FSU baseball: 3 reasons to be confident, 3 reasons to worry about Tennessee

Jamie Arnold

Jamie Arnold will start the game against Tennessee on the mound. Any game Jamie Arnold starts, I'm confident FSU can win. Tennessee has an offense that's hit the most home runs in college baseball, but Arnold faced several top offenses nationally in the ACC and has been outstanding.

Duke, Virginia, and Clemson were among the top 15 teams in home runs. Duke and Virginia had batting averages equal to or better than Tennessee. Virginia had an on-base percentage much higher than Tennessee. Here's how Arnold stacked up against those teams:

• @ Clemson: 7 innings, 3 hits, 1 earned run, 2 walks, and 9 K's
• @ WF: 5.2 innings, 5 hits, 3 earned runs, 2 walks, 12 K's
• @ Duke: 5 innings, 5 hits, 2 earned runs, 2 walks, 9 K's
• Virginia(Neutral site): 6 innings, 4 hits, 2 earned runs, 1 walk, 9 K's

He allowed 17 hits in those games. Six were doubles and one home run. As you can see, teams don't barrel it up much against him, and he only allowed six home runs all season. Opposing teams bat .216 against him, and a few of Tennessee's best hitters are lefties. Arnold is extremely tough on left-handed batters. If he goes 6+ innings, FSU would have an excellent shot to win. He has gone at least six innings in 10 of 17 starts. The game will be at night and the field in Omaha can play large, and that's an advantage for FSU that could nullify the power advantage Tennessee has.