College Baseball Week 5 Recap – SEC Play Starts with a Bang, Rintaro Sasaki is Here!
From notable upsets to Rintaro Sasaki's long-awaited debut, we've got you covered on what was an insanely busy week 5 around college baseball.
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- College Player and Pitcher of the Week
- Top 25 Upset Alerts
- News and Notes
- MLB Draft Spotlight Player
- Other Top MLB Draft Performers
College Player and Pitcher of the Week
Player of the Week – OF Drew Burress, Georgia Tech
Stats: 9-for-16, 9 R, 3 2B, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 3 BB, HBP, SB, .563/.632/1.313
Pitcher of the Week – RHP Aidan Knaak, Clemson
Stats: 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 12 K
Top 25 Upset Alerts
Weekend Upsets
No. 23 Louisville stuns No. 11 North Carolina: Don’t look now, but Louisville has been on a roll, winning both of their conference series and 9 of their last 10 games.
The Cardinals took game one in an 8-7 victory, thanks to dominant backend bullpen pitching and scrappy offense. Louisville had 10 hits in the contest, 8 being singles, with the other two were big-time home runs by outfielder Zion Rose and third baseman Jake Munroe. Freshman lefthander Ethan Eberle was nails in relief as well, throwing three shutout innings of one-hit ball.
In the rubber match, the Cardinals’ dominant pitching was too much for the Tar Heels. Despite issuing seven walks, three Louisville pitchers combined for a one-hit shutout to clinch the series.
Jake Munroe stayed hot at the plate with a timely double, RBI, and two walks. Catchers Matt Klein and Tagger Tyson each hit RBI doubles, extending Louisville’s lead late with North Carolina refusing to have an answer offensively.
Auburn starts off SEC play strong, taking a series from No. 18 Vanderbilt: In a thrilling SEC series, the Auburn Tigers secured a significant upset over the No. 18 Vanderbilt Commodores, clinching the series 2-1.
The series started with Auburn’s 6-2 victory on Fridaynight, propelled by strong pitching performances and timely hitting. Vanderbilt responded in the second game on Saturday, overcoming an early deficit to win 8-6, thanks to a pivotal five-run fifth inning.
The decisive third game on Sunday was a crazy one for Auburn. They pulled off a 7-6 victory, highlighted by Cade Belyeu’s crucial three-run home run in the fifth inning, which shifted the momentum in favor of the Tigers.
Auburn’s bullpen delivered an incredible performance, holding Vanderbilt scoreless in the final innings. This is a massive way to start SEC play for the Tigers, who fell out of the top 25 last week.
No. 13 Alabama keeps rolling, taking the series over No. 17 Texas A&M: This Texas A&M team might be struggling, but this is a massive SEC series win for the Crimson Tide.
No. 13 Alabama baseball secured a series victory over No. 17 Texas A&M with back-to-back wins, powered by timely hitting and strong pitching.
On Friday, the Crimson Tide edged out a 6-4 win, thanks to a balanced offensive effort and key contributions from their bullpen. Alabama built an early lead and held off a late Aggies push, with the pitching staff delivering in high-pressure situations.
Saturday’s game saw an even bigger moment as Bryce Hodo delivered a grand slam to propel Alabama to a 6-2 victory, sealing the series. Hodo’s clutch swing in the sixth inning broke open a tight game, giving the Tide the cushion they needed.
Sunday was more of the same—dominance from the Alabama pitching staff and timely hitting giving the Crimson Tide the sweep over A&M.
Midweek Upsets to Note
The saying always went that you don’t emphasize midweek wins and losses, but regardless it’s always interesting to see what teams can pull off some victories. Five ranked teams found themselves in the loss column against unranked opponents.
- South Alabama nearly runs-rules #24 Ole Miss 14-5
- #6 Florida beats rival #4 Florida State 7-2
- Jacksonville State ten-run rules #25 Troy
- Grand Canyon takes down #10 Oregon
Other News and Notes
Rice dismisses Head Coach Jose Cruz, Jr. after 2-14 start: Rice University dismissed head baseball coach José Cruz Jr. following a challenging start to the season, where the Owls posted a 2-14 record, including a 10-game losing streak.
Cruz, a Rice alumnus and former Major League Baseball player, amassed a 63-126 overall record during his tenure, which began in June 2021.
Pitching coach Parker Bangs has been appointed interim head coach as the university initiates a national search for Cruz’s permanent replacement
Rintaro Sasaki breaks out this weekend: As the season progresses, Sasaki looks more comfortable in the box during his collegiate baseball career.
In Saturday’s 11-1 win vs Duke, Sasaki had his best game thus far at Stanford. Rintaro went 3-for-5, slugging two mammoth pull-side home runs, with his second being the mercy-rule walk off winner.
In total, Sasaki drove in four runs while being an additional two runs in the contest. Sasaki took nine swings in the game, only missing once.
Even after a career game, Sasaki’s slugging continued on Sunday. Hitting his third home run this season (with all three coming within two days), Rintaro collected another 3 RBIs to complete the sweep in a 10-5 victory.
