Bobby Peirce – Syndication Server

ECU transfer outfielder Bristol Carter commits to Auburn

Carter was an absolute star for ECU as a freshman in 2024.

Auburn baseball head coach [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag] has already begun scavenging the transfer portal for talent following a very disappointing 2024 season on the Plains. That scavenge struck gold on Monday, as Thompson landed 2024 freshman All-American transfer outfielder [autotag]Bristol Carter[/autotag].

Carter, who played his freshman season at Eastern Carolina, was an absolute star for the Pirates in 2024. The Oak Ridge, North Carolina native raked his way to a .346 average in 56 games over the course of the campaign. The freshman started 46 of those games, collecting 55 hits, although just 10 went for extra bases.

Carter was ranked as the top incoming freshman in the American Athletic Conference last season, and the No. 57 incoming prospect in the country by Perfect Game and D1Baseball. The 5-11, 188-pound outfielder doesn’t have the frame to provide big power numbers, but has elite bat to ball skills that should provide Thompson with a great option at the top of his batting order next season.

With fan-favorite [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] leaving the Tigers next season, Auburn’s newest transfer outfielder seems like the early fit to soak up the majority of the at-bats in center field. If the 2024 AAC All-Freshman team selection can hit for the same average and add some power, Auburn may be able to compete much more in 2025.

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Auburn adds catcher Lucas Steele from Transfer Portal

Steele hit 16 home runs and sent home 51 last season as a freshman at Samford.

Auburn Baseball needs to address several areas ahead of the 2025 season and is off to a great start by adding a power bat from the transfer portal.

[autotag]Lucas Steele[/autotag], a freshman catcher from Hoover, announced this week that he is transferring to Auburn after spending his first collegiate season at Samford.

“I love the guys at Samford and I love the coaches and players,” Steele said in a recent interview with Auburn Undercover. “Some of those guys will be my best friends for life. I wanted to bet on myself and take the chance to play bigger. It’s just something I had the opportunity to do. I’m blessed to be given this opportunity.”

Making the move to Auburn has potential to work out favorably for both parties. For Auburn, the Tigers add power by bringing in Steele, who hit 16 home runs and plated 51 RBI while hitting .315 at the plate for the Bulldogs. For Steele, its a chance to play baseball for his dream school.

“Auburn has been a part of my whole life,” Steele said. “We grew up Auburn fans. I have been to Auburn football games and baseball games. My brother in law (Richard Fitts) actually pitched at Auburn. That’s where him and my sister met. There’s another connection.”

Auburn will look to find several pieces to replace outgoing players such as [autotag]Caden Green[/autotag], [autotag]Mason Maners[/autotag], and [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag]. Eight players from last season’s roster currently occupy the transfer portal, which will allow head coach [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag] the space to add useful players to next season’s roster in an effort to improve upon its disappointing 2024 campaign which ended without an appearance in the SEC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament.

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Recap: Offensive surge propels Auburn to game one win over Tennessee

An offensive party in the 1st and 2nd innings propelled Auburn baseball to a game one win over the Tennessee Volunteers on Friday

After getting swept in its last series against Texas A&M, Auburn baseball looked to bounce back in SEC play, returning home to begin a three-game series with the No. 4 Tennessee Volunteers on Friday.

Game one at Plainsman Park proved to be a great start in that effort, as the Tigers put on a phenomenal offensive showing in the first couple of innings to defeat Tennessee, 9-5.

Worries set in early in the top of the 1st, though. Christian Moore led the game off with a double for the Volunteers. After he advanced to third on a wild pitch, Blake Burke hit a double of his own to score Moore, giving Tony Vitello’s squad a 1-0 lead.

Kavares Tears came up later in the inning to continue the fun, smashing a two-run home run to give Tennessee an early 3-0 lead, something Auburn did not need to see.

However, after two outs in the bottom of the 1st, [autotag]Ike Irish[/autotag] got a hold of a pitch and sent it over the wall for a solo blast, cutting the score to 3-1.

Back-to-back singles by [autotag]Cooper McMurray[/autotag] and [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] set [autotag]Christian Hall[/autotag] up to hit a single of his own, scoring McMurray.

The fun was not finished there. [autotag]Cade Belyeu[/autotag] joined the party with a three-run home run, turning what was a three-run deficit into a 5-3 lead for the Tigers.

That lead would not last for long, though, as in the top of the 2nd, Moore came back to the plate for the Volunteers after a single by Cal Stark and hit a two-run home run over the center field fence. The game was once again tied, this time at 5-5.

