Tag: sec baseball

Michael Turner named semi-finalist for Buster Posey Catcher of the Year award

Michael Turner is one of three SEC catchers to be named semi-finalist for the national award

In just one season, Arkansas catcher [autotag]Michael Turner[/autotag] has made an impact on the program.

Not only has he become a fan favorite around Fayetteville, but he has caught the attention of those who have a say in who takes home national awards.

Turner, as well as 15 others, has been named semi-finalists for the Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award, the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission announced Tuesday.

In his only season as a Razorback, Turner has fielded at a .994 clip with 456 put outs and 35 assists. He has also thrown out 11 runners attempting to steal a base.

He has been a solid piece at the plate as well. Heading into regional play this weekend, Turner is second on the team with a .398 average, collecting 62 hits, seven home runs, and 37 RBI in 53 games.

According to the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission, the organization who presents the award: key criterion in determining the semifinalists is that they must be the starting catcher for their team in 70% of the games, their batting average must be above .200 and have a minimum of 120 at bats.

Turner is one of three catchers from the SEC to be named semi-finalist for Catcher of the Year, joining Logan Tanner of Mississippi State, and BT Riopelle of Florida.

The top-3 finalist of the award will be announced on June 7. Those three finalist will then attend the award presentation on June 29 in Wichita, Kansas.

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The Road to Omaha begins in Oklahoma for Arkansas

Arkansas will face Grand Canyon in the Stillwater Regional opener on Friday.

The Arkansas Razorbacks will not have to travel far to compete in the 2022 NCAA Regionals.

The Razorbacks were chosen as the no. 2 seed in the Stillwater Regional, hosted by no. 7 overall seed Oklahoma State, as announced on the NCAA Baseball Championship Selection Special from ESPN on Monday.

The first draw for Arkansas will be the no. 3 Grand Canyon Antelopes from the Western Athletic Conference. The Razorbacks will meet the Antelopes on Friday at a time to be named later.

Also participating in the Stillwater Regional is Missouri State, a team that the Razorbacks have met once this season. In that meeting that took place on May 3 at Baum-Walker Stadium, the Bears got the best of Arkansas, 6-4. Missouri State held onto a 6-1 lead entering the 9th inning, but held off a fiery comeback attempt by Arkansas to grab the win.

The winner of the Stillwater Regional will face the winner of the Chapel Hill Regional, hosted by North Carolina. North Carolina, as well as Hofstra, Virginia Commonwealth, and SEC-foe Georgia will square off in Chapel Hill this weekend.

Arkansas’ run to the College World Series begins Friday in Stillwater, Okla. against Grand Canyon. Schedule and start times will be announced at a later time.

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Radio show host reprimanded for comments directed at Michael Turner

A radio show host went too far with recent comments about Arkansas catcher Michael Turner, sparking a punishment.

The Arkansas Razorbacks baseball squad is going through one of the toughest stretches of the season. Over the last two weeks, the Razorbacks have a record of 2-6, which includes a four-game losing streak and an early exit from the SEC Tournament.

Players, coaches, and even fans have shown their displeasure towards the current misfortunes that the Razorbacks have endured, but one person, in particular, took their frustrations a bit too far.

Derek Ruscin, a co-host of the Ruscin and Zach radio show that airs statewide on ESPN Arkansas, has been reprimanded for a rant aimed toward Arkansas catcher [autotag]Michael Turner[/autotag], ESPN Arkansas’ Tommy Craft said in a statement released Sunday.

For context, following Arkansas’ exit from the SEC Tournament after suffering a loss to Florida on Friday, Turner was asked during the postgame press conference if he could “put a finger” on what’s causing the Razorbacks’ recent struggles. Turner says that he and his teammates are trying to “cut out a lot of the outside noise”, citing the small number of fans that share their frustrations on Twitter, and the fact that the players can see what fans are saying.

Turner’s answer apparently did not sit well with Ruscin. During his afternoon show, which airs from 3 until 7 p.m. CT weekdays, Ruscin ranted about Turner, using choice words to describe his feelings towards the Arkansas backstop.

Ruscin’s words sparked a wave of support for Turner across the social media platform from fans, and even former Arkansas Baseball players. Those who praised Turner also took the time to condemn Ruscin for his tirade on a player who has become a fan favorite since stepping on campus this season.

Turner, who transferred from Kent State for the 2022 season, currently hits .298 for Arkansas, and led the team in average for most of the season. In 208 at-bats, Turner has recorded 15 extra base hits, seven home runs, and 37 RBI. He holds a 0.994 fielding percentage with just three errors behind the plate this season.

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D1Baseball sends Arkansas to Stillwater in final Field of 64 projections

In the final Field of 64 projections by D1Baseball, Arkansas would begin their postseason journey just down the road in Oklahoma.

As conference tournaments come to a close on Sunday, the NCAA Tournament becomes more and more clear.

