OMAHA, Neb. – Awkward is the only way to describe Vanderbilt’s appearance in an all-Southeastern Conference pairing with Mississippi State for the College World Series finals that start Monday night at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha.
Vanderbilt was supposed to play North Carolina State in a winner-take-all bracket final Saturday but found out in the wee hours of that morning the Wolfpack had been removed from the tournament because of COVID-19 protocols. The game was declared a no-contest, sending the Commodores on to the best-of-three title round.
“We certainly sympathize with their team, their fan base, too, understanding that we don’t know the level of hurt that they are exposed to right now, but we certainly recognize it,” Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin said Sunday.
“None of us wish to be in this particular position. We certainly would want to play them on the field or have played them on the field, but we didn’t. So we are in the situation where we move forward.”
The Commodores had never been to the College World Series before making the eight-team field in 2011. In their fifth trip to Omaha, they are in the finals for the fourth time, having finished as runners-up in 2015 and champions in 2014 and 2019 – which makes them the reigning national champions because there was no NCAA baseball postseason last year due to the pandemic.
Seeded fourth nationally for the 64-team NCAA tournament that began earlier this month, the Commodores (48-16) are at this point after winning two elimination games in Omaha, including 3-1 Friday against an N.C. State team that had only 13 players available. That was the first loss of this CWS for the unseeded Wolfpack, who beat Vanderbilt 1-0 with both teams at full strength earlier in the week.
“We’re here for a reason,” Vanderbilt first baseman Dominic Keegan said. “We earned our spot here and we got here because of our abilities and what we can do.”
No. 7 Mississippi State (48-17) played Texas twice in their bracket final, with the Bulldogs earning their spot in the finals by winning 4-3 Saturday night on Tanner Leggett’s walk-off base hit. The Longhorns had rallied to an 8-5 win in the first game, which didn’t finish until early Saturday after a lengthy rain delay in the ninth inning.
“Our guys have fought since the day we got here,” Mississippi State coach Chris Lemonis said. “We haven’t had an easy game yet. It’s been very tight, tough ballgames. But, man, they keep finding a way to persevere. It’s been earned by our guys, and I look forward to seeing them play on this stage.”
This is the 12th CWS appearance for Mississippi State and the second trip to the finals, with the Bulldogs runners-up in 2013.
Vanderbilt won two of the three regular-season meetings with the Bulldogs in Nashville in April. Kumar Rocker, a possible top-10 pick in this summer’s Major League Baseball draft and the most outstanding player at the 2019 CWS, pitched a three-hitter in the first game of that SEC series and could be available if the finals go three games.
Lemonis dismissed any suggestion this year’s championship would be tainted because the Commodores made the finals without completing bracket play, albeit through no fault of their own.
“The way that we came through it and the games that we’ve had to play – and now you’re having to play Vanderbilt – there will be no asterisk for us,” Lemonis said. “And I hate it for N.C. State. I have three coaches who worked for (Wolfpack head coach Elliot Avent) on my staff. I have a long relationship with Elliot. My nieces and nephews all went to N.C. State. I have a lot of respect there.”
That’s not what the Bulldogs will be thinking about when the first pitch is thrown, though.
“For our guys, that stuff’s out of our control,” Lemonis said. “All we can do is show up and play, and whoever is in the other dugout we compete against.”
Mississippi State will start Christian McLeod on the mound Monday. He has made one appearance in the CWS, lasting just 1 1/3 innings and giving up four runs in a 6-5 win over Virginia on Tuesday.
Corbin wasn’t ready to announce his Monday starter. National strikeouts leader Jack Leiter, a projected top-five draft pick, would be up next in the rotation. Leiter, who struck out 15 batters and threw 123 pitches against N.C. State last Monday, took his first loss of the season in the second game against Mississippi State in April.
Health matters
The Bulldogs have started using a back entrance to enter and leave their hotel as a precaution against COVID-19. Lemonis said the move was made in response to what happened with the Wolfpack.
Mississippi State brought a large group of fans to Omaha, and players mixed with them until Friday.
“The last couple days, we haven’t signed autographs or shaken hands,” Lemonis said. “We’re trying to be as protective as we can. The first couple nights we came to our lobby, thousands of people, it’s the best part of winning a game out here.”
Corbin said Vanderbilt has not altered its routines entering and exiting at its hotel.
The coach didn’t answer directly when asked if he could require his players to be vaccinated because Vanderbilt is a private university. That wouldn’t be the case at public schools such as Mississippi State and N.C. State.
“I’ve spent a lot of time educating the group what this process could look like at the beginning of the year,” Corbin said. “We are certainly comfortable with where we are and what we’ve done.”