The 12th ranked Alabama Crimson Tide defeated the 9th ranked Oklahoma Sooners two games to one in a three game series this weekend. The Tide won game one 8-6 before falling in game two by a 6-5 score. In the rubber game of the series Bama came out victorious with a 8-6 win. Alabama improved to 25-4 and 6-3 in the SEC while the Sooners fell to 22-5 overall and 5-4 in league play.
Game One- Won 8-6
Sophomore left-hander Zane Adams faced off with OU stud right-hander Kyson Witherspoon in Friday nights opening game. Witherspoon is considered the number one pitching prospect in college baseball by D-1. Adams was sharp out of the gate and retired the Sooners in order in the top of the first with a fly out, strikeout, and ground out.
Witherspoon struck out two in the bottom half, but allowed a two out double to the red hot Kade Snell. Adams worked around a pair of walks in the second to keep the game scoreless. The Tide used their second inning magic to take the lead in the bottom half of the frame. Jason Torres singled with one out and moved up on a walk to Bryce Fowler. Garrett Staton double to scored Torres and Richie Bonomolo, Jr hit a ball to left field that turned into a sacrifice fly to scored Fowler for the 2-0 lead.
Adams fought some more traffic in the third on a lead off single and two out walk, but struck out Sam Christiansen looking to squelch that rally. Bama added to the lead in the bottom of the third. Shortstop Justin LeBron took a 97 mile an hour fast ball off the outside corner and deposited an opposite field home run into the right field plaza, his 13th long ball of the season. The Tide had an opportunity to break the game wide open. Will Plattner reached on a one out error and with two outs Torres lined another single. Fowler walked again to load the bases for Staton, who was hit by a pitch to bring in another run. Bonomolo scorched a liner that OU shortstop Jaxon Willits was able to snag to hold the Tide to just two runs in the inning.
Armed with a 4-0 lead Adams went to the fourth inning. Kyle Branch led off with a single and scored in front of a one out home run by Drew Dickerson. Dayton Tockey followed with a double but Adams bore down and retired the next two batters to leave the score at 4-2. Witherspoon made it through the bottom of the fourth and both starting pitchers were done at that point, Adams having thrown 101 pitches and Witherspoon 96 of his own.
JT Blackwood replaced Adams in the top of the fifth and had a quick 1-2-3 inning on only seven pitches. James Hitt replaced Witherspoon and struck out the side while also walking Fowler. Blackwood allowed only a single in the sixth and notched two strikeouts. The Tide added to their lead in the bottom of the sixth. LeBron led off with a double and scored on a single by Snell. Plattner singled Snell to third but both were stranded after a strikeout ended the treat.
Blackwood allowed two runs in the seventh and with two outs was replaced by Matthew Heiberger, who after allowing a single, recorded the third out. With a 5-4 lead the Tide went down in the seventh, only able to have Staton reach via a walk. The Sooners took the lead in the top of the eighth. Heiberger allowed a lead off infield single to Trey Gambill and was replaced by closer Carson Ozmer. After a strikeout for the first out, Tockey blasted a two run home run to five the Sooners the 6-5 lead. Ozmer then retired the next two batters.
The Tide bounced back in the bottom half with three runs. Brennen Norton led off with a walk and moved to second on a single by LeBron. Snell lined a single to tie the game. Plattner came up and hit what many, including Plattner, thought was going to be a home run. However the ball hit off the top of the fence scoring LeBron to take the lead 7-6. Will Hodo grounded to shortstop for out one, and it turned into a double play when Plattner broke for third with Snell still occupying the bag, after a run down Snell was tagged out at the plate. Torres singled in Plattner for an insurance run and a 8-6 lead.
Ozmer made things exciting in the top of the ninth. A lead off walk was followed by two fly outs. An infield single and a walk loaded the bases, but Ozmer induced a ground ball that LeBron gobbled up and stepped on second base for the force out to end the game.
The Tide hit 12-35 in the game with six walks, one hit batter, 13 strikeouts, and 11 men left on base. Alabama hit four doubles and one home run, while committing one error. LeBron was 3-5 with three runs scored, a double, home run, and RBI. Snell finished 3-4 with a walk, a double, and two driven in. Plattner hit 2-5 with two RBI and a double. Torres was 3-5 with a run scored and one driven in. Staton was 1-2 with a walk, a hit by pitch, and two runs driven in. Ozmer was the winning pitcher and improved to 3-0 on the season.