For Arkansas Baseball, who have lost four games in a row and are 2-6 over their last eight games, their dreams of hosting a regional have all but disappeared.

But, their postseason journey will not take them too far says D1Baseball.com in their latest “Field of 64” projections.

In the lasted projections that were released Sunday, Arkansas is cast as the no. 2 seed in the Stillwater Regional, hosted by Oklahoma State.

The Cowboys are expected to become the no. 14 overall seed after falling to Texas in the Big 12 Conference Tournament semi-finals. Joining Arkansas and Oklahoma State in the regional would be mid-major power Dallas Baptist, as well as Southeast Missouri.

According to the projections, the Stillwater Regional would be paired with the Blacksburg Regional, hosted by no. 3 overall seed Virginia Tech, which features UCLA, Virginia Commonwealth, and Coppin State in addition to the Hokies.

Arkansas will discover their official postseason fate on Monday morning at 11 a.m. CDT. Stay tuned to Razorbacks Wire for the latest in Arkansas Baseball news.

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Alabama battles elements in opening round win over Georgia

Alabama battled two rain delays in their SEC Tournament opener, but a quick start to the game would be enough to defeat Georgia.

The Alabama Crimson Tide started strong in the opening game of the SEC Tournament in Hoover and kept their composure through a lengthy rain delay to grab the opening round win and move on to the double-elimination portion of the bracket.

Alabama jumped out to a large lead over the first two innings and held off a tough Georgia comeback to defeat the Bulldogs, 5-3 in round one of the SEC Tournament at the Hoover Met on Tuesday.

The Crimson Tide grabbed an early 5-0 lead over Georgia heading into the bottom of the 2nd inning. Alabama plated three runs in the 1st inning on RBI singles by [autotag]Andrew Pinckney[/autotag] and [autotag]Zane Denton[/autotag]. The third run came on a flyout by [autotag]William Hamiter[/autotag] that was deep enough to score Pinckney from third base.

Alabama got off to a great start in the 2nd inning, by loading the bases with one out to bring Drew Williamson to the plate. During the at-bat, a wild pitch got away Georgia’s Fernando Gonzalez behind the dish to score Tommy Siedl, extending the lead to 4-0.

Williamson still made the most of his at-bat, as he would fly out to center field to score Caden Rose from 3rd to score what would be Alabama’s final run of the game.

Georgia used one of their power bats to cut into Alabama’s lead in the bottom half of the inning. Parks Harber, who entered the game tied for the team’s lead in home runs, crushed his 12th home run of the season to right field to trim Alabama’s lead to 5-1.

The game would then pause in the 3rd inning, as the second rain delay of the game took place and would last for nearly two hours. Once the game resumed, the bats would remain relatively quiet until the bottom of the 8th inning.

In an effort to come back in the game, Georgia’s Connor Tate hit a two-run home run to center field to cut Alabama’s lead to 5-3.

Dylan Ray was called upon to close the game for the Tide, and did so by striking out two of three batters that he faced, slamming the door and solidifying the win.

Zane Denton grabbed two hits for Alabama in the win, while Ben Hess was dominant on the mound in a relief effort. In 4.1 innings out of the bullpen following the rain delay, Hess struck out ten batters while allowing just one walk and one hit.

Next up for Alabama is a rematch with the no. 3 Arkansas Razorbacks tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. CDT. Alabama recently took two of three games from Arkansas last weekend at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

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LSU Baseball Rankings Update: Weekend sweep in Nashville helps the Tigers climb

The Tigers kept their hopes of hosting a regional alive last weekend against Vanderbilt.

What a weekend it was in Nashville as the LSU Tigers swept the Vanderbilt Commodores and secured the No. 4 seed for the 2022 SEC Tournament.

[autotag]Brayden Jobert[/autotag] had a great series going 8-for-16 with three homers and 10 RBI to earn SEC Player of the Week honors. We went into the weekend series thinking that any chance the Tigers had at hosting a regional was pretty much gone, but LSU flipped the script with a series sweep and a first-round bye in the conference tournament clinched.

Now, if LSU has a good showing in Hoover, it may secure a regional in Baton Rouge. The Tigers’ first game will be Wednesday evening at approximately 8 p.m. CT against the winner of Auburn and Kentucky.

In the meantime, LSU saw its standing in the national polls rise after an impressive weekend. Here’s where it stands in the latest rankings, including the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.

Full schedule for the SEC Baseball Tournament in Hoover this week

Here’s a rundown of the entire conference tournament schedule as the postseason begins this week.

The SEC regular season is in the books, and LSU managed to close things out on a high note.

In their final conference series of the season, the Tigers captured an impressive sweep on the road with three convincing wins against Vanderbilt. By virtue of that performance, they were able to clinch a top-four seed and a bye through the single-elimination round at the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Alabama, this week.

No. 4-seeded LSU will play on Wednesday night against the winner of the contest between No. 5-seeded Auburn and No. 12-seeded Kentucky during the double-elimination portion of the tournament at the Hoover Met.

With the order of events and seeding all set for this week’s tournament, here’s a full rundown of all the games in Hoover this week. Note that every game will be televised on SEC Network with the exception of the Championship Game, which will be on ESPN2.

Auburn’s bullpen collapses in series finale loss to Kentucky

Auburn’s offense was unable to get going Saturday against Kentucky as the Tigers lost 6-3 to the Wildcats.

Auburn took an early lead against Kentucky but was unable to add on and the bullpen collapsed to drop the final game of the regular season 6-3 Saturday.

With the loss, Auburn ends the regular season with an overall record of 37-18 and 16-13 in the SEC. The loss means the Tigers missed out on the No. 4 seed and a first-round bye in the SEC Tournament next week.

[autotag]Blake Rambusch[/autotag] led the game off with a single and came around to score on a Brooks Carlson two-out double to take a 1-0. Those were the only Tigers to reach base until the seventh inning.

The offense’s inability to score kept Kentucky in the game despite a strong start from [autotag]Joseph Gonzales[/autotag]. The sophomore pitched five shutout innings before leaving after a weather delay paused the game after the fifth inning. The right-hander gave up just three hits and two walks while striking out three Wildcats.

The rain delay forced Auburn to turn to the bullpen and the Wildcats took advantage of the change. Scoring five runs in the sixth inning to take a commanding 5-1 lead.

Carson Skipper came in to pitch the sixth inning after the delay and gave up a lead-off double. A strikeout and a walk gave the Wildcats their best scoring opportunity of the game and they took advantage, tieing the game at one run a piece on a throwing error by Nate LaRue. Skipper walked another batter before being pulled for John Armstrong.

It was the same results for Armstrong, who walked the first batter he faced to load the bases with two outs. Kentucky made Auburn pay for the mistakes, hitting three consecutive singles to take a 5-1 lead, that they would not relinquish.

The Tigers were not done yet as Bobby Pierce smacked a solo home run in the seventh inning to cut the lead to 5-2. Sonny DiChiara hit a solo shot of his own to lead off the ninth to make it a 6-3 Kentucky lead but that was it from Auburn’s offense. The Tigers managed just five hits and did not record a walk in the loss.

Auburn will now be the No. 5 seed in the SEC Tournament and is set to play Kentucky Tuesday night in Hoover.

How the series loss to Vanderbilt affects Arkansas in the latest polls

Arkansas remains a top-10 squad after losing two-of-three to Vanderbilt over the weekend.

There is a quote from the movie “Bull Durham” that fits perfectly with the situation that Arkansas Baseball was dealt this past weekend.

“Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains.”

After falling in game one of the series with Vanderbilt at Baum-Walker Stadium on Friday night, Arkansas caught momentum by taking an 8-6 lead over Vanderbilt in the 6th inning of Saturday’s match. However, due to inclement weather, the game had to be suspended until Sunday morning. The Razorbacks kept their momentum by adding three runs to their total to lead them to an 11-6 win.

Game three was scheduled to begin 40 minutes following the conclusion of game two, but due to more rain in the area, game three did not begin until 3 p.m. CDT. But, due to the curfew rule in place for Sunday games, the game was cut to seven innings.

Arkansas could not adapt to the changes for game three, and ultimately dropped game three to Vanderbilt, 5-0.

With Vanderbilt beginning to play well heading into the final weekend, the series loss did not affect Arkansas’ rankings much, as they still remain in the top-10 across all six national polls.

Arkansas splits Sunday action, drops series to Vanderbilt

Arkansas Baseball could not adjust to the weather-altered weekend, dropping a home series to Vanderbilt.

The weekend forecast did not do Arkansas Baseball any favors this weekend, as they dropped their third SEC series of the season, their first at Baum-Walker Stadium since March 29-31, 2019 against Ole Miss.

Due to thunderstorms, Saturday’s game was halted in the 6th inning with Arkansas leading Vanderbilt, 8-6. The game resumed Sunday with the Razorbacks pulling away with an 11-6 victory. [autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag] hit a two-run home run in the 7th inning to headline the win.

The rules were altered for game three, as the game was trimmed to seven innings due to more rain in the area. Vanderbilt, led by Dominic Keegan’s three-RBI day, defeated Arkansas, 5-0 to take the series.

Arkansas grabbed two hits by [autotag]Cayden Wallace[/autotag] and [autotag]Robert Moore[/autotag] but were not able to manufacture any runs. [autotag]Jaxon Wiggins[/autotag] struck out eight batters, but allowed two earned runs on four hits in 4.1 innings in his start.

The Razorbacks fall to 37-14, 17-10 in the SEC. They are currently tied with Texas A&M for the lead in the SEC West as we head to the final weekend of the regular season. Arkansas will travel to Alabama while Texas A&M travels to Ole Miss.

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