Preseason Rankings

[Teefield 0]

Collegiate Baseball released their Top 40 Rankings today. Heavy on the SEC, especially towards the top. Auburn not ranked but receiving votes according to the article. Link:

http://nwahomepage.com/fulltext-news?nxd_id=391842

Collegiate Baseball Top 40 Preseason Poll

1. Arkansas

2. North Carolina

3. Vanderbilt

4. LSU

5. UCLA

6. Oregon

7. South Carolina

8. Kentucky

9. Stanford

10. Oregon State

11. NC State

12. San Diego

13. Mississippi State

14. Oklahoma

15. TCU

16. Arizona State

17. Georgia Tech

18. Arizona

19. Florida State

20. Rice

21. Texas

22. Louisville

23. Cal State Fullerton

24. Florida

25. Ole Miss

26. Texas A&M

27. Clemson

28. Miami (Fla.)

29. Georgia

30. UC Irvine

31. Missouri State

32. Wichita State

33. New Mexico

34. Kent State

35. Virginia

36. Southern Miss

37. East Carolina

38. Coastal Carolina

39. Dallas Baptist

40. Pepperdine

[80Tiger 899]

I know it is preseason, but it does reflect what people think of our program. To not be ranked in the top 40 and something called Dallas Baptist is quite astounding. Hopefully AU will prove everyone wrong, but the last couple of years do not give a lot of reason to think that.

[WarAJEagle 5]

I know it is preseason, but it does reflect what people think of our program. To not be ranked in the top 40 and something called Dallas Baptist is quite astounding. Hopefully AU will prove everyone wrong, but the last couple of years do not give a lot of reason to think that.

Will be the next major sport at Auburn looking for a new coach, IMO.

[PowerOfDixieland 3,226]

To not be ranked in the top 40 and something called Dallas Baptist is quite astounding.

Not really. DBU is quickly becoming a player in D1 baseball. They were one win away from Omaha in 2011 (lost to Cal in the super regional).

[80Tiger 899]

To not be ranked in the top 40 and something called Dallas Baptist is quite astounding.

Not really. DBU is quickly becoming a player in D1 baseball. They were one win away from Omaha in 2011 (lost to Cal in the super regional).

The point is not Dallas Baptist. I don't doubt they are a very good team. That is why they are ranked. The point is we are not and a team (Dallas Baptist) that has far fewer resources available to them (money, facilities, recruiting, coaching?) is ranked.

[AU64 10,122]

Hurts to see us out of the top 40 but with so many new guys coming in ...and the past couple year's performance to judge by, I can see why we didn't get any support. But don't underestimate schools like DBU.

They have the same number of scholarships as AU and they have Dallas with a huge population where baseball is popular. Lots of these "never heard of them" or directional schools take baseball seriously....probably more so than AU appears to. When I see AU games on TV there does not seem to be much student support...just a bunch of old guys like me and kids / grandkids.

[80Tiger 899]

How many of the DBU players turned down scholarships at traditional larger baseball schools to play at DBU? I will go out on a limb and say zero. My point is that they (DBU) must be doing a great coaching job and congratulations to them. We (AU fans) should be very concerned that schools such as DBU outperform due to their coaching. By propping up these smaller programs (no offense to them) and saying "they are an up and comer" or "they can pull from a large population" we are self justifying AU's lack of success and improvement. We do it with basketball and we started it doing it with football last year

[aucanucktiger 1,794]

Dallas Baptist or not, 5 of the top 10 being from the SEC but Auburn with its facilities and fine baseball history not being in the top 40 may not be a resume high point for Jay Jacobs et al.

[Mikey 16,630]

All you have to do is go to an Auburn game or watch one on TV and reason we are not ranked becomes obvious. Our coaching staff makes mistakes that your average youth league coach wouldn't make.

Now, they've (Coach Paw) dropped all of the pre-season quality opponents for more matchups with SWAC teams. Does he not know that a low RPI is what's been keeping us out of post season play? Does he not know that even if you beat a team like Alabama State, your RPI suffers? The way he set this season up the only way we get into the NCAA is to do very well in SEC play and finish in the top two in the SEC tournament. What do you think is the likelihood of that happening?

