Vols Advance to Super Regionals!

Tennessee has advanced to the NCAA Tournament super regionals for the first time since 2005. The Volunteers went 3-0 in the Knoxville regional, disposing of Wright State and Liberty twice to advance. Their opponent will be a familiar one from the SEC — the LSU Tigers.

LSU beat Oregon late on Monday night, coming back to secure a 9-8 win. The next round features a weekend best-of-three series, with the winner advancing to the College World Series.

Tennessee broke out the brooms on LSU earlier this season in Knoxville, sweeping the Tigers on their way to an SEC East title. LSU is 38-23 overall, going just 13-17 in SEC play.

LSU won four straight elimination games on their way to winning the Eugene regional. After an opening loss to Gonzaga, the Tigers came back to beat Central Connecticut State, Gonzaga and then Oregon twice to advance.

They now return to Knoxville — the last place LSU coach Paul Mainieri probably wanted to go. More on that later.

Weekend Schedule

Game 1: Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN2.

Game 2: Either noon or 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, ESPN2/ESPNU.

Game 3: (if needed) Either 4 p.m. or 7 p.m. ET, ESPN2/ESPNU. 

Article by Terry A Lambert / www.rockytoptalk.com 

Babe Ruth - Greatest Left-Handed Pitcher of All Time?

Quick word association - I say "Babe Ruth" and what comes into your mind? Home Run King? Greatest Ball Player ever? How about greatest lefty pitcher in all baseball history? Bet that wasn't in most of your responses. 

Let's look at some facts about the Babe and his pitching prowess. 

Can you name the only left-handed pitcher to ever win at least 23 games in back-to-back seasons for the Boston Red Sox? The Babe. How about this question, name the four pitchers of all-time who won two 20-win seasons before they turned 23? Christy Mathewson, Smoky Joe Wood, Al Mamaux, and Babe Ruth - and yes, I had to google the name, "Al Mamaux" as well. 

Who led the American League in ERA in their first full season as a big-league starter? The Babe (1.75 in 1916)

In the four seasons that Babe Ruth was primarily a pitcher, (1915-1918) he lead every left-handed pitcher in all of baseball in winning percentage (.659) and fewest hits allowed per nine innings (7.07).  His ERA was under 2.50 for those four seasons. 

Need more proof? Check out this next head-to-head comparison with the greatest pitcher of his era.

The Armor of God

In these chaotic days, I have found myself longing for simpler times, when things made sense and truth and integrity were not in short supply. But truthfully, I'm really looking forward to the age to come, when justice resides in perfection and Jesus Christ will reign forever. In times like these I like to revisit one of my favorite verses to breathe hope into my day. I hope you find it of value to your life as well.  

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,  and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." (Ephesians 6:10-17)

I have many days where my weakness seems to overwhelm every aspect of my life. It impacts my perspective, and worse, my relationships, including my relationship with God. If my perspective is tilted toward hopelessness, which has been my experience after seasons of weakness, the promises of God, a God who is supposedly for me, seem to grow more distant by the day. 

None of this, of course, surprises our Father who created us. To guard against this becoming our normal mindset He gave us His Word which can unlock His power in our lives. You see, if I am dependent only upon my strength than I am going to fail. No question. But what if there exists a way that I can tap into the power and strength of the One who created me?

The short version of this answer is that there is! To discover how let's examine the example that God gave us in the verses above. 

Tennessee Baseball Wins SEC East!

For the first time since 1997, Tennessee baseball is the SEC Eastern Division baseball champion.

The fourth-ranked Vols entered Saturday — the final day of the regular season — needing a win at 15th-ranked South Carolina and a loss from second-ranked Vanderbilt to unranked Kentucky in Nashville. They got both of those things.

Coach Tony Vitello’s Vols held on late for a 5-4 win in Columbia early Saturday afternoon, but they still needed Kentucky to score at upset win in Nashville later in the day. The Wildcats entered the ninth inning with a 4-2 deficit but rallied for five runs in the top of the inning and held the Commodores to one run in the bottom of the frame to secure the East for rival Tennessee.

Kentucky scored all five of its ninth-inning runs — a three-run homer from catcher Coltyn Kessler and a two-run homer from designated hitter Jacob Plastiak — with two outs, doing most of the damage against Dores closer Nick Maldonado.

That Kentucky win in Nashville made Tennessee’s 5-4 win at South Carolina even more significant. The Vols trailed 1-0 after after center fielder Brady Allen’s leadoff homer in the bottom of the first, but they came back and took a 5-1 lead in the top of the fourth, courtesy of a three-run homer from sophomore catcher Connor Pavolony.

South Carolina rallied to score three runs and narrow the gap to 5-4 in the bottom of the eighth, and third baseman Jeff Heinrich brought Founders Park to its feet with a leadoff double against Tennessee senior closer Sean Hunley in the bottom of the ninth. The unflappable Hunley bounced back in a big way, though, striking out the next three batters he faced to nail down a series win that ultimately proved to be the difference in the SEC East.

Top-ranked Arkansas — which edged Tennessee in a series of nothing but close games last weekend in Knoxville — won the SEC Western Division and the overall regular season championship, and the Razorbacks will be the No. 1 seed in next week’s SEC Tournament in Birmingham-area Hoover, Ala.

Tennessee will be the No. 2 seed in next week’s SEC Tournament, meaning the Vols will open the tournament play at approximately 2 p.m. Eastern on Wednesday. Tennessee will play the winner of a Tuesday game between No. 7 seed South Carolina and No. 10 seed Alabama.

If the Vols win that Wednesday game, they’ll play again at 4:30 p.m. Eastern on Thursday. If they lose to either the Gamecocks or the Crimson Tide, they’ll play an elimination game Thursday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern.