No. 6 Alabama Hosts Auburn
4/28/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
GAMES 44-47: AUBURN TIGERS (21-23, 8-10 SEC) AT ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE (32-12)
SEWELL-THOMAS STADIUM -- TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA -- 6:30 PM (CT)
APRIL 28-30, 2006 -- FIRST-PLACE BAMA HOSTS ARCH-RIVAL AUBURN
Date Game Time Radio TV
April 28 Auburn at ALABAMA 6:30 PM (CT) CTSN, WACT (1420 AM) None
April 29 Auburn at ALABAMA 6:06 PM (CT) CTSN, WACT (1420 AM) CSS
April 30 Auburn at ALABAMA 2:06 PM (CT) CTSN, WACT (1420 AM) CSS
ON THE MOUND:
Friday, April 28, 2006 (6:30 PM)
Pitcher G-GS W L SV ERA IP H R ER BB K CG
Wade LeBlanc (LH) 11-11 7 0 0 2.70 83.1 60 25 25 22 77 3
Brett Butts (RH) 12-11 3 5 0 5.93 54.2 73 47 36 19 34 0
Saturday, April 29, 2006 (6:06 PM)
Pitcher G-GS W L SV ERA IP H R ER BB K CG
Bernard Robert (R) 11-10 6 2 0 3.88 65.0 68 33 28 23 54 1
Evan Crawford (L) 11-11 4 5 0 3.70 58.1 56 29 24 34 42 0
Notes: Robert ranks 6th in SEC w/6 wins ... He is 10th in strikeouts (54) and 12th in IP (65.0) ... In SEC play, Robert is T1st in wins (4), 5th in strikeouts (38) and 7th in IP (41.0) ... Alabama is 8-2 (.800) in his 10 GS ... Robert is 4-1 (.800) in 6 SEC starts this year ... Averages 107.9 pitches per start ... Posted 4-0 record at home and 2-2 record on the road ... Recorded 16 strikeouts in last 13.1 IP ... Allowed 13 extra base hits in last 3 GS ... Suffered first loss since Mar. 11 at LSU (6 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 7 K) on April 15 ... In his last two starts, Robert is 1-1 with a 6.92 ERA (13 IP, 15, 12 R, 10 ER, 5 BB, 10 K) ... First complete game at USC (7 IP, 6 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 7 K) on April 9th ... Season high 8 IP vs. Ole Miss (8 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 7 K) ... Notched 6th win vs. No. 16 Vandy (7.1 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 9 K) on 4/22 ... Season-high 9 Ks vs. VU (4/22) ...
Sunday, April 30, 2006 (2:06 PM)
Pitcher G-GS W L SV ERA IP H R ER BB K CG
Tommy Hunter (R) 13-9 6 2 1 3.54 68.2 65 32 27 15 49 2
Chris Dennis (R) 11-10 3 3 0 5.44 44.2 45 36 27 26 28 0
Notes: Tied for 6th in SEC w/6 wins ... 9th in SEC w/68.2 IP ... In SEC games, Hunter is 8th w/40.2 IP ... Alabama is 6-3 in his 9 GS ... Posted 4-2 record and 3.71 ERA in 9 GS (60.2 IP, 54 H, 29 R, 25 ER, 15 BB, 40 K) ... Averages 100.8 pitches per GS ... Pitched into 7th inning in 7 of 9 GS ... Posted 3-1 record in SEC play ... Won back-to-back road games at No. 1 South Carolina (7 IP, 3 H, R, ER, 2 BB, 5 K) and LSU (7 IP, 10 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 5 K) on April 9 and April 16 ... First career start came against FIU (8 IP, 2 H,0 R, 0 BB, 6 K) on Feb. 26 ... First career SEC win and CG came against Ole Miss (9 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, BB, 7 K) on Mar 26 ... Three-time SEC Freshman of the Week winner vs. FIU (2/26), Ole Miss (3/26) and South Carolina (4/9) ...
