College baseball fans today marks the start of the 2014 College World Series championship series. The best-of-three contest showcases Virginia from the ACC and Vanderbilt from the SEC.
In bracket play, Vandy took care of business against Louisville and UC Irvine and Virginia had walk-off wins in the final frames against Ole Miss and TCU.
Let’s look deeper into this year’s series.
When these two teams meet on the diamond this evening playing for a national title, it will be the first time they’ve faced one another since 2004.
Virginia comes in with a record of 52-14 and lineup that can spray hits to all parts of the field. They also feature a pitching staff that is anchored by sophomore left-hander Nathan Kirby with a 9-2 record and a 1.70 ERA. In his last start against Ole Miss, he went seven innings only giving up one hit.
The Cavaliers second pitcher is Brandon Waddell. He is also a nine-game winner. Against TCU on Tuesday he only gave up one run.
Vanderbilt (49-20) comes into this best-of-three series led at the plate by Bryan Reynolds who is hitting 341 with 92 hits and 52 runs scored. His teammate Dansby Swanson is right on his heels with a batting average of .337.
As a club, the Commodores are hitting .281 while their opponents hit at a meager .207.
Throughout the tournament, each game has been very tightly played. Any team that manages to score five runs has an excellent chance to win.
Here at HottyToddy.com, we pose a question to Rebel fans. Do you root for our SEC brothers or has an impressive Virginia team persuaded you to to join their side..
First pitch of the Championship Series will be at 7 p.m., on ESPN and can be heard on SirusXM channel 91.
—Adam Brown is HottyToddy.com sports editor.
2014 College World Series — SEC vs ACC Championship Showdown
