2017 Big East Baseball Tournament: St. John’s vs. Xavier preview

Every year, four of the seven Big East baseball teams descend upon a city (sometimes Omaha, sometimes Aberdeen, Maryland) for a weekend of fun, excitement, and baseball.

We’ll be covering each and every game here at Big East Coast Bias. Our pal Alex Sindelar will be there in person to take in the madness. It’ll be a fun weekend.

The Xavier Musketeers and St. John’s Red Storm open the festivities while the Creighton Bluejays and Seton Hall Pirates have the nightcap.

Courtesy of the Big East, the bracket can be found below.

Big East Conference

How to Stream

Time: 3:30 p.m. ET

Stream: FOX Sports Go (Big East Digital Network)

Players to Watch

St. John’s

RHP Sean Mooney

Mooney became just the second pitcher in Big East history to take home the Pitcher and Freshman of the Year awards, and for good reason. The St. John’s hurler was filthy this season, boasting an 8-0 record and 1.10 ERA. Mooney is the third straight Red Storm pitcher to win Pitcher of the Year. If he doesn’t pitch on Thursday against Xavier, it’s almost certain you’ll see him sometime this weekend.

Xavier

3B Rylan Bannon

Bannon took home Big East Player of the Year honors this season, becoming the second straight Musketeer to do such. He was a man possessed in Big East play, putting up a .426 average and .508 on base percentage. Having a player like that in your lineup instantly makes the rest of the team that much more potent, as pitchers will constantly be planning on how they want to face Bannon.