As it inches closer to the summer, less and less college baseball teams remain in contention to win the College World Series. However, that hope remains alive for both the Arkansas Razorbacks and South Carolina Gamecocks. After Monday though, only one of them will remain. This is because the two ball clubs are set to go head-to-head in the Fayetteville Super Regional which starts this weekend.
In the current bracket, Arkansas is considered the No. 5 team while South Carolina is unranked. The game will be a battle of two SEC teams, and very good ones for that matter. On one side, the Razorbacks are coming to the series with a 42-18 record. In contrast, the Gamecocks have also had a respectful season. So far, they are 36-24. Of course, they both played exceptionally tough competition during the regular season. That said, here is a look at the odds each team has to advance to the College World Series, according to BetDSI Sportsbook.
Odds for to reach the College World Series
South Carolina advances to CWS +240
Arkansas advances to CWS -320
OK, so these odds are pretty clear; they heavily favor Arkansas. That makes a lot of sense because they are 3-1 against South Carolina this season. They took two games out of three in a series back in April at home. They also defeated the Gamecocks 13-8 in the first round of the SEC tournament at a neutral site on May 23.
It helps that the Razorbacks are downright dominant at home. Sure, they probably play some weaker competition at home. Still, it change the fact that they are 33-4 in Fayetteville. Away from Baum Stadium, they’re 9-14 this season.
Like the Razorbacks, the Gamecocks also have a losing record when they are on the road this season: 12-14. If this is any indication–coupled with the fact that Arkansas will have a sellout crowd–the Razorbacks have the edge.
Offensively, Arkansas is the superior team. This season, they have a .300 team batting average, three players in their lineup with 13 home runs (Heston Kjerstad, Casey Martin and Eric Cole) plus another with 11 bombs. As a team, they sport an .893 OPS.
Sure, the Gamecocks also have a great lineup, but their .278 team batting average and .815 team OPS just aren’t quite as high.
However, the bigger difference is probably between the two pitching staffs. The Razorbacks have two starting pitchers with ERAs below 3.00 this season: Blaine Knight and Kacey Murphy. How many does their opponent have? Zero.
It’s worth noting the discrepancy between the team’s No. 3 starters as well. Isaiah Campbell (4-6, 4.17 ERA) is passable for Arkansas. However, the same cannot be said for South Carolina’s three, Logan Chapman (3-3, 5.64 ERA) against elite competition.
As a team, Arkansas has a 3.47 ERA compared to their opponent’s 4.21 mark.
Given the date available at this time, this should not be a hard series to pick. On both sides of the ball, Arkansas is the superior team–and they are at home which helps. Clearly, they are the team to pick. They likely won’t win the College World Series, but this series appears to be a lock for them, at the very least.
