Pom still on

It would be a drastic understatement to say that Drew Pomeranz was locked in against Guatemala as the rising junior lefty mowed down 17 batters in 6 IP. For those of you who struggle with math, that means that exactly 1 out in 6 IP was not a strikeout of some form.

I'll grant you that Guatemala isn't exactly a baseball powerhouse - they struckout 24 times for the game - but it's still an impressive number to throw out there. Good to see him pitching well.

'Rico and Pom tearing it up

It’s nice to be back in the blogosphere after a good bit of traveling and overwhelming work projects. I missed a good bit of pop culture news last week, but – as to be expected for late June – there’s just not much going on in college sports. Other than the new chancellor being announced (more on that in another post), the biggest news in Rebel Land these days is Terrico White and the upcoming U19 World Championships and Drew Pomeranz.

Even after being named SEC Freshman of the Year, White is not as well known across the country. Michael DeCourcy of The Sporting News feels all that could change () with his appearance on the national team, even dropping this gem about ‘Rico:

Terrico White is the best-kept secret in college basketball, and don't expect him to do anything to change that unless it involves points, rebounds and assists.

Jonathan Divony, president of Draft Express, was also there to watch the tryouts and came away impressed with White’s potential and athleticism. His analysis was very similar to mine a couple of months ago, where I voiced the same concerns regarding the high number of jumpers:

He relies far too heavily on his 3-point stroke considering how talented an athlete he is, as nearly 50% of his attempts this season came from beyond the arc. He doesn’t get to the free throw line very often and still needs to learn how to use his quickness and leaping ability to create better shots around the basket, as he often prefers to settle for contested fade-away jumpers.

Overall, the analysis is positive though, closing with:

White is a guy to keep under the radar for now, but if he puts the work in and is able to become a smarter and more complete all-around player, he could really emerge as an interesting prospect down the road.

Meanwhile, Drew Pomeranz mowed down 10 Canadians in 4 IP and picked up the win for Team USA in the opening game for the team.

Drew F#$%ing Pomeranz

Great Googly Moogly... Drew Pomeranz firmly entrenched himself in Ole Miss lore with as clutch a pitching performance as you'll ever see, more than likely the greatest pitching performance in Ole Miss history. Coming back on just 2 days rest, Pom pitched a complete game, tying a school record with 16 Ks and giving up just 2 hits and an unearned run. How the first "hit" he gave up was not ruled an error I'll never know... and yet I won't care.

When Pom came back out in the 9th, my first thought was back to Game 1 in the Tempe Super Regional a couple of years ago when Bianco left Kline in an inning too long. Pom had just gone 7 innings a couple of nights ago... how much gas could he have left? The answer is obvious now - a lot.

A big tip of the Dead Guy cap to Western Kentucky though who tried their damndest to wreck another Oxford Regional. They just ran out of gas tonight after 5 games in 4 days. Their 2-4 hitters are better than a lot of SEC teams, but they were just outmatched tonight against Pom.