⚾ 🥎 2018 UA BSB --Tide drops series against Texas A&M

Very nice win last night. Looks like our new coach has done a good job of making this team work together and learn how to hit the ball. Last year was a tough year to watch, so it's nice to see some offense this year. Roll Tide.
 
Just went to their page to check them out and saw this...

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I mean, shit. Will they not call after five like in little league or like they do in college softball? Still would have been 28-0.

That game does skew their numbers a bit!! Sadly, they let 'em play. I think their was a time in college that it was called after 7 or agreed upon by the coaches. Not really sure. There is a mercy rule in college baseball, may or may not be employed by all leagues. 10 after 7.
 
Buckle Up Fellas.........................wait
Joel Dolce song comes to mind...
Looks like our new coach has done a good job of making this team work together and learn how to hit the ball.
There are certainly a few areas where this years squad is better than I expected--one of those their approach at the plate. I have to admit they are playing better defense than I expected as well.

Mid-week, middle innings...with their pitching it's come together better than I expected. The picture is clearing up for how CBB will approach SEC play weekend after next with UGA.

And now we're talking about SEC play...which also means SEC pitching.
 
Based on what you've seen what would you call a good year? How do you see this season ending?
:devil: Anything better than 19 wins. :devil:

I'm not talking about sweeps, but winning series: 2 of 3. Although, a sweep makes these numbers that much better.

We're looking at 10 SEC series: UF, UofSC, and Vanderbilt aren't on the schedule. Right now I see it as a tough task to come out 5-5 in conference series but I'd take it going into the tournament.

I'd like to see this team being able to win at least two series on the road; say, Mizzou and Tennessee looks...

FWIW, I'm expecting to see a couple of "offensive fireworks" types of games this weekend.
 
Joel Dolce song comes to mind...

There are certainly a few areas where this years squad is better than I expected--one of those their approach at the plate. I have to admit they are playing better defense than I expected as well.

Mid-week, middle innings...with their pitching it's come together better than I expected. The picture is clearing up for how CBB will approach SEC play weekend after next with UGA.

And now we're talking about SEC play...which also means SEC pitching.


Sec pitching will be different and I fully expect us to take a step back. We are playing better than our talent right now and that is nothing bad about the guys we have.. I am really enjoying how they play the game. But the SEC is loaded and you just hope that our guys keep playing the same way thru adversity.
 
Is that a tournament team? Ha! I guess that depends on how many times Bama gets swept.
I'd call them a bubble team if they win win four and take at least one game against the other six--14 conference wins. Now, 14 didn't get any team in last year (Auburn lowest with 16 SEC wins) but we're looking at a team with a resume of 30 or more wins on the season.

But the SEC is loaded

No kidding! We're talking about whether or not this team has the makings of one we'll see in the NCAA's. They're catching a break not having the Gators on the schedule. I mention UF because their program, along with Arkansas and Kentucky, will look at this season as a disappointing one if they aren't playing in the CWS. I'm seeing LSU, Ole Miss, Auburn, and A&M as tournament teams. (I think Vandy will be there as well but like UF, we don't catch them this year.) That's seven of ten series with teams headed to the tourney: loaded.
 
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We gotta beat, Georgia, Tennessee, and Missouri, with good legitimate shots at Texas A&M, and Arkansas. I think we have a legit shot at those guys. Finding a way to steal one from Kentucky, Auburn, Ole Miss, and LSU will be icing on the cake for us as those teams have solid rosters. I'm speaking on terms of winning the series against these teams. Glad we stay away from Florida, shwew.
 
Aggies win game one, 3-0, with the Tide answering for a 3-1 win in the nightcap

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama baseball and New Mexico State split the Friday doubleheader at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Aggies came away with a 3-0 shutout win in the series opener before the Crimson Tide answered with a 3-1 win in the nightcap of the twinbill. Following the two games on Friday, Alabama sits at 12-3 overall.

"The first six innings of the first game, offensively, I didn't think that our at-bats were very good, and I didn't think we were very focused," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. "Once New Mexico State put up the two runs in the seventh, the last three innings, we competed and focused really well. We just didn't get enough hits and make enough plays.

"In game two, we competed and played well. Their starter (Kyle Bradish), he could pitch for anybody – Florida, TCU, Texas Tech, you name it. It was a good challenge, and we did a good job of pitch-counting him in the sixth inning. I thought our kids competed well in the second game to help us get the win."

