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SEC Tournament review and preview: Rain, then rainbows as homers fly in Hoover
By Joe Cox
Published:
Among the most remarkable things about Thursday in Hoover was that 3 games were actually played. Despite Texas A&M and Florida being delayed well into the afternoon, the weather was solid after that, and while Friday is likely to be a crowded day, the SEC Tournament is actually back on track to finish as planned.
The other remarkable thing was the bats. After seeing no team score more than 5 runs in the first 5 games of the tournament, each of Thursday’s wins was a blowout with the winning team scoring double-digit runs. Here’s our daily look back and look ahead.
Texas A&M handled Florida with ease, albeit in a surprising way. It was the Gators who seemed like the power threat, but not only did A&M outpitch Florida, allowing just 1 single on the afternoon, but the Aggies ripped 4 home runs, including an Austin Bost 3-run blast that allowed A&M to run-rule UF 10-0 in 7 innings. MVP: A&M starter Micah Dallas, who allowed 1 hit in 5 shutout innings with 7 strikeouts.
The second game continued the twin themes of the day, as UT got a solid 4 1/3 innings from Blake Tidwell, who departed with a secure lead. UT put up 10 runs with a mere pair of homers, but they had 10 hits, drew 7 walks, and benefited from 4 Vanderbilt errors. The 10-1 beatdown sent Tennessee on in the winner’s bracket. MVP: Tidwell, who will be pivotal for UT in the NCAA Tournament.
In the nightcap, Kentucky jumped out to a 2-0 edge on LSU. In the first 7 games of the Tournament, the team that scored first won. But the roof caved in on Kentucky, as LSU battered their way to an easy 11-6 victory. Josh Pearson had a 5-for-5 day, including a home run. Kentucky’s last shot at staying in the game was lost on a fielder’s choice at home plate, when LSU’s Dylan Crews slid around the tag safely. UK coach Nick Mingione was ejected after the half-inning, and UK’s chances at a win were as gone as their coach. The Wildcats did manage to put up 6 runs, but the game was never in doubt after the 4th inning. MVP: Pearson easily: 5 hits is quite a day.
On to Friday …
No. 7 Florida vs. No. 3 Arkansas
These two meet in the loser’s bracket. The Gators won the regular-season series in Gainesville. In those games, the winning team scored 8, 7 and 9 runs. Florida has had to scratch for 2 runs in 2 games so far. Arkansas seems likely to rebound, and they should be a little fresher, with Connor Noland likely ready to go. Florida came into the tournament playing better than Arkansas, but at this point, it looks like the competition faced (light in UF’s case, strong in Arkansas’) had something to do with those results.
No. 8 Vanderbilt vs. No. 12 Kentucky
Two of Thursday’s hard-luck losers face off, with Kentucky (Thursday aside) playing better than Vanderbilt down the stretch. The regular-season series in Lexington went to the Commodores. This one likely comes down to who can find enough pitching to outlast the other team. Neither has exactly been an offensive dynamo so far, with both winning their openers in Hoover 3-1 and then struggling to score on Thursday. If Vandy can get the bats alive, they should move on. If not, it gets interesting.
No. 2 Texas A&M vs. No. 11 Alabama
Before the season, a prediction that these two would meet in the winner’s bracket in the SEC Tournament’s double-elimination bracket might have seemed a little crazy. But here they are, with Bama probably playing for their NCAA Tournament lives. Even if the Tide lose, they’d follow up with the winner of Arkansas vs. Florida. They almost have to pick up a win in one of the games. Meanwhile, A&M showed absolutely no rust against the Gators and could be on a collision course with Tennessee. But Bama did beat A&M in their regular-season series.
No. 1 Tennessee vs. No. 4 LSU
The one section of the bracket that has an according-to-the-seeding matchup here, this could be fascinating. Pitting the SEC’s two most potent offenses against each other seems promising. They haven’t played this season, but UT has made it here while holding back the conference’s most dominant arms. Can LSU boldly succeed where so many others have failed, in trying to hit (presumably) Chase Dollander?
Predicted winners: Arkansas, Kentucky, A&M, UT.
Joe Cox is a columnist for Saturday Down South. He has also written or assisted in writing five books, and his most recent, Almost Perfect (a study of baseball pitchers’ near-miss attempts at perfect games), is available on Amazon or at many local bookstores.
