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Rice Owls Baseball: Heading to OMAHA!!!

Discussion in 'Other Sports' started by bigtexxx, Jun 12, 2006.

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arkoe (ง'̀-'́)ง

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JunkyardDwg said:

Because then you wouldn't get the trademark "ping" when they hit the ball. That's such a cool sound
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I hate that sound. I much prefer the "crack" of a wooden bat.

#21 arkoe, Jun 12, 2006

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bigtexxx said:

Are you kidding me?
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Two top programs. I think I wear my Rice cap more cause I like the look and feel of the LIDS franchise more than Nike, New Era, etc. Not a joke.

#22 Smokey, Jun 12, 2006
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Vegas likes the Owls to win it. It's close with Rice, Clemson, Fullerton and Oregon State being the top half favored.

http://www.vegasinsider.com/u/futures/BBC_1465.cfm

RICE 3/1
CLEMSON 7/2
CAL-ST FULLERTON 7/2
OREGON ST 4/1
GEORGIA TECH 6/1
NORTH CAROLINA 8/1
GEORGIA 12/1
MIAMI 16/1

#23 bigtexxx, Jun 13, 2006
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I just realized I'll be going next year!!! Sweet.

#24 Rocketman95, Jun 13, 2006
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Rocketman95 said:

I just realized I'll be going next year!!! Sweet.
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I'm going on Friday morning. Look for bigtexxx this weekend on ESPN

#25 bigtexxx, Jun 13, 2006
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bigtexxx said:

I'm going on Friday morning. Look for bigtexxx this weekend on ESPN
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Will you be wearing your three color afro wig and holding the "John 3:16" sign behind home plate?

#26 RocketMan Tex, Jun 13, 2006
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bigtexxx said:

I'm going on Friday morning. Look for bigtexxx this weekend on ESPN
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Awesome! Have you ever been? Seriously one of the most fun weeks of my life...until we got in the car and heard that Darryl Kile had passed away.

My wife and her best friend are going on a two week cruise to Europe this time next year. I'm going to Omaha. Same thing, right?

#27 Rocketman95, Jun 13, 2006

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bigtexxx said:

Vegas likes the Owls to win it. It's close with Rice, Clemson, Fullerton and Oregon State being the top half favored.

http://www.vegasinsider.com/u/futures/BBC_1465.cfm

RICE 3/1
CLEMSON 7/2
CAL-ST FULLERTON 7/2
OREGON ST 4/1
GEORGIA TECH 6/1
NORTH CAROLINA 8/1
GEORGIA 12/1
MIAMI 16/1
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And how many pitchers will Graham ruin?

#28 gwayneco, Jun 13, 2006
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gwayneco said:

And how many pitchers will Graham ruin?
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Like Roger Clemens and Andy Pettite? Graham helped make BOTH of those pitchers the players they are today at San Jac. Clemens was a nobody before Graham got a hold of him.

Don't forget two years ago he also took 3 pitchers who were undrafted out of high school and made them 3 of the 8 tops picks in the MLB draft. They all got PAID. Graham is probably the top developer of pitchers in college baseball today. He didn't throw anybody over 120 pitches all year this season. As a point of reference Oklahoma threw McCutchen over 200 pitches in their regional.

You don't know what you're talking about.

#29 bigtexxx, Jun 13, 2006
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bigtexxx said:

Like Roger Clemens and Andy Pettite? Graham helped make BOTH of those pitchers the players they are today at San Jac. Clemens was a nobody before Graham got a hold of him.

Don't forget two years ago he also took 3 pitchers who were undrafted out of high school and made them 3 of the 8 tops picks in the MLB draft. They all got PAID. Graham is probably the top developer of pitchers in college baseball today. He didn't throw anybody over 120 pitches all year this season. As a point of reference Oklahoma threw McCutchen over 200 pitches in their regional.

You don't know what you're talking about.
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What about in 2003? Someone told me that he really overused some of his pitchers in Omaha that year.

#30 gwayneco, Jun 13, 2006
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When do we get to play Texas?

#31 No Worries, Jun 13, 2006
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gwayneco said:

What about in 2003? Someone told me that he really overused some of his pitchers in Omaha that year.
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Sounds like a reliable source. I'd probably jump off a bridge now.

#32 Master Baiter, Jun 13, 2006
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Master Baiter said:

Sounds like a reliable source. I'd probably jump off a bridge now.
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Niemann had a 155 pitch count game in 2003 and Kenny Baugh had a 171 pitch game in 2001.

http://www.boydsworld.com/breadcrumbs/ncaa_pap3.html
[

The Individuals

It turns out that Randy Johnson wasn't the most abused pitcher in the nation this year; that title goes to Kenny Baugh so far. That's right, Baugh racked up more pitcher abuse points at age 22 or whatever than Johnson did at age 38. The truly frightening part about Baugh's season is that those are not his complete numbers; the Rice SID was missing information on around five of his late-season starts due to the shutdown in April of their Web hosting company. The single worst start of the year that I've found was Baugh's 171-pitch outing against Nebraska in the super-regional. Significantly, both Baugh and his Rice teammate Jon Skaggs had to be shut down early from the minor league season due to arm problems, although Baugh, who was drafted by the Tigers, had started off in high A ball and been jumped to AA, probably not the wisest course of action by the Tigers.
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#33 gwayneco, Jun 13, 2006

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gwayneco said:

What about in 2003? Someone told me that he really overused some of his pitchers in Omaha that year.
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"Somebody told me". mmmmkay. Sounds like you don't follow college baseball very closely.

