Week Eleven (4/30-5/2): at The Jortsville Jorts

2021 Record: 28-12 (11-7 SEC). The Jorts opened the year with a 2-1 series loss to Miami that could have easily gone the other way. They’ve similarly been a mixed bag in SEC play, sweeping the bad/Big XIII teams in aTm and Missourah (spits), being swept by a pretty good South Cackalacky Game Penis team, taking 2 of 3 from Ole Piss and Auburn, but losing 2 of 3 to THOSE WHO SHALL NOT BE NAMED. In short, they’re mercurial. At their best, they could make a run in Omaha. At their worst, they get swept by the Penises. Tough to say which Jorts team will show up this weekend, in short.

Players to Watch: #4 Jr. PF Jud “Fabulous” Fabian. Yes, that nickname is for Parlagi. Fabulous Fabian, though supremely talented and blessed with the power gene, has not exactly lit things up in his first two years of SEC play. In fact, he has a .250 cumulative batting average and a 22% K-rate (*note: he was markedly better as a sophomore, but nothing that’s setting the world on fire, as he hit .294/.407/.603 with 6 2Bs and 5 dingers). In 2021, he’s batting .261/.360/.588, which is... well... okay? Not great, certainly. Might he be one of those “better as a pro than in college” guys? Certainly could be, or maybe MLB scouts are focusing too much on his loud tools and not enough on his lack of production. Either way, he’s the one to watch.

#11 Fr. Catcher/DH Nathan “Neck Mark” Hickey has been their best hitter for both average and power in 2021 (.356/.476/.616), so avoid the fat part of the plate with that one.

Their pitching staff is pretty good, too (though not as dominant as ours), as they got two gifts in the form of Sr. RHP Tommy Mace (4-0, 4.00 ERA) and Sr. RHP Jack Leftwich (6-3, 3.81 ERA) returned to school after not being drafted in the truncated to 5 rounds 2020 MLB Draft. In a normal year, they’d be pitching in the minors. Instead, we have to deal with them again. So. LHP Hunter Barco (6-2, 4.73) rounds out the starting rotation, and no, I’m not happy about that, either.

Confidence Level: Medium. We should be able to take the Never Nudes, but road trips in the SEC are always difficult.

On the Mound

Friday 6pm CT on ESPNU

Vanderbilt #80 Jr. RHP Kumar “White Castle” Rocker (9-1, 1.55 ERA)

vs. Jorts #35 Jr. RHP Franco “Ale Man” Aleman (1-1, 3.50 ERA)

Saturday 5:30pm CT on SECN+

Vanderbilt #22 RHP Jack “Leits Out” Leiter (7-1, 1.49 ERA)

vs. Jorts #47 Jr. RHP Tommy “The Flail” Mace (4-0, 4.00 ERA)

Sunday 2:00pm CT on ESPN2

TBD, but I’m hoping it will be #66 So. RHP Thomas “The Mayor” Schultz (4-2, 4.21 ERA)

vs. Jorts #12 So. LHP Hunter “Gatherer” Barco (6-2, 4.73)

*Note: Pitching matchups are not yet released. This is my educated guess based on recent SEC play.