The Crimson Tide and Aggies will meet to decide the series on Saturday afternoon at The Joe. Alabama will call on junior right-hander Sam Gardner for the start while New Mexico State sends senior left-hander Jonathan Groff to the mound. First pitch in the weekend finale has been moved up to 12 p.m. CT with the game airing live on SEC Network+.

GAME ONE
Alabama fell to New Mexico State, 3-0, in the first game of the doubleheader. The loss was the Crimson Tide's first at home this season.

The two teams were engaged in a pitcher's duel, with both starters working through 6.0 scoreless innings. Crimson Tide starter Sam Finnerty (2-1) ran into trouble in the top of the seventh. With one down, a hit-by-pitch followed by back-to-back singles crossed the first Aggie run of the day and ended Finnerty's afternoon. A single in the next at-bat brought across one more to make it a 2-0 affair in favor of NMSU.

The Aggies added a third run in the top of the eighth to take the 3-0 lead. Alabama gave itself a chance in the ninth, with senior Hunter Alexander leading off the frame with a walk. A strike-three call on a close pitch got New Mexico State its first out, but a single from senior Chandler Avant put two on for the Tide. UA had the tying run at the plate twice, but a flyout and a groundout ended the game in favor of the Aggies.

GAME TWO
The Crimson Tide used a gutsy performance from starter Jake Walters followed by a scoreless outing from the Tide bullpen in UA's 3-1 win over New Mexico State in game two of the night.

Walters grinded out 5.1 innings of one-run baseball, allowing four hits and five walks while punching out five. The senior Tide starter was followed by freshman Brock Guffey and sophomore Deacon Medders, with the duo tossing the final 3.2 innings and holding the Aggies scoreless. Medders earned his second save of the season thanks to 3.0 frames. The bullpen's standout effort marked the seventh game this season that the Tide relievers have not given up a run.

Alabama struck first in game two of the day, putting up two runs in the fourth. A leadoff walk from Alexander followed by a single from junior Chandler Taylor put two on. The Tide was gifted a wild pitch in the next at-bat to move Alexander to third, and another wild pitch one out later put Taylor in scoring position, as well. A third wild pitch in the inning moved both runners up 90 feet, bringing in Alexander for the game's first run. Keith Holcombe delivered in that same at-bat, singling to center to score Taylor and make it a 2-0 game after four innings of play.

The Aggies cut the lead in the half in the top of the sixth. A pair of one-out doubles in consecutive at-bats brought in one run to make it a 2-1 game. Alabama matched New Mexico State with one tally of its own in the bottom of the seventh.

Sophomore Walker McCleney reached on a fielder's choice to put a man aboard with one down for UA. A groundout in the next at-bat moved McCleney to second before an RBI-single from senior Cody Henry plated the Tide center fielder to set the score at 3-1. The Aggies would reach runners in both the eighth and ninth innings, but Medders shut the door with a pair of strikeouts in the ninth to secure the Crimson Tide victory and his second save in as many chances.

Baseball Splits Friday Doubleheader with New Mexico State - Alabama Athletics
 
Late Offense Pushes Baseball Past New Mexico State, 5-2, on Saturday

The Tide was no-hit until the fifth but scored five runs over the final four innings for the win

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Five runs across the final four innings, highlighted by a three-run seventh, helped Alabama baseball clinch the 5-2 victory and series win over New Mexico State on Saturday. With the win, the Crimson Tide moves to 13-3 on the season.

"It was a tough day to score," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. "Compliments to their starter (Jonathan Groff), who did a great job of throwing strikes. He had a good changeup and threw all three pitches for strikes. I was proud of our kids. We grinded through it. We didn't get a hit until the fifth inning but the feeling in the dugout was still positive. Our kids didn't press or panic, and we were able to bust through and win the game."

Alabama's offense was highlighted by senior Chandler Avant's 3-for-4 day that included a career-high three doubles to go along with his team-leading two runs scored and two RBI. Junior Jett Manning also contributed a pair of RBI as part of his 1-for-3 outing with one walk.

On the hill, sophomore Davis Vainer (2-0) earned his second win of the season thanks to a career-long 4.0 innings of work. The right-hander allowed one run on three hits and a walk while striking out three Aggie hitters. Junior Dylan Duarte tallied his second save of the season, throwing the final inning.

