BNN Report
News from the CBO, Minors, CCBL, CYL, and CBA
by Nat Wright-Kawolski
11 March 2315
CCBL Preview
The 2315 Commonwealth Collegiate Baseball League season, its 8th, is underway today with 54 colleges and universities competing for a title. Ten new schools--American International (which uses the baseball name of American Intl), Franklin Pierce, Naval War College, New Hampshire State (NHSU), Nichols College, Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart, Southern New Hampshire (SNHU), Vermont, and Vermont Tech--will begin competing in 2315 to try to join the immortals.
Last season's College Series ended with the Commonwealth University Terriers topping the Boston College Eagles, 3 games to 1, in a battle of Boston's, the BCAC's, and the CCBL's two best teams record-wise. Both teams were seeking their first title in the seven-year history of collegiate baseball.
This season, there are expectations of some parity in the league. Sixteen teams qualify for the postseason with conference winners in teh BCAC, MassCon, NoComm, SoComm, and Atlantic Sound conferences getting the top five seeds, followed by 11 wildcard qualifiers from those five conferences and the independents.
Looking at the predictions, conference winners will be the Revere College Riders (BCAC), Curry College Colonials (MassCon) as the tiebreaker winner in a three-way tie, Acadia College Minks (NoComm), Yale Bulldogs (SoComm), and Mass Maritime Buccaneers (Atlantic Sound). The defending champions and runners-up are expected to be the first two wildcard teams. This is the predicted order of the playoffs:
1. Yale (SoComm) 42-18
2. Revere College (BCAC) 41-19
3. Mass Maritime (Atlantic Sound) 38-22
4. Curry College (MassCon) 37-23
5. Acadia College (NoComm) 33-27
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6. CWU (BCAC) 40-20
7. Boston College (BCAC) 38-22
8. Nuka University (MassCon) 37-23
9. Assumption (MassCon) 37-23
10. Hartford (SoComm) 36-24
11. Endicott College (Atlantic Sound) 36-24
12. Mass Atlantic (MassCon) 36-24
13. Holy Cross (MassCon) 35-25
14. CIT (BCAC) 35-25
15. Quincy College (BCAC) 35-25
16. Fairfield (SoComm) 35-25
UConn, also predicted to finish 35-25 is expected to be the first team out. None of the independents are expected to make the playoffs with Sturbridge expected as the top team there with a 33-27 record.
Freshman Holy Cross 1B Jayden Dawson is the pick to be the Top Collegiate Hitter, while Terriers' freshman SP Jaden Newt is the expected Top Collegiate Pitcher award winners. Last season's award winners were Endicott's Terror Scheer and Northeastern's Bullet Barnes, respectively. Scheer is entering his sophomore season and Barnes is entering his junior campaign. Neither is in PAM's Top 10 predicted for this season's top award.
The Upperclassmen
Since as a lot of the top prospects leave after their junior seasons, so let's combine the top juniors and seniors for those expected to shine and at the same time may see themselves drafted in the 1st Round in 2315. Please note that these rankings are our own based on scouting reports and not on PAM's predictions for the 2315 season.
1. SP Bullets Barnes, Northeastern - The top collegiate pitcher in 2314, we are not sure why Barnes is not expected to be just as dominant even if the Huskies are not expected to be in the playoffs. Barnes has four still-developing but good pitches: heater, slider, changeup, and sinker. In two seasons with the Huskies, Barnes has compiled a 22-3 record with a 2.27 ERA. If he wins at a similar rate in 2315, that would put him at about 33 career wins, which would rank him third all-time behind just Em Babbage (Harvard)and Frank Heart (Mass Bay).
2. SP Scooter Harcourt, Vermont Tech - One of the newcomers to the CCBL with the Maples joining in 2315, Harcourt is expected to make an immediate impact on the league. While he only has a three-pitch arsenal (fastball, slider, and changeup), he knows how to use all three pitches well and probably could slot into the bottom of a CBO rotation now. Scouts think the 6'5" is elite and expect his name to be called in the 1st Round of the draft.
3. 1B Jag Jouan, Rhode Island - The Rams' junior has yet to find his power, but that does not mean he does not have a great bat. In two seasons with Rhode Island, Jouan has a .403/.510/.645 line with 19 homers and 68 RBI. With exceptional speed and range for a 1B, Jouan is also a probable top defensive prospect and is considered a top prospect.
4. 1B Haystack Black, Revere College - Part of the reason why PAM believes that the Riders have a chance to win it all in 2315, Revere College is stacked with talented upperclassmen, led by Black. In two seasons with Revere College, Black has a .422 career average with 37 home runs and 112 RBI. While scouts love his power possibilities, they also like his eye and think it will guide him to being a success at the next level. He may not be as talented as Jouan as a defensive 1B, but he is very close and could see a more productive CBO career overall.
5. CF Gauntlet Kim, Revere College - Another top junior for the Riders, Kim is trying to change his game. Possessed with a unique combination of speed and power, Kim could be a great #2 or #3 hitter for a team at the next level (he's the #2 hitter for Revere College). He had an interesting 2314 where he saw his average rise by .060 from .277 to .337 but also saw his homers drop from 21 to 12. We expect him to revert back to 2313 form. Kim is also a top outfielder who can play anywhere but could use that super speed to remain in CF.
OSA's Top Players List