After a leadoff strikeout to begin the bottom of the 2nd, [autotag]Mason Maners[/autotag] doubled to right field before [autotag]Cooper Weiss[/autotag] singled on a bunt to the third base side. This led to a single by Irish that brought in Maners, giving the lead back to Auburn.

After a McMurray walk to load the bases, Peirce reached on a fielder’s choice that scored Weiss. Hall came up immediately after a singled through the left side, scoring Irish and giving the Tigers an 8-5 advantage.

Nobody scored again until the bottom of the 6th. With runners on the corners and one out, McMurray hit a sacrifice fly to center field that scored the ninth run of the game for Auburn, making it 9-5 and ending the scoring overall.

The Tigers closed out Tennessee without any scoring threats being made to secure the game one victory.

[autotag]Carson Myers[/autotag] got the win in relief for Auburn, improving to 2-2 on the season. He pitched 3.2 innings on the mound, giving up no runs on three hits, striking out four and walking three.

AJ Causey picked up the loss for the Volunteers, dropping to 5-2 on the year. He only pitched 1.1 innings, giving up eight runs on eights hits. He struck out four hitters as well.

The Tigers will take the field for game two on Saturday with the hopes of winning their first conference series of the year. First pitch for that contest is set for 3:30 p.m. CST and will be broadcast on SEC Network+.

Recap: Auburn baseball takes down UAB in Birmingham

Although Auburn is just 1-8 in SEC play to start the baseball season, the Tigers continued rolling in the non-conference on Wednesday.

Although Auburn is just 1-8 in SEC play to start the baseball season, the Tigers continued rolling in the non-conference on Wednesday by taking down the UAB Blazers 10-4 at Regions Park in Birmingham.

Auburn starting pitcher [autotag]Christian Herberholz[/autotag] (1-1) got the ball for the third straight mid-week game but struggled through 2 2/3 innings, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits in the contest.

The Tigers bullpen faired much better, as [autotag]Parker Carlson[/autotag], [autotag]Alex Petrovic[/autotag], [autotag]Zach Crotchfelt[/autotag], and [autotag]Hayden Murphy[/autotag] combined for 6 1/3 innings of 1-hit ball. Petrovic, Crotchfelt, and Murphy allowed just one base runner over the game’s final 5 frames.

On the offensive side, Auburn exploded for 10+ runs for the second non-conference game in a row. Infielder [autotag]Cooper McMurray[/autotag] and senior captain [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] happened to be the stars of the night. After Cooper Weiss drove in the first Auburn run with a single in the top of the first, McMurray and Peirce combined to drive in 6 of the next 9 Tiger tallies. Both players homered, while McMurray contributed 3 total hits and 3 RBIs.

Peirce had the biggest blast of the game in the sixth inning when he roped a 2-run, go-ahead home run into the seats to give Auburn a 6-5 lead. The 2-run homer was the beginning of a 7-run 8th inning that was bookended by another Pierce RBI single.

Auburn’s mid-week victories have yet to translate into weekend play, but we’ll see if that trend changes when the Tigers welcome No. 4 ranked Tennessee to Plainsman Park on Friday.

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Recap: Tigers come up short in game one against Texas A&M

In an attempt to build some momentum in SEC play, Auburn baseball falls short in game one in College Station

Auburn baseball has been struggling to start its SEC schedule, constantly trying to find answers to come out of games with victories in order to build its resume. After winning their first conference game in the series finale versus Arkansas last weekend, the Tigers hope to build momentum in this weekend’s series against Texas A&M.

Unfortunately, Auburn (16-9) could not gain any in game one on Thursday, as it fell to the Aggies (23-3) 9-7 at Blue Bell Park.

Texas A&M got the scoring started early in this game in the bottom of the 1st. With one out and one runner on, Stanford transfer Braden Montgomery hit a two-run home run over the right center wall, making it 2-0 in early going.

The Aggies extended the lead in the bottom of the 3rd. After Jace LaViolette doubled and advanced to third later on, Jackson Appel hit a fly ball to left field that was caught, but was deep enough to bring LaViolette in. They were in firm control at 3-0.

That was until the top of the 4th when the Tigers made a massive move to get themselves back in it. [autotag]Ike Irish[/autotag] began the inning with an infield single to third base, before two straight outs to follow put Auburn in yet another bad spot.

[autotag]Chris Stanfield[/autotag] eased that worry though when he doubled down the left field line, getting Irish to third. [autotag]Mason Maners[/autotag] came up immediately after and sent a pitch over the left field wall, tying the game up at 3-3.