You can't tell me that nearby, respected teams such as Georgia Tech, Clemson or FSU wouldn't like a lucrative home and home series with Auburn. Yet we'd rather schedule ASU and forget the NCAA tournament? Sounds clueless to me.

[Tigerbelle 5,299]

http://www.auburntigers.com/sports/m-basebl/spec-rel/102512aad.html

For the Doom and Gloom group....

[SCTiger2011 1,279]

http://www.auburntig.../102512aad.html

For the Doom and Gloom group....

Shame on you for posting facts, that takes ammo out of people's arguments and makes them rely on meaningless "From what I've seen..." drivel. Not to say I support everything CP has done, but after the middle 2000s, we are competitive regularly now (hello 2010) and he's building a solid recruiting class every year it seems. Right now, I have much more faith in Pawlowski than Barbee over in basketball land. Let's be honest, we're as close to relevant now as we have been since the late 90s/early 2000s. And I have to take exception with the "RPI has kept us out of the tournament" crowd. I'm pretty sure getting swept by Bama and LOSING a couple of those midweek games down the stretch last year had more to do with it than RPI. We weren't exactly firing down the stretch last year...

[PowerOfDixieland 3,226]

"From what I've seen..." drivel.

Have you seen it? One man's drivel is another man's observations based on results.

we're as close to relevant now as we have been since the late 90s/early 2000s.

Relevant in what, recruiting rankings? You know what that got Chizik, right?

[SCTiger2011 1,279]

"From what I've seen..." drivel.

Have you seen it? One man's drivel is another man's observations based on results.

we're as close to relevant now as we have been since the late 90s/early 2000s.

Relevant in what, recruiting rankings? You know what that got Chizik, right?

I agree that recruiting rankings are not a tell-all, as you are right in citing Gene Chizik's case. But the fact is, wrong as it may be, most people overlook baseball at Auburn anyway because there has not been much to cheer about in the past decade and a fraction. Now, I don't know which argument you are trying to goad me into biting on. The past 3 years, the team has won more SEC games than at any 3 year period in a decade. Throw in the regional in 2010 and you have signs of progress. Slow, yes, and maybe slower than some people want (you included I am guessing). if we do not make postseason play this year with this team, then, yes, that will be aggravating and I may jump into the "re-evaluate things" camp. But for now, since recruiting is the only evidence we have for this season, I am optimistic. I am guessing if we had been pulling in 50, 60, 70th ranked recruiting class, you would be complaining about recruiting rankings, so I am not sure what would make you satisfied with the current direction of the program short of a CWS appearance immediately.

[SCTiger2011 1,279]

Also, I apologize if the tone of the last message comes off wrong, my sarcasm/animosity meter is unpredictable in the middle of 4:45 all-nighters. I just want the team to do well and have people get behind them no matter what during the season. War Eagle.

[PowerOfDixieland 3,226]

No need for apologies. I too want to see them play well, have success on the field and put some more quality players in the big leagues. My fear, with the conference tournament expanding, is that many will continue with simply making SEC postseason play as the measure of success. I believe anything less than .500 in conference play should not be tolerated (long).

[SCTiger2011 1,279]

We will find common ground there. I don't even view the SEC Tourney as postseason play, so that is something Auburn baseball should make every year. I do like how it seems CJP is able to adapt to his team. Two years ago, we were stacked with power hitters, but last year, the team had to rely on small ball. I feel it's not the offensive side that is going to struggle, and I hope the bullpen has strengthened over the offseason, because they will make the difference in a SEC team and a regional team for us this year. The SEC West is going to be a baseball gauntlet this year.

[80Tiger 899]

I think what bothers a lot of people (including me) is how bad of a fielding team AU seems to be under CJP. Maybe it is just my impression, but we seem to make a lot of errors at critical times. And to most that is something that should be corrected with practice/coaching. While saying CJP adapts to his teams abilities, I believe a coach should have an identity and recruit that way each year. I also do not believe we took advantage of the power the team had two years ago. IMO we underperformed based on the talent we had. That team should have gone very deep in the NCAA and had legitimate talent for the CWS. Last year we were not as talented. I do beleive this is a critical year for CJP. A was not overwhelmed with his hire and have not been overwhelmed with the results.