Did somebody tell you that Rice won the national championship that year? That 4 pitchers from that team went on to be first round draft picks and one is now in the majors (David Aardsma)? Jeff Niemann could be called up in September, as well. All 4 are multimillionaires.

#34 bigtexxx, Jun 13, 2006
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No Worries said:

When do we get to play Texas?
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LOL. They finished 3rd in their own regional. I do enjoy whipping them in Omaha, though (see 2003).

#35 bigtexxx, Jun 13, 2006
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gwayneco said:

Niemann had a 155 pitch count game in 2003 and Kenny Baugh had a 171 pitch game in 2001.

http://www.boydsworld.com/breadcrumbs/ncaa_pap3.html
[
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Niemann went on to have a very productive season in 2004 with Rice, and Kenny Baugh is likely to be called up from AAA to the majors any day now.

Not sure what you have against Wayne Graham.

#36 bigtexxx, Jun 13, 2006
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bigtexxx said:

LOL. They finished 3rd in their own regional. I do enjoy whipping them in Omaha, though (see 2003).
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Isn't that the last time you beat us? What's the losing streak at now?

#37 RocketFan007, Jun 13, 2006
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bigtexxx said:

LOL. They finished 3rd in their own regional. I do enjoy whipping them in Omaha, though (see 2003).
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FYI, this is why you annoy people. You can't even enjoy your own thread without taking a potshot at another school. How many people from other schools do you see crapping on this thread - none. Enjoy the tournament and don't worry about other schools other than Rice. Then when the next school is doing well let their fans enjoy it without being a jackass.

I know you can't comprehend it, but I bet even some UT fans are rooting for Rice because of the State of Texas relationship

#38 updawg, Jun 13, 2006

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bigtexxx said:

Niemann went on to have a very productive season in 2004 with Rice, and Kenny Baugh is likely to be called up from AAA to the majors any day now.

Not sure what you have against Wayne Graham.
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I have nothing against him. But would you not concede that he has a history of overusing pitchers?

#39 gwayneco, Jun 13, 2006
Last edited: Jun 13, 2006
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To wit:

http://baseballanalysts.com/archives/2005/12/2004_draft_retr.php

THE RICE TRIO

Pre-Draft Buzz: Hopes were super-high for Rice University in 2004, as the school was armed with the best trio of pitchers in the history of college baseball. Atop that group was Jeff Niemann, who was coming off a 17-0 sophomore season. In basketball, Niemann would have surely left for the pros. His junior season showed why that would have been a good move.

Injuries plagued much of Niemann's junior year, with a sore arm (and decreased velocity) becoming a continuing trend. His year was good -- a 3.02 ERA, 94 K's in 80.1 innings -- but not enough to cement his status as the draft's best player. Stepping into his role as the Rice ace, to the surprise of some scouts, was Phil Humber. The right-hander was the team horse, having pitched in 100+ innings in each season of his college career. His stuff was not as good as Niemann or Wade Townsend, but he was the most polished.

Humber's rise left Wade Townsend as the consensus third of the three, though his ERA (1.80) was the best in 2004. Townsend had good -- not great -- stuff, but it came at the cost of some control issues. He could eat innings and had some upside, but he didn't profile to be much beyond a third starter.

In the end, Humber went first, going to the Mets with the third overall pick. Niemann quickly followed, going to the Devil Rays, who were willing to take the risk. Wade Townsend would be chosen eighth by the Orioles.

2004: Considering the number of innings consumed by these three at Rice, no one thought it a good idea for them to pitch in 2004. This belief slowed down contract negotiations, as Humber and Niemann weren't signed until after the season. Wade Townsend was not signed at all, and stuck, as he was also deemed ineligible to return to Rice. Like Luke Hochevar this year, Townsend was left between the Independent League, or working alone.

2005: He would choose home, as the year -- before June -- consisted of just tryouts for Townsend. He was generally unimpressive in these workouts, but piqued the Devil Rays interest in the June draft, who sought to reunite him with ex-teammate Jeff Niemann. However, it's believed that had Tampa passed, Townsend could have spiraled nearly 20 selections before having his name called. He would finish the year quite poorly in the New-York Penn League.

Humber's 2005 began with the most steam, as the Mets started him quickly in the Florida State League. His results were inconsistent, but the Mets were impressed with the control that Humber showed. At the same time that Gaby Hernandez and Brian Bannister were promoted, Humber was moved to AA. He would have just one (bad) start there, before his season ended. Tommy John surgery.

Niemann's year was clouded with injury as well, as he was on and off the DL the entire season. He started late, finished early, and had time off in-between. While the work schedule might sound appealing to you, it certainly hurt Niemann's declining star status. His strikeout numbers in both the Cal and Southern Leagues were good when he pitched, but no longer is this the guy that touches 99 with that devastating, spike curveball.

Future: Hopefully, a joint lawsuit. Humber, Niemann and Townsend (yes, I think he's next) deserve to sue Wayne Graham, their former coach at Rice. Maybe the likes of Miguel Ramos and Kenny Baugh (and how about Matt Anderson) could do so as well. Graham seems to be the Steve Spurrier of college baseball, creating a fantastic college atmosphere, while doing more harm than good for pro careers.

Graham's abuse on young arms has slowed the career of all of these players. Humber should be OK, as Tommy John surgery should repair all the damage, and he'll be back to full strength in 2007. Niemann's arm is a big question mark, and many have speculated that Townsend could be hurt. The Devil Rays must figure this out, because if these two could be returned to full strength, this system would get even deeper.
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#40 gwayneco, Jun 13, 2006

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