The bottom of the 4th produced more damage from Texas A&M, as Hayden Schott led the home half off with a home run to right center, putting his team back in front 4-3.

Later in the inning, two back-to-back singles by Gavin Grahovac and LaViolette brought in a run each, giving the Aggies a three-run lead once again at 6-3.

The top of the 6th saw another surge by the Tigers. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Stanfield reached on a fielder’s choice in which Irish scored off of a throwing error. Later on [autotag]Carter Wright[/autotag] reached on his own fielder’s choice hit, where [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] also scored on an error. The game was once again tied, this time at 6-6.

Texas A&M did not let that last for long though. With the bases loaded in the bottom of the 6th, Appel was hit by a pitch, scoring in a run. Ted Burton then walked on the next at-bat which brought in another run for the Aggies. Schott followed that up with a line drive to right field that was caught, scoring a third A&M runner and making the score 9-6.

Irish attempted to kick start one more push for Auburn in the top of the 7th with a solo home run to right center, but that was all the scoring that would occur for the rest of the game, as the Aggies secured a 9-7 victory.

[autotag]Parker Carlson[/autotag] picked up the loss in relief for the Tigers, dropping to 2-1 on the season. [autotag]Conner McBride[/autotag] was the starter on the mound. He pitched 3.0 innings, giving up six hits and six runs, while striking out three and walking two.

Evan Aschenbeck picked up the win in relief for Texas A&M, improving to 4-0 on the year. He pitched 4.0 innings, giving up one run on two hits while striking out five on the night.

The two squads will meet up again in game two on Friday, where first pitch is set for 6 p.m. CST. [autotag]Chase Allsup[/autotag] is set to start on the hill for Auburn.

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Recap: Pitcher’s duel goes in favor of Arkansas in game one

After dropping all three games in its opening SEC series, Auburn baseball dropped its first home game of conference play to Arkansas.

The Auburn Tigers returned to Plainsman Park on Thursday in search of their first win in SEC play, following its winless performance against Vanderbilt. They would have to do so at the hands of the nation’s top-ranked team in Arkansas, though, so the challenge would be anything but easy.

Auburn (14-7) opened up its series with the Razorbacks (18-2) with a game that was back-and-forth battle between the pitching staffs of both teams. Unfortunately for the Tigers, they finished on the losing end of that fight, 1-0.

That lone run from Arkansas came in the 1st inning. After two quick outs to open the game up, Wehiwa Ahoy blasted a home run over the right field wall. At that point, it seemed as if an offensive battle was going to take place.

The rest of the game was actually anything but.

Auburn had a chance to tie the game up in the 1st with two outs when [autotag]Ike Irish[/autotag] made it to scoring position on a wild pitch. [autotag]Cooper McMurray[/autotag] struck out swinging soon after, ending the threat.

The Razorbacks almost extended the lead in the 3rd with runners on second and third with one out. That was when right fielder [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] caught a fly ball and threw a runner out at the plate to end the top half of the inning.

The Tigers also had a chance to make a run at the lead with runners on second and third in the 4th inning, but nothing resulted of it.

The next big threat came about in the bottom of the 6th when Auburn had the bases loaded and two outs. [autotag]Mason Maners[/autotag] would ground out towards the first base side, keeping the Tigers scoreless.

The rest of the game went pretty quietly, with every out being crucial on both sides. Auburn was never able to make a run, ultimately dropping the contest.

Arkansas ace pitcher Hagen Smith picked up his fourth win on the season. He struck out 12, walked two and gave up three hits in the game.

[autotag]Conner McBride[/autotag] was given the loss. In addition to giving up the lone run, he gave up four hits, struck out four and walked two. He drops to 3-1 on the season.

Auburn’s second game with the Razorbacks is set for Friday, with first pitch being set for 6 p.m. CST.

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Recap: Auburn fails to keep up with Vanderbilt, drops Saturday contest

No. 10 Vanderbilt’s bats told the story Saturday as they blew by Auburn to earn the series win.

In game one between No. 19 Auburn and No. 10 Vanderbilt on Friday, the Tigers had a rough time trying to slow down the Commodores bats, thus falling, 11-1.

Saturday’s game provided the same storyline, as the Commodores did most of its damage in the middle innings to run away with a 13-5 series-clinching win over Auburn at Hawkins Field in Nashville, Tennessee.

Vanderbilt’s bats were the headline again on Saturday, as they collected 13 runs on 17 hits. Eight of 11 Vanderbilt batters recorded at least one RBI and six of those batters recorded multiple hits. Auburn head coach Butch Thompson says that Vanderbilt’s plate success has been the difference in the series.

