No. 4 Baseball hosts Alabama in weekend action

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May 4, 2017 LEADING OFF

  • Auburn returns home to face rival Alabama for a three-game SEC series at Plainsman Park. Friday and Saturday's games will be available on SECN+/WatchESPN. The Sunday games will be broadcast by SEC Network with Mike Couzens and former Auburn All-American Gabe Gross on the call.
  • Radio coverage from the Auburn Sports Network is also available on Tiger 93.9 in the Auburn/Opelika area. The radio feed is also available on AuburnTigers.com, the TuneIn Radio app and the Auburn Athletics app on your smart phone. The Voice of the Tigers Rod Bramblett will call all three games.

No. 4 Auburn vs. Alabama









Weekend Schedule

Fri.6 p.m.
RHP Keegan Thompson (5-2, 2.05) vs. RHP Nick Eicholtz (1-2, 5.91)
Sat.2 p.m.
RHP Casey Mize (6-1, 1.23) vs. RHP Jake Walters (4-4, 3.99)
Sun.4 p.m.
RHP Davis Daniel (3-2, 4.97) vs. TBA

QUICK HITTERS

  • Auburn's No. 4 ranking this week by Baseball America is its highest since being ranked No. 4 in 1999.
  • Jonah Todd is batting .526 with 12 R, 3 XBH & 10 RBI in last 10. He's second in SEC with .396 BA overall. Todd was named SEC Player of the Week after batting .571 (8-for-14) w/ 5 R & 5 RBI. He's hitting .419 in SEC play.
  • The Auburn offense is averaging 8.83 runs per game over its last six SEC games.
  • Dylan Ingram has Auburn's last 3 homers and has 4 in his last 7 games after 3 HR in the first 39 games.
  • Keegan Thompson has posted a quality start in 8-of-9 career starts in SEC action at Plainsman Park.
  • The Tigers are 11-3 on the season in one-run games after going 1-11 in those games in 2016.
  • Auburn has won 10 of 11 series in 2017 with the only loss at Texas A&M, its most series wins since 2003.
  • The Tigers have hit 13 home runs in their last 12 games after recording only 10 in their first 34 contests.
  • Casey Mize (1.23) and Keegan Thompson (2.05) rank first and sixth in the SEC in ERA.
  • Auburn ranks 13th in the NCAA and 2nd in the SEC with 98 doubles, including 53 in the last 26 games.
  • With 32 wins (14 SEC) on the season, Auburn has surpassed its overall and conference win totals from 2016.
  • Despite missing two starts, Casey Mize is second in the SEC and 27th nationally with 82 strikeouts.
  • After not hitting a grand slam in 276 games since 2012, Auburn hit three in 11 games from April 11-29.
  • RHP Casey Mize was named a D1Baseball Midseason All-American, Butch Thompson was named top coach.
  • Auburn's 4-0 win over UAB was the 7th shutout of the season which ranks first in the SEC and 7th in NCAA.

SERIES HISTORY

Alabama leads the all-time series 158-127 dating back to 1896. Auburn leads 59-52 on the Plains. The Tigers defeated Alabama 4-3 on March 28 in the ninth-annual MAX Capital City Classic in Montgomery.

LOOKING AHEAD

  • Auburn plays its final midweek game of 2017 Tuesday at Regions Field in Birmingham against UAB. First pitch is set for 6:30 pm CT. The Tigers defeated UAB 4-0 at Plainsman Park on March 14.
  • UAB holds a 21-24 record on the season and hosts Old Dominion this weekend for a three-game series. The Blazers are led at the plate by Brewer Hicklen (.336, 12 2B, 5 3B, 7 HR, 26 RBI) and Carter Pharis (.313, 13 2B, 2 HR, 24 RBI).
  • On the mound, the Blazers' team ERA is 5.04. Thomas Lowery holds a 3.21 ERA with a 6-1 record. Garrett Whitlock is 3-6 with a 4.41 ERA. Carson Jones has five saves with 31 strikeouts in 41.2 IP.

FYI

  • Gates open one hour prior to first pitch.
  • The East Coliseum Lot, Athletics Complex lot and top two levels of the Stadium Deck are available for baseball parking on Friday, Tuesday and Wednesday. All lots are available on Saturday and Sunday.
  • The stadium deck is available for parking and game viewing. Parking is limited to top two levels.
  • Fans are permitted to bring empty plastic bottles in for free water refills.
  • A cell phone charging station is available to fans near the front gate adjacent to the promotions booth.
  • Grass areas around the park and adjacent parking lots are open and available for tailgating.