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Five things to watch for in 2014 NCAA baseball tournament

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Miami, the ACC regular season champions, is hoping to become the first league member to win a national title in almost 60 years.

Miami, the ACC regular season champions, is hoping to become the first league member to win a national title in almost 60 years.

The powerhouse teams in the ACC and SEC have done an incredible job of convincing pitchers with great arms to join their programs and pitch out of the bullpen. It's not unusual to see coaches mixing and matching in big games, beginning in the fifth and six innings. A team like South Carolina, for example, has six relief pitchers with ERAs under 2.15. Righthander Joel Seddon has made 25 appearances out of the 'pen, pitching 42⅓ innings and posting a 0.85 ERA. Diminutive righthander Cody Mincey has appeared in 28 games for the Gamecocks, going 5-0 with a 1.04 ERA. South Carolina stumbled down the stretch, losing three of its last four, but is a heavy favorite to advance to the Super Regionals, and a likely matchup with Virginia.