Baseball summer league update

By Travis Young

Twenty-one members of the Vanderbilt baseball team are currently busy playing in summer leagues across the country. 13 of the 21 are playing in the northeast right now as nine of them are in the Cape Cod League while four of them are playing in the New England Collegiate League.

See the list below to track the Commodores progress throughout the summer.

USA Baseball
Sonny Gray* - USA Baseball National Team - * reports on July 5

Cape Cod League | Stats
Joe Loftus – Orleans Firebirds
Riley Reynolds – Chatham Anglers
Curt Casali – Cotuit Kettleers
Mike Yastrzemski – Cotuit Kettleers
Jack Armstrong – Wareham Gatemen
Will Clinard – Orleans Firebirds
Jason Esposito – Orleans Firebirds
Grayson Garvin – Bourne Braves
Aaron Westlake – Chatham Anglers

Prospect League | Stats
Navery Moore – Nashville Outlaws
Bryan Johns – Nashville Outlaws
Drew Fann – Nashville Outlaws

New England Collegiate League | Stats
Regan Flaherty – Sanford Mainers
Connor Harrell – Newport Gulls
Anthony Gomez – Sanford Mainers
Keenan Kolinsky – New Bedford Bay Sox

Northwoods League | Stats
Sam Selman – Mankato Moondogs

Valley League | Stats
Mark Lamm – Waynesboro Generals

Florida Collegiate League | Stats
Nate Gonzalez – Sanford River Rats

Atlantic Collegiate League | Stats
Andrew Harris – North Fork Ospreys

Video: Heavyweights or Bash Brothers?

By Travis Young

I caught up with Adam Smotherman and TJ Greenstone during a summer photo shoot in the weightroom to see what they were up to. The two interior defensive linemen were having some fun with the event as they tested the waters of singing Darius Rucker's "Alright" karaoke style. See video below (and check out David Rutz's feature on the duo).



The second video clip is with Vanderbilt professional staff photographer, John Russell. JR gets a quick lift in before the next photo shoot.

Video: Football summer conditioning

By Travis Young

The Vanderbilt football team is in their third week of summer workouts. I ventured outside to the John Rich Practice Complex behind McGugin to watch the Commodores go through some of the workouts. See the video below to see the Commodores going through the drills.

Sunday baseball starting lineup vs. FSU

By Travis Young

Live from Dick Howser Stadium

Weather Report: It's another blistering hot day at Dick Howser Stadium. It's already 95 degrees at the ballpark with the field temp over 100 degrees for the third straight day. Winds are blowing from the North at 7-9 mph.

Here is Vanderbilt's lineup for the championship game of the NCAA Super Regional vs. Florida State. The winner of today's game advances to the College World Series in Omaha, starting on June 19th.

1. Brian Harris SS
2. Anthony Gomez 2B
3. Aaron Westlake 1B
4. Jason Esposito 3B
5. Curt Casali DH
6. Joe Loftus RF
7. Mike Yastrzemski LF
8. Andrew Giobbi C
9. Connor Harrell CF
-- Jack Armstrong SP

VU goes with the same guys in the lineup as yesterday while moving Loftus and Yaz up in the batting order.

The Commodores will send righthander Jack Armstrong to the bump today to face the Seminoles. Armstrong (7-3, 4.32 ERA) has 49 strikeouts and 38 walks in 77.0 innings this year while opponents are hitting .285 off him. As Eric "the Stooche" Jones reported yesterday, Jack has had some tough luck thus far in the post-season, but you might choose to look at the last time he pitched in his native Sunshine State. It was back on April 4, when Armstrong threw six shutout innings to get his fourth win of the year against Florida in Gainesville.

After starting a pair of left-handers in the first two games of the Super Regional, FSU will counter with right-hander Geoff Parker (4-1, 4.94 ERA) on Sunday. Parker threw in Friday night's Super Regional game against the Commodores, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits with 3 strikeouts in 2.1 innings of relief. Parker is making his 30th appearance of the year on Sunday. He has 67 strikeouts and 38 walks in 74.2 innings this season.

More Photos from Saturday's win

Click Here to view Jimmy Jones' photo gallery from Saturday's 6-2 win over Florida State.

Video: Baseball Postgame Press Conference

By Travis Young

Here is Saturday's postgame press conference from Vanderbilt's 6-2 win over Florida State at the NCAA Super Regional in Tallahassee, Fla. Head Coach Tim Corbin, Sonny Gray, Grayson Garvin, Joe Loftus and Jason Esposito answered questions from the media.

(Part 1)


(Part 2)

Saturday Photos: Vanderbilt 6, Florida State 2

Click Here to view Ross Obley's Photo Gallery

TV Coverage Map for Super Regional

(Click on the above photo to enlarge)

The above photo is the television coverage map for today's Super Regional game against Florida State. There are two Super Regional games on ESPN at the 1 p.m. ET/Noon CT slot (TCU vs. Texas is also on ESPN). If you live in Tennessee or Florida you will see the VU vs. FSU game, if you live in Texas you will see the UT vs. TCU game.

All of the other states will receive whip-around coverage between the games in progress.

