 6-1 against those teams.
Extra bases: Tennessee and Wake Forest scrimmaged each other in the fall. They played 18 innings on a Sunday, with Justin Johnson and Bennett Lee hitting early homers for the Deacons. … Tennessee was 33-5 at home and 10-15 at road or neutral sites, with half of those 10 wins coming in the last two weeks. … Tennessee has nine shutouts this season; only Wake Forest and LSU have more.
