With time winding down on the 2017 season, some are still holding out hope that Florida State can turn a disappointing season around and make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. The Seminoles are 34-20 and ranked outside all major polls after starting the year in the top 10 in most polls and ascending to No. 1 in the D1Baseball.com Poll early in the season.
Following a thrilling 12-9 victory over second-ranked Louisville on Thursday night, there’s no doubt that the Seminoles have been playing better. Though the 34-20 overall record is nothing to rave about, FSU is a season-high 14 games over .500 and 7-2 in its last nine games, although four wins were against Pacific.
The reasons for Florida State’s disappointing to this campaign are many. A lot of things have gone wrong and a couple players pegged as preseason All-Americans have not lived up the hype. One of them however, is quietly beginning to.
Some may not have taken notice, but over the last 20 games, shortstop and lead-off hitter Taylor Walls has looked more like the player that was named an All-American by Baseball America last season and less like the player who was hitting .216 two months ago.
Over his last 20 games, Walls is hitting .306 with 24 runs scored and 17 RBIs. Walls is getting on base and has even swiped four bags without being caught.
Walls’ recent tear still pales in comparison to his 2016 campaign when he hit .355, but over those 20 games, the competition has been fierce. The Seminoles have faced 11 opponents currently ranked in Baseball America’s top 25.
Other opponents like Miami and Jacksonville have staff ERAs below 4.00. Over the last 20 games, FSU has averaged nearly eight runs per contest.
For the Seminoles to advance deep into the NCAA Tournament, Walls must continue to be the table-setter at the top of the lineup. When Walls scores a run this season, the Seminoles are 30-7. When he scores multiple runs, they’re 16-2.
It’s not jaw-dropping to insist that an All-American like Taylor Walls needs to perform well for a team to reach its potential, but Walls’ recent surge has seemed to be a quiet one. Quiet or loud, if it’s one that can propel FSU to a significant NCAA Tournament run, people will notice.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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