INTERNET BROADCAST: Live audio broadcasts and live stats can be found at www.rolltide.com. The games are aired on the Crimson Tide Sports Network with David Crane (play-by-play) and Chris Stewart (color) describing the action. Live stats are also available at www.rolltide.com. The Saturday and Sunday games will be televised live by CSS Sports. Stewart (play-by-play) and former UA center fielder Scott McClanahan (analyst) will handle the call on TV.
TICKETS: Tickets for the Alabama- Auburn series (April 28-30) are $5 (adults) and $3 (youth) and available through the UA Athletic Tikcet Office and the Sewell-Thomas Stadium box office. Tickets will be sold at the stadium, two hours prior to each game. Tickets are also available for the final home SEC series against Florida (May 12-14).
ALABAMA HOSTS AUBURN IN SEC SERIES
The sixth-ranked and Southeastern Conference leading University of Alabama Crimson Tide baseball team hosts arch-rival Auburn University in a three-game SEC series at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The series opener is set for Friday, April 28 at 6:30 p.m. (CT). The two teams will also play Saturday, April 29 (6:06 p.m.) and Sunday, April 30 (2:06 p.m.). The Saturday and Sunday games will be televised live by CSS Sports. Alabama (32-12, 13-5 SEC) brings a six-game winning streak into the Auburn series. The Crimson Tide is batting .416 (96-for-231) in those six games with 36 extra base hits and 65 runs scored. Senior catcher Kody Valverde is 13-for-19 (.684) with 12 runs scored, one home run and 10 RBI in four-plus games. He did not play against Miss. Valley State on April 19 and played only two innings against UAB on April 26. Valverde has scored the tying or winning in each of the last three games for the Tide, including the tying run in the eighth inning against Vanderbilt (April 23) and UAB (April 26). Junior center fielder Emeel Salem is 17-for-31 (.548) during the streak with 11 run scored, two doubles, two triples and three RBI. Salem is 6-for-6 (1.000) in the first inning in the last six games, with one double, one triple and four runs scored. A pair of freshmen -- DH Alex Avila and RF Ryan Rhoden -- are also batting over .500 in the last six games. Avila is 13-for-25 (.52) with seven doubles, 10 runs scored and 10 RBI, while Rhoden is 11-for-22 (.500) three extra base hits, three RBI and four runs scoed. The Crimson Tide leads the SEC by two games over Eastern Division leaders Kentucky (11-7 SEC) and South Carolina (11-7 SEC). Alabama has a three-game lead over Arkansas (10-8 SEC) and Ole Miss (10-8 SEC) in the SEC Western Division race with 12 games remaining. Alabama has been in sole possession first place in the SEC Western Division since its win over Ole Miss on March 26. The Crimson Tide took over the SEC lead last weekend after its double header sweep of Vanderbilt on April 22. Alabama has also won its last four SEC games, beating LSU (April 16) and Vanderbilt (April 22-23). The Crimson Tide is batting .417 (65-for-156) during its four-game SEC winning streak with 25 extra base hits and 46 runs scored. Valverde is 11-for-17 (.647) in those four games, with one home run and eight RBI. He has also scored 10 runs. Avila is 10-for-10 (.556) in his last four SEC games, with five doubles, six RBI and eight runs scored. Alabama has won five of its first six SEC series, including sweeps over Ole Miss (March 24-26) and Vanderbilt (April 22-23). Auburn (21-23, 7-11 SEC) brings a two-game winning streak to Tuscaloosa this weekend. The Tigers have won three of their last four SEC series, including back-to-back series wins over Miss. State and Florida.
ALABAMA-AUBURN SERIES
*Alabama and Auburn first met on the diamond in 1896 and have staged some classic battles in the series 241-game series.
*Since that first meeting, Alabama has posted a 133-108 (.552) series edge and has won seven of the last 11 series with Auburn.
*The Crimson Tide won two of three last year at Auburn for its first series win on the Plains since 1997. After dropping the opener 8-1, Bama rebounded to the next two games (8-6 and 11-9) to take the series.
*The Tigers won the last series played here in Tuscaloosa, winning two of three from the Tide. Alabama avoided the sweep with a 19-0 win in the series finale on April 18, 2004.
