Alabama Baseball Takes on In-State Foe Jacksonville State on Tuesday Evening
2/27/2017 4:46:00 PM | Baseball
The Crimson Tide and Gamecocks will meet for the 36th time in series history on Tuesday night
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama welcomes in-state foe Jacksonville State to Sewell-Thomas Stadium for a single midweek contest on Tuesday. The Crimson Tide and Gamecocks are set for a 6 p.m. CT start on Tuesday evening. The game can be seen live on SEC Network+ with the duo of Eli Gold and Lance Cormier calling all the action.
FOLLOW THE TIDE
Fans can follow Tuesday's game via the below outlets:
Watch: SEC Network+
Listen: 102.9 FM / CTSN / TuneIn App
Twitter: @AlabamaBSB
Live Stats: RollTide.com
LEADING OFF
• Jacksonville State comes into the Tuesday matchup with a 4-2 overall record. The Gamecocks began the season with a 2-1 series win at Florida International on opening weekend. JSU then traveled to Bowling Green, Ky., to take on Western Kentucky, claiming the bookend games of the series to leave with a 2-1 series victory.
• Alabama and Jacksonville State will meet for the 36th time in series history, with the Crimson Tide holding a 28-7 advantage in the series. UA is even better at home, owning a 24-4 mark in games played on its home turf. Alabama is currently riding an 11-game winning streak over Jacksonville State, with the Tide's last loss coming on Feb. 18, 2004, at JSU. The Crimson Tide's last home loss to the Gamecocks came on March 13, 2003, with JSU earning a 5-3 win at The Joe.
• The Crimson Tide's starter will be freshman left-hander Garret Rukes. The start will be Rukes' first of the season and just his second appearance. Rukes threw one inning and allowed one hit while striking out a batter this past weekend against Oral Roberts for his lone career appearance.
• The Gamecocks will look to junior right-handed pitcher Colton Pate on Tuesday evening. Pate has appeared in two games this season, both starts, tossing 6.0 innings and sports an 0-1 record with a 7.50 ERA.
• Tuesday's game will continue the Crimson Tide's "Taco Tuesday" promotion for the 2017 season. Each Tuesday, fans can purchase a "Taco Tuesday" pass for only $10. That pass includes a game ticket along with admission to the taco and salsa bar on the Third Base Patio. Tickets to the "Taco Tuesday" promotion are limited to only 200 people, so fans are encouraged to act fast before they are all sold out.
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUP
UA – Garret Rukes (Fr., LHP) vs. JSU – Colton Pate (Jr., RHP)
SCOUTING ALABAMA
• Alabama finished week two of the season with a 1-3 overall mark, first taking down Southern Miss, 12-5, on Wednesday evening before falling in three consecutive games to Oral Roberts on the weekend.
• Cobie Vance highlighted the Alabama offense over the four-game stretch, batting .563 (9-16) with a double, a triple, one run scored and a walk to go with his team-leading five RBI and 12 total bases over the stretch. His big week helped extend his hitting streak to seven games to start the 2017 season.
• The Tide's shortstop, Chandler Avant, ranked second over that time in hits with seven, as he batted .412 (7-17) and contributed a pair of doubles, four RBI and four runs scored. Avant also added one walk and a hit-by-pitch while going a perfect 3-for-3 on stolen bases.
• Friday's series opener with Oral Roberts fell in favor of the Golden Eagles, 6-3. Alabama's offense received multi-hit nights from Keith Holcombe and Cody Henry, with each finishing 2-for-4 with a run scored, while Holcombe contributed one RBI. Vance led the Tide in RBI, finishing with two on the night, and notched his first career triple as part of his 1-for-4 effort.
• Alabama's comeback effort fell short on Saturday, as ORU claimed the 5-4 win and the series in game two of the weekend. The Tide bullpen arms of Zac Rogers, Garret Rukes, Mike Oczypok and Davis Vainer shut down the Golden Eagles across the final 3.2 innings, allowing only two hits while striking out five to keep the Crimson Tide within striking distance.
• The series finale on Sunday saw the Tide make a late push to even things up, but Oral Roberts would complete the sweep with a 5-2 win. Facing a 5-1 deficit, UA used an ORU fielding and throwing error to put a runner in scoring position to lead off the ninth. In a pinch-hit role, Holcombe sent a sharp grounder to second that the fielder bobbled before throwing the ball into the dugout, sending the batter to second. In the next at-bat, Gene Wood singled to put runners on the corners for Avant, who sent a sacrifice fly to the outfield to score Holcombe and make it a 5-2 game. Vance extended the Alabama ninth with a one-out single to place runners at first and second, but Henry's fly ball came just short of a game-tying home run for the game's final out.
• The Crimson Tide offense erupted for 12 runs and 14 hits, including five doubles, on Wednesday evening to defeat Southern Miss. Alabama used a pair of five-run innings in the second and seventh frames to ensure the victory. Rogers and Vainer tossed the final four shutout innings, earning Rogers his first career win and Vainer the first save of his young career.
• The Crimson Tide returned Tuscaloosa in 2016 after spending 2015 on the road while Sewell-Thomas Stadium was undergoing renovations. Alabama finished with a 19-12 home record at The Joe compared to a 13-14 record in road and neutral-site contests in the first year of the new stadium.
• Alabama's roster features 20 letterwinners from the 2016 squad that reached the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala. The 2017 Tide returns five positional starters and three starting pitchers while welcoming 16 newcomers.
SERIES HISTORY – JACKSONVILLE STATE
• Alabama and Jacksonville State will meet for the 36th time in series history on Tuesday evening, with the Crimson Tide holding a 28-7 advantage in the series. UA is even better at home, owning a 24-4 mark in games played on its home turf.
• The Crimson Tide is currently riding an 11-game winning streak over the Gamecocks, with the Tide's last loss coming on Feb. 18, 2004, at JSU. Alabama's last home loss to the Gamecocks came on March 13, 2003, with JSU earning a 5-3 win at The Joe.
• Head coach Greg Goff has never faced Jacksonville State across his 14-year head coaching career.
ON DECK
Alabama will next host ULM for a three-game weekend series at Sewell-Thomas Stadium from March 3-5. The Crimson Tide and Warhawks will meet for the ninth time in history when the two teams square off on Friday evening. Alabama holds a 6-2 advantage in the series, including a 4-1 mark at home. Friday's opener is set for a 6 p.m. CT first pitch with Saturday's contest scheduled to start at 2 p.m. CT. The series finale on Sunday is slated for a 1 p.m. CT start at The Joe. All three games will air live on SEC Network+.
