We are halfway through conference play in the Southeastern Conference, with the stakes being raised amongst the league as we inch closer to the end of April. While some of the top teams continue to dominate, some of the middle-of-the-pack to lower-tier teams are looking to get back on track.
SEC Baseball power rankings
Top 5
Texas and Arkansas swapped places at first and second, respectively.
The Longhorns started off with a 12-2 run-rule win over Houston Christian on Tuesday at home at UFCU Disch-Falk Field before heading to Lexington, Ky. Texas took the series opener over Kentucky on Friday, 6-3, before Saturday’s wild ride. The Longhorns and the Wildcats went 15 innings in a five hour and 12 minute game.
Griffin Cameron laid down a bunt single that allowed the winning run to score on an error to give Kentucky the win, 5-4, to end the marathon. Texas overcame the loss and took the rubber match on Sunday, 5-4, to win the series and take full possession of first place in the SEC.
The Razorbacks won their midweek contest over the Arkansas State Red Wolves, 7-3, at Baum-Walker Stadium before traveling to Athens, Ga., to take on the Georgia Bulldogs. Arkansas took the series opener on Friday, 13-3, at Foley Field, thanks to some explosive offense late down the stretch. Georgia struck back on Saturday with a 7-6 victory while holding off a late comeback attempt to send the series to a rubber match on Sunday.
In a back-and-forth battle, the game went into extra innings after the Razorbacks plated two runs in the top of the ninth to tie the game, 5-5. Arkansas took the lead in the top of the 11th on an RBI fielder’s choice, but Georgia struck back with a two-out RBI double by Tre Phelps to keep the game going. The Bulldogs walked it off with two outs in the bottom of the 12th on a solo shot by Henry Hunter to complete the upset.
Tennessee and Georgia each moved up a spot in the rankings at third and fourth, respectively.
The Volunteers began the week with a 10-2 win over Alabama State on Tuesday at home before heading to Oxford, MS, to take on the Ole Miss Rebels. Tennessee took the first game of the series on Friday, 3-2, but Ole Miss knotted up the series with an 8-5 victory on Saturday. The Rebels had an 8-7 lead going into the top of the ninth, but the Volunteers rallied with three runs to take the lead, 10-8. Tennessee sealed the deal in the bottom of the ninth to take the game and the series.
The Bulldogs started off their week with a 16-2 run-rule victory over Presbyterian on Tuesday in Athens, Ga., before knocking off the Arkansas Razorbacks in two out of three games over the weekend, as previously mentioned.
LSU and Ole Miss did not move in our standings while staying at fifth and sixth, respectively. The Tigers avoided an upset on Tuesday against Nicholls on the road, 5-3, before heading to Auburn, Ala. LSU was completely caught off guard by Auburn and was swept for one of the biggest shocks of the season. The Rebels got off to a hot start to the week by destroying Alcorn State on Wednesday in run-rule fashion, 29-1. Ole Miss would finish out the week going 2-2 by dropping two out of three games to Tennessee, as previously mentioned.
Middle of the pack
Auburn and Vanderbilt swapped places at seventh and eighth, respectively. The Tigers began the week by pulling out a 9-8 midweek win over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on Tuesday in an exciting matchup in Atlanta, Ga., before heading back home to sweep LSU, as previously mentioned.
The Commodores started out with a 9-2 win over the Dayton Flyers on Tuesday at home before heading to Norman, Okla. Vanderbilt dropped two out of three to Oklahoma over the weekend, including getting run-ruled on Saturday, 14-0. The Commodores rallied back to salvage the series finale over the Sooners with a run-rule victory of their own in eight innings, 13-2.
Alabama and Oklahoma did not move up or down in the rankings at ninth and 10th, respectively. The Crimson Tide took a 10-6 midweek win over Southern Miss on Tuesday at home before welcoming the Mississippi State Bulldogs to Sewell-Thomas Stadium. Mississippi State run-ruled Alabama in Friday’s series opener in eight innings, 13-3, but the Crimson Tide struck back with a 4-1 victory on Saturday to even the series.
