Two teams with bitter tastes in their mouths.

Miami hosted rival Florida State last weekend. The Seminoles packed their brooms and left Miami on a high.

The Hoos lost yet another ACC series, just barely avoiding a sweep as well.

Two teams enter. Only one team can exit with a series win.

< Insert dramatic music >

Game Schedule

Friday, March 26 – 4:00 PM

Saturday, March 27 – 1:00 PM

Sunday, March 28 – 1:00 PM

Team Records

Virginia: 9-11 (Overall), 3-9 (ACC)

Miami: 10-7 (Overall), 5-6 (ACC)

Stat Comparison

The format will be raw stat and then rank in Division 1. Info is as of games played on March 24.

Batting

OBP = On Base Percentage

SLG = Slugging Percentage

Pitching

K/9 = Strikeouts Per 9 Innings

BB/9 = Walks Per 9 Innings

Miscellaneous

FLD % = Fielding Percentage

SOS = Strength Of Schedule

Note that all stats are from NCAA.com. RPI and strength of schedule data is from Warrennolan.com and is as of games played through March 24, 2021.

Projected Starting Pitchers

Friday

Miami RHP Alejandro Rosario (2-1, 4.44 ERA, 24.1 IP, 9 walks, 23 strikeouts) vs UVA RHP Griff McGarry (0-3, 6.38 ERA, 18.1 IP, 18 walks, 34 strikeouts)

Rosario is a true freshman out of Miami, Florida. Perfect Game ranked Rosario 24th overall in the 2020 recruiting class. They had Rosario ranked as the number 7 RHP in the recruiting class.

In their preseason preview of Miami, D1 Baseball noted that Rosario can max out his fastball at 98 MPH already.

Rosario started the season as Miami’s Saturday starter. But two weeks ago against Wake Forest he made the move to the Friday slot.

Last week against Florida State, Rosario had the worst outing of his young career. He only lasted 1.1 innings against the Seminoles. Rosario gave up 8 runs (7 earned), 7 hits, and 2 walks. He did not strike out any batters in the outing. Rosario took the loss in the game.

Saturday

Miami RHP Victor Mederos (0-1, 4.56 ERA, 25.2 IP, 5 walks, 19 strikeouts) vs UVA LHP Andrew Abbott (1-4, 3.18 ERA, 28.1IP, 11 walks, 43 strikeouts)

Like Alejandro Rosario, Victor Mederos is a true freshman out of Miami, Florida. Perfect Game was also high on Mederos, ranking him 34th overall in the 2020 recruiting class. They had Mederos ranked as the 11th best RHP in the recruiting class.

D1 Baseball notes that Mederos sits 93 to 96 MPH with his fastball but can top out at 97 MPH. They also note that he can struggle with his control at times.

Mederos was originally Miami’s Sunday starter. But two weeks ago against Wake Forest, he moved into the Saturday role.

Last weekend against Florida State, Mederos threw 5.0 innings. He gave up 6 runs (2 earned), 3 hits, and 3 walks. He also struck out 1 Seminole.

Sunday

Miami TBD vs UVA RHP Mike Vasil (3-1, 2.13 ERA, 25.1 IP, 4 walks, 27 strike outs)

Miami has yet to announce a starting pitcher for Sunday’s series finale.

Last weekend, Miami started junior right-hander Daniel Federman against Florida State on Sunday. The Seminoles won the game 12 to 0. Federman lasted 3.1 innings where he gave up 8 hits and 7 runs (4 earned). He walked 1 and struck out 3. On the season, Federman is 0-3 with an ERA of 8.64 in 3 starts. He’s struck out 21 and walked only 4 in 16.2 innings, but he’s also given up 25 hits, 21 runs, and 7 home runs.

It’s easy to see why the Hurricanes may be looking for another option this Sunday.

Weather Forecast Via Weather.com

Friday promises perfect baseball weather. Skies will be sunny, temps will be in the upper 70s, and there’s no precipitation in the forecast. Winds will be around 15 MPH. And while that may provide a nice breeze for fans, it could also make an impact on the game.

On Saturday, skies will be sunny at the start of the game but will transition to partly cloudy for most of the game. Temps will be in the low 70s. There’s still no precipitation in the forecast. Winds will be about half of what’s expected for Friday, so it’s unlikely that it will have much of an impact on game play.

Sunday’s weather could provide some issues. Temps will be in the lower 70s again, but scattered thunderstorms are in the forecast for the day. Overall, there’s a 57% chance of precipitation. Winds will be back at the same level as Friday.

Media Coverage

Live streaming will be available on ACC Network Xtra for all three games. You can access the ACC Network Xtra stream via ESPN’s streaming platforms. Your content provider must carry ACC Network in order to access the stream.

There will also be radio coverage for the Friday and Sunday games from WINA. WINA.com will offer audio streaming while those in the Charlottesville area can hear the radio broadcast over the air on 1070 AM or 98.9 FM.

Hurricane To Watch

Miami has several good options including 1st baseman / designated hitter Alex Toral, outfielder Jordan Lala, and outfielder Gabe Rivera among others. But I’m going with sophomore catcher Adrian Del Castillo.

Del Castillo currently sits second in D1 Baseball’s catcher national power rankings. He’s sporting a slash line of .328 / .403 / .537 and an OPS of .940.

Del Castillo’s OPS and slugging percentage currently rank second on Miami. He tops the Hurricanes with 22 hits. And he’s among the team leaders in several offensive categories: runs (tied third – 13), doubles (tied second – 3), triples (tied first – 1), home runs (tied second – 3), RBI (tied third – 14), total bases (first – 36), and walks (tied fourth – 7).

Here he is doubling off of current Florida Gator, and former UVA commit, Hunter Barco earlier this season.

It's been a rough week for the stars in Gainesville, but Adrian Del Castillo just obliterated a ball off one of the best LHP's in the country. pic.twitter.com/14mW9RcbJ1

— ? (@mason_mcrae) February 21, 2021

Prediction

If the Hoos are going to turn their season around, this is the type of series they have to win. Like UVA, Miami is struggling to live up to lofty preseason expectations. But the Hurricanes are still ranked (19 at D1 Baseball). Outside of their season opening series win at Florida, they haven’t really done anything to deserve that ranking.

But until the UVA bats shows that they can string together three games worth of quality offense against ACC opponents, it’s difficult to pick the Hoos.

In fact, there’s really no reason to expect something different than the all too familiar pattern of Friday and Saturday losses followed by a Sunday win. I think that’s what UVA fans see this weekend.

Miami takes the series 2 to 1.