* It was AU’s first series win in Tuscaloosa since 1994.
*The road team has won the last two series.
*Prior to that, the home team had won the previous four series.
*Despite back-to-back series losses, the home team still owns a 12-5 (.000) record in the last 17 Alabama-Auburn games.
*Dating back to the 1998 season, the home team is 17-8 (.680) in the last 25 Alabama-Auburn games.
*The home team has also won six of the last eight series, dating back to 1998.
*The Alabama-Auburn baseball rivalry dates back to the 1896 season when the Tigers took a two game series from the Crimson Tide in Auburn.
*Alabama’s first series win came the following year (1897) with a pair of 9-0 shutouts in Tuscaloosa.
*Ironically, the baseball series was halted for a 39-year period (1909-48) much like the football series.
*Alabama opened with a nine-game winning streak when the series was finally resumed in 1949.
*The two teams met for the 1958 SEC Championship at Rickwood Field, with Auburn winning three game series two games to none.
*The Tigers, the SEC Eastern Division champions, beat the Crimson Tide 3-2 (13 innings) and 5-4 to win the SEC title.
*UA and AU have met every year since 1967.
*Alabama and Auburn have met seven times in SEC Tournament play, with the Crimson Tide holding a 4-3 series lead. The two teams last met in 2003 with Bama winning both games en route to the SEC Tournament championship.
*The Crimson Tide and Tigers have also met once in NCAA Regional play as the two schools met in the loser’s bracket at the 2002 NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional. Alabama eliminated Auburn with 6-3 win at the Joe.
*Alabama was 4-0 against Auburn during the 1996 season, including a 1-0 win at Paterson Field in a non-SEC game. The Crimson Tide swept the three-game SEC series in Tuscaloosa to clinch the SEC Championship.
*Auburn managed only one run in 36 innings against Alabama in 1996.
*Alabama was also 4-0 against Auburn in 2002, including a win in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional. The Crimson Tide swept the regular-season series in Tuscaloosa, including a walk-off home run by Brent Boyd.
Scouting Report: Auburn Tigers
*After a slow start to the 2006 season and a slow start in SEC play, Auburn (21-23, 8-10 SEC) has won its last two series and has put itself back into SEC Tournament contention with 12 SEC games remaining on the docket.
*The Tigers have lost seven of 10 weekend series this year, but have won three of their last four SEC series, including a road series win at Florida last weekend in Gainesville.
*Auburn started the season with a 1-5 mark in conference play, but has won seven of its last 12 league games to climb to 8-10 after six weekends of play.
*The Tigers are in fifth place in the SEC Western Division and eighth place in the overall standings.
*Auburn is one-half game ahead of Tennessee (7-10) for the final berth in the SEC Tournament and owns a one-game lead over Georgia (7-11) and holds a two-game lead over LSU (6-12) and Florida (6-12).
*As a team the Tigers are batting .281(427-for-1,518) with 29 home runs and 215 RBI in 45 games.
*Auburn averages 5.4 runs and 9.7 hits per game this season.
*Freshman third baseman Mike Bianucci (Fairfax, Vir.) leads the Tigers in virtually every offensive category. He is batting .394 (56-for-142) in 36 starts, with seven home runs and 28 RBI.
*He is second in the SEC with his .394 batting average.
*Senior second baseman Tyler Johnstone (Brampton, Ontario) is one of three Tigers to start all 44 games this year. Donaldson is second on the team with a .337 (60-for-178) average with one home run and 24 RBI.
*Sophomore RF Russell Dixon (Houston) is batting .314 (48-for-153) in 42 games, with four home runs and 25 RBI.
*Junior first baseman Andy Bennett (Auburndale, Fla.), sophomore catcher Josh Donaldson (Mobile) and freshman shortstop Justin Bristow (Richmond, Vir.) have all played significant roles this season.
*Bennett and Donaldson joins Johnstone as the only three Tigers to start all 44 games.
*Bennett (.301, 5 HR, 43 RBI) leads the Tigers with 45 RBI and ranks third in home runs.
