Can Oklahoma’s Bats Wake Up Against UNC Star Caden Glauber in Game 3 of CWS Finals?

The Sooners struggled mightily against Caden Glauber in Game 2, and it's very likely that UNC's freshman phenom plays again in Game 3.

North Carolina pitcher Caden Glauber high fives his catcher after beating OU in Game 2 of the CWS Finals. | Carson Field / Sooners On SI

OMAHA, NE — There’s a non-zero chance that North Carolina’s Caden Glauber doesn’t pitch against Oklahoma in Game 3 of the CWS Finals on Monday.

Glauber, the Tar Heels’ superstar freshman relief pitcher, threw 65 pitchers on Sunday. Over five innings, he struck out eight Sooners and allowed only one hit, helping the Tar Heels win 6-2.

Even after a somewhat lengthy outing in Game 2, it’s likely that Glauber pitches again as the Tar Heels and Sooners square off in a winner-takes-all game.

UNC is 29-0 in games where Glauber made an appearance. As the Tar Heels look to potentially make that record 30-0, Glauber couldn’t be any more confident in himself and the fielders around him.

“You're on the best team in college baseball, so you can't go out there with fear,” Glauber said. “The preparation takes over the fear. We work so hard on it. You've got to have the right mindset, and you know that you're made for the moment, whatever moment.”

The Sooners had a rough day against Glauber and North Carolina starter Ryan Lynch on Sunday. They registered only four base hits, and no one in OU’s batting order logged multiple knocks.

Glauber constantly got ahead in counts against the Sooners, and OU infielder Jaxon Willits believes that played into the team’s poor performance in the batter’s box.

“He was able to just kind of get guys swinging at his pitches because he was ahead in the count so much,” Willits said.

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Glauber is only 18 years old. He should be a senior in high school, but he reclassified to join North Carolina’s team one year early.

OU coach Skip Johnson, who specializes in developing pitchers, is well aware of the future star that Glauber is for the Tar Heels.

“He attacks the mitt one pitch at a time,” Johnson said. “He keeps the ball down. He's got a quick arm, short in the back, gets on you. I think the little bit of run that he has is good, and he can locate a fastball in. If you can do those things, it will open up one side of the plate or the other.

“He’s going to be a really special pitcher.”

There’s no denying that Glauber is a freshman phenom. But even after his outing on Sunday, Oklahoma’s batters aren’t intimidated.

The Sooners hit 28 home runs in their first 11 NCAA Tournament games, and many of those came against opposing teams’ star pitchers.

As long as OU’s approach improves, outfielder Trey Gambill is confident that the Sooners will log a better performance against Glauber in Game 3.

“I’m sure we’re going to see him,” Gambill said. “I’m sure we're going to see him. We'll go back and make some adjustments and come back at them.”