The Sooners hit 10-38 with five walks, seven strikeouts, and 10 men left on base. Jason Bodin was the loser and fell to 2-1 on the year.Branch, Dockery, and Dawson Willis had two hits apiece. Bodin fell to 2-1 with the loss, allowing two runs on two hits and two walks in one inning on the mound.
Up and down the lineup the team did a great job of chasing Witherspoon from the game by running hit pitch count up. Despite a couple of miscues the defense held up and the pitchers made big pitches when needed. It is always great to take game one of a series.
Game Two- Lost 6-5
This is one the Tide has to feel they let get away, despite not having regular Saturday starter Riley Quick on the mound. Quick suffered with a huge blood blister on the middle finger of his pitching hand in last weekends matchup with Tennessee, and the injury carried over to this weekend. In his stead normal Sunday starter Bobby Alcock was moved up a day to take his place.
Alcock allowed a one out single to Trey Gambill in the first and then threw away a pick off throw advancing Gambill to second. After a walk and a fly out Drayton Tockey lined an RBI single for a quick 1-0 lead. Cade Crossland was on the hill for OU and retired the Tide in order in the bottom half. Alcock allowed a leadoff home run to Sam Christiansen in the top of second. After a one out walk to Dasan Harris, Alcock picked him off first and a fly ball to centerfield ended the inning. Will Plattner doubled to lead off the bottom half of the frame for the Tide, but two strikeouts and a fly out stranded him there.
In the top of the third Alcock walked Gambill to lead off the inning, then balked to move him to second. Easton Carmichael attempted a sacrifice bunt that turned into an infield single to advance Gambill to third base. Jaxon Willits plated the run with a sacrifice fly, and Alcock settled down and retired the next two batters to end the inning with a 3-0 deficit.
The Tide finally broke through in the bottom of the third. Brennen Norton led off and just missed a home run on a long fly out to right field. With two outs newly minted leadoff hitter Richie Bonomolo, Jr smashed his second home run of the season to cut the margin to 3-1.
Alcock had a scoreless inning in the fourth with a strikeout, a hit batter, and an around the horn double play. Bama drew closer in the bottom half. Kade Snell led off with a single and moved to second on a wild pitch. Two straight strikeouts followed but Jason Torres drew a walk to bring Garrett Staton to the plate. Staton came through with an RBI single to cut the lead to 4-2. A ground out ended the inning. Alcock allowed only an infield single in a scoreless fifth inning. The Tide missed out on a chance to cut into the lead in the bottom half. Bryce Fowler led off with a single, but when the speedy Bonomolo hit a ground ball up the middle where shortstop Willst was playing right behind the bag and was able to turn a double play. Justin LeBron then riffled a double down the left field line that would have easily scored a base runner. LeBron stole third base before Snell was hit by a pitch. A strikeout to Plattner stranded the runners on base.
Alcock had his best inning in the top of the sixth, retiring the Sooners in order for the first time in the game. The Tide also went down in order in the bottom half. Alcock did a great job to right the ship and complete six innings. This was very important because the Tide was missing three key arms for the series. Even at 90 pitches through six innings Alcock was called back out for the seventh inning. After a seven pitch walk, pitching coach Jason Jackson called on left-hander Connor Ball to replace Alcock. A deep fly ball to right field advanced the runner to second base and a single up the middle by Jason Walk scored the Sooners fourth run of the game.
Bama tied the game in the bottom half of the seventh. Norton was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and moved up on a single by Fowler. Bonomolo put down a beautiful sacrifice bunt and reached base when the ball was thrown away. Norton scored and Fowler moved to third base. Snell brought Fowler home with a ground out to second base, and the score was tied heading to the top of the eighth.
Hagan Banks took over for on the mound for the Tide in the eighth inning and had a quick, perfect inning, on only 10 pitches. Bama went out quickly in the bottom half and the score remained tied heading to the ninth.