*He is 5th in the SEC with those 45 RBI this season.
*Donaldson (.294, 7 HR, 36 RBI) is tied with Bianucci for the team lead with seven home runs this year.
*He is third in the SEC with 16 doubles.
*Bristow (.243, 9 RBI) has started 42 games as a true freshman.
*In SEC play, Biannuci (.386, 2 HR, 10 RBI) is Auburn’s leading hitter in 18 games.
*Donaldson (.284, 3 HR, 10 RBI) leads the club in home runs and Bennett (.239, HR, 19 RBI) paces the Tigers with 19 RBI.
*On the mound, Auburn has compiled a 20-23 record with eight saves, two complete games and a 4.98 staff ERA.
*The Tigers have used 14 different pitchers this season, including seven starters.
*The three-man weekend rotation consisting of freshman RHP Brett Butts (Sharpsburg, Ga.), freshman LHP Evan Crawford (Prattville) and junior RHP Chris Dennis (Madison) has made 32 of the 43 starts on the mound.
*The trio has started all 18 SEC games for the Tigers.
*Butts (12 G, 11 GS, 3-5, 5.93 ERA) will get the ball in game one against Alabama. He has allowed the most runs and hits than any other pitcher on the staff. He also leads the staff with 14 doubles and seven home runs allowed.
*Butts is second in the SEC with five losses, third with 11 starts and fifth with two balks.
*Crawford (11 GS, 4-5, 3.70 ERA) has had a solid year for a true freshman pitching game two in the weekend rotation. He leads AU with 42 strikeouts (58.1 IP) and has allowed only one home run.
*Crawford is also second in the league with five losses and third with 11 starts. He is second in the league with three balks.
*Dennis (11 G, 10 GS, 3-3, 5.93 ERA) opened the season as the No. 1 starter, but after battling a series of injuries has settled into the No. 3 spot in the rotation.
*The Tigers have also gotten good mileage out their talented bullpen this season.
*Freshman RHP Luke Greinke (Orlando, Fla.) is the Tigers closer this year. In 14 appearances, Greinke (0-0, .247 ERA, 5 saves) leads Auburn in ERA and saves.
*He is fifth in the SEC with five saves.
*Greinke is also a two-way player for the Tigers and in 21 games has batted .308 (20-for-65) with 11 RBI.
*The Tigers also count on freshman RHP Paul Burnside (Montgomery), junior RHP Johnny Thompson (Jacksonville) and sophomore RHP Clarence Nicely (Ona, West Virginia).
*Burnside (14 G, 2-1, 3.49 ERA) has held opponents to a team-low .194 batting average.
*In SEC play, Burnside has appeared in six games (18 IP, 8 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 9 BB, 11 K) and not allowed an earned run in 18 innings.
*He leads the league with his 0.00 ERA in conference play.
*Thompson (24 G, 1-0, 3.52 ) leads the staff in appearances. Thompson also has two saves.
*He is third in the SEC with those 24 appearances this year.
*Nicely (15 G, 4 GS, 1-1, 4.35 ERA) has allowed only two extra base hits in 31 innings.
*Auburn is fielding .960 on the season and has made 68 errors (1.35 per game) in 44 games. In SEC play, Auburn is fielding slightly higher (.963) and has 25 errors in 18 games.
ALABAMA VS. IN-STATE FOES
*Alabama has compiled a 478-206 (.699) all-time record against teams from the state of Alabama.
*The Crimson Tide is 5-1 this season against in-state foes.
*Alabama has wins over Samford (11-3), Birmingham Southern (7-6), South Alabama (7-6) and UAB (4-3 & 14-8).
*Bama also suffered a home loss to Troy (8-5).
*All four games this week are against in-state teams. The Crimson Tide played UAB at the Hoover Met on April 26 and then hosts Auburn (April 28-30) this weekend.
*Alabama was 7-2 (.778) against in-state teams last year losing once at UAB and once at Auburn.
*The Crimson Tide was 5-0 at home last year against in-state teams.
*Alabama has played Auburn more than any other in-state foe.
