Alabama Week 10 Review
Alabama was swept by South Carolina in the Crimson Tide’s final regular season series of the season. The Gamecocks won the final game of the series 9-7 and they recorded 16 hits against the Tide. UA entered the SEC Tournament as a No. 9 seed and defeated Kentucky, 5-2, in the opening game at Hoover. A day later, the Crimson Tide (32-25) fell to Mississippi State, 4-1. Alabama should be in position to make the NCAA Tournament field and likely will be a No. 3 seed in the regionals.
Auburn Week 10 Review
The Tigers were swept on the road by Vanderbilt, including a 4-3 loss in the series finale. As a result, Auburn failed to reach the SEC Tournament. Butch Thompson’s first season as Auburn’s head coach was disappointing, but he inherited a program that has struggled for years. Auburn finished the season 23-33 overall and 8-22 in conference play.
SEC baseball rankings
1. Florida (44-11, 19-10)
2. MSU (41-14, 21-9)
3. Texas A&M (41-14)
4. South Carolina (42-14, 20-9)
5. Vanderbilt (43-15, 18-12)
6. Ole Miss (42-16, 18-12)
7. LSU (40-17, 19-11)
8. Alabama (32-25, 15-15)
9. Kentucky (32-25, 15-15)
10. UGA (27-30, 11-19)
11. Tennessee (29-28, 9-21)
12. Missouri (26-30, 9-21)
13. Arkansas (26-29, 7-23)
14. Auburn (23-33, 8-22)
SEC Tournament
The SEC is the best conference in college baseball, with seven teams from the conference that are legitimate national championship contenders. Florida is the favorite to win the SEC Tournament, but the Gators will be challenged by Mississippi State, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Ole Miss and LSU. All seven of those teams are ranked in the top 11 of the latest college baseball poll.
The most impressive storyline from this baseball season has been Mississippi State’s turnaround. Last year, the Bulldogs were the worst team in the conference. This season, MSU won the SEC West Division and currently are ranked third in the country. John Cohen should be the SEC Coach of the Year.
Missouri, Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee were eliminated from the SEC Tournament on the opening day. The final eight teams advanced to a double elimination tournament to determine the champion.
Selecting a dark horse team is difficult when the “dark horse” is ranked in the top 11 in the country. However, Vanderbilt and Ole Miss – the sixth and seventh seeds, respectively – both have the potential to win the tournament. Ole Miss defeated Georgia, 5-1, and South Carolina, 10-4, in its first two games of the tournament. Vanderbilt knocked off Missouri, 7-0, and Texas A&M, 6-5, in its first two games.
Florida is the defending SEC Tournament champion, and the Gators are tied for second all-time with Mississippi State and Alabama with seven conference tournament championships. LSU leads the SEC with 11 tournament championships.
Predicted SEC Tournament Champion: Mississippi State