New Mexico State struck first in the game thanks to a solo home run in the top of the fourth. One inning later, Alabama evened things up at 1-1. Avant led off the fifth with a double to left-center, the Crimson Tide's first hit of the day, breaking the no-hit bid by the Aggie starter. A flyout to right moved Avant to third and then a 4-3 groundout crossed the leadoff man to knot the score up after five full.

The Tide broke the tie in the seventh, plating three runs on four hits and a walk to give the Crimson Tide a 4-1 lead after seven. Junior Keith Holcombe collected a one-out single to start the rally, and came home in the next at-bat. Avant plated Holcombe with an RBI-double to left, leading to a play at the plate, but a great slide by Holcombe broke up the tag and allowed Avant to move to third on the throw.

Junior Matt Malkin walked on four straight pitches in the next at-bat before a single by Manning through the left side brought in Avant from third for the inning's second run. One out later sophomore Walker McCleney singled to right to lead to another play at the plate, this time with Malkin. The throw beat the Tide backstop by a good bit, but a perfect slide by Malkin avoided the tag at home as he touched the plate to score UA's third run of the inning.

New Mexico State cut the deficit to two with one run in the top of the eighth. The Aggies used three consecutive singles followed by a double play to bring in one run and make it a 4-2 affair heading to the home half. In the bottom of that inning, the Crimson Tide matched NMSU with one run to put the game out of reach. Senior Hunter Alexander walked with one down and one out later Avant used his third double of the day to bring in Alexander, making it 5-2 for the final.

Next up for Alabama is a two-game midweek pairing with in-state Alabama A&M on Tuesday and Wednesday. Both games are set for a 6 p.m. CT first pitch on SEC Network+. Following the midweek non-conference matchups, the Crimson Tide will host Georgia this weekend form March 16-18 to kick off Southeastern Conference action. All three games of the SEC series can be seen nationally on the SEC Network.

Late Offense Pushes Baseball Past New Mexico State, 5-2, on Saturday - Alabama Athletics
 
2 of 3 would be a good weekend and would continue the good start for us
I was hoping for three of three. They definitely had the chance Friday with the tying run(s) on the plate a few times. They couldn't come from behind Friday, but did Saturday. I know I've mentioned it before (heck, several times) and considering Bama was 0-27 last season when trailing in late innings it's worth noting again. We've seen more than a handful of games where the Tide's offense came through late in the game.

With two wins this week (Alabama A&M mid-week series) it would put the Tide at 15-3 heading into SEC play hosting UGA. That's a hell of a lot better than I expected. Anyone, for that matter.
 
The Tide earned its third shutout victory, defeating the Bulldogs in seven innings

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Five different starters ended the night with multi-hit efforts as Alabama baseball cruised past Alabama A&M, 15-0, in seven innings on Tuesday night at Sewell Thomas Stadium. The shutout win marked the third time this season the Crimson Tide has held its opponent off the scoreboard – all coming on Tuesday night at home – and improved UA to 14-3 overall.

"It was as great night for us up and down the lineup," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. "A guy like Connor Stutts, who hasn't played a lot, got in there and made a lot of hard contact and hit his first home run. I'm proud of the whole team's effort, especially the offense tonight."

The Crimson Tide sprinted out to an early 8-0 lead, batting around in the first and using eight hits to score its eight runs. Alabama totaled three doubles and five singles along with one hit-by-pitch to put the game out of reach early. The eight-run inning was the highest single-inning output by the UA offense this season.

Alabama added six more in the fifth. Back-to-back doubles to start the inning from junior Cobie Vance and senior Cody Henry put two in scoring position before a walk to junior Chandler Taylor loaded the bases. Senior Chandler Avant singled up the middle to score a pair and one out later, a fielder's choice for freshman Sam Praytor resulted in a throwing error by the Bulldog pitcher, allowing one more to cross. Redshirt sophomore Connor Stutts cleared the bases in the next at-bat, homering to right field to make it a 14-0 game after five full. Alabama added its final run on a solo shot from Taylor in the bottom of the sixth for a 15-0 advantage, the eventual final.

Vance ended the night going 3-for-4 with a career-high tying three runs and two RBI, while Stutts (2-5) and Taylor (2-3) led the Tide with four RBI apiece. Avant (2-for-3) and Henry (2-for-4) rounded out the multi-hit efforts with two hits each.

