Throughout the NCAA Tournament, the UNC baseball program's starting rotation hasn't been what we've been used to seeing.
Scott Forbes elected to use Ryan Lynch in both opening games of the Chapel Hill Regional and Super Regional, while using regular Friday starter Jason DeCaro in the second game on Saturday.
Now, ahead of the start of the College World Series, Scott Forbes is shuffling his rotation once again, going back to its original form.
Jason DeCaro will start the College World Series opener
While Forbes was noncommittal leading up to Friday night's showdown with Ole Miss, the team's starting pitcher has now been revealed:
It's DeCaro Day in Omaha!
DeCaro Day once again in Omaha pic.twitter.com/GoKH8a0wlJ
— Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) June 12, 2026
When you have two of the best starting pitchers in the country, you have the luxury of having a dilemma like this. Forbes and his staff will likely say it's a great problem to have, having to decide which stud to roll out on the mound for the opening game of the College World Series.
After his masterpiece performance in Game 2 of the Super Regionals, one in which he threw a complete game shutout, it makes a lot of sense to go back to DeCaro, given he's definitely got the hot hand.
Of course, Forbes keeps relaying how Game 1 is a "all-in" type of game, one in which we could see both DeCaro and Lynch throw at some point. While we wouldn't necessarily rule it out, the likely hope is that DeCaro can pitch deep into the game, handing the ball directly to the bullpen stars (such as Caden Glauber, Walker McDuffie, Jackson Rose and Matthew Matthijs) to close out the game.
UNC vs. Ole Miss: Everything Tar Heel fans need to know about the CWS opener
With a day of rest between games, there's a little more flexibility with these types of decisions. Now, the hope is that DeCaro can continue his success when he faces an Ole Miss squad that possesses a lot of power but has a high tendency of striking out as well.
DeCaro gets the opportunity to once again pitch in Omaha, and honestly, there's no better guy than him to put on the mound in the opener, helping set the tone for the Tar Heels as they hope to make a run at a College World Series title over the next few weeks.
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