Louisville Baseball makes D1Baseball’s “Eight for Omaha” in 2021
While the University of Louisville Baseball program was robbed of an opportunity to go to Omaha, NE for the College World Series due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to D1Baseball they might not have to wait very long to make a return trip.
In their 2021 edition of “Crystal Ballin’: Eight for Omaha”, the Louisville Cardinals are included in two of their three projected CWS fields. Kendall Rogers & Aaron Fitt selected them, while Eric Sorenson did not.
Rogers also picked Arkansas, Florida, Ole Miss, TCU, Texas Tech, UCLA & Vanderbilt to make it to Omaha; while Fitt chose Florida, LSU, Texas Tech, UCLA, Vanderbilt, Virginia & Wake Forest. Sorenson’s field consisted of: Florida, Vanderbilt, UCLA, TCU, East Carolina, Texas, Arizona & Ole Miss.
Check out what Rogers & Fitt both had to say about the Cardinal Nine’s chances to make their sixth College World Series appearance:
Kendall Rogers:
The 2020 campaign truly could’ve been Louisville’s year with an abundance of talent and one of the nation’s best pitchers in Friday starter Reid Detmers. Not getting to go an entire season with a junior Detmers was a disappointment, but the Cardinals are ready to turn the page with another talented club. Luke Smith decided to return for another season and gives the Cards a fiery spark plug type in the weekend rotation, while righthander Jack Perkins is ready to blossom. Perkins has been tearing it up at the Grand Park Summer League with a fastball in the 92-95 range. He’s expected to be a mainstay in the weekend rotation, while others such as Kerry Wright, Jared Poland and Carter Lohman have a chance to have dominant campaigns. The Cards also will be solid offensively yet again. They welcome back a terrific player in Alex Binelas, while Levi Usher, Henry Davis, Luke Brown, Lucas Dunn and Dalton Rushing are back for another season. U of L has a solid nucleus both on the mound and at the plate, and should be in Omaha yet again.
Aaron Fitt:
The Cardinals will miss departed first-rounders Reid Detmers and Bobby Miller plus fifth-rounder Zach Britton and nondrafted free agents Danny Oriente and Justin Lavey. Still, there’s a lot to like about Louisville’s returning roster, as usual. It starts with the return of slugger Alex Binelas and versatile spark plug Lucas Dunn, who were sidelined with broken hamate bones this spring. Dynamic outfielders Levi Usher (a rising star) and Luke Brown will be back to provide premium athleticism, and Henry Davis will be one of the nation’s best catchers. Also expect big things in Year Two from first baseman Dalton Rushing, whose power potential is exciting. On the mound, Louisville scored a big coup when the talented Luke Smith went unselected in the shortened five-round draft, sending him back to campus to step into the Friday starter role. Likewise, invaluable bullpen southpaw Adam Elliott will be back as a fifth-year senior to provide stability in the late innings. The return of flame-thrower Jack Perkins from injury will make a huge difference; between Perkins and fellow righties Jared Poland, Ryan Hawks and Kerry Wright, plus talented lefties Michael Prosecky, Carter Lohman and Kellan Tulio, the Cards are well stocked with breakout candidates on the mound.
The Cardinals (13-4, 2-1) were ranked as high as the No. 2 team in the country (D1Baseball, Perfect Game) at the time of the season's cancellation. They had previously been tabbed as the preseason No. 1 team in the nation and were also voted by league coaches as the favorite to win the ACC.
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