Florida Gators during the 2016 College World Series (Photo by Michelle Bishop)
This will be the final tune-up for the SEC as conference play begins next weekend. There is definitely still a lot of work to be done after the SEC fell flat on its face last weekend.
The combination of LSU, Ole Miss and Texas A&M won just two games over the weekend against the likes of Baylor, Texas Tech and TCU from the Big 12. LSU and Texas A&M each picked up a win, while Ole Miss failed to win a single game.
Meanwhile, South Carolina lost 2-of-3 to Clemson and Vanderbilt lost its 3-game series against to Cal State Northridge.
It was a terrible weekend for the teams at the top of the conference.
On the flip side, Missouri, Tennessee and Kentucky all had very good weekends and continue to impress.
Here is our updated SEC baseball power rankings after three weeks:
1. Florida (Same)
2. LSU (Same)
3. Texas A&M (Up 3)
4. South Carolina (Down 1)
5. Ole Miss (Down 2)
6. Arkansas (Up 1)
7. Missouri (Up 2)
8. Vanderbilt (Down 3)
9. Kentucky (Up 1)
10. Mississippi State (Down 2)
11. Tennessee (Same)
12. Auburn (Same)
13. Georgia (Same)
14. Alabama (Same)
Moving into week four, Florida is by far the toast of the conference despite a mid-week loss to Florida Gulf Coast. The pitching is really carrying this team right now with the second best ERA in the conference at 2.68 and the third most strikeouts. The offense needs to get on board for this to be a complete team, and they should have that opportunity against Seton Hall this weekend. However, they have to play Florida State in a mid-week game next week before opening up conference play. That will be another big test for the Gators.
LSU squandered a great chance to take down the top team in the nation on Friday night losing to TCU 9-6 after jumping out to a 4-1 lead. Alex Lange really struggled and couldn’t get out of the second inning. They bounced back with a big win over previously undefeated Baylor, but ended the weekend with a tough 1-run loss to Texas Tech. They get ready to face a Wichita State team that has only lost three games all year (all to La Tech). They need a good weekend to carry some momentum into conference play.
Texas A&M started out last weekend with a big 9-0 win over Texas Tech and then were up 10-5 on No. 1 TCU in the bottom of the 9th and somehow blew it and lost in extra innings. The Aggies should be able to pick themselves back up this weekend against Brown, but they play Texas next week before starting conference play. Texas A&M has scored the most runs in the conference and their pitching staff has the most strikeouts.
Like the Aggies, South Carolina’s weekend started out with a big shutout over Clemson, but then they dropped the next two games. Now they face an underrated Michigan State squad. The South Carolina pitching staff has the fourth best ERA in the SEC at 2.85 and the lowest batting average against at .198. However, the offense is in the bottom four in all the main categories.
Last weekend couldn’t have gone any worse for Ole Miss baseball as they failed to win a single game in the Shriners College Classic and only managed to score four runs all weekend. The offense is ranked in the bottom five of the conference and needs to find its way this weekend against Furman to help out their solid pitching staff.
Arkansas didn’t have a great weekend losing to Arizona and Oklahoma State, but I think they proved that they can play with the best in the country. Their offense has been pretty powerful as it leads the conference in home runs. They’ll have a final tune-up this weekend against Rhode Island.
I know they haven’t played anyone significant, but what Missouri has done to start the season has been impressive. They lead the SEC with a batting average of .344 and are fourth in runs scored. The pitching staff is middle of the road, and we won’t get a true test of this team for a while. They play Appalachian State this weekend and then open SEC play against Alabama.
Things have gotten pretty ugly for Vanderbilt with back-to-back series losses to teams they should be sweeping. I’m not sure what’s going on with the Commodores, but they better get their act together soon. They have another chance to flesh things out this weekend against Saint Mary’s.
Kentucky may have had the most impressive weekend of any SEC team sweeping UC Santa Barbara and finally winning a couple of 1-run games. The Wildcat offense has been very good with the third best average in the conference and they’re first in on-base-percentage and second in runs scored. The pitching staff has been just as good with an SEC-leading ERA of 2.65. Watch out for the Wildcats.
I can’t figure out Mississippi State. I know they’re not as bad as their record suggest, but I’m not sure how good they actually are. I’m sure they’ll make a run late in the year like they always do, but things don’t look great right now. The pitching staff has been pretty bad as they’re last in the SEC in ERA at 4.53 and next to last in opposing batting average.
The Vols are off to a very impressive start to the season. Tennessee is second in the SEC in batting average; although they’re only ninth in runs scored. The pitching has been decent, but not great. They’ll have a chance to add to their impressive win total this weekend against Cincinnati.
The Auburn offense has been pretty good this year, but the pitching staff ranks near the bottom of the conference. That’s a bit misleading as their Friday and Saturday starters – Keegan Thompson and Casey Mize – boast ERAs of 0.00 and 0.56 respectively. They’ll be tough on the weekend, but if you can get to their bullpen you’re in good shape.
After dropping game one to UAB, the Georgia Bulldogs bounced back to take the series with a couple of shutouts. Despite the good pitching last weekend, Georgia still ranks in the bottom three in almost all categories.
Alabama bounced back nicely from a terrible week in which they were swept at home by Oral Roberts and lost to Jacksonville State with a sweep of their own against ULM. They have a lot of work to do on this young team, and hopefully a 4-game set with Arkansas-Pine Bluff this weekend helps them find their way.
Enjoy the last weekend before conference play begins!
