About this East Coast bias thing

 Arizona Wildcats Baseball

About this East Coast bias thing.

On second thought. Why bother!

I'll toot the horn of our beloved Arizona Wildcats. ESPN won't. And those sports announcers East of the Rio Grande won't, either.

Arizona (45-16) heads for Omaha and the College World Series as Pac-12 Champs and carries a team batting average of .329 with them.  Every player in the starting lineup is batting over .300 with Branden Boissiere leading the way with a .374 average (92 hits in 246 at bats).

What follows should make the other seven teams take an extra look at the batting charts.

The big power man Jacob Berry bats second in the lineup and is a switch hitter. His power numbers includes: total bases (164), home runs (17), RBI (70) and a slugging percentage of .692 and a.359 batting average (85 for 237).

Ryan Holgate snuggles in with a .356 average (84 for 236) and leadoff hitter Donta Williams follows with a .352 average (81 for 230) and has crossed home plate a total 80 times. Add Tony Bullard to the mix with a .311 average (41 for 132), Daniel Susac (77 for 234, a .329 average), Kobe Kato (77  for 219, a .352 average) and smooth fielding shortstop Nik McClaughry, who has jumped to a .317 average (46 for 145).

It all adds up to 721 hits in 61 games, 69 home runs, 486 RBI and a slugging percentage of .513.

Of course, the other seven teams are wondering if the Wildcats have a pitching staff. How about a  seasoned staff of 17 pitchers? Among all those pitchers are starters Chase Selseth (8-1), Chandler Murphy (7-0), Garrett Irvin (6-3) and TJ Nichols (6-3).  Hidden among those 17 pitchers are a relief corps who will throw nothing but darts at you, led by closer Vince Vannelle (5-2, 25 appearances), Riley Cooper (3-0, 28 appearances) and Dawson Netz (0-0, 26 appearances).

A little advice for those East of the Rio Grande. Start flipping pages and get to know the Arizona Wildcats. And turn off the news. There are some teams from far, far away heading your way.

Go, Wildcats!