Baseball starting lineup vs. Florida State

By Travis Young

Live from Dick Howser Stadium

Weather Report: It's currently 92 degrees with partly cloudy skies at Dick Howser Stadium. Saturday's game time (Noon CT) temperature is scheduled to be 94 degrees with the heat index over 100 degrees. Winds are calm, blowing from Northeast at 4 mph.

Here is Vanderbilt's lineup for the second game of the NCAA Super Regional vs. Florida State

1. Brian Harris SS
2. Anthony Gomez 2B
3. Aaron Westlake 1B
4. Jason Esposito 3B
5. Curt Casali DH
6. Andrew Giobbi C
7. Joe Loftus RF
8. Mike Yastrzemski LF
9. Connor Harrell CF
-- Sonny Gray SP

VU goes with the same lineup as yesterday after pounding out 16 hits against FSU.

The Commodores will send staff-ace Sonny Gray (9-3, 3.51 ERA) to the bump today. Gray a second-team All-SEC selection ranks second-among all SEC pitchers in strikeouts with 110. Gray's 110 punchouts ranks 7th in VU's single season record books. Gray ranks first on the team in innings pitched (102.2), opponents batting average (.243) and walks (45).

FSU will counter with left-hander Brian Busch (5-1, 4.24 ERA). The 6-foot-2 237 pound southpaw has 68 strikeouts and 31 walks in 70.0 innings while opponents are batting .232 off him. The sophomore has allowed 23 extra-base hits this year (16 doubles, 6 home runs, 1 triple).

Florida State's Saturday starting pitcher

By Travis Young

Florida State will send another left-hander to the mound on Saturday as Brian Busch will get the ball on the bump for the Seminoles. Busch, a native from Boca Raton, Fla., is 5-1 with a 4.24 ERA this season.

The 6-foot-2 237 pound southpaw has 68 strikeouts and 31 walks in 70.0 innings while opponents are batting .232 off him. The sophomore has allowed 23 extra-base hits this year (16 doubles, 6 home runs, 1 triple).

Busch will be making his 20th appearance and ninth start of the year today at Dick Howser Stadium. In eight starts this season, Busch is 1-1 with a 6.13 ERA. His longest outing of the year came against NC State when he earned a no-decision in 6.1 innings of work.

In his most recent start, Busch allowed three runs, one earned on five hits in 6.2-innings to pick up the win vs. Central Connecticut State at the Norwich Regional on June 4.

Video: Postgame Press Conference

By Travis Young

Here is today's postgame press conference from Vanderbilt's 9-8 setback to Florida State at the NCAA Super Regional in Tallahassee, Fla.

Video: Pre-game batting practice

By Travis Young

I grabbed some video of the baseball team taking batting practice before its first game against Florida State at Dick Howser Stadium on Friday morning. First pitch is slated for 11:05 a.m. CT. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

See video below.

Baseball starting lineup vs. Florida State

By Travis Young

Live from Dick Howser Stadium

Weather Report: It's currently 89 degrees at Mike Martin Field. The game time (11 a.m. CT) temperature is 93 degrees. The high today in Tallahassee is 97 degrees with high humidity so it might be the warmest game the Commodores have played in this year.

Here is Vanderbilt's lineup for the first game of the NCAA Super Regional vs. Florida State

1. Brian Harris SS
2. Anthony Gomez 2B
3. Aaron Westlake 1B
4. Jason Esposito 3B
5. Curt Casali DH
6. Andrew Giobbi C
7. Joe Loftus RF
8. Mike Yastrzemski LF
9. Connor Harrell CF
-- Taylor Hill SP

Taylor Hill (6-5, 4.15 ERA) will make his team-leading 17th start against the Seminoles tomorrow. With the lowest walks per nine innings among Commodore starters (2.21), Taylor may be just what is needed to combat a team that likes to take a lot of pitches and has walked 378 times through 62 games (6.09 walks per game).

FSU will counter with crafty lefty, Sean Gilmartin (8-7, 4.74 ERA). Gilmartin has a 3:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (102 SO to 30 BB) in 100.2 innings this year. In addition, the crafty lefty has allowed a team-high 35 extra-base hits, including 14 home runs while opponents are hitting .283 off him.

A little info on Florida State...

By Travis Young

Florida State punched its ticket to the NCAA Super Regionals last weekend by winning three straight games in the NCAA Norwich Regional. The Seminoles defeated Central Connecticut State (11-3), before beating Oregon twice (W, 6-4 and W, 5-3). Florida State (45-17) went 18-12 in the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season before winning its fifth ACC Tournament in school history at the end of May.

Individually, FSU is led by juniors Tyler Holt and Mike McGee. Holt earned Collegiate Baseball Second-Team All-American honors for the second straight year while McGee was a third-team all-american honoree as a relief pitcher. Holt leads the team with a .349 average to go along with 24 doubles, 12 home runs and 29 stolen bases. McGee, a two-way player, is hitting .335 with a team-best 14 home runs and 67 RBI. The FSU lineup has five players with at least 8 home runs and four players with at least 48 RBI. As a team, Florida State is hitting .300 with a team on-base percentage of .414 and slugging .495. The Seminoles have also shown that they have some speed on the base paths while converting 94-of-110 attempts.