Banks was back out for the ninth but after a lead off single by Christiansen was replaced by Braylon Myers. Dawson Willis put down a sacrifice bunt and was called out at first base. Sooner coach Skip Johnson requested a review and won it, putting runners on first and second with now outs. Brandon Cain tried to bunt also, but Alabama third baseman Jason Torres fielded the ball and threw to shortstop Justin LeBron covering third base for the first out. Walk walked for OU and a sacrifice fly plated the go ahead run. Carmichael laced a single to score Cain, but when the cutoff throw sailed over Plattners head at home plate, Myers fielded the ball and threw to Norton at second base. Walk broke for home and a perfect throw from Norton to Plattner cut down the potential run at the plate. Nevertheless the Tide headed to the bottom of the ninth trailing 6-4.
Alabama put on a rally, but came up just short. Coleman Mizell pinch hit leading off and walked. Fowler followed with his third hit of the game. The strikeout zone was a moving target all night with Alex Ransome behind the dish, and it didn’t change in the last inning. Bonomolo was rang up for a strikeout for the first out of the inning, to bring LeBron up with a chance to win the game. The sophomore All American had a fantastic at bat, working an 11 pitch full count walk after fouling off five pitches. Snell hit a ground ball to second base that scored Mizell, but was out at first base. Plattner was up with the tying and winning run on base but was a victim of Ransome on a questionable 3-2 pitch that was off the plate, giving OU a 6-5 win.
The Tide hit 8-34 in the game with three walks, two hit batters, 11 strikeouts, eight men left on base, two doubles, one home run, one stolen base and commited on error. Fowler was 3-4 with a run, and Snell drove in two runs with his 1-4 day. Banks was tagged with the loss and fell to 0-1 on the season.
Oklahoma hit 9-31 in the game with five walks, one hit batter, one home run, two sacrifice flies, one stolen base, left five men on base, and commited one error. Christiansen, Gambill, and Carmichael had two hits apiece. Reid Hensly was the winning pitcher after pitching just 2⁄3 of an inning and improved to 3-0. Dylan Crooks worked the ninth and earned his 8th save of the year.
This was a game the Tide had to feel like that woulda/shoulda won and losing it said up the rubber game of the series on Sunday afternoon.
Game Three- Won 8-6
The Tide called on senior Georgia Tech transfer Aeden Finateri to pitch the rubber game on Sunday. The Sooners sent Malachi Witherspoon to the mound. M Witherspoon is the twin brother of OU Friday night pitcher Kyson Witherspoon. Even with a threatening forecast for early afternoon the game remained as a 1 p.m. first pitch, and the game was hit with two different rain delays during the afternoon.
Finateri had a shaky start to the game, walking the first two batters he faced and a single to the fourth man, but limited the damage to one run with a strikeout and ground out. The Tide took the lead in the bottom half of the inning. Justin LeBron was hit by a pitch with one out and Kade Snell followed by drawing a walk. Clean up man Jason Torres lined a 96 mile an hour fast ball into the right field plaza for a three run home run and a 3-1 lead.
The Sooners got a lead off single in the second but a fielders choice and caught stealing by catcher Brady Neal to LeBron along with a strikeout ended the inning. The first rain delay of the game came before the Tide came to bat in the bottom half of the frame. Once play restarted Bama added to their lead in the bottom half. Bryce Fowler led off with a double, moved to third on a single by Neal, and scored when Richie Bonomolo hit into a double play. LeBron followed with single but was stranded after a fly out.
The Sooners went down in order to Finateri in the top of the third and the Tide added to their lead when Will Hodo blasted a one out home run in the bottom half of the inning to give Bama a 5-0 lead. Finateri needed only nine pitches to dispose of OU in the top of the fourth despite allowing a two out single. The Tide finished their scoring for the game in the bottom half. Fowler reached on an error by second baseman Kyle Branch and Neal advanced him with a single. Bonomolo bunted and beat it out to load the bases. Snell grounded out to score Fowler and Torres hit a fly ball to right field that was dropped by Brayden Horton, allowing two runs to score. The Tide carried an 8-1 lead into the fifth inning.
