NCAA Baseball: SEC Pitching Rotations Week Ten
By Ryan Wright
Oh how the mighty have fallen… at least among the top pitchers in the SEC for one week.
Mississippi State right handed pitcher Chris Stratton (9-1) has his first loss of the season thanks to Florida. The sad truth is Stratton pitched well but took the loss despite his efforts. The Bulldogs did not provide enough run support for their ace in Friday’s 2-1 loss to the Gators.
Stratton’s ERA went from 2.19 to 2.22 after the defeat.
Another SEC heavyweight took a loss on Friday when Georgia’s Alex Wood loss 3-0 to South Carolina. Michael Roth improved to 5-0 with the run support while lowering his ERA from 2.82 to 2.60.
Kevin Gausman pitched a complete game gem for LSU on Friday striking out 11 and only giving up five singles. Gausman and LSU have a tough matchup this weekend against No. 3 South Carolina and Roth.
Corey Littrell continued his Sunday success improving to 8-0 for Kentucky. The Wildcats ace Taylor Rogers also notched a win against Alabama dropping his ERA .21 points to 4.60.
Ryne Stanek (6-3, 2.99 ERA) did not pitch last week after straining his back against South Carolina. The Hogs missed his arm against Auburn. Good news for Arkansas fans, Stanek will return to the mound on Saturday to face Tennessee.
SEC News and Notes
Hogs skipper Dave Van Horn will miss Thursday’s game to attend his eldest daughter’s graduation.
Not only did top pitchers have a rough week in the SEC but so did the hitters. LSU’s Ralph Rhymes saw his average drop from .503 to .476. Rhymes has amassed 88 hits in 185 at bats.
Ole Miss second baseman Alex Yarbrough went into a mini slump last week as well. He entered the weekend hitting .417 and is now hitting .405.
Florida catcher Mike Zunino continues to impress at the plate. Zunino leads the SEC in homeruns (14), sacrifice flies (7), doubles (22), and total bases (127). He is second in conference with 49 RBI, five behind Ole Miss’ slugger Matt Snyder.
Tough pitching always slows good hitting… too much so for Auburn’s Ben Moore. Moore entered the weekend hitting .359, he left Arkansas hitting .339.
SEC Pitching Matchup of the Week
LSU, Sophomore, RHP, Kevin Gausman (8-1, 2.95 ERA) vs. USC, Senior, LHP, Michael Roth (5-0, 2.60 ERA)
Florida (38-15, 16-11) at Auburn (29-24, 12-15)
Thursday
Florida, Junior, RHP, Hudson Randall (6-1, 3.29 ERA)
Auburn, Senior, RHP, Jon Luke Jacobs (5-2, 3.10 ERA)
Friday
Florida, Junior, LHP, Brian Johnson (5-4, 4.29 ERA)
Auburn, Freshman, LHP, Daniel Koger (3-4, 2.76 ERA)
Saturday
Florida, Sophomore, RHP, Karsten Whitson (3-0, 3.33 ERA)
Auburn, TBA
Georgia (30-22, 13-13) at Alabama (19-33, 7-20)
Thursday
Georgia, Sophomore, LHP, Alex Wood (6-2, 2.68 ERA)
Alabama, Freshman, RHP, Spencer Turnbull (2-5, 5.04 ERA)
Saturday
Georgia, Senior, RHP, Michael Palazzone (2-5, 5.93 ERA)
Alabama, Freshman, LHP, Jon Keller (1-5, 4.18 ERA)
Sunday
Georgia, Freshman, RHP, Luke Crumley (3-2, 4.05 ERA)