“They’re a handful at the plate, and we’re doing everything we can. They’re absolutely having a little bit tougher at-bats, but at the same time I think our guys are absolutely competing,” Thompson said postgame. “The difference has been their at-bats are just a tick better up and down the lineup. They linked up with two outs and made us pay.”

Auburn built momentum early on by scoring two runs in the top of the 1st inning. [autotag]Cooper Weiss[/autotag] scored on a fielding error before [autotag]Cooper McMurray[/autotag] drove home [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] with an RBI double.

Momentum was quickly taken away in the bottom half thanks to a three-run inning by the Commodores. The inning was headlined by a leadoff home run by RJ Austin to cut the Tigers’ lead to 2-1.

Both teams traded blows in the 4th inning before Vanderbilt rattled off seven runs over the 5th and 6th innings. Auburn scored two runs in the 7th inning to cut the deficit to 11-5, but Vanderbilt would deliver the final blow in the 8th inning to secure the win.

Auburn recorded eight hits in the game, with [autotag]Javon Hernandez[/autotag] and Cooper McMurray each recording two a piece. McMurray led the team in RBI with two thanks to an RBI double and a solo home run in the 4th inning.

[autotag]Carson Myers[/autotag] took the loss for Auburn after he allowed four earned runs and six hits in 3 1/3 innings. [autotag]John Armstrong[/autotag] closed out the 4th inning by walking two batters and allowing one hit. He also struck out two batters in his 2/3 inning effort.

The Tigers will look to salvage a game in the series on Sunday by facing Vanderbilt at at 1 p.m. CT in Nashville.

Recap: Walk-off by Maners gives Auburn game one victory over Austin Peay

After going down in the 8th inning, Auburn hits home runs in back-to-back innings, including a Mason Maners walk-off, to beat Austin Peay.

Auburn baseball’s final weekend series before the beginning of conference play started with many twists and turns against Austin Peay, but the Tigers managed to win the game late with two home runs, securing their 11th win of the year.

Despite the game being pushed to an earlier time, Auburn (11-2) saw it as a chance to have early success. The offense wasted no time getting to work as a result.

After [autotag]Cooper Weiss[/autotag] hit a single to begin the bottom half of the 1st and advanced to second base on a balk, [autotag]Cooper McMurray[/autotag] came up with two outs in the inning to hit an infield single that would score Weiss, giving the Tigers an early 1-0 lead.

The fun would continue in the 2nd inning, as two walks began the Auburn half, giving way to [autotag]Javon Hernandez[/autotag], who hit a single in order to load the bases up. Following that, [autotag]Ike Irish[/autotag] drew a walk while [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] got hit by a pitch to score in two more runs, extending the lead to three.

McMurray capped off the party by putting a single into right center, scoring both Irish and Hernandez. Auburn ended the 2nd with a 5-0 lead, but went cold starting in the 3rd, not gaining anymore offensive momentum until the 8th. That break was when the Governors decided to strike.

The 3rd inning saw Clayton Gray stroke a single of his own into right center, driving in two runs to get Austin Peay on the board. Jon Jon Gazdar then singled into left field in the 5th with the bases loaded, scoring two more.

In the 7th, Lyle Miller-Green completed the comeback for the Governors, hitting a home run to left center, tying the game at 5-5. Justin Olson later singled in the 8th, scoring in a run to give his team a 6-5 lead.

[autotag]Christian Hall[/autotag] decided the party would stop right then, though, as with a 3-2 count in the bottom of the 8th with two outs, he sent a rocket over the right field wall to tie the game once again, giving the Tigers momentum.

[autotag]Mason Maners[/autotag] took this momentum to heart and did not allow the game to head for extras. Leading off the bottom of the 9th, he sent a no-doubt home run into right field, winning the game for Auburn 7-6.

[autotag]Tanner Bauman[/autotag] earned the win as the final pitcher of the day, going 1.1 innings, allowing no hits and no runs. He struck out one and walked one as well.

The walk-off win improves head coach Butch Thompson’s team to 11-2 on the year as Auburn prepares for games two and three of the series. First pitch for game two is set for 1 p.m. CST on Saturday.

	Runs	Hits	Errors	LOB
Austin Peay	6	9	0	7
No. 20 Auburn	7	8	1	4

WP: Bauman (2-0) LP: Hampu (1-1)

"We knew we were going to be in for a fight, and this team is so resilient. I had full faith we were going to pull that one out."

