Alabama Preview: An inside look to see how the Tide will roll in the Box

DATES/TIMES

• Friday, April 28 @ 6 p.m. CT (SEC Network)
• Saturday, April 29 @ 6 p.m. CT (SEC Network +)
• Sunday, April 30 @ 1 p.m. CT (SEC Network +)

STADIUM

• Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field in Baton Rouge, La. (10,326)

RANKINGS

• LSU – No. 1 in all polls; No. 4 in NCAA RPI
• Alabama – unranked in polls; No. 21 in NCAA RPI

RADIO

· LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates, including 98.1 FM in Baton Rouge

· Live audio at www.LSUsports.net/live; Live stats at www.LSUstats.com

ONLINE

• All three games will be streamed on SEC Network +
• Friday’s game will also be televised on the SEC Network

PITCHING MATCHUPS

Game 1

LSU – Jr. RH Paul Skenes (7-1, 1.97 ERA, 59.1 IP, 12 BB, 115 SO)

UA – So. RH Luke Holman (5-2, 3.15 ERA, 45.2 IP, 18 BB, 53 SO)

Game 2

LSU – Jr. RH Ty Floyd (6-0, 3.80 ERA, 47.1 IP, 18 BB, 48 SO)

UA – Sr. RH Garrett McMillan (1-1, 3.38 ERA,10.2 IP, 6 BB, 10 SO)

Game 3

LSU – Jr. RH Christian Little (2-1, 4.08 ERA, 28.2 IP, 14 BB, 35 SO)

UA – Gr. RH Jacob McNairy (5-1, 3.92 ERA, 43.2 IP, 8 BB, 40 SO)

Top-ranked LSU will take on the Alabama Crimson Tide in this weekend’s SEC series.

Led by head coach Brad Bohanon, Alabama is 30-12 overall and 9-9 in conference play and is tied with Texas A&M for third place in the SEC Western Division. The Crimson Tide is second in the league in batting average with a .308 team batting average, trailing only LSU, which is hitting .320 on the year.

The Tide has hit 73 home runs, which is best for sixth in the league. The Crimson Tide is No. 3 in the league in team ERA (3.77) and No. 9 in fielding percentage (.975).

Surprisingly, Alabama leads the all-time series against LSU with a record 200-177-3, with the first meeting between the squads occurring in 1906. LSU has won 13 of the 15 SEC regular-season series versus the Tide since 2007, including a 2-1 series victory last season in Tuscaloosa.

“Alabama is a veteran team; it’s almost the identical team we played last year in Tuscaloosa,” said LSU head coach Jay Johnson. They’re an older team that’s won five SEC games in a row, and they’re playing well. They’re not going to be overwhelmed by the situation or the environment. We’re going to have to pitch, defend, run the bases and play good offense in order to have a chance to win. We need our fans out here; it should be a great weekend, and we only have two SEC home weekends left, so we definitely want to see our fans out here.”

Pitching

Alabama will start Luke Holman on the mound on Friday. Holman (5-2) has a 3.15 ERA, 18 walks and leads the Crimson Tide in strikeouts with 53. Opposing batters struggled mightily against Holman as they batted .167 against Holman

Garrett McMillan will start on Saturday for the Crimson Tide. McMillan (1-1) will get his fourth start of the year on the mound. McMillan has a 3.38 ERA and 10 strikeouts.

Jacob McNairy will get the start on the rubber on Sunday. McNairy (5-1) has a 3.92 ERA with eight walks and 40 strikeouts.

Alton Davis II is the closer out of the bullpen for Alabama. The true freshman lefty has the best stuff on the team. Davis leads the Tide in saves with five and when he comes into the game, he doesn’t blow it.

Zane Propst leads the bullpen with 16 appearances. Propst has a 3.31 ERA and is a reliable reliever. However, he has allowed 14 hits in 16.1 innings pitched. He is usually the first reliever out of the bullpen.

Hagan Banks is another big right-handed pitcher for the Crimson Tide. Banks has a 2.25 ERA, which is the best on the team. Banks also has 23 strikeouts in 24 innings pitched.

Riley Quick (1-1) is a 6’6 freshman who is another valuable reliever out of the bullpen for the Crimson Tide. Although he has 23 strikeouts in 18.2 innings pitched, he has an abysmal 16 walks. Quick can get people on base just as easily as he can strike them out.

Batting

First baseman Drew Williamson has been phenomenal at the plate. Williamson has been batting .338 at the plate with three doubles, 10 homers and 43 RBIs. Williamson’s 43 RBIs lead the team.

Left fielder Tommy Seidl leads the Crimson Tide in batting average with an average of .360. Seidl also has four doubles and six homers on the year.

Third baseman Colby Shelton has been a big reason why the Crimson Tide have been one of the most improved teams in the SEC this year. The freshman sensation leads Alabama in home runs with 16 and has plated 35 RBIs. He also leads the team in slugging percentage with .744.

Right fielder Andrew Pinckney is also another solid hitter. Pinckney has batted .329 on the year with seven doubles, two triples and eight home runs.