Tide starter Mason Duke (2-0) posted an impressive performance, finishing the night with a career-high 6.0 innings of scoreless baseball. The junior allowed just four hits, one walk and struck out five for his second win in as many starts. Duke then handed the ball over to Brock Guffey in the seventh to secure the shutout, with the freshman striking out one Bulldog hitter in his inning of work.

The Crimson Tide and Bulldogs return to the diamond tomorrow at 6 p.m. CT for the second game of the midweek set. Alabama's starter is to be determined while A&M will send senior right-hander Blaine Milam to the hill. The Wednesday contest can be seen live on SEC Network+.

Offense Explodes as Baseball Earns 15-0 Shutout Win Over Alabama A&M - Alabama Athletics
 
We picked up another W last night, 14-0 over A&M to move to 15-3. Now we start conference play. Hard to imagine that this bunch is only 4 wins away from last years' win total!!
 
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The Tide earned its second consecutive shutout victory, defeating the Bulldogs in seven innings

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – A season-high five home runs and an impressive pitching performance helped Alabama baseball record its second consecutive shutout with a 14-0 win over Alabama A&M on Wednesday evening at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The victory moves UA to 15-3 on the season, including a perfect 5-0 mark in midweek matchups.

"It was great to see all the hard contact these past two days," said Alabama head coach Brad Bohannon. "I'm really happy for Connor Stutts, who hasn't gotten a lot of opportunities, to be able to get in there for two games and hit two home runs. It's just a great message for everybody to be ready when your name is called. I'm very pleased with the way all of our guys came to the ballpark and prepared these last two games."

Eight of the nine starters for UA tallied at least one hit with all 10 Alabama batters reaching base safely on one or more occasion. Alabama's bats totaled five home runs on the night, highlighted by Hunter Alexander's two roundtrippers. The senior finished 2-for-4 with a career-high and team-high five RBI along with two runs scored. Also delivering a home run for the Tide were juniors Chandler Taylor and Matt Malkin along with redshirt sophomore Connor Stutts.

Freshman Brady Greene (1-0) secured his first career win with 3.0 innings of scoreless baseball. The right-hander allowed three hits and issued two walks while striking out one Bulldog hitter. Greene combined with starter Davis Vainer, a sophomore, senior Tyler Adams and Dylan Duarte, a junior, for the shutout win.

The Crimson Tide struck first in Wednesday's contest, scoring one in the third to gain a 1-0 lead. Alabama extended its lead in the fifth, putting up seven runs on seven hits, highlighted by a pair of three-run home runs. The inning began with back-to-back singles from Malkin and junior Jett Manning, placing runners on first and second for Stutts, who cleared the bases with a three-run home run over the right field wall.

After a pair of walks, Alexander notched a three-run home run of his own, sending a shot to left field. Junior Keith Holcombecontinued the inning's hot hitting, sending a single up the middle, before Malkin followed with another single through the left side for his second hit of the inning. In the next at-bat, junior Jett Manning capped off the scoring with an RBI single, scoring one to set the tally at 8-0 after five frames.

The Tide added six more in the sixth on five hits, three of which were home runs, to put the game out of reach. Alexander connected on his second home run of the evening, this time going for a two-run shot. Also contributing homers in the inning were Taylor, who notched a solo shot for his team-leading sixth of the season, and Malkin, who added a two-run homer of his own.

Malkin wrapped up his Wednesday with a perfect 4-for-4 performance that included two RBI and a team-leading three runs scored to go with his home run. Taylor and Stutts each homered in consecutive nights, the first duo to do so this season.

"I couldn't have asked for us to be in a better place after 18 games," Bohannon added. "I'm really happy to be 15-3, and I'm pleased with how we're playing. It's time for a new challenge, and we certainly have a challenge this weekend with a really good Georgia team coming to town."

Alabama will now shift its focus towards Southeastern Conference play. The Crimson Tide welcomes the Georgia Bulldogs to Sewell-Thomas Stadium this weekend from March 16-18. The series opener on Friday is slated for a 6 p.m. start with Saturday's matchup set for 1 p.m. CT. The series finale on Sunday is scheduled for a 2 p.m. first pitch on getaway day. All three games will air nationally on SEC Network with the duo of Mike Morgan and Mike Rooney on the call.

Five Home Runs Power Baseball Past Alabama A&M, 14-0, on Wednesday Evening - Alabama Athletics
 
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