I say 38-18, mwc champ, 2 seed, win the first game, lose the second to the #1 seed, beat the #3 seed again and lose to the #1 seed.

anyone else want to put it on virtual paper?

That prediction sounds a lot like the 2007 season, except our record (48-14) was better against a weaker schedule than the one we face this year. In the 2007 Rice Regional, we beat Baylor (the 3 seed) twice and lost to Rice (the 1 seed) twice.

I think we'll play a few more games (barring rainouts) than 56 this year, since we should play a minimum of three in the MWC playoffs at Lupton. I like 41-17, prior to being a 2-seed at regionals, and MWC champs. This time, I hope we go further once we get to a regional.

With the turnover we have undergone on offense, and a new closer TBD, it will be interesting how we come out of the gate.

yeah, my 38-18 excludes any post season play, but i would imagine we would sweep the mwc conf tourney.

and the regionals do sound like 2007 becuase that will be the MO of tcu in regionals for the foreseeable future.

usually we will have an ace who will beat the #3, then the #1 seed will beat us, then we will beat the #3 seed and then the #1 will beat us again.

do you think we will get out of the regionals this year?

Like in 2007, I think we have a chance to get through a regional because our starting pitching is deep again. We lost twice to Rice (I think 5-2 and 3-1) in 2007, so it wasn't from poor pitching. That season we had Arietta, Corgan and Johnson, with Demel as the closer. This year we will have Lockwood, Hoelscher, Holle, Winkler, Merck, Kelly, Maxwell and Miller (who may be the closer). That's a lot of quality starter options. If we hit a bit better than in the past two years, we could be a quality opponent for a Rice or an A&M.

I think that since we will have four or five good starters at any point in the season, we will be competitive in nearly every game we play. Schloss is excellent at keeping us in range (few big innings against us, leading to a low staff ERA). Our relief corps has been excellent for the past two years, and will be again.

This year or next, we are going to break through, I believe.

how many years now have you been saying "this year or next, we are going to break through"? it will happen once each decade with js. we may even get luck in a super and make it to the cws, but i would be very surprised.

i understand i am screaming into a tornado of jimmy love here, but we will be perennial regional losers with him driving the bus. and granted perennial regional participants is better than what we had for a long time, but it is still under achieving for this program. imho.

I've said it for two years, and don't regret it. If we'd had one less injury last year (Steven's Tommy John), I think we might have gotten through the OSU Regional. Who knows for sure?

As for opinions on our Head Coach, you and I may disagree somewhat, but it is a strong program with good adminstrative support and very solid facilities. I'm glad my kid is there, even if things haven't gone perfectly for him over the past two seasons.

I respect your opinions - I think you know the college game well - and appreciate the dozens of folks that post here. All of us want the team representing TCU to succeed.

If TCU could catch a break one of these years and not be in one of the tougher regionals like we always seem to be that would be a nice change.

I mean look at our regional last year (collegiate baseball/baseball america rankings heading into the regionals)
1. Oklahoma State (10/6)
2. Witchita State (18/21)
3. TCU (20/18)
4. Western Kentucky (NR/NR): not the best 4 seed (they are no Fresno), but above average for a 4

We have been sent to some tough regionals, but last year I thought we should have gotten the 2-seed in College Station over DBU, who we hammered twice. A&M was playing very well at that point, so we may not have won that regional either, but I still would have thought we had earned the second seed over DBU.

it is a strong program, but it is my belief that it should be a national powerhouse. with the area kids, private school, in the metroplex, beautiful campus, etc. it shouldnt be hard to make a super every three years or so.

and of course i want the program to succeed and by no means want to undermine it with my opinions, but i dont think the program will reach its full potential with the current situation.

and best of luck to your kiddo this year (maxwell, isnt it?)

That's our boy. Thanks for the kind wishes. Go Frogs!

will maxwell be a weekend guy? will he have built up that much endurance by the spring?

What difference does it make? You've already told all of us how this coming spring (and every one after that) is going to play out.

Hard to say at this point. The depth of the staff allows for patience, but Steven is throwing well at this point. We'll see in two months. Whatever is best for the team.

very diplomatic answer, but given your position it is understandable.

i personally think he should at least be the saturday guy. especially early as you get the day games, it will be warmer than friday nights, easier to get the wing (and elbow) loosened up.

With a bit of luck we will pull a Fresno State!

I predict that we'll lose the conference tournament, but that we will still get to host a regional for the first time in TCU history.

I also predict that we'll win that regional, and that we'll take UT to three games in the Austin superregional.

I also predict that Dugout Frog will eat his words regarding his predictions and our coach.

Brilliant, huh?