Finateri got two quick outs before disaster struck the Tide. Lead off man Jason Walk hit a drive into the left center field gap. Snell in left field and Bonomolo in centerfield collided in a scary collision and the speedy Walk rounded the bases for an inside the park home run to cut the lead to 8-2. Bonomolo and Snell both left the game and the Tide had to do some shuffling. Fowler moved from right field to center field, Neal moved from behind the plate to right field, Will Plattner took over at catcher, and Garrett Staton took over in left field. After the long injury delay Matthew Heiberger was brought in to replace Finateri on the mound. Heiberger stuck out Horton to end the inning. After clearing concussion protocol Bonomolo was able to return in the next inning.
The Tide offense went stagnate while the Sooners chipped away at the lead. In the seventh inning Heiberger walked the lead off man and then allowed a single. Coulson Buchanan was then brought in and he walked the first man he saw to load the bases. A fielders choice ground out scored OU’s third run. With two outs Horton singled to bring in another run and bringing Tyler Fay out of the bullpen. A fly ball ended the threat with the Tide still leading 8-4. Fay began the eighth inning but after an infield single and a home run by Dayton Tockey the lead was down to 8-6. Fay retired Branch on a fly out and was then replaced by Braylon Myers. Myers made quick work, retiring two batters on only eight pitches to end the inning.
Before Bama could bat in the bottom of the eighth the second rain delay of the day came, and lasted almost an hour. When the game resumed the sun was out and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky! Fowler laced another double and went to third on a ground out. With two outs and first base open the Sooners chose to intentionally walk LeBron and a ground ball by Plattner ended the inning.
Headed to the ninth with a two run lead the Tide called on closer Carson Ozmer. “The Wizard” needed only nine pitches to notch a strikeout, fly out, and ground out to end the game with Bama on top 8-6.
Alabama hit 9-34 in the game with two walks, three hit batters, eight strikeouts, two doubles, two home runs, and seven men left on base. Fowler had a 2-3 day with two doubles, two runs scored, and one hit by pitch. Hodo was 2-4 with his 8th home run of the year and Torres drove in three with his 8th long ball. Neal finished 2-4 and played three different positions in the game. Finateri got the win with his 4.2 innings of two hit, two run ball. Ozmer earned his seventh save of year.
Oklahoma hit 8-34 with four walks, nine strikeouts, and five left on base. The Sooners hit two home runs and committed two costly errors. Witherspoon was the loser and fell to 2-2 on the year. Willits and Christiansen led the team with two hits each.
Over the series Alabama hit 29-104 for a .278 average, with 11 walks, seven hit batters, 15 strikeouts, eight doubles, four home runs, and 26 men left on base. Oklahoma had a .262 average on 27-103 at the plate for a .262 average, walked 14 times, had one hit batter, struck out 22 times, hit five home runes, and left 20 men on base.
Who did what?
*Bryce Fowler 5-9, 3 walks, 2 doubles, 2 RBI, 3 runs
*Justin LeBron 5-12, 2 doubles, home run (13), 2 walks, hit by pitch, 4 runs, RBI
*Kade Snell 4-10, 5 RBI, 2 walks, 2 runs,
*Jason Torres 4-12, 4 RBI, home run (8), 2 runs, walk
*Carson Ozmer 2 games, Win (3-0), save (7), 3 innings pitched, two hits, one run, two walks, two strikeouts
*Aeden Finateri W (1-0) 4.2 innings pitched, 4 hits allowed, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts, 2 runs
Great series win for the 12th ranked Tide over the 9th ranked Sooners. With the wins Bama now is 7th in the nation in RPI, and has five wins against teams in the top 20 of that metric. Shorthanded on the mound with out Riley Quick, Austin Morris, and Aiden Moza, the Tide was still able to take down a top 10 opponent. Alabama will likely be without Snell at least for the midweek game vs Samford on Tuesday night. Quick is on schedule to be ready to go when the Tide goes to Auburn next weekend. Hopefully Morris, Moza, and Snell will be cleared and able to play.
The Samford Bulldogs come to town on Tuesday for a 6 p.m. game that will be available on SEC Network Plus. For the weekend Bama will travel south to take on the Auburn Tigers in a three game series set for Friday-Sunday. Game times are at 6 p.m. CT on Friday, 7 p.m. on Saturday night, and 2 p.m. on Sunday. Saturday’s game will be on the SEC Network while the other two will be available on SEC Network Plus.
Roll Tide
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