--Through eight games, the West Virginia baseball team has compiled a 5-3 record and currently sits at No. 139 in the RPI (per WarrenNolan.com) with an 0-1 record against Quadrant 2 teams, 2-0 against Quadrant 3 teams and 3-2 mark against Quadrant 4 teams. At this point, we’ve seen a bit of everything from this team including the ability to win some close games, score some runs, deliver solid pitching and fielding, but you’re still seeing a lot of the same issues that have hurt them at times last season with the obvious one being the constant struggle to capitalize with runners on base and in scoring position. Still, there have been some good things, but obviously some bad things as well that can improve and the good thing is that it’s still early.

--I believe the areas you have feel really good about at this point early on is the team’s starting pitching. This was a huge question coming into the season with the Mountaineers losing three of its four starters in the rotation. But so far, their weekend rotation has delivered with some solid performances, especially from junior LHP Jackson Wolf and sophomore RHP Ryan Bergert.

--Wolf came into the season as the team’s lone returning starter on the mound and has yet to give up an earned run through two starts. He’s pitched seven innings in each of his two starts this season with 8 Ks in each game, bringing his total to 16 strikeouts which. For being the team’s lone returning starter on the mound, this is what you’d like to see early on. Bergert entered this season not having allowed a run in his previous 10 appearances and really developed some late season momentum during the postseason last year. So far, he’s built off that momentum and has had two solid starts, pitching six innings in his first start against Jacksonville and eight in his latest start against Saint Joseph’s. He fanned 14 (!) batters in his last start, giving him 18 Ks on the year, the most by a pitcher in the Big 12. He’s also allowed an earned run in each of his two starts and just six hits total. Coming into the year, you had the feeling that these two were going to be the top two guys you’d rely on to pitch quality games and that’s been the case up to this point.

--I really like what freshman LHP Jake Carr has brought to the table as well. Coming into the season, I expected Zach Ottinger, who emerged late last season like Bergert, to take over that Sunday starting role. But so far, Carr has put together a couple of quality starts in the Sunday role which is promising to see out of a young freshman. He got off to a bit off a rough start in his debut against Jacksonville but showed some poise and went on to pitch 5 quality innings, allowing just one run on three hits with one strikeout and a walk. He made strides during his second start Sunday against Illinois, throwing a complete game and allowing just two runs on five hits with three Ks and didn’t walk a single batter in 85 pitches. These guys will face stiffer competition of course, but their performances early on are promising for this team. Between the team’s three weekend starters, they have an ERA of 1.10.

--The only hole in this team’s starting pitching is the midweek slot. In the two games following its usual weekend starting rotation, West Virginia started freshman RHP Tyler Strechay, who lasted just one third of an inning and allowed two runs on three hits in the home opener against Canisius. He had a slightly better performance against Coastal Carolina by allowing five hits and just one earned run in 2.1 innings of work, but in that game as well as the Canisius one, you saw a committee performance with seven pitchers being used against Canisius and nine against Coastal Carolina. Out of the seven that pitched against the Golden Griffins, six were newcomers. There have been some growing pains in these two games out of the bullpen, especially when Coastal Carolina tallied eight runs in the bottom of the 8th. These growing pains are bound to happen when you have a lot of newcomers and young pitchers getting their first college baseball experience, but how they progress and learn from these early appearances will of course be crucial. It’s still early in the season and these coaches are still trying to figure out where the pieces fit.

--Welcome back, Braden Zarbnisky. After missing all of last season with an injury, the Marietta, Georgia native hasn’t missed a beat through eight games, boasting the team’s highest batting average at .500 with 17 hits in 34 at-bats with four RBIs. His 17 hits are tied for the sixth-most in the country. His versatility will also be a big key for the team this year as he’s already showcased his ability to close out games by tallying two saves already.

--Mazey did say after the series finale at Jacksonville that they do need to find someone else other than Zarbnisky to close out games. The Mountaineers have gotten solid bullpen outings from various players including Ottinger, Skylar Gonzalez, Dillon Meadows, Madison Jeffrey and others. Since Zarbnisky got his second save (excluding the Canisius game), sophomore LHP Beau Lowery tossed two scoreless innings to close out the win against Kennesaw State and Ottinger closed out the game against Saint Joseph’s with a scoreless ninth inning.

--Behind Zarbnisky, Austin Davis is batting .346 with nine hits and four RBIs on the year. Tyler Doanes and Matt McCormick are both hitting .310 on the season with nine hits and four RBIs each. Kevin Brophy and Paul McIntosh, the team’s top two home run hitters from a season ago, are batting .250 and .152 at this point, but the two have combined for eight RBIs (McIntosh has a team-high five of those and one of the team’s two home runs).

--There’s no doubt there’s a lot of speed and guys who can steal bases on this team. West Virginia is 18-of-20 (tied for 14th nationally) on steal attempts this season with the only two failed attempts coming against Illinois--which were critical considering they lost by a score of 2-1. Leading the way for the Mountaineers in this category is Tevin Tucker who is a perfect 6-for-6. Zarbnisky is 3-of-4 and both Tyler Doanes and Austin Davis are 3-for-3. The other failed attempt came from McIntosh.

--Two freshman players I’m excited to watch are Victor Scott and McCormick. It’s no easy task having to replace Brandon White in center field, but Scott is a speedster like White and can be a very critical player for the team down the road. He has committed one error so far and is batting .192 on the year with five hits in 26 at-bats, but Scott did have a pair of triples during a loss to Jacksonville and became the first Mountaineer to accomplish that feat since Austin Markel did on May 21, 2009, against Pitt. McCormick has the other home run this season when he launched a bomb to right field against Canisius. In the same game, he was 4-for-6 with three RBIs. The former 40th round MLB Draft pick has been used as a first baseman, DH and catcher, but has started five of eight games at first base.

--Like last season, one issue this team is having is not being able to capitalize with runners on base. The Mountaineers are tied for 40th in the country with 70 total hits on the year, but they are just tied for 126th in the nation with 38 runs. Through eight games, they’ve left a total of 55. Yes, it’s early, but if their pitching falters one game, that’s when these team’s bats need to wake up. They’ve been able to produce offensively in a couple games like Canisius (17 hits, 15 runs) and Kennesaw State (hits, runs) games, but consistency is needed here when it comes to scoring runs. This is certainly a team that can get on base with thanks to its combination of players with speed and power across the lineup, but they need to take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves.

--West Virginia has committed an error in all but two games so far (have 7 total this season). They are tied for 73rd in the country in fielding percentage at 97.6%.

--The Mountaineers have the same record through eight games as last eason and will now travel to Virginia to face VCU (RPI - No. 205) Friday, William & Mary (RPI - No. 52) Saturday and Richmond (RPI - No. 244) on Sunday. As I mentioned above, West Virginia still has time to work on some of its weaknesses but also improve upon some of its strengths. Each weekend that passes allows us to get a better idea of who this team is and what exactly they can be capable of.

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