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 Arms race Miami, Rice coaches insist pitching is key to success
Posted: Thursday June 10, 1999 10:06 PM
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) -- To hear Miami coach Jim Morris and Rice coach Wayne Graham, college baseball isn't about home runs anymore. Both insisted Thursday their matchup to open the College World Series is about pitching. The top-seeded Hurricanes (46-13) and No. 8 Owls (58-13) play Friday night after the tournament, celebrating its 50th year in Omaha, opens with a matinee between No. 4 Oklahoma State (46-19) and No. 5 Alabama (51-14). Asked Thursday what Rice needs to do to beat Miami, Graham said it depends on what the Owls can do against Hurricanes right-hander Alex Santos (11-3, 3.10 ERA). "My concern is scoring off Santos," Graham said. "He's pretty good. We've got to pitch well, play defense well and scratch a few runs off Santos." Morris, seated next to Graham during a news conference for the eight CWS coaches, returned the compliment for Rice ace Mario Ramos (13-2, 2.42). "I could throw in Ramos and duplicate what he just said. Any time you're going against a left-hander, you always have to take advantage of every scoring opportunity you get," Morris said. Morris said this year's Hurricanes aren't the typical Miami collection of sluggers with their mighty aluminum bats. "I'd say we're a pitching and defense team," Morris said. "That's kind of amazing to sit up here and say with all the talk of aluminum bats. Our guys play hard. They feel someone is going to get it done for them." In any given game, Morris said, he doesn't know who will carry the Hurricanes. One of the leaders is shortstop Bobby Hill (.378, 9 HRs, 28 RBIs), who stole 50 bases this season to become Miami's career leader with 137. Rice has won 31 of its last 36 games, and the Owls got gritty after losing their openers in the regional and super regional. The top hitters are outfielder Will Ford (.403, 11 HRs, 70 RBIs) and shortstop Damon Thames (.377, 9 HRs, 68 RBIs). According to rankings established by Collegiate Baseball, Miami is No. 1 nationally and Rice No. 2. But forget about that. "It's a great matchup to start the series," Thames said. "I think our biggest challenge is just to forget about the rankings and see how it goes." Alabama enters the College World Series with a 15-game winning streak and has won 23 of its last 25. Not bad for a team that sometimes has as many as five freshmen in the lineup. The Crimson Tide will start left-hander Justin Smith (5-4, 5.91), a junior from Elk City, Okla., who knows folks back home might be cheering for Oklahoma State. "I'm trying not to think about it too much," Smith said. "If I just throw my game, I'll be all right. Coach [Jim] Wells has it all mapped out. He calls the pitches and I just throw the ball." The Cowboys will send right-hander Thom Dreier (8-5, 3.61) to the mound, and he'll be tested against a hard-hitting Alabama lineup. Shortstop Andy Phillips (.393, 22 HRs, 66 RBIs) has a school-record 33-game hitting streak and became the Tide's home-run king this season. With 61 career homers, he is tied with former Mississippi State standout Will Clark for third on the Southeastern Conference list. The Cowboys hit 130 home runs this season, fourth-best in school history, and outfielder Lamont Matthews (.396, 30 HRs, 105 RBIs) led the way. "He does excite people when he comes to the plate," Oklahoma State coach Tom Holliday said.
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