First True Roadtrip of the Season for Baseball Sends the Tide to Oklahoma
3/1/2018 4:18:00 PM | Baseball
The Crimson Tide and Sooners will meet for the fifth time in the history of the two programs when the two square off on Friday evening
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Crimson Tide baseball team will travel to Oklahoma this weekend for a three-game series with the Sooners. The two teams will kick off the non-conference pairing on Friday at 6:30 p.m. CT followed by a 4 p.m. CT first pitch in Saturday's contest. The Sunday finale from Norman is set to start at 12 p.m. CT. The series opener on Friday can be seen live on SoonerSports.com, with the final two games of the weekend airing live on Fox Sports Oklahoma+.
FOLLOW THE TIDE
Fans can follow this weekend's matchups via the below outlets:
Watch: SoonerSports.com (Friday) || Fox Sports Oklahoma+ (Saturday/Sunday)
Listen: 102.9 FM / CTSN / TuneIn App
Twitter: @AlabamaBSB
Live Stats: SoonerSports.com
LEADING OFF
• Alabama and Oklahoma will meet for the first time in Norman and fifth time overall on Friday evening when the Crimson Tide and Sooners begin a three-game series this weekend at L. Dale Mitchell Park.
• The Crimson Tide is a perfect 4-0 against the Sooners in series history. The first time the two programs met was from Feb. 10-11, 2001, in Tuscaloosa. Alabama secured the sweep in the season-opening series, taking both games of a doubleheader on Feb. 10. UA won game one of the day, 10-8, before blanking Oklahoma, 5-0, in game two for the series victory. The Tide wrapped up the sweep the next day with a 6-5 win.
• The most recent meeting between the Crimson Tide and Sooners came on March 26, 2002, in Oklahoma City. The single neutral site game was held at Southwestern Bell Bricktown Ballpark, with Alabama cruising to a 17-3 win in the midweek contest.
• Oklahoma welcomes Alabama to Norman with a 4-5 overall record. The Sooners began the season in the "Baseball at the Beach" Tournament in South Carolina, winning the season opener over 20th-ranked Indiana before falling in the next three games of the weekend to South Alabama, Coastal Carolina and Virginia Tech.
• Last weekend, OU welcomed Holy Cross and Valparaiso for doubleheaders on both Saturday and Sunday. The Sooners defeated Holy Cross in the first game of each day but split with Valpo, falling 11-4 on Saturday before bouncing back with a 3-2 win in 10 innings on Sunday afternoon.
• The Crimson Tide will call on a pair of right-handers in the first two games of the series. Friday's opener will feature junior Sam Finnerty while Alabama will look to senior Jake Walters in Saturday's matchup. The Sunday starter for the Tide is still to be determined.
• The Sooners return to their regular weekend rotation that features three righties. Oklahoma is set to throw junior Jake Irvin in Friday's contest while the senior Devon Perez will assume the starting duties on Saturday. Junior Kyle Tyler will take the bump on Sunday in the series finale.
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
FRIDAY: UA – Sam Finnerty (Jr., RHP) vs. OU – Jake Irvin (Jr., RHP)
SATURDAY: UA – Jake Walters (Sr., RHP) vs. OU – Devon Perez (Sr., RHP)
SUNDAY: UA – TBA vs. OU – Kyle Tyler (Jr., RHP)
SCOUTING ALABAMA
• Alabama heads into this weekend's series with Oklahoma at a perfect 9-0. The Crimson Tide was 2-0 in midweek contests at Samford and against Alabama State following a three-game sweep of Washington State last weekend. The 9-0 start to the season is the best by an Alabama team since 2002 when Jim Wells' squad started 10-0.
• The 9-0 start for first-year head coach Brad Bohannon matches Wallace Wade (1924) for the second-best start to a head coaching career at Alabama. The all-time record for wins to start a head coaching stint with the Crimson Tide is Kid Peeples' perfect 10-0 season in 1897; Peeples only coached for one year.
• The Crimson Tide collected 14 hits on the way to 11 runs in Alabama's 11-1 win over Alabama State on Wednesday. The Alabama offense was highlighted by Hunter Alexander, with the senior finishing 3-for-4 with a team-high tying two RBI and two runs scored to go with a walk.
• On the mound, junior Mason Duke made his first career start for UA, earning the win. The right-hander tossed 5.0 scoreless innings of one-hit baseball, striking out seven across 60 pitches en route to his first victory. Duke retired the final 11 batters he faced before turning the ball over to his bullpen.
• A six-run ninth highlighted the Alabama's big scoring night against Samford, as the Crimson Tide cruised to a 13-3 win over the Bulldogs on Tuesday evening in Birmingham.
• Alabama's offense finished with 10 hits, including multi-hit outings from its 4-5-6 hitters in Chandler Taylor, Chandler Avant and Keith Holcombe who each collected two hits apiece. Taylor finished 2-for-3 with both of his hits being home runs, while the junior added a team-high four RBI and three runs scored. UA hitters also recorded seven walks on the night, three of which came with the bases loaded, resulting in three runs scored.
• Redshirt freshman Garret Rukes earned his first win of the 2018 campaign with 2.0 innings of scoreless work, allowing one hit and issuing a walk while striking out four Bulldog hitters. Rukes was followed by redshirt sophomores Brock Love and Connor Stutts, sophomore Deacon Medders and junior Dylan Duarte. The five pitchers combined for 11 strikeouts to match the season-high mark by the Alabama arms.
