Charles Fischer

I agree with you, as the Iowa game tonight...as the Michigan State-Oregon game tonight has no bearing on anything...so why are we playing these games?

Something that might be overlooked is that while Oregon was rated No. 6 in the final poll, (And given a No.16 Seed?) the Cardinal were ranked No. 16 in the nation, thus they had recognized talent to take a game off a higher ranked team. Liberty was not in the top 25, but received enough votes to effectively be No. 28 in the nation, and caught TAMU on either an off-day or two, a hot day or two for Liberty, or a combination of both of which happens in sports! The Flames had enough talent to be recognized, and it is evident they are better than their final ranking.

No, as reported in another thread...he pitched 104 pitches on Tuesday against Nebraska, and thus will not available for us.

I think the rest time is only important for the pitchers, and again, the Sports information director told me that the starters will be resting for seven days regardless. We could put nothing but freshman pitchers out there on Thursday, and lose the game, but we have everybody rested for a normal three day weekend series, so I think we will be OK. We have three catchers, and plenty to sub for infield and outfield that are quality players with little to no dropoff. I think everyone knows me well enough to confirm that if I was really concerned about this now, I would be asserting it strongly as I usually do. We may disagree, and that is fine. I actually think that throwing freshman pictures out there Thursday that haven’t had any action in a month or so besides practice, would be good for them in case we need to turn to them in the playoffs for an inning or two.

Meh. If I know Coach Waz...he will remind the team that they've been playing three straight games a weekend for a couple of months, with a number of weekends of four straight games. They have their routine, and know how to approach it. Frankly, breaking up the routine might have made it worse? In his interviews he explains that he tells the team..."instead of practice--we get to play BASEBALL!"

Four games slated for Thursday at Charles Schwab Field Omaha, Rescheduled OMAHA, Neb. – The Big Ten Conference has announced a schedule change to the 2025 Big Ten Baseball Tournament Presented by IFS.ai. With inclement weather in the forecast, first pitch for three pool play games on Thursday will move up by one hour. The new start times are 9 a.m. CT for UCLA versus Michigan, 1 p.m. for USC-Penn State and 5 p.m. (3:00 PM PST) for Oregon-Michigan State. In addition, the Iowa-Indiana contest, originally scheduled for Friday, will be played at 9 p.m. on Thursday. All four games Thursday will be carried by the Big Ten Network.

To answer your question, Mr. Waddler, I believe no, after talking to the Sports information Director for Baseball. They want seven full days of rest for their starters, in particular Grinnell, because he’s going 100 pitches these days. So I don’t think they will save him for Sunday, as I believe they will use him on Friday this week so he is fresh for the regional, as that is first priority. Now, with that being said, they may not play Grinnell, against the number four seed in the regional on Friday, and perhaps save him for Saturday next week? Just another means of entertainment…trying to figure it out!

Jon...your points are more important and valid than what the writer suggested, and yet....I do not think ND will ever join, full-time, a conference. They will continue to play footsie with the ACC because it suits their purposes, IMHO.

I love it...between mid-February and the end of August...we get HUNDREDS of predictions, or I should say "opinions" about where Our Beloved Ducks end up. I like what he has to say, but damn...I hate this Playoff format, and yeah...we have beaten it to death. This is a very, very good team returning, but like everyone says, it all comes down to QB play. It should NOT come down to that! Why? Because Oregon is one of the few teams in the nation that could bring in an experienced, talented QB as a portal transfer every year as we have done with Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel. In my biased view, we should ALWAYS have an experienced QB every year...always. Why? Because we CAN, and it will make the difference in the high-leverage/profile games. Oregon should not be crossing their fingers that things work out at QB, and yes...I think Moore is talented, and I believe Novosad is talented as well. But they have very little college experience--especially in the big games, and Oregon should not be rolling the dice when a hundred players, a ton of coaches, their families, and staff rely on the success of the football team. And that success can be assured with a talented AND experienced quarterback from the portal.