[PowerOfDixieland 3,226]

I also do not believe we took advantage of the power the team had two years ago.

The bat change two years ago (to BBCOR .50) was more detrimental to power numbers than most realize. Immediately changed the profile of a lot of hitters. If you can't play defense and move runners in today's SEC, you're toast. We have not made that transition (yet).

[WarEagle10 77]

I was reading War Eagle Extra. Aaron says we are picked dead last in the West. <sigh>

AUBURN, Ala. — Arkansas is ranked No. 1 in the preseason USA Today baseball coaches’ poll nationally, and the SEC managers acted accordingly in projecting the experience-laden Razorbacks to wear the league crown.

Arkansas returns five position players and ten pitchers from last year’s team, which made the College World Series semifinals. The Hogs garnered 9 of 14 first-place votes, with three coaches favoring Vanderbilt, one picking Kentucky and another taking LSU. (Coaches could not vote for their own team.)

Auburn, coming off a 31-28 season (13-17 SEC), is tabbed to finish in last place in the SEC West, getting two less votes than Alabama. The Tigers have not won a postseason SEC tournament since 1998, and are seeking their first regular season title since 1976.

Teams open season in non-conference play Friday, and league series begin March 15. The SEC Tournament will be held May 21-26 in Hoover, Ala.

That is kind of disturbing.

[AU64 10,122]

I was reading War Eagle Extra. Aaron says we are picked dead last in the West. <sigh>

AUBURN, Ala. — Arkansas is ranked No. 1 in the preseason USA Today baseball coaches’ poll nationally, and the SEC managers acted accordingly in projecting the experience-laden Razorbacks to wear the league crown.

Arkansas returns five position players and ten pitchers from last year’s team, which made the College World Series semifinals. The Hogs garnered 9 of 14 first-place votes, with three coaches favoring Vanderbilt, one picking Kentucky and another taking LSU. (Coaches could not vote for their own team.)

Auburn, coming off a 31-28 season (13-17 SEC), is tabbed to finish in last place in the SEC West, getting two less votes than Alabama. The Tigers have not won a postseason SEC tournament since 1998, and are seeking their first regular season title since 1976.

Teams open season in non-conference play Friday, and league series begin March 15. The SEC Tournament will be held May 21-26 in Hoover, Ala.

That is kind of disturbing.

JMO but baseball is probably the hardest major sport to predict since most teams have lots of turnover in players from one year to the next.....the best players get drafted and it's hard to figure how a mixture of recent HS grads will fit in with some JUCOs and the returning players. AU has most of it's offense coming back and pitching is the big unknown. My concern is whether the team can improve on basic fundamentals...the stuff they should have learned in Babe Ruth league or certainly HS. Better baserunning, fielding, bunting and the ability of the pitchers to throw strikes could make a big difference.

OK now... Play Ball ! ! !

[Mikey 16,630]

That 2010 team was the best hitting team in Auburn history. Rate it on average, power, any way you want to cut it. Yet we couldn't even win the regional we were hosting. Couple that with the fact that those big hitters were all Slater's recruits and 2010 looks more like a failure than any sort of success.

From the link posted above: ""Auburn's balanced class is its strongest since this coaching staff arrived in 2008." So, the ninth-rated class is the best ever for Coach Pawloski. A cynic would say he waited long enough to get started.

Look, I'm not against the guy, but after we got so little out of so much talent in 2010 I've been watching with a critical eye and I'm not real happy with what I'm seeing. As others noted above, fundamentals of playing the game are simply lacking, baserunning and defense being most obvious. Support the team? Certainly! Think this staff can consistently get us into the NCAA tournament? I have serious doubts.

[PowerOfDixieland 3,226]

...baseball is probably the hardest major sport to predict since most teams have lots of turnover in players from one year to the next.....

Ray Tanner, Paul Mainieri, Dave Van Horn, Kevin O'Sullivan, and Tim Corbin say "hello".