🗣️ » @MasonManers #WarEagle

— Auburn Baseball (@AuburnBaseball) March 8, 2024

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Five star players from week three of Auburn baseball

Following Auburn baseball’s 3-1 week, take a look at the five players who contributed the most towards the Tigers’ success on the diamond.

Auburn baseball took three out of the four games it played this weekend, including winning its series over UConn.

The Tiger bats exploded on Tuesday night, taking down Samford 12-3. They took advantage of the long ball in that game, launching three home runs on the night.

The scoring continued in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader against UConn, as the Tigers took the victory 8-1, before losing game two 8-4. [autotag]Cooper Weiss[/autotag] and [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] combined for six RBIs in game one.

Auburn’s offense returned in the rubber match on Sunday, as the Tigers took the decider 8-2. Ike Irish had himself an amazing day with three hits, including two home runs.

Many players on the squad contributed greatly to Auburn’s success this past week. Here are the five players who stood out the most in week three of Auburn baseball.

Auburn splits Saturday twin bill with UConn

After splitting Saturday’s doubleheader, No. 22 Auburn and UConn will battle for the series win on Sunday afternoon.

After rain forced the postponement of Friday’s series opener, The No. 22 Auburn Tigers finally began its three-game weekend set with UConn on Saturday by playing two games at Plainsman Park.

The Tigers and Huskies split Saturday’s action. Auburn dominated game one while UConn got revenge on the Tigers in game two. Head coach [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag] was pleased with his team’s performance in game one but referenced the first inning of game two as the low point of the day.

“I thought it was the best game we played all year in the first game. It was clean on the mound. Our at-bats were good throughout the ballgame. Defensively we were good. Just all the way around I thought it was our best game. Then I thought we followed that up 45 minutes later with our worst half inning that we’ve had all year. But we got a bunch of guys in two games, and I thought they kept playing. We chased a non-competitive top of the first the entire ballgame and still had a chance.”

Here’s a rundown of how Saturday’s action played out between Auburn and UConn.

Game One: Auburn 8 UConn 1

	Runs	Hits	Errors	LOB
UConn	1	6	0	7
Auburn	8	9	1	6

WP- Chase Allsup | LP- Garrett Coe | S- John Armstrong

UConn struck first during the top of the 1st inning when Jake Studley smashed a home run to right field. The Tigers responded by scoring eight unanswered runs to win the first game of the doubleheader.

[autotag]Cooper Weiss[/autotag] and [autotag]Bobby Peirce[/autotag] each hit a home run and sent three runs home in the game. Peirce put Auburn on the board in the bottom of the 1st inning on a groundout to 2nd base, then later hit a two-run blast in the 5th inning. For Weiss, he gave Auburn the lead in the bottom of the 3rd with a solo home run to push Auburn ahead, 2-1. His final two RBI came off of a sacrifice fly in the 5th, and a single in the 8th.

[autotag]Chase Allsup[/autotag] earned his first win of the season in game one. He stuck out six batters while allowing six hits and an earned run on 85 pitches.

“I loved how Chase finished the game. I thought he was getting better. I just liked how he finished strong,” Thompson said of Allsup’s outing. “I do want them coming out on the attack, and I thought that’s what Chase did. I thought he settled and we saw some growth with him.”

[autotag]John Armstrong[/autotag] struck out two batters while allowing a walk and no hits to earn the save.

Game Two: UConn 8 Auburn 4

	Runs	Hits	Errors	LOB
UConn	8	12	1	9
Auburn	4	7	1	14

WP- Gabe Van Emon | LP- Joseph Gonzalez | S- Brady Afthim

Saturday’s start is one that Auburn ace [autotag]Joseph Gonzalez [/autotag]would like to forget. Gonzalez got the nod for his third start of the season on Saturday, and was forced to grab pine after allowing six earned runs on four hits in just two-thirds of an inning.

Auburn cut UConn’s lead in half in the bottom of the 1st inning thanks to two home runs by [autotag]Ike Irish[/autotag] and [autotag]Cooper McMurray[/autotag] to trim the Huskies lead to 6-3. UConn kept its momentum alive by scoring a run over the next two innings to seal the game. Auburn added one more run in the 8th inning on a bases-loaded walk to McMurray.

[autotag]Christian Hall[/autotag] led the team in hits with two while McMurray scored three runs. In relief, Tanner Bauman and Christian Herberholz each struck out five batters.

Auburn will conclude its series with UConn on Sunday at 1 p.m. CT. Carson Myers will toe the rubber for Auburn while the Huskies will send Stephen Quigley to the mound.