No. 15 Ole Miss Baseball (35-18, 14-13 SEC) wraps up the regular season this weekend in Tuscaloosa with a three-game series against No. 18 Alabama (35-17, 16-11 SEC). First pitch on Thursday and Friday is set for 6 p.m. while Sunday’s regular season finale will start at 2 p.m.
LEADING OFF
- Ole Miss run-ruled UT Martin on Tuesday to close out their home regular season slate.
- Judd Utermark became the Ole Miss career home run leader on Tuesday, hitting his 49th career home run in the win.
- The Rebels took two of three games from No. 9 Texas A&M last weekend for their fifth conference series win of the season.
- Dom Decker hit .545 (6-for-11) with three stolen bases, two walks, two RBI, and two runs scored in the series.
- Taylor Rabe struck out 14 Aggies without issuing a walk over six innings in his start on Sunday.
- Hunter Elliott struck out 11 Aggies in his start to become just the third Rebel in program history to reach the 300-strikeouts mark.
- Utermark is hitting .480 (12-for-25) with three home runs, eight RBI, and nine runs scored in the month of May.
- Austin Fawley is hitting .455 (10-for-22) with five home runs, nine RBI, and an OPS of 1.674 in the month of May.
- Fawley has hit seven home runs over his last 10 games, after hitting just four over his first 36.
- The Rebels come into this week ranked No. 15 by D1Baseball, No. 19 USA Today, No. 20 by the NCBWA, No. 22 by Baseball America, and No. 24 by Perfect Game.
- Walker Hooks currently leads the SEC in ERA (1.91), WHIP (0.82), saves (7), and appearances (16) during conference play.
- Taylor Rabe leads the SEC in strikeout-to-walk ratio during conference play, striking out nine batters for every walk issued. He has issued just six walks over nine appearances.
- Utermark, Fawley, and Tristan Bissetta have combined to hit 50 of Ole Miss’ 92 (54%) home runs this season.
- The Ole Miss pitching staff has struck out 592 batters, second-most in the SEC and fourth in the NCAA. Their K/9 of 11.7 is fourth in the SEC, their strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3.50 is second in the NCAA and the SEC and their ERA of 4.43 is sixth in the conference.
- Will Furniss played in his 200th game for Ole Miss in game one against Georgia, becoming just the 21st Rebel to reach that milestone.
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUPS
Thursday: LHP Hunter Elliott (5-2, 5.12 ERA) vs. RHP Tyler Fay (8-3, 4.48 ERA)
Friday: RHP Taylor Rabe (3-3, 4.56 ERA) vs. LHP Zane Adams (6-3, 4.04 ERA)
Saturday: RHP Cade Townsend (5-2, 3.25 ERA) vs. RHP Myles Upchurch (7-3, 3.43 ERA)
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Thursday and Friday’s games will be streamed live on SEC Network+ with Roger Hoover (PxP) and David Kindred (analyst) on the call. Saturday’s game will be broadcast live on SEC Network with Victor Rojas (PxP) and Lance Cormier (analyst) on the call.
Fans can listen to all Ole Miss Baseball games, home and away, on the Ole Miss Radio Network with David Kellum (PxP) and Brad Henderson (analyst) on the call.
SCOUTING REPORT
Head coach Rob Vaughn is in his third season with Alabama’s baseball program after spending 2018-23 at Maryland. With the Terrapins, he was a two-time Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year while claiming the regular season titles in 2022 and 2023. With the Crimson Tide, Vaughn has posted three consecutive 30-win seasons, including a 41-18 record last season while reaching the NCAA Tournament.
This season, Alabama sits at 35-17 entering the final series of the regular season. It’s ranked fourth in the SEC with a 16-11 conference record. Much of Alabama’s strengths lie in its pitching and defense. The Crimson Tide has turned 40 double plays this season, which ranks second in the SEC. Alabama also ranks top 20 nationally in earned run average, holding at 4.08.
Alabama’s projected starting lineup is Tyler Fay, Zane Adams and Myles Upchurch. The trio have a sub-4.50 ERA each, with Upchurch leading the charge with a 3.43 mark. Fay, Alabama’s Thursday starter, holds an 8-3 record to lead the team. He also paces the program with 88 strikeouts and pitched a complete game shutout against Florida in March. Adams is the only lefty in the rotation. He has 78 strikeouts in 71.1 innings pitched and holds a 4.04 ERA.
At the plate, Alabama has a conglomerate of solid players that make for a dangerous offense. Brady Neal is Alabama’s top hitter with a .341 batting average, while Justin Lebron has a team-leading 13 home runs. Lebron was a second team All-American according to ABCA and Rawlings last season. Bryce Fowler is Alabama’s other .300-plus batter with a .310 mark. Fowler leads the team in doubles with 15.
SEC STANDINGS
| 1 | 4 Georgia | 21-6 | .778 | — | 41-11 | .788 | 31-7 | 10-3 | 0-1 | 12-7 | W9 |
| 2 | 10 Texas A&M | 16-10 | .615 | 4.5 | 37-12 | .755 | 25-5 | 10-6 | 2-1 | 8-10 | L1 |
| 3 | 6 Texas | 16-10 | .615 | 4.5 | 37-12 | .755 | 26-4 | 8-8 | 3-0 | 10-5 | W1 |
| 4 | 18 Alabama | 16-11 | .593 | 5 | 35-17 | .673 | 21-5 | 11-11 | 3-1 | 10-10 | W3 |
| 5 | 5 Auburn | 16-11 | .593 | 5 | 35-16 | .686 | 20-8 | 10-8 | 5-0 | 14-9 | W2 |
| 6 | 19 Florida | 15-12 | .556 | 6 | 34-18 | .654 | 22-13 | 11-5 | 1-0 | 14-6 | W1 |
| 7 | 13 Mississippi State | 15-12 | .556 | 6 | 38-14 | .731 | 25-8 | 9-5 | 4-1 | 8-11 | L2 |
| 8 | 12 Arkansas | 15-12 | .556 | 6 | 34-18 | .654 | 22-12 | 8-5 | 4-1 | 11-8 | L1 |
| 9 | 15 Ole Miss | 14-13 | .519 | 7 | 35-18 | .660 | 27-7 | 6-8 | 2-3 | 13-15 | W2 |
| 10 |  Oklahoma | 13-14 | .481 | 8 | 31-18 | .633 | 19-7 | 8-10 | 4-1 | 9-13 | W1 |
| 11 |  Tennessee | 13-14 | .481 | 8 | 35-18 | .660 | 28-10 | 5-7 | 2-1 | 9-7 | W1 |
| 12 |  Kentucky | 12-15 | .444 | 9 | 30-18 | .625 | 19-6 | 11-12 | 0-0 | 4-5 | L1 |
| 13 |  Vanderbilt | 11-16 | .407 | 10 | 29-24 | .547 | 23-8 | 5-11 | 1-5 | 8-14 | L1 |
| 14 |  LSU | 9-18 | .333 | 12 | 29-24 | .547 | 23-11 | 3-13 | 3-0 | 3-15 | L3 |
| 15 |  South Carolina | 7-20 | .259 | 14 | 22-31 | .415 | 18-18 | 4-11 | 0-2 | 3-19 | L9 |
| 16 |  Missouri | 6-21 | .222 | 15 | 23-27 | .460 | 14-14 | 3-12 | 6-1 | 4-17 | W1 |