• The Tide secured wins in both games of Friday's doubleheader with Washington State last weekend to claim the series victory. UA came out on top, 12-4, in game one before an 8-2 win in game two of the day at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
• Alabama's offense batted .375 (27-72) with two doubles, a triple and one home run on the way to 20 total runs across the two games. The Tide used 16 hits in game one before tallying 11 in game two to help secure the series win and Friday sweep.
• UA cruised past Washington State in game one of the day for a 12-4 win. The Tide used 16 hits and a season-high tying 10 walks on the way to the win. Joe Breaux set a new Alabama record with five walks in as many plate appearances, surpassing the former high total of four in a game. Avant paced the Tide in hits with a 3-for-6 day that included two RBI and a run scored, one of six starting members of the UA order to record multi-hit days.\
• Alabama dominated once again in game two, limiting the Cougars to two runs on three hits in the 8-2 victory. The Crimson Tide hitters collected double-digit totals once again, tallying 11 in the nightcap. Jake Walters earned his first win of the season thanks to 6.0 innings of two-run baseball. The right-hander allowed two hits and issued two walks while striking out seven. He then handed the ball over to Medders, who tossed the final 3.0 innings for the save.
• After a two-hour delayed start and a 45-minute in-game rain delay, Alabama completed the sweep of Washington State with a 9-3 victory in Saturday's series finale. The Crimson Tide bats produced nine runs on the power of 12 hits and three walks.
• Alabama's offense was highlighted by Holcombe's perfect 4-for-4 afternoon that saw the junior record a team-high and career-high four RBI. Holcombe's day extended his hitting streak to six games. Also contributing a multi-hit effort was Avant, who went 2-for-4 with a double and a home run, two RBI and a pair of runs scored. With the productive day at the dish, the senior second baseman has now recorded at least one hit in all seven games of the young season.
• On the hill in Saturday's finale, Tide starter Sam Gardner worked 4.0 innings of one-run baseball, allowing four hits and issuing two walks with two strikeouts. The junior starter exited the game following a 45-minute rain delay, giving way to his bullpen. UA used four arms to combine for the final 5.0 innings, with Brock Guffey earning his first win of the season.
• Alabama returned 21 letterwinners while losing 11 from the 2017 squad. The 2018 Crimson Tide welcomed back eight positional starters and three starting pitchers while hosting 11 newcomers (including one transfer who sat out last season).
SCOUTING OKLAHOMA
• Oklahoma returns 20 letterwinners from the 2017 roster that finished 35-24 overall and 12-11 to rank third in the Big 12 on their way to an NCAA Regional. The 2018 roster is without 13 letterwinners from a season ago but welcomes 15 newcomers.
• The Sooners were selected to finish fourth in the Big 12 in the conference's preseason poll, as voted on by the league coaches.
• Skip Johnson is in his first year as head coach of the Sooners. The 1990 graduate of Texas Pan-American is assisted by Clay Van Hook, Clay Overcash and Evan Mistich.
• The Oklahoma baseball program was founded in 1898 and held a 2,541-1,472-12 record across its first 117 seasons entering the 2018 campaign. The Sooners have appeared in 37 NCAA postseasons, including 10 College World Series, being named college baseball's champion in 1951 and 1994.
• The University of Oklahoma is a public university located in Norman, Okla., and boasts an enrollment of 31,250 students. It was established on Dec. 18, 1890 as Norman Territorial University and was officially renamed Oklahoma University in 1907 after the state's admission into the union.
ALABAMA VS. THE BIG 12
• The Crimson Tide heads to Norman to square off with Oklahoma for the fifth, sixth and seventh time in the history of the two programs. The series will mark the first time Alabama has traveled to Norman, with a three-game set in Tuscaloosa and a neutral-site pairing in Oklahoma City making up the four games played up to this weekend.
• Alabama's trip to Norman will be the Tide's first three-game road weekend with a Big 12 opponent since UA went to Lincoln in 2006 for a three-game series with Nebraska. The Tide was swept in all three games by the then-No. 6 Cornhuskers in that matchup.
• The Tide has met with six of the current nine member teams and is 11-14 (.440) all-time against the current Big 12. The Crimson Tide has never paired with Baylor, Kansas or Texas Tech.
• Texas and Alabama have met the most of any current Big 12 team, with the Longhorns owning an 8-1 advantage in the nine games played. TCU is the only other Big 12 team to maintain a winning record against the Crimson Tide, winning both games between the two schools. The Tide has faced Oklahoma and West Virginia (2-2) four times apiece, and holds a 2-1 series lead against Kansas State and Oklahoma State to round out the current Big 12.
• The Crimson Tide's last meeting with a Big 12 member came in 2009, when Alabama and Oklahoma State met on May 29 in the Clemson Regional. OSU came away with a 10-6 win in the opening game of the regional for both teams.
ON DECK
Following this weekend's series with the Sooners, Alabama will return home for a single midweek matchup with the Southern Miss Golden Eagles on Wednesday, March 7. The game is set for a 6 p.m. CT first pitch on SEC Network+ with the pairing of Eli Gold and Lance Cormier calling all the action. The Wednesday midweek contest will feature a ceremonial first pitch from Alabama football head coach Nick Saban.
