SEC Week 5 Baseball Power Rankings: Ranking the initial SEC series matchups

Conference play has arrived. How jazzed are we? Well, jazzed enough to dispense with our usual rankings (not to fear, if that’s your thing, we’ll still align the teams at the end).

Let’s see a ranking of the initial SEC series matchups. All 16 SEC teams open league play and here’s a ranking of those initial series matchups — with the teams listed 1-16 as you’ve come to expect at the end.

Here’s the rundown on 8 SEC weekend opener matchups.

SEC Week 5 Power Rankings: Matchups Edition

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8. LSU/Missouri

No disrespect to the Tigers, who remain one of the most interesting and capable teams in the SEC. That almost works against them in the most uneven battle possible. Missouri is 8-8 and just split 4 games with Binghamton. LSU is a single run away from being 17-1. It’s hard to gauge much from either of these teams in this weekend. It’ll be fun for LSU alums and backers, but there’s not much to learn here.

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7. South Carolina/Oklahoma

Other than Mizzou, Carolina is the only other SEC team not ranked in (at least) one of the major college baseball polls. The Gamecocks are 15-3, but did get swept by Clemson in the only significant games they played. Kyson Witherspoon on the hill makes Oklahoma a bit more interesting. The Sooners are also a big base-stealing team and that’s fun to watch. Still, it’s an uneven matchup involving 1 of the league’s 2 completely unranked teams.

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6. Kentucky/Georgia

Georgia has been one of the most impressive surprises of the season. Ryland Zaborowski has murdered the baseball (.447 average, leads the SEC in slugging percentage) but Georgia’s pitching (4.28 team ERA) has been a bit suspect. Kentucky took 2 pre-conference losses, but leads the SEC in stolen bases and seems determined to run back its small ball and clutch pitching plan of a year ago. This series does have some intrigue (Is UGA elite? Is Kentucky an SEC competitor?).

5. Texas/Mississippi State

The 14-1 Longhorns are a 1-run loss from being 15-0. Jared Spencer has been elite on the mound (sub-1.00 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 21 innings) and Texas has been solid at the plate. Pico Kohn’s 37 strikeouts highlights Mississippi State‘s better than expected pitching. State has had some buzzard’s luck early (losing by 1, 1, 2, and 3 runs), but this is a chance to shift that narrative.

4. Vanderbilt/Auburn

Vanderbilt is still possessed of a punch-and-judy style offense with just 11 homers on the season. But the Commodores’ pitching has taken a step forward. Cody Bowker has been even better than his 1.89 ERA — opponents are hitting .125 against him. Meanwhile, Auburn looks to be fairly offense driven. But Ike Irish, one of our favorite players in the league, is still hitting below .300. That won’t last long.

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3. Alabama/Texas A&M

The league’s surprise versus the league’s underachiever? The league’s top hitter (Justin Labron with 11 homers) against the top pitcher (A&M’s Ryan Prager and his 0.38 ERA)? Sounds like must-see stuff. If anybody had bet that Texas A&M would enter this series with 6 times more losses than Alabama, well, that person would’ve made a hefty profit. There’s plenty at stake here. How strong is Bama? How broken is A&M? This is probably Week 5’s most educational matchup.

2. Arkansas/Ole Miss

This is the series for pitching battles. Zach Root on one side, Hunter Elliott on the other. Arkansas remains the quiet threat to the SEC, and seeing a weekend of strong pitching would boost their CWS hopes. On the other hand, Ole Miss might be right there with Alabama for a pleasant surprise. Alabama’s done most of its damage at the plate, but the Rebels seem to be cobbling together a top pitching staff. Sounds like an outstanding matchup.

1.Tennessee/Florida

This feels like a May series and not a March one. Florida used to be big brother, but Tennessee, the last unbeaten team in the SEC, recognizes no other powers in this era. Meanwhile, Florida can lean on Liam Peterson, whose sub 1.00 ERA will get put to the test. Brody Donay and Bobby Boser are two of the SEC’s top sluggers. Tennessee is fearsome. Levi Clark rolls into the series hitting (gulp) .513 and Gavin Kilen is fourth in the SEC in batting average and second in slugging percentage. The Vols also boast the SEC’s top ERA. This is the league’s best matchup for Week 5.

SEC Baseball Power Rankings

16. Missouri

15. South Carolina

14. Texas A&M

13. Mississippi State

12. Auburn

11. Kentucky

10. Ole Miss

9. Vanderbilt

8. Oklahoma

7. Alabama

6. Florida

5. Texas

4. Georgia

3. Arkansas

2. LSU

1.Tennessee

Joe Cox

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.