*The Crimson Tide and Tigers have met 241 times since the first meeting in 1896.
*The Alabama-Samford series is the oldest in-state rivalry in the UA record books. The two schools began playing in 1894.
*In fact, the Crimson Tide beat Howard College (now called Samford) 36-2 in Birmingham.
*The runs scored (36) and margin of victory (34) are still the most in a single-game in school history.
*Alabama and South Alabama have met 94 times since the inaugural meeting in 1967.
*Alabama has played 426 (62.5 percent) of its 682 games against Auburn, Samford and South Alabama.
*Alabama’s best season against in-state foes came in 1996, when the Crimson Tide posted an 11-0 record.
*In fact from 1995-97, Alabama won 14 straight games against in-state teams the longest streak in the Wells era.
*Bama also had a nine-game winning streak in 2002 and an 11-game winning streak in 2002-03.
WELLS VS. IN-STATE FOES
*Alabama head coach Jim Wells has compiled an 93-39 (.705) record against teams from the state of Alabama.
*He logged his first win over an in-state team as the Crimson Tide defeated the Troy State Trojans 2-1 on Feb. 21, 1995.
*Later that season, Wells became the winningest first-year coach in Bama annals as he led the Crimson Tide to a 15-2 win over Samford on April 5, 1995 in Tuscaloosa.
*The win over Samford was Wells’ 22nd as the UA coach, breaking the rookie record of 21 wins held by JWH Pollard in 1907.
OFFENSE SHOWS IMPROVEMENT
*The Crimson Tide offense has shown marked improvement over the last half of the 2006 regular season.
*Alabama has raised its season batting average 46 points in the since March 13.
*In those 25 games, Alabama is batting .329 (291-for-884) with 23 home runs and 176 RBI.
*Bama is averaging 7.8 runs and 11.6 hits in those 25 games.
*The Crimson Tide’s offense struggled during the first half of the season and hit just .250 (156-for-624) in the first 19 games, with 13 home runs and 97 RBI.
*Alabama averaged only 5.8 runs and 8.25 hits per game through the first 19 games of the season.
*Valverde (.333) and Salem (.307) were the only UA starters hitting .300 or above in the first 19 games of the season.
*Salem is the leading hitter over the last 25 games with a .391 (45-for-113) clip. He is hitting 92 points higher than his 19-game batting average.
*All nine starters have a higher batting average in the last 25 games than in the first 19 games.
*Rhoden has shown the most improvement over the last 25 games. He is hitting .393 (24-for-61) to increase his batting average 172 points. He was hitting just .221 after 19 games.
*Avila has made a 123-point improvement by hitting .353 (30-for-85) in the last 25 games, compared to .229 in the first 19 games.
*Downs has seen a 113-point increase (.224 to .337) over the last 25 games.
*Here is a look at Alabama’s starters in the first 19 games compared to the last 25 games.
ALABAMA HITTING COMPARISON
First Last
Player 19 G 25 G
Avila .229 .353
Belcher .229 .304
Bush .222 .293
Downs .224 .337
Paiml .254 .318
Pennington .270 .303
Rhoden .221 .393
Salem .307 .398
Valverde .333 .360
Team .250 .329
BAMA LEADS SEC IN HITTING
*Alabama has emerged as the top hitting team in the SEC, with a .321 (201-for-627) through 18 conference games.
*South Carolina ranks second with a .313 (204-for-651), while Ole Miss is third in the league with a .303 (190-for-627) average.
*While the Tide leads the league in hitting in SEC games, Bama ranks ninth in all SEC games with a .292 (429-for-1467) batting average.
*Freshman RF Ryan Rhoden leads the team in SEC play with a .366 (15-for-41) average. He would rank 10th in the SEC in hitting, but falls four at-bats (2.5 per team game) shy of qualifying for the league statistics.
*Alabama also leads the SEC in triples (6) on-base percentage (.399) through 18 league games.
*Bama ranks second in slugging percentage (.498), runs scored (133) and RBI (120) this season. The Tide is third in doubles (39) and sixth in home runs (20).
