The Alabama Crimson Tides baseball season ended with two losses in the Hattiesburg Regional last weekend, but the hot stove league is heating up as the team prepares for the 2026 season. Today we will look at what is going on around the complex on Bryant Dr.
* Coach Rob Vaughn gets a contract extension:
Tide coach Rob Vaughn signed a five year $4.5 million dollar contract when he was hired by Greg Byrne in June of 2023. This week Vaughn was extended, and assumedly given a raise by Byrne. The details of the deal are awaiting approval of the Board Of Trustees, who meet this week. Vaughn, soon to be 38, has a 73-38 record with two regional appearances in his two seasons at the helm. Vaughn previously was the head coach at Maryland for six years where he forged a record of 183-115 with three regional bids and was named BIG10 coach of the year twice. Vaughn’s overall record is 257-154. Alabama finished the 2025 season with a record of 41-18 with a 17-15 mark in conference games. With 40 wins in the regular season the 2025 team became the first Alabama squad with that amount since the 2002 season.
* Carson Ozmer up for award:
Alabama grad transfer closer Carson Ozmer is one of the 13 finalist for the Stopper Of The Year award. The winner will be named during the College World Series on June 13th. Ozmer made a team high 29 appearances for the Tide, with 22 of them being scoreless. Over 38.1 innings the U Penn transfer struck out 48 batters good for 11.3 per nine innings, while allowing a batting average against of .193. Ozmer set the single season record for saves by a Tide pitcher with 17, shattering the previous record of 14 held by Ben Short. Ozmer had a 4-2 recored and a 3.29 ERA, having a hand in 21 of Bama’s 41 victories and was named first team All-SEC.
* Justin LeBron Semi Finalist for the Golden Spikes Award
Sophomore shortstop Justin LeBron was a semi finalists for the prestigious Golden Spikes Award. LeBron started every game for the Tide at shortstop and was named 2nd Team All-SEC, and SEC All Defensive Team. The Miramar, Florida native put up these statistics for the Tide:
Batting average- 2nd on team- .316, Hits second-72, At Bats second-231, and lead the team in the following: Home runs- 18, RBI-72, Doubles-18, Total bases-147, Runs-60, Slugging Percentage-.636, OPS-1.057, and Stolen Bases with 17 out of 18 attempts.
*Kade Snell named All SEC;
Alabama senior outfielder Kade Snell was named 1st team All SEC after leading the team in hitting with a .363 average with 10 home runs and 52 RBI. Snell also led the team in on base percentage at .463 and was second on OPS at 1.039 and 2nd in total bases with 122.
*Riley Quick-Second team All SEC:
Junior pitcher Riley Quick was 2nd team All SEC after coming back from Tommy John surgery. Quick led the Tide in wins and had an 8-3 overall record with a 3.92 ERA and led the team with 70 strikeouts over 62 innings pitched.
* Three players named Academic All District:
College Sports Communicators named three Alabama players to their Academic All-District Baseball Team:
Zane Adams, sophomore pitcher carries at 3.87 GPA in Sports Management. Tyler Fay, redshirt sophomore pitcher is a Marketing Major with a 3.76 GPA, and first baseman Will Hodo graduated this fall in Exercise Science and finished with a 3.84 GPA over his four years.
Three Alabama Signees Win Gatorade Player Of The Year for their states:
*Eric Hines from ACA in Tuscaloosa was named the Alabama Gatorade Player of the Year after leading the Patriots to the state title this spring. Hines is a 6’3” 225 pound outfielder that was named the 5A player of the year and hitter of the year before garnering the Gatorade award. The incoming freshman hit .438 with 20 home runs, 58 RBI, and scored 66 runs for the Pats.
*Will Rhine an infielder out of Bel Air, Maryland was names his states Gatorade Player of the Year. The John Carroll High School alum hit .420 with seven home runs and 32 RBI during the 2025 season.
Luke Smyers, a left hander pitcher out of Mills Godwin High School in Henrico County, VA was names his states Gatorade Player of the Year on Tuesday. Smyers was 7-0 with a 0.41 ERA and struck out 109 batters while also taking the time to hit .323 with an OPS of 1.103 and driving in 21 RBI as an outfielder. The lanky lefty committed to the Tide in September of 2022 and has held firm to his pledge for almost three years.
*Nine players have entered the transfer portal:
Pitcher Ariston Veasey- committed to Clemson
Pitcher Jonathan Stevens
Pitcher Sam Mitchell
Pitcher Egan Lowery
Pitcher Zach Kittrell
Pitcher Nash Wagner
Pitcher Jansen Kenty
Pitcher Connor Ball
Outfielder Ahmaad Duff
*Alabama snags a portal addition
Right hander pitcher Matthew Tippie is the first addition to the roster for the portal. Tippie comes from Texas State where he pitched 46 innings and struck out 73 batters, has one season of eligibility left, and is also draft eligible.
*Draft Possibilities:
Riley Quick, junior pitcher, likely a 1st round pitch in July’s MLB draft. At 6’6’ with a fast ball that touches 100 mph, Quick will not be on the board for long.
Kade Snell, senior outfielder, should be drafted pretty high despite not having leverage of returning to school. Will be a bargain for some team.
Zane Adams, sophomore pitcher. Adams draft status lost a little steam with a mid season slump, but 6’4” lefties don’t grow on trees. As a sophomore eligible draftee, Adams has the cards in his favor. He can come back and still go out as a junior in 2026.
Richie Bonomolo, Jr, junior outfielder. The JUCO transfer took over in centerfield for the Tide and had an outstanding season, being named to the SEC Tournament All Tournament team. Bonomolo hit .311 with 17 doubles, two triples, eight home runs, 16 stolen bases, and drove in 52 runs. The Bronx native also led the team with 40 walks and fielded at a .982 clip.
Tyler Fay is a redshirt sophomore pitcher who joined the Tides weekend rotation about half way through the season. The Nebraska native improved week by week and had his best performances over the last month of the season. The 6’6” righty will be an intriguing prospect and should be drafted in the middle rounds.
Others that will have some interest are: Senior pitcher Carson Ozmer, senior pitcher Braylon Myers, junior catcher-utility Brady Neal, junior outfielder Bryce Fowler, and junior infielder Jason Torres. Will Hodo would be a potential draftee but has stated that he has no interest in continuing his career.
As more news comes along I will pass along. This is a busy time of the year over the next month and a half with the portal and draft looming. Expect a lot of changes all around college baseball.
Roll Tide
Bama Baseball Fever, Catch It
