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Kentucky baseball: Wildcats get favorable draw in SEC Tournament

By Mat Mlodzinski

Kentucky's Grant Smith (12) celebrates hitting a home run during a college baseball game between Tennessee and Kentucky at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, May 13, 2023.
Kentucky's Grant Smith (12) celebrates hitting a home run during a college baseball game between Tennessee and Kentucky at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, May 13, 2023. /
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Kentucky baseball takes the field against the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuesday’s first round of the SEC Baseball Tournament.

After a 36-17 (16-14) mark in the regular season, Kentucky baseball is now in postseason mode. The Wildcats are the 8-seed in the SEC Baseball Tournament and will face Alabama in the first round.

It might be a bit of a home-field advantage for the Crimson Tide. This year’s tournament is in Hoover, Alabama. However, in the regular season, Kentucky had the upper hand against Alabama.

The teams met back in late March for a 3-game series in Tuscaloosa. The Cats overcame being on the road and won the series’ first two games, before narrowly losing in the final game, 4-3. Both teams were ranked at the time, with the Wildcats three spots ahead in the poll.

Jackson Gray had himself a series and could be a player to watch in Tuesday’s game. The leadoff hitter went 5-for-14 with 3 runs and only struck out once.

This time around could be a different story. Two months later, and it will be two different teams. However, it still should be a very close contest. The Cats and Crimson Tide finished with the same SEC record (16-14) and are the 8 vs. 9 seed matchup.

Alabama does come in winners of five straight games, but those came against Texas A&M and Ole Miss. Both the Aggies and the Rebels finished under .500 in SEC play. Kentucky lost its final series of the year to No. 4 Florida, only taking one of three games. The Gators moved up to No. 2 in the rankings following the week.

If Kentucky baseball is able to take down the Tide, they will play Florida on Wednesday, also at 4:30 p.m. on the SEC Network.

A lot is at stake against Bama, however. The SEC Tournament is double elimination, but only after the first round of play. That means the loser of Tuesday’s game between Kentucky baseball and Alabama is eliminated. The winner advances, and can then afford to lose one game before a second loss would cause elimination.

Tuesday’s game against Alabama is set for 4:30 p.m. and can be watched on the SEC Network.

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