The more I think about it, we need to win Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and we effectively have enough pitchers for three days. So the fourth game, Michigan State,, is a throwaway. Pitch the freshman and those who have very little experience and give them battle pressure for the future.

Good gosh…the Michigan State game is truly a throwaway. The result does not matter, so yes, hold Grinsell for Friday. Start freshmen against Michigan State, and no valued relievers?

Great information Jon…my bad.

So if I understand it, and that’s not certain… Regardless of our game with Michigan State, the game with Nebraska decides who goes to the semifinals? Because even if we lost to Michigan State, but beat Nebraska, we would be tied with the cornhuskers, and the Spartans, but would advance as the higher seed. Although… If if we beat the Spartans, and lose to Nebraska and we are tied again with the cornhuskers and would advance automatically? I have not got the rules of all this down yet!

The star pitcher for Michigan State, and the B1G Pitcher of the Year, Joseph Dzierwa, started against Nebraska and went deep into the game. He left after 105 pitches, so he won't be pitching against Oregon on Thursday. MSU was up 4-3 a few minutes ago...

Ducks lost to Northwestern 3-2... Northwestern and Golf? Congrats to them, and good for the B1G...

Oregon is leading in three matches to two...but five holes to play yet. Anyone's match...

Since the entire topic of the thread was about Conference championships, I’m not certain why the capital cup was brought into the discussion…

We play fellow B1G member Northwestern to advance to the final.

An Sends Oregon To NCAA Semifinals CARLSBAD, Calif. – Oregon advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Women's Golf Championships for the second year in a row Tuesday as freshman Tong An won on a second playoff hole to secure a 3-2 victory over Texas and keep the Ducks' national-title hopes alive at Omni La Costa Resort and Spa. No. 2 seed Oregon will face No. 3 seed Northwestern in the semifinals beginning at 2:05 p.m., with the winner advancing to Wednesday's national championship match. Golf Channel will have live coverage of the semifinals beginning at 3 p.m. After sophomores Kiara Romero and Ting-Hsuan Huang won their matches to put two points on the board for the Ducks, the Longhorns earned two points of their own to bring the match down to An and Texas' Lauren Kim. An was 4 up through 10 holes before Kim won four of the next five to pull the match even. The match remained tied going to the 18th and An stuck her approach shot to set up a birdie putt to win the match, but rolled it just left of the cup to send the match back to the par-3 16th for a playoff hole. An and Kim both hit the green on 16 and An had another putt for the win, but again just missed. The pair went to the 17th for a second playoff hole, and both players found the fairway off the tee. Kim's approach was just off the back of the green while An landed hers in the middle before lagging her birdie putt up to just a few feet. Kim's putt from the fringe raced past the hole, and she missed the comebacker to give An a third shot at winning the match for the Ducks. She buried the putt in the middle of the cup as her teammates erupted in excitement. The Ducks were moving on. Romero was the first point on the board for Oregon, recovering from a slow start after being 2 down through three holes to win, 3&1 over Bohyun Park. The Big Ten Golfer of the Year battled back to 1 down through eight holes before winning the next four to take a commanding 3 up lead, and she was 2 up through 16 before winning the 17th to secure the point. Huang was 1 down through eight holes before draining a long birdie putt on No. 9 to pull all square. The sophomore caught fire from there, making another long putt on No. 10 to fuel a run of five straight holes won to take a 4 up lead. Texas' Angela Heo won at No. 14 to get a hole back, but Huang matched her shot-for-shot over the next three holes to win, 3&2, and set the stage for An's dramatics. NCAA Quarterfinal – No. 2 Oregon def. No. 7 Texas, 3-2 Kiara Romero (Oregon) def. Bohyun Park (Texas), 3&1 Tong An (Oregon) def. Lauren Kim (Texas), 1 up (20 holes) Cindy Hsu (Texas) def. Suvichaya Vinijchaitham (Oregon), 1 up Farah O'Keefe (Texas) def. Karen Tsuru (Oregon), 1 up Ting-Hsuan Huang (Oregon) def. Angela Heo (Texas), 3&2

A link right here updates you on the match-play progress, of which begins soon!

