Every baseball team, from established powerhouses like Texas or up-and-comers like UH, have keys to winning a game. UH has four that, if properly realized, could result in quite the success.
- The Pitching: 41 wins, 15 wins from the bullpen, and a sub 2.10 ERA cemented the UH hurlers as one of the best pitching staffs in the country from starters, middle relievers and closers. A postseason excursion is essentially dependent upon the staff keeping up their regular season status.
- Baserunning: Go, Speed Racer, Go! Sophomore right fielder Kyle Survance swiped over 25 bases this season, giving UH a weapon of advancement on the base paths without having to sacrifice an out via a bunt. If he keeps up his sprinting, look for opposing pitchers to focus more on him than on the current batter.
- Pinch hitting: A good pinch hitter is hard to find, and UH has two. Senior Jacob Lueneburg and sophomore Ashford Fulmer have been keen at all the right times during the regular season, with doubles, triples and a homerun to keep UH marching steadily forward. Any extra firepower off the bench late in a game makes a team tougher to dispatch in a tournament setting.
- Luck, timing and grit: UH batters have, for better or worse, used the last two or three innings of games to score most of their runs. While this represents a risky zero-sum game as far as a tournament setting goes, they still seem to be good at it, and in baseball, there is no such thing as a wrong way to win.