After a 1-for-10 weekend in Chapel Hill, Rintaro hit .429 against the Blue Devils. Up to the present date, Sasaki is Stanford’s leader in hits and at-bats while tied for the lead in slugging percentage. He also holds a Hard-Hit Rate of over 50% while his season whiff rate continues to decline steadily.
It’s been really nice watching Sasaki be a significant contributor for Stanford this season. The Cardinal is counting on him as a key catalyst for the new offense, which aims to recover from a disappointing 2024 campaign.
Stanford is continuing to climb with its exciting offense, led by Rintaro. It is currently 5-1 in ACC play.
Draft Watch: Who’s Making Waves?
2025 Draft Spotlight Player of the Week
RHP Kyson Witherspoon, Oklahoma
Season Stats: 5 GS, 1.91 ERA, 28.1 IP, 17 H, 6 ER, 6 BB, 47 K
One of the most electrifying arms in the 2025 MLB Draft class, Oklahoma right-hander Kyson Witherspoon has steadily risen up boards thanks to his premium velocity and dominant fastball-slider combination.
Witherspoon’s fastball is a high-octane weapon, sitting 95-97 mph and touching 99 with over 17 inches of carry and natural arm-side run, making it nearly untouchable at the top of the zone.
His mid-80s slider is a plus pitch and has a late, bullet-like shape, while his upper-80s cutter adds another sharp breaking look.
He has also experimented with a changeup that flashes above-average with significant tumble and fade, boasting a whiff rate over 45%.
Witherspoon’s development has made him a consensus top-15 talent in the 2025 MLB Draft and one of the more exciting arms in the draft.
Other Top Draft Performances
| Pitcher | Stats |
| RHP Aidan Knaak, Clemson | 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 12 K |
| RHP Logan Lunceford, Wake Forest | 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 K |
| LHP Ryan DeSanto, Penn State | 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K |
| LHP Kyle McCoy, Maryland | 8 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K |
| RHP Matt Scott, Stanford | 6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K |
| RHP Marcus Phillips, Tennessee | 7 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K |
| RHP Jack Martinez, Arizona State | 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K |
| RHP Riley Quick, Alabama | 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K |
| LHP Jamie Arnold, Florida State | 4.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K |
| LHP Joey Volini, Florida State | 6 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K |
| RHP Sean Episcope, Princeton | 5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K |
| LHP Cade Crossland, Oklahoma | 6.2 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K |
| LHP Nelson Keljo, Oregon State | 6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K |
| Hitter | Stats |
| OF Nathan Hall, South Carolina | 8-for-19, 2 2B, 4 RBI, 2 BB |
| SS Marek Houston, Wake Forest | 7-for-18, 1 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI |
| OF Ethan Conrad, Wake Forest | 6-for-14, 2 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI |
| SS Wehiwa Aloy, Arkansas | 4-for-19, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 2 BB |
| C Caden Bodine, Coastal Carolina | 4-for-10, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB |
| UTL Mitch Voit, Michigan | 12-for-18, 5 2B, 3B, HR, 12 RBI, 3 BB, SB |
| 2B/OF Robbie Burnett, Georgia | 8-for-14, 2 2B, 2 HR, 3 BB, 4 HBP, SB |
| OF Paxton Kling, Penn State | 13-for-25, 2 2B, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 2 BB, 3 SB |
| SS Drew Faurot, Florida State | 7-for-14, 4 HR, 4 RBI, 2 BB, SB |
| OF Brendan Summerhill, Arizona | 10-for-18, 2 2B, 3B, 5 RBI, 2 BB, |
| SS Alex Lodise, Florida State | 8-for-16, 3 2B, 3B, HR, 5 RBI, BB, HBP |
| 3B Nu’u Contrades, Arizona State | 7-for-14, 2 2B, 3B, 2 RBI, 5 BB, SB |
| 1B Michael Dattalo, Dallas Baptist | 6-for-14, 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 3 BB, HBP |
| OF Korbyn Dickerson, Indiana | 8-for-20, 2 3B, 2 HR, 9 RBI |
| 1B Tanner Thach, UNC-Wilmington | 8-for-16, 3B, HR, 5 RBI, 3 BB, |
| 1B Ty Doucette, Rutgers | 9-for-19, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 4 BB |
| SS Daniel Dickinson, LSU | 4-for-10, 2 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 3 BB, 4 HBP, SB |
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What’s Ahead
Upcoming Games & Draft Watch
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- Midweeks
- #24 Ole Miss vs. #22 Southern Miss (Tuesday)
- TCU vs. #20 Dallas Baptist (Tuesday)
- Weekend Series
- #18 Texas A&M vs. #17 Vanderbilt (Thursday-Saturday)
- #4 Florida State vs. Miami (Thursday-Saturday)
- Auburn vs. Kentucky (Friday-Sunday)
- #1 Tennessee vs. Alabama (Friday-Sunday)
- #14 Wake Forest vs. #7 Clemson (Friday-Sunday)
- #6 Georgia vs. #5 Florida (Friday-Sunday)
- South Carolina vs. # 3 Arkansas (Friday-Sunday)
- #2 LSU vs. #8 Texas (Friday-Sunday)
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