*Valverde leads the SEC with 24 runs scored.
SALEM TIES RECORD WITH FIVE HITS
*Salem tied the Alabama single-game record with five hits in the Crimson Tide’s 14-8 win at UAB on April 26.
*He was 5-for-6 with four runs scored, one double, one triple and one RBI in the win.
*Salem is the first UA player to record five hits in a game since Morrow Thomley went 5-for-X against Miami (Ohio) on March 12, 2005.
*Salem led off the game with a triple and then added singles in the third and fifth innings. After he struck out in the seventh, he added doubles in the eighth and ninth innings for his first career five-hit game.
*Salem’s 5-for-6 effort against UAB marked the 26th five-hit game in Crimson Tide annals.
*Salem is the 20th different UA player to record five hits in one game.
*Salem’s five-hit night marked the third time an Alabama player had five hits against UAB. Pat Monti had a five-hit game at the Hoover Met in 1989 and Beau Hearod had five hits in 2003.
FIVE HITS (Single-Game Record)
Player Opponent (Year)
Ed White Florida (1949)
Norm Koury Tulane (1958)
Ken Chapman Auburn (1960)
Gene Giannini Ole Miss (1960)
Rex Bynum LSU (1972)
Gary Jack Tennessee (1981)
David Magadan Ala Christian (1983)
Florida (1983)
Arizona State (1983)
Craig Shipley Florida (1985)
Kurt Prewitt Alabama State (1985)
Robert Fletcher Indiana State (1987)
Pat Monti UAB (1989)
Mick Kerns Auburn (1991)
Chris Moller LSU (1996)
Andy Phillips Auburn (1997)
South Carolina (1998)
Kansas State (1999)
Jeremy Brown CS Fullerton (1999)
West Alabama (2000)
G.W. Keller Vanderbilt (1999)
Travis Garner South Carolina (2002)
South Alabama (2003)
Beau Hearod UAB (2003)
Morrow Thomley Miami, Ohio (2005)
Emeel Salem UAB (2006)
BAMA OWNS 6-GAME WINNING STREAK
*Alabama brings a six-game winning streak into its weekend series with arch-rival Auburn.
*The six-game winning streak is the third-longest of the season for the Crimson Tide.
*Alabama had a season-high eight-game winning streak from fb. 24-March 8. The streak was snapped with 2-1 loss in 11 innings at No. 6 Nebraska on Mar. 10.
*The Crimson Tide also had a seven-game winning streak from March 24-April 1. That streak was snapped with a 4-2 loss in 11 innings at home to No. 1 Miss. State.
*During its current winning streak, Alabama is batting .416 (96-for-231) with seven home runs and 61 RBI.
*The Tide has scored 65 runs and collected 36 extra base hits in the last six games.
*Alabama has raised its season batting average 21 points since the streak began with a 17-6 win at LSU on April 16.
TOP 5 HITTERS (6-G Winning Streak)
Player Stats
Valverde 13-19 (.684)
12 R, HR, 10 RBI
Salem 17-31 (.548)
11 R, 2 2B, 2 3B, 3 RBI
Avila 13-25 (.520)
10 R, 7 2B, 10 RBI
Rhoden 11-22 (.500)
4 R, 2 2B, 3B, 3 RBI
Downs 10-24 (.417)
9 R, 4 2B, HR, 9 RBI
*The Crimson Tide also has a four-game SEC winning streak.
*During that stretch, Bama is batting .417 (65-for-46) with seven home runs and 43 RBI.
*Alabama has also scored 46 runs and collected 26 extra base hits since April 16.
TOP 5 HITTERS (4-G SEC Winning Streak)
Player Stats
Valverde 11-17 (.647)
10 R, HR, 8 RBI
Avila 10-18 (.556)
8 R, 5 2B, 6 RBI
Rhoden 7-14 (.500)
4 R, 2 2B, 3B, 2 RBI
Salem 9-21 (.429)
5 R, 2B, 3B, RBI
Bush 6-15 (.400)
6 R, 2B, 2 HR, 9 RBI