Alabama, Junior, RHP, Charley Sullivan (2-3, 4.98 ERA)
LSU (40-13, 17-10) at South Carolina (38-13, 17-9)
Thursday
LSU, Sophomore, RHP, Kevin Gausman (8-1, 2.95 ERA)
USC, Senior, LHP, Michael Roth (5-0, 2.60 ERA)
Friday
LSU, Freshman, RHP, Aaron Nola (6-3, 3.86 ERA)
USC, Sophomore, RHP, Forrest Koumans (2-2, 5.40 ERA)
Saturday
LSU, Sophomore, RHP, Ryan Eades (5-2, 3.75 ERA)
USC, TBA
Ole Miss (34-19, 14-13) at Vanderbilt (24-24, 13-14)
Thursday
Ole Miss, Sophomore, RHP, Bobby Wahl (6-1, 2.18 ERA)
Vandy, Sophomore, RHP, T.J. Pecoraro (0-4, 4.12 ERA)
Friday
Ole Miss, Sophomore, RHP, Mike Mayers (4-2, 4.04 ERA)
Vandy, Junior, LHP, Sam Selman (8-3, 4.03 ERA)
Saturday
Ole Miss, TBA
Vandy, Sophomore, LHP, Kevin Ziomek (3-6, 5.02 ERA)
Kentucky (41-12, 18-9) at Mississippi State (30-18, 13-14)
Thursday
Kentucky, Junior, LHP, Taylor Rodgers (5-3, 4.81 ERA)
MSU, Junior, RHP, Chris Stratton (9-0, 2.19)
Friday
Kentucky, Junior, LHP, Jerad Grundy (4-2, 4.08 ERA)
MSU, Junior, RHP, Kendall Graveman (3-3, 2.97 ERA)
Saturday
Kentucky, Sophomore, LHP, Corey Littrell (6-0, 2.30 ERA)
MSU, TBA
Arkansas (36-17, 13-14) at Tennessee (24-28, 8-19)
Thursday
Arkansas, Junior, RHP, D.J. Baxendale (6-3, 3.48 ERA)
Tennessee, Sophomore, LHP, Dalton Saberhagen (5-1, 2.92 ERA)
Friday
Arkansas, Sophomore, RHP, Ryne Stanek (6-3, 2.99 ERA)
Tennessee, Sophomore, RHP, Nick Williams (3-4, 3.67 ERA)
Saturday
Arkansas, TBA
Tennessee, Junior, RHP, Zack Godley (4-2, 3.50 ERA)
Baseball America Rankings
No. 2 South Carolina
No. 3 Florida
No. 4 Kentucky
No. 9 LSU
No. 25 Mississippi
Dropped Out: No. 20 Arkansas and No. 25 Mississippi State
Collegiate Baseball Rankings
No. 2 Kentucky
No. 3 South Carolina
No. 4 LSU
No. 5 Florida
No. 17 Arkansas
No. 30 Mississippi
Dropped Out: No. 30 Mississippi State
SEC East (Overall Record, SEC Record)
Kentucky41-12, 18-9
South Carolina 38-13, 17-9
Florida 38-15, 16-11
Georgia 30-22, 13-13
Vanderbilt 24-24, 13-14
Tennessee 24-28, 8-19
SEC West (Overall Record, SEC Record)
LSU 40-13, 17-10
Ole Miss 34-19, 14-13
Mississippi State 30-18, 13-14
Arkansas 36-17, 13-14
Auburn 29-24, 12-15
Alabama 19-33, 7-20
* Standings and records through May 16
Top Eight Batting Averages in the SEC
Ralph Ryhmes, LSU, .476,
Alex Yarbrough, Ole Miss, .405
Ryan Tella, Auburn, .387, .376
Anthony Gomez, Vanderbilt, .357
Adam Frazier, Ole Miss, .357
Cullen Wacker, Auburn, .355
Matt Reynolds, Arkansas, .350
Curt Powell, Georgia, .346
Top Team Batting Averages in the SEC
Auburn .317
Ole Miss .303
Kentucky.302
LSU .296
Georgia .280
Arkansas .279
Florida .278
South Carolina .275
Top Team ERA in the SEC
Arkansas 3.13
Mississippi State 2.70
Florida 3.00
South Carolina 3.18
LSU 3.30
Ole Miss 3.50
Individual Wins in the SEC
Chris Stratton, MSU, 9
Kevin Gausman, LSU, 8
Sam Selman, VU, 8
Corey Littrell, UK, 8
D.J. Baxendale, Arkansas, 6
Ryne Stanek, Arkansas, 6
Colby Holmes, USC, 6
7 other pitchers tied with 6 wins each
* SEC stats through May 16