Kentucky baseball hasn’t played a game since dropping two of three to last-place Georgia last weekend, but suddenly the team’s stock is back on the rise thanks to its strong RPI.

Kendall Rogers of Rivals.com has the Cats (No. 32 RPI according to boydsworld.com) in the field of 64 in his latest NCAA Tournament projections. Rogers, who just a few days ago said UK had likely played itself out with a disappointing series in Athens, Ga., has Kentucky traveling west to play at the Cal State Fullerton Regional.

A weak overall field and a strong Southeastern Conference — Rogers projects nine(!) SEC teams in the tournament — is certainly helping Kentucky’s chances.

Rogers predicts the Cats will be the No. 3 seed along with host and No. 1 seed Cal State Fullerton, No. 2 seed Stanford and No. 4 seed Fresno State. Should the team make the tourney, it would be the third postseason appearance in the last five years.

One might wonder why the NCAA would send Kentucky all the way to California. Quite frankly, the NCAA isn’t going to reward UK for barely sliding into the tournament. Right now, Rogers has Kentucky as one of the last five teams in the tournament alongside California, Texas State, N.C. State and Western Kentucky. Nonetheless, UK will hold out hope for the Louisville Regional if it were to make the tournament.

Remember to have to take these projections with a grain of salt. A lot can happen between now and Monday at 12:30 p.m. when the field will be announced on ESPN. If you’re a Kentucky fan and hoping the projections come through, hope that the teams that are favored to win the mid-major conferences win their respective championships. Upsets on the mid-major level will only damage the Cats’ chances.