Here's what to know for the College World Series
For a short season, the 2022 college baseball season certainly packed a ton of twists and turns. There’s no better evidence than the College World Series field.
If someone had told you in February that the list of teams would include Texas, Notre Dame, Stanford, Arkansas, and Ole Miss, that would have sounded perfectly reasonable. If that same person had told you a month ago that the field would not include Tennessee, Virginia Tech or Miami? That would’ve been hard to believe – even though none of those teams began the season in the top 15.
Regardless of how we got here, we’re down to eight, and one of the greatest events in baseball gets underway on Friday. Here’s a look at the eight contenders.
Arkansas (43-19, 18-12 SEC)
How they got here: Won Stillwater regional as No. 2 regional seed, swept No. 10 national seed North Carolina in Chapel Hill super regional
Storyline in one sentence: One of several up-and-down teams, the Hogs started out hot, hit a lull down the stretch in the regular season, but surged once the NCAAs started to eliminate two national seeds.
Ranked Draft prospects: 3B Cayden Wallace (37), RHP Peyton Pallette (40), 2B Robert Moore (96)
Player to watch: Senior outfielder Braydon Webb has been leading off recently, bringing a potent power/on-base combination to the top spot. He has 15 homers, a .423 OBP and 10 steals in 11 tries.
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Auburn (40-19, 16-13 SEC)
How they got here: Won Auburn regional as No. 14 national seed, beat No. 3 national seed Oregon State in Corvallis super regional
Storyline in one sentence: Samford transfer Sonny DiChiara transformed the Tigers’ attack and helped turn a team that had a losing record one year ago into a regional host and CWS attendee.
Ranked Draft prospects: None
Player to watch: It’s DiChiara, the senior who may not be currently ranked but has forced his way into the conversation. His .392/.560/.809 line tells you all you need to know about one of the most dominant players in the country.
Mississippi (37-22, 14-16 SEC)
How they got here: Won Coral Gables regional as No. 3 regional seed, swept No. 11 national seed Southern Miss in Hattiesburg super regional
Storyline in one sentence: A top-ranked preseason team, the Rebels struggled through much of SEC play before surging in May and June.
Ranked Draft prospects: C Hayden Dunhurst (152)
Player to watch: Sophomore shortstop Jacob Gonzalez entered the year as a favorite to be a top Draft pick in 2023. While his stats dipped ever so slightly from his brilliant freshman season, he was once again an all-around star, being named first-team all-SEC for his complete game on both sides of the ball.
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Notre Dame (40-15, 16-11 ACC)
How they got here: Won Statesboro regional as No. 2 regional seed, beat No. 1 national seed Tennessee in Knoxville super regional
Storyline in one sentence: This senior-laden team arguably should have hosted a regional, but instead of pouting, the Irish went into hostile environments in Statesboro and Knoxville and simply played their way to Omaha.
Ranked Draft prospects: 3B/RHP Jack Brannigan (163)
Player to watch: Senior outfielder and leadoff man Ryan Cole will find a way to beat you. Included in his .434 on-base percentage are 20 hit-by-pitches, and he stole 21 bases in 22 tries.
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Oklahoma (42-22, 15-9 Big XII)
How they got here: Won Gainesville regional as No. 2 national seed, beat No. 14 national seed Virginia Tech in Blacksburg super regional
Storyline in one sentence: Another team unranked in the preseason, the Sooners went 24-10 down the stretch, including a Big XII tournament championship and road wins in both the regional and super regional rounds.
Ranked Draft prospects: SS Peyton Graham (33), LHP Jake Bennett (89), C Jimmy Crooks (167)
Player to watch: Graham fills up the stat sheet in just about every way possible, with a .336/.416/.660 line, 20 homers, and 32 steals – all after moving from third base to shortstop.
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Stanford (47-16, 21-9 Pac-12)
How they got here: Won Stanford regional as No. 2 national seed, beat Connecticut in Stanford super regional
Storyline in one sentence: Taken to the wire in both the regional and super regional, this battle-tested team has won 22 of its last 24 games.
Ranked Draft prospects: OF Brock Jones (31), LHP Quinn Mathews (187)
Player to watch: Sophomore slugger Carter Graham put up mammoth numbers in his first year as a starter, with a .333/.403/.651 line, 22 homers, 78 RBIs and 64 runs.
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Texas (47-20, 14-10 Big XII)
How they got here: Won Austin regional as No. 9 national seed, beat No. 8 national seed East Carolina in Greenville super regional
Storyline in one sentence: The consensus preseason No. 1 suffered a huge loss with star right-hander Tanner Witt’s season-ending injury, but has won 16 out of 20 to earn a 38th trip to Omaha.
Ranked Draft prospects: 1B Ivan Melendez (115), LHP Pete Hansen (125), SS Trey Faltine (149), C Silas Ardoin (150), OF Douglas Hodo (200)
Player to watch: It simply can’t be anyone but Melendez, the most dominant offensive player in the country this year. He leads the nation in home runs (32), RBIs (94) and slugging (.887).
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Texas A&M (42-18, 19-11 SEC)
How they got here: Won College Station regional as No. 5 national seed, swept No. 12 national seed Louisville in College Station super regional
Storyline in one sentence: New head coach Jim Schlossnagle worked miracles in his first year with the Aggies, turning a team that went 9-21 in the SEC a year ago into a legit national title contender.
Ranked Draft prospects: none
Player to watch: Senior UTSA transfer Dylan Rock was huge for the Aggies, going .332/.480/.664 with 18 homers, 16 steals and more walks than strikeouts.