Vanderbilt's strength amazes Fullerton
OMAHA, Neb. – Vanderbilt must have left a big impression on Cal State Fullerton — with the emphasis on big.
After being eliminated from the College World Series on Tuesday, Fullerton's coach and players raved about the Commodores' size and strength, along with LSU, which beat the Titans 5-3 in the losers' bracket game.
"They were more physical than us," Fullerton coach Rick Vanderhook said about Vanderbilt and LSU. "We need to change a few things. … We played two games here and didn't lose one. We got beat twice (by more physically gifted teams)."
Vanderbilt rallied to beat Fullerton 5-3 on Monday. Reflecting on the player-to-player comparison during the national anthem, Fullerton's top hitter, David Olmedo-Barrera, said he could see the size and strength of the veteran Vanderbilt sluggers.
"Just standing on the line next to those guys, there's an obvious difference," Olmedo-Barrera said. "You guys probably all see it. So that's something we're really going to have to work on."
Streak continues: TCU leadoff hitter Cody Jones drew a walk in the fifth inning against Vanderbilt on Tuesday night to extend his streak to 36 straight games of reaching base.
Jones, the Big 12 Player of the Year, entered the game with a .473 on-base percentage.
Bad guess: LSU coach Paul Mainieri said he decided on Monday to put more right-handed batters higher in his lineup for Tuesday's game, thinking he would face either Vanderbilt's Philip Pfeifer or Cal State Fullerton's John Gavin, both left-handed pitchers. But his team didn't see either.
LSU practiced early Monday, before Vanderbilt rallied to beat Fullerton in the ninth inning. So Pfeifer pitched against TCU on Tuesday, and LSU faced Fullerton right-hander Connor Seabold.
Ump cam: The first-year use of ESPN's UmpCam seems to be perfect for social media. ESPN placed a high-definition camera on the mask of the home plate umpire at the College World Series, revealing his sight-line for each pitch and call.
Not only has it added to the broadcast, but it also has been a hit on Twitter. Seemingly a good tool to show balls and strikes, some of the best video from the UmpCam has come from contact at the plate on home runs.
Shot at football: Vanderhook, the Fullerton coach, took a shot at the NCAA football postseason, saying in baseball "only one team goes home happy (in postseason) and it's like that in every sport, except football. They think they have a championship game, but just ask TCU."
TCU football was left out of the four-team College Football Playoff last season by the selection committee.
Lone game Wednesday: Florida and Miami will play at 7 p.m. Wednesday in a rematch of their opening game, when the Gators won 15-3.
Reach Adam Sparks at 615-259-8010 and on Twitter @AdamSparks.