Braithwaite

After coming into the Big 12 Conference baseball tournament with a 14-10 regular season record in league play, West Virginia and its coaching staff voiced the opinion that the Mountaineers had done enough to get an invitation to the NCAA tournament.

But when consecutive losses in its first two games in the double elimination event had the team on the sidelines looking to the selection committee for some redemption, it never came.

Wes Virginia was left out of the 64-school field.

When most of the firing was stilled and the eight-schools had been determined for the College World Series, there were Oklahoma and Texas still standing from the Big 12.

Bravo

Neither of those two proved to be the eventual national champion.

But the Ole Miss Rebels did show the world its Cinderella story. Speculation had it that Ole Miss was the last team to get an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Did the Rebels get the bid West Virginia believed it deserved? Like in 2021 when Mississippi State won the school’s only national championship in any sport, the Rebels pulled off the same improbable stunt in 2022 — winning the Oxford-based school’s first and only national championship in any sport.

With the NCAA tournament completed, college players have finally been dispersed to summer leagues all over the country.

The Morgantown Black Bears of a six-team developmental league that play their home games in the same ball park as does WVU, has four Mountaineer pitchers on their roster.

Right-handers Trey Braithewait, Zack Bravo, Zach Ottinger and Chase Smith are all members of Morgantown’s pitching staff.

Ottinger

Only Bravo started more than eight games during West Virginia’s season. He struggled along with a 7.71 earned run average, but did have 3-1 won-loss record over 37.1 innings. Smith was in 25 games without ever making a start. his 27.1 innings that yielded a 3.95 earned run average and a 1-1 record. Braithwaite had eight saves and a 3-0 record while pitching 37 innings. His earned run average was a classy 1.70. He pitched in 22 games. Ottinger appeared in 17 games for the Mountaineers and had a 2-2 record. He had a save, pitched 22.1 innings and finished with a 4.84 earned run average.

Four more Mountaineers started the summer season in the Cape Cod League in Massachusetts.

Outfielder Victor Scott III is with the Cotuit Kettleers, a team that won its first nine games.

Scott made the most of his .100 batting average (2-for-20) to steal eight bases and score seven runs.

Pitchers Ben Hampton (Chatham) and Carlson Reed (Harwich) were two other Mountaineers on league rosters in late June. Hampton made two appearances and one start in pitching to a 1.28 earned run average in seven innings of work. Reed made two appearances (both starts) in pitching nine innings and having a 4.00 earned run average.

Smith

Jacob Watters (Chatham) pitched in two games with a start but may not be with his team any longer.

West Virginia was disappointed in missing the NCAA tournament where only four schools from the Big 12 went uninvited.

Did Ole Miss get its bid? If it did, it became a most enjoyable ride to the national championship for the upstart Rebels.