Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.

• Blog: CWS locks, dark horses

* * *

Ray Tanner is hardly consumed by South Carolina's bid to become the first college baseball program in 40 years to win three consecutive national championships.

In fact, if you don't mention it, he won't.

"I've been out on the speaking circuit in the offseason, and I've heard the three-peat calls," Tanner said in an interview with The World-Herald. "When it happens, I try to have fun with it.

"I can definitely tell you that winning three in a row is not on the forefront of our minds. It's so hard to get to Omaha. If we're fortunate enough to get back there, we might think about it. But not now."

South Carolina left Omaha the past two Junes with the national championship trophy. If the Gamecocks could pull off the feat this season, they would become the second program in history to win at least three in a row.

Southern California, under legendary coach Rod Dedeaux, won five in a row from 1970 to 1974 to leave a legacy that may never be matched.

College baseball was much different in the 1970s. Dedeaux's teams were among a handful that had a legitimate shot at making it to Omaha on an annual basis. That list has grown as more schools over the years started putting more resources into baseball programs.

"There are so many good programs out there now," Tanner said. "It's not like the old days with Southern Cal. The years when one program could dominate in Omaha are long gone.

"The challenge remains the same, whether you've won two in a row or not. We're just trying to put together a good team and trying to win enough to get to the postseason. Our dream is to get to Omaha, but I've had some good teams here that never got there."

Tanner knows that this year's team has a chance to be very good, but he tells you that there are plenty of coaches who are making similar proclamations this time of the season.

Thing is, no other team — not even consensus preseason No. 1 Florida — has what the Gamecocks have.

South Carolina's core is made up of players who not only know how to get to Omaha but also how to win it all here. And the core was strengthened by the return of pitchers Michael Roth and Matt Price and outfielder Adam Matthews.

The three players could have moved on to professional baseball after wrapping up the title by sweeping Florida in the College World Series championship series, but each decided to return to Columbia. Roth anchored the front end of the pitching staff, Price the back end. Matthews is a savvy competitor who has come through big in the clutch for the Gamecocks.

"You can't put a value in what having those guys return means,'' Tanner said. "You can't replace that kind of experience. Those guys are great players with great credentials."

Roth, the pitching hero of the CWS the past two seasons, was drafted in the 31st round by the Cleveland Indians. The Arizona Diamondbacks picked Price in the sixth round, while Matthews was a 23rd-round selection of the Baltimore Orioles.

Roth, 14-3 with a 1.06 ERA last season, spent the summer studying in Spain but learned of his teammates' decision to return through social media.

"I was like ... yeah! I guess I'm going back,'" Roth said in a recent Baseball America profile. "One thing I was afraid of when I came home from Spain was having to make a decision of staying in school or pursuing a dream of professional baseball.

"So, I was almost scared to come back. In college, I'm still not in the real world.''

One reason Price decided to return is the opportunity to move into the rotation from the bullpen, where he had been one of college baseball's premier closers the past two seasons. He began his career as a starter before breaking his wrist in 2009 on a comebacker to the mound.

"He's been so good for us, but we want to see if he can give us more than one or two innings per game," Tanner said. "If we can get six or seven out of him every week, we feel like we can be very strong again."

Price's change of roles pushes Forrest Koumas, who was 6-1 as a freshman starter last season, into the closer spot. Roth, Price and junior Colby Holmes (7-3 as a sophomore) should give the Gamecocks a formidable starting punch.

South Carolina has some holes to fill in the lineup, particularly up the middle where three high school players and a junior college transfer figure to start.

But the presence of Omaha veterans Matthews, Christian Walker, Evan Marzilli and Jake Williams should help steady the everyday lineup as the newcomers make the adjustment.

"The most important thing about the decisions of Roth, Price and Matthews to return is that it gives us guys that have great ownership in this team,'' Tanner said. "People want to talk about leadership all the time but I think ownership is way more important. I value their input. After all, this is their team.''

Contact the writer:

402-679-2298, steve.pivovar@owh.com

twitter.com/PivOWH

« Sports - College World Series

Share