The Women of the Greens are now in the National Semi-Finals this afternoon against Northwestern, and if they win--they will be in finals tomorrow!

As HDuck pointed out...those standings reward teams with the most programs, in addition to their finish. Are they looking at the real regular season winner, or the silly tournament champion? And the nationals for the spring sports have not occured yet, where Oregon will prevail with Softball, Baseball, Track, and the Womens Gold Championship is happening today and tomorrow. So that is not accurate yet... Oregon does not even participate in Hockey, Lacrosse, Swimming, Diving, Wrestling, etc. For the number of programs we have....the bang-for-the-buck is the best.

Wasikowski named top B1G Coach; 10 Ducks earn All-B1G honors including league-high five first-teamers Omaha, Neb. – Heading into the Big Ten Tournament, Oregon head coach Mark Wasikowski has been named the conference’s coach of the year, while a Big-Ten high 10 Duck players have garnered all-league recognition including a league-best five first-team selections. Starting pitcher Grayson Grinsell, relief pitcher Seth Mattox, first baseman Jacob Walsh, second baseman Ryan Cooney (at-large) and outfielder Mason Neville claimed first-team honors. The five first-team selections tied the 2021 team for the most in the modern era of Ducks’ baseball and the 10 all-league members are the most ever in Oregon baseball history. The Ducks placed four players on the conference’s third team and one player on the all-freshman team. Starting pitcher Jason Reitz, shortstop Maddox Molony, outfielder Anson Aroz and designated hitter Dominic Hellman all are on the third team, while catcher Burke-Lee Mabeus earned a spot on the all-freshman team. Cooney was also honored with the Ducks’ sportsmanship award, with one member of each team having a representative. Wasikowski earned the Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year award after leading Oregon to a tie for the league regular-season championship and the No. 1 seed in this week’s Big Ten Tournament. Oregon finished the regular season with a 41-13 record and a 22-8 Big Ten record, tying for the most conference wins in Oregon baseball history. Under Wasikowski’s leadership, the Ducks have already set school records for home runs and RBI this season, while also sitting just eight runs scored, four walks and seven stolen bases shy of setting school records in each of those categories. Oregon’s 41 wins are already tied for the fourth most in program history. Heading into the conference tournament, Wasikowski has Oregon ranked as high as second in the major college baseball polls and no lower than sixth. Grinsell, Oregon’s Friday night starter, claimed his first first-team all-league honor after earning spots on the all-regional tournament teams each of the last two seasons. Grinsell boasts a 9-2 record and a 2.33 ERA with 93 strikeouts in 88.2 innings while holding opposing hitters to a .185 batting average. In Big Ten games, Grinsell has been even better. The Ducks’ lefty leads the league in wins (7), ERA (1.36), batting average against (.167), WHIP (0.86) while ranking second in strikeouts 70. Mattox, who has emerged as Oregon’s closer over the last month, finished the regular season with a 2-1 record with a 2.60 ERA and seven saves in 19 appearances. He has held opposing hitters to a .169 batting average. In 10 appearances in Big Ten games Mattox has been even better, going 2-0 with a 1.86 ERA with four saves and a .100 batting average against. Named a semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy honoring college baseball’s top player, Walsh has had a monster senior season for the Ducks. The first baseball leads the team in batting average (.344) while belting a career-high 19 home runs (tied for 4th in the B1G) and driving in a career-best 59. He has 34 extra-base (17 2B) hits on the season and is slugging .688 while reaching base at a .451 clip with eight stolen bases. In league games, Walsh is slashing .352/.432/.680 with 10 homers and 10 doubles. Neville, a semifinalist for both the Dick Howser Trophy and the Golden Spikes Award, finished the regular season leading the nation in both home runs (26) and home runs per game (0.49). The Ducks’ centerfielder is slashing .302/.446/.774 with a 1.220 OPS. Neville shattered Oregon’s single-season home run record with eight more than the old record heading to the tournament. Cooney, a sophomore from Portland, closed the season on a tear, improving his batting average by 64 points from March 29 to the end of the regular season. The Ducks’ second baseman earned Big Ten Conference Player of the Week two of the last three weeks of the regular season. He finished his sophomore campaign second on the team in batting with a .341 average while homering five times with 47 RBI and 42 runs scored out of the eight-hole in the lineup. In conference games, Cooney slashed .333/.452/500 with a .952 OPS. Another homer for Mason Neville! Reitz, who permanently became a weekend starter midway through the season, finished the regular season unbeaten (5-0) with the Ducks winning all 10 games he started. In addition to the 5-0 record, he has a 3.09 ERA in 15 appearances with a save, 59 strikeouts in 58.1 innings of work while holding opposing hitters to a .221 batting average. In conference games, he has been even better, going 4-0 with a 2.60 ERA. He fanned a batter per inning in 45.0 innings and held opponents to a .220 average. His ERA is the second best amongst starting pitchers in the Big Ten, trailing only Grinsell. Molony, a two-time all-league selection in his two seasons at Oregon, slashed .309/.407/.581 with a .988 OPS during the regular season. He belted 15 home runs, good for 10th all-time in a single season at Oregon, while driving in 44 runs, scoring 41 times and swiping 10 bags in 10 attempts. He ran his career total in home runs to 25, which is already tied for sixth in program history. During league games, Molony hit eight of his homers while batting .297 with 24 RBI and 19 runs scored. He reached base at a .378 clip while slugging .550. Aroz, who graduated following the winter term at Oregon, batted .261 with 16 home runs, 49 RBI and 52 runs scored. His 16 long balls rank in a tie for eighth all-time in a season at Oregon and his 23 career homers is ninth all-time at UO. Aroz slugged nine of his home runs in Big Ten play while batting .264 with 22 RBI and s7 runs scored. Hellman, who led the Ducks with a program record three grand slams, batted .304 with 12 home runs, 41 RBI and 40 runs scored while reaching base at a .407 clip and slugging .550. The Ducks’ DH had nine extra-base hits (5 HR, 4 2B) in 23 Big Ten Conference starts while slashing .295/.382/.495 with an .877 OPS. Mabeus, who served as Oregon’s primary catcher starting 24 games behind the plate, was the only backstop named to the Big Ten Conference All-Freshman Team. He batted .260 with eight extra-base hits (5 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR) with 23 RBI and 26 runs scored. He claimed Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Week honors once during the season while also hitting a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning of game three against UCLA which helped Oregon clinch the series and eventual top seed in the Big Ten Tournament.

The schedule is right here, and we play Michigan State on Thursday at 4:00 PM PST. That was a GREAT article explaining it, and I thank 30Duck for posting it. From the article... "If a team goes 2-0 in their pool, they’d obviously win the pool, but if every team goes 1-1 in pool play, the top-seeded team in the pool would automatically advance. That means the Ducks really only need one win to advance to the semifinals, and they’ll have the knowledge of which game they have to win before it’s played. Nebraska and Michigan State will face off on Tuesday. The loser will not have a path to the semifinal so, Oregon could lose to that team, and have it not impact its tournament. The Ducks will only have to beat the winner of the Nebraska/Michigan State game to advance, but they have to win that game. Otherwise, that other team would be 2-0 and claim the Pool A spot in the semifinals. This gives Oregon a massive pitching advantage. The Ducks will be able to save their ace, Grayson Grinsell, for the game against the winner of the MSU/Nebraska game and treat the other game as a bullpen game." Grayson Grinsell