The Bulldogs snatched the series on Sunday with a 4-2 win to pull off the upset. The Sooners fell to the Dallas Baptist Patriots at home on Tuesday, 9-1, but took two out of three from Vanderbilt over the weekend, as previously mentioned.
Kentucky, Texas A&M and Mississippi State remained at 11th, 12th and 13th, respectively.
The Wildcats lost their midweek contest on Tuesday against the Louisville Cardinals on the road in 10 innings, 4-3, after entering the bottom half of the 10th with a 3-2 lead. Kentucky went on to drop two out of three to Texas over the weekend, as previously mentioned.
Bottom of the barrel
The Aggies are getting back on track with multiple huge victories over the past two weeks, including taking two out of three from Tennessee last weekend. Texas A&M took care of business on Tuesday with a 14-1 run-rule win over Sam Houston on the road at Don Sanders Stadium before returning home to Blue Bell Park to take on South Carolina.
With Thursday’s game tied, 7-7, Caden Sorrell walked off the game in the bottom of the 10th with a solo shot to left field to lift the Aggies over the Gamecocks, 8-7. Texas A&M blew out South Carolina on Friday with a 17-0 run-rule stomping to take the series.
The Gamecocks looked to salvage the series finale on Saturday with a 12-2 lead going into the bottom of the sixth. The Aggies started chipping away at the lead but found themselves in the bottom of the ninth trailing by five, 12-7. Texas A&M pulled off the impossible by scoring eight runs in the final frame, including a grand slam by Hayden Schott and a walk-off grand slam by Kaden Kent to win the game. The Aggies have now won six games in a row.
The Bulldogs are also getting back on track with an 8-3 win over the UAB Blazers on Tuesday on the road before taking two out of three from Alabama over the weekend, as previously mentioned.
Florida moved up a spot to 14th after going 4-0 during the week. The Gators started out with an upset win over rival Florida State, 5-4, in Gainesville, Fla. Florida remained home to welcome Missouri for a three-game weekend series. The Gators took the series opener convincingly, 11-2, and had to wait until Saturday to play a doubleheader against the Tigers, with both games going seven innings of regulation.
Florida shut out Missouri in the first game, 5-0, but had a little drama in the series finale. With the game tied in the bottom of the seventh inning, 2-2, Brendan Lawson walked it off with an RBI single to right field to complete the sweep over the Tigers, 3-2. The Gators are looking to get back on track with an overall record of 24-14 and a conference record of 4-11.
South Carolina fell down a spot to 15th place in our rankings. The Gamecocks picked up a 13-3 run-rule victory on Tuesday over USC Upstate at Founders Park before getting swept by Texas A&M, as previously mentioned. South Carolina is now 20-17 on the year with a league record of 2-13.
Missouri remains at the bottom of the list. The Tigers started out the week with a gutsy 11-8 win over the SIUE Cougars on Tuesday in Edwardsville, IL. Missouri was swept over the weekend by Florida, as previously mentioned, and is the only team in the SEC without a conference victory at 0-15.
Razorbackers SEC Baseball Power Rankings after Week 9:
- Texas (29-5, 13-2) ⬆1
- Arkansas (32-5, 12-3) ⬇1
- Tennessee (31-5, 11-4) ⬆1
- Georgia (32-6, 10-5) ⬆1
- LSU (31-6, 10-5)
- Ole Miss (27-9, 9-6)
- Auburn (26-10, 9-6) ⬆1
- Vanderbilt (26-10, 8-7) ⬇1
- Alabama (29-8, 8-7)
- Oklahoma (25-10, 7-8)
- Kentucky (19-14, 6-9)
- Texas A&M (20-15, 6-9)
- Mississippi State (22-14, 5-10)
- Florida (24-14, 4-11) ⬆1
- South Carolina (20-17, 2-13) ⬇1
- Missouri (12-23, 0-15)