[AU64 10,122]

...baseball is probably the hardest major sport to predict since most teams have lots of turnover in players from one year to the next.....

Ray Tanner, Paul Mainieri, Dave Van Horn, Kevin O'Sullivan, and Tim Corbin say "hello".

I understand....so just pick the coaches....that's pretty much true in all sports I guess....at least for the top half dozen teams. Year in and year out, you can't go too wrong picking teams like Duke or Mich State in basketball or Bama and OSU or LSU, etc without knowing who their players are...and same in baseball. But there are only a handful of those dominant guys and there are always some surprises.

[SumterAubie 3,031]

I was reading War Eagle Extra. Aaron says we are picked dead last in the West. <sigh>

AUBURN, Ala. — Arkansas is ranked No. 1 in the preseason USA Today baseball coaches’ poll nationally, and the SEC managers acted accordingly in projecting the experience-laden Razorbacks to wear the league crown.

Arkansas returns five position players and ten pitchers from last year’s team, which made the College World Series semifinals. The Hogs garnered 9 of 14 first-place votes, with three coaches favoring Vanderbilt, one picking Kentucky and another taking LSU. (Coaches could not vote for their own team.)

Auburn, coming off a 31-28 season (13-17 SEC), is tabbed to finish in last place in the SEC West, getting two less votes than Alabama. The Tigers have not won a postseason SEC tournament since 1998, and are seeking their first regular season title since 1976.

Teams open season in non-conference play Friday, and league series begin March 15. The SEC Tournament will be held May 21-26 in Hoover, Ala.

That is kind of disturbing.

For what its worth, Baseball America picks Auburn to make the field of 64. But to finish 6th in the SEC West.

[Cajun 0]

That 2010 team was the best hitting team in Auburn history. Rate it on average, power, any way you want to cut it. Yet we couldn't even win the regional we were hosting. Couple that with the fact that those big hitters were all Slater's recruits and 2010 looks more like a failure than any sort of success.

From the link posted above: ""Auburn's balanced class is its strongest since this coaching staff arrived in 2008." So, the ninth-rated class is the best ever for Coach Pawloski. A cynic would say he waited long enough to get started.

Look, I'm not against the guy, but after we got so little out of so much talent in 2010 I've been watching with a critical eye and I'm not real happy with what I'm seeing. As others noted above, fundamentals of playing the game are simply lacking, baserunning and defense being most obvious. Support the team? Certainly! Think this staff can consistently get us into the NCAA tournament? I have serious doubts.

Since 1999 when the bats were really toned down, it has been pitching that wins championships more often than not. This is the first year we will have pitching depth that rivals most of our SEC brethren and much of that is due to not having lottery schollies. In the past including last year we had to stick with pitchers longer than other teams due to lack of depth in the bullpen. That meant more hard hit balls which increased errors on a defense that also recruits at a disadvantage in terms of depth for competition. Pawlowski has addressed the recruiting issues by finally dominating the in-state recruiting and keeping in-state guys from going out of state to play. That took time and was not going to happen overnight. Key for this year is to make postseason and build on it for what will be a mega-talented team next year where we lose zero pitching off this deep, talented staff and we have 4 potential stars talent wise in our position player class in Gillikin, Rucker, Ebert, and Smith that will be poised for big sophomore years. I have been to multiple preseason scrimmages and I can tell you these things legitimately and have followed Auburn baseball for over 20 years and been to over 500 games personally. I've seen it all and these pitchers and those 4 frosh position players are legit. Smith won't play every day because of a logjam at 1st with Cooper and a hot hitting Patrick Savage at DH who is ripping the cover off the ball. Rucker is getting there but playing behind Gillikin who will likely move to center next year. Gillikin command the strike zone like upperclass guys already. Puts the ball in play hard and don't strike out a lot and go opposite field very well. Gillikin, Savage, and Terrance Dedrick hit the ball as hard as anybody on the team but Dedrick is also trying to find a place in the outfield corners - Wack better not slip up or he'll be watching Dedrick play out there. Dedrick is gonna close and has a CANNON for playing outfield.