On the mound, the Seminoles have a team ERA of 4.31 with 501 strikeouts in 546.2 innings. McGee is the team’s top pitcher out of the bullpen, boasting a 4-0 record with an astonishing 0.38 ERA and 11 saves. The All-American reliever has allowed only one extra-base in 24.1 innings of relief while opponents are hitting just .103 off him. FSU has used a variety of arms in the weekend rotation as five players have made at least six starts. Lefthanders Sean Gilmartin and John Gast have started 28 games between the two of them and have ERA’s of above 4.70.

On Friday, the 'Noles will send sophomore lefthander Gilmartin (8-7, 4.74 ERA) to the mound. Gilmartin has a 3:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (102 SO to 30 BB) in 100.2 innings this year. In addition, the crafty lefty has allowed a team-high 35 extra-base hits, including 14 home runs while opponents are hitting .283 off him. According to Levitron 3000, Gilmartin's fastball sits at 85-90 mph.

FSU is making its third straight Super Regional and its 10th Super Regional appearance in school history. The Seminoles are 26-8 at Dick Howser Stadium this year.

Giobbi and Gomez talk Super Regional

By Travis Young

Instead of Ron Burgundy and the Channel 4 News Team, Vanderbilt’s Andrew Giobbi and Anthony Gomez filled in as co-anchors for a vucommodores.com exclusive video after practice Thursday at Mike Martin Field in Tallahassee.

The extreme heat, Dick Howser Stadium’s short right-field porch and team colors are all topics covered by Gio and Go-Go in the video below.

Video: Super Regional Press Conference

By Travis Young

Vanderbilt head baseball coach Tim Corbin met with media this afternoon at Dick Howser Stadium in preparation for the NCAA Super Regional against Florida State in Tallahassee, Fla.

Corbin talked about winning the NCAA Louisville Regional last weekend and what his team has done to get where they're at.

See video below.

Baseball team arrives in Tallahassee

By Travis Young

The Vanderbilt baseball team has arrived in the sunshine state. The Commodores departed Hawkins Field at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon before arriving at the Nashville International Airport (BNA) to jump on its charter flight en route to Tallahassee, Fla.

After a short delay at the Nashville airport due to heavy rainfall, the ‘Dores boarded the Airbus USA 3000 airline en route to Sunshine state’s capital. The flight lasted only 58 minutes so it was barely enough time to skim the SkyMall Magazine and get in a 20-minute power nap. The plane ride went very smooth as we touched down in Bogglesville aka Tallahassee at 7:15 p.m. ET.

To follow up on Barca’s blog about Head Coach Tim Corbin going with a new hairdo for the Super Regional, he did indeed hold true to his word to the team. Coach Corbin received a loud roar of applause from his team when he got on the bus and showed off his new buzz cut.

Check out the video below to see members of the team loading the jet, including cameos by Sonny Gray and Mike Yastrzemski.

Aaron Westlake selected in MLB Draft

By Travis Young

Vanderbilt redshirt-sophomore Aaron Westlake was just drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 22nd round of the 2010 Major League Baseball Draft. Westlake was the 11th pick in the 22nd round.

The sweet swinging left-handed bat has had solid year for the Commodores in 2010, leading the team in home runs (14) and RBI (58). Westlake is fresh off an NCAA Louisville Regional All-Tournament Team selections after hitting .300 with 7 RBI and a pair of clutch home runs at the Regional.

Westlake joins Drew Hayes as the two Commodores that have been drafted thus far.

Drew Hayes selected in MLB Draft

By Travis Young

Vanderbilt right-handed pitcher Drew Hayes was just drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 11th round of the 2010 Major League Baseball Draft. Hayes, a senior righthander out of McKenzie, Tenn., was the 12th pick of the 11th round and the 337th overall selection in this year's draft.

Hayes is the first Commodore to be drafted this year, snapping a three-year run where VU had five players picked in the first-round of the draft.

This season, Hayes is 6-0 with a 4.25 ERA, including 46 strikeouts in 48.2 innings. Opponents are hitting just .226 off him this season. Hayes has given up just one hit over his last 8.2 innings pitched (six outings) including two and two-thirds innings today against Illinois State. With a fastball that sits in the mid-90's Hayes is projected as reliever at the next level.

Commodores win NCAA Louisville Regional

By Travis Young

The Vanderbilt baseball team has punched its first-class ticket to the 2010 NCAA Super Regionals! The Commodores (45-18) did so by outlasting the nation's No. 7 overall seed (Louisville) at their home ballpark. Connor Harrell's 10th inning bunt for a single down the first-base line allowed Curt Casali to score from third base for the game's winning run.

The 'Dores will be making its second ever trip to Super Regionals next weekend when they will face-off with Norwich Regional Champion Florida State. The 2010 team joins the 2004 VU squad as the only teams to advance to the supers.

Vanderbilt became the first non-No. 1 seed to advance to the Supers on Monday night.

Stay tuned to VUcommodores.com tonight for official postgame coverage. The site and location of the super regional will be posted later this evening after the conclusion of all the regional games that are currently in progress.