Troy baseball has a message for the college baseball world writ large: It isn't a cutesy little June story. Those don't put up 26 runs within 36 hours to win their region as a No. 3 seed. They don't beat a clearly overmatched super regional opponent by a combined score of a 19-4. And they certainly don't have a hitter whose nickname plays on one of the most famous players in baseball history.
Enter Jabe Boroff, the face of a Troy Trojans team that, in a word, mashes. Troy has put up double-digit runs in five of its nine Men's NCAA Tournament games, including 16-11 and 10-2 wins over Florida to escape the Gainesville Regional. Indeed, it's a team that has played its best baseball with its back against the wall, defeating Ole Miss 12-8 in a game that wasn't even as close as that score in the elimination bracket following an opening-game loss to West Virginia in its first ever College World Series.
REQUIRED READING: Who's eliminated from College World Series? Updated CWS bracket, schedule
Boroff, who has adopted the nickname "Jabe Ruth," has earned the moniker. He has 21 RBI in the Men's NCAA Tournament to date, already the highest number since 2008. He hit the go-ahead double for the Trojans in their elimination game against Ole Miss in a 6-6 game in the seventh inning. And in a story we've seen so many times before, he's doing this as a diamond in the rough, a JUCO monster who is now getting a shot on college baseball's biggest stage.
It hasn't all been smooth sailing for Boroff. He struggled mightily through the regular season before finding his rhythm at the perfect time. He, like Troy, is an oddity. He was hitting sub-.200 in early May with just one home run to his name. His team made the tournament as a 29-loss Sun Belt team, and became the first 30-loss team (it lost its first game of regionals) to make the College World Series. But these underdogs aren't underdogs anymore. Here's what to know about Boroff heading into his next elimination game against the Mountaineers, who sent them down to the loser's bracket to begin with.
Enter Jabe Boroff, the face of a Troy Trojans team that, in a word, mashes. Troy has put up double-digit runs in five of its nine Men's NCAA Tournament games, including 16-11 and 10-2 wins over Florida to escape the Gainesville Regional. Indeed, it's a team that has played its best baseball with its back against the wall, defeating Ole Miss 12-8 in a game that wasn't even as close as that score in the elimination bracket following an opening-game loss to West Virginia in its first ever College World Series.
REQUIRED READING: Who's eliminated from College World Series? Updated CWS bracket, schedule
Boroff, who has adopted the nickname "Jabe Ruth," has earned the moniker. He has 21 RBI in the Men's NCAA Tournament to date, already the highest number since 2008. He hit the go-ahead double for the Trojans in their elimination game against Ole Miss in a 6-6 game in the seventh inning. And in a story we've seen so many times before, he's doing this as a diamond in the rough, a JUCO monster who is now getting a shot on college baseball's biggest stage.
It hasn't all been smooth sailing for Boroff. He struggled mightily through the regular season before finding his rhythm at the perfect time. He, like Troy, is an oddity. He was hitting sub-.200 in early May with just one home run to his name. His team made the tournament as a 29-loss Sun Belt team, and became the first 30-loss team (it lost its first game of regionals) to make the College World Series. But these underdogs aren't underdogs anymore. Here's what to know about Boroff heading into his next elimination game against the Mountaineers, who sent them down to the loser's bracket to begin with.
2 months ago
