SEC Semifinal Preview: Shift in pitching plans explained
SEC Tournament Semifinals
WHO: Georgia (44-14) vs Ole Miss (37-24)
WHERE: Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, Hoover, Ala.
WHEN: Saturday, 1 p.m. ET
TV/RADIO: SEC Network (Tom Hart, Todd Walker, Kyler Peterson and Kris Budden); Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (Jeff Dantzler and David Johnston).
HOOVER, Ala. – Facing Tony Locey and Emerson Hancock on separate days has typically been tough enough for Georgia opponents this spring.
But both on the same day?
That’s the challenge facing Ole Miss (37-24) in Saturday’s semifinal game of the SEC Tournament (1 p.m., SEC Network).
“We not only want both those guys to pitch and get on the mound, but we want to make sure they’re ready for next weekend,” head coach Scott Stricklin said Friday in an interview with UGASports. “We want to get to Sunday, so we’re going to do everything we can to get to Sunday, and we’re going to do it with those two guys.”
As for who would pitch in Sunday’s championship game should the seventh-ranked Bulldogs (44-14) be fortunate enough to advance, Stricklin said there’s a plan there, too.
“If we get to Sunday, we’ve got everybody left. We’ve got (Zac) Kristofak, we’ve got (Ryan) Webb, we’ve got (Justin) Glover, we’ve got (Aaron) Schunk, we’ve got (Logan) Moody, we’ve got everybody,” Stricklin said. “But we wanted both of those guys (Hancock and Locey) to pitch this weekend, and it was important to get them on the mound. It’s important to get them some significant pitches, but we’ve got to keep them on a pitch-count so we put them back to back.”
Using both Locey (10-1, 2.55) and Hancock (8-2, 1.31) on Saturday will also give Stricklin and pitching coach Sean Kenny the option to set the rotation for next weekend’s Athens Regional however they see fit.
“If we'd played today, (Locey) would have thrown, but with us getting the day off and pushing us back a day, now we’ve got to be careful,” Stricklin said. “Tony probably would have thrown today without a pitch count. With the day off, Tony needs to throw, but we can’t put him out there too long, because he’s going to come back on short rest IF he comes back on Friday.
“Same thing with Emerson. If he throws on Friday, he’s going to be coming back a little on short rest. That’s why we’re going to put them both on pitch counts and try to win the game (Saturday) with those two guys.”
Friday, the Bulldogs were able to take it easy by virtue of Thursday’s 3-1 victory over Arkansas that sent Georgia into the semifinals.
After a 9:30 a.m. breakfast, at 10:30 pitchers accompanied strength and conditioning coach Ryan Gearheart for a 30-minute pool workout session, while the position players used the batting cages at nearby Hoover High before getting in some pool time of their own.
“It was just a conditioning workout, so it wasn’t really strenuous, just something for recovery,” Stricklin said. “We wanted to get some work in, but keeping it light.”
By playing Ole Miss, it means the Bulldogs will have faced every team in the SEC. The Rebels advanced Friday by beating Arkansas 3-2, in what’s been the norm so far in the SEC Tournament: a well-pitched game.
Georgia pitchers have certainly been part of that deal, allowing just one run over 18 innings in its two contests so far.
Although the games have been dramatic with Georgia scoring late to win, Stricklin said those types of contests have been right up his team’s alley.
“We’ve played a lot of games like this all year long, and we felt at the beginning of the season this team was built to win the 3-2, 4-3 type games, just because of our pitching and defense. It’s just kind of the norm,” he said. “We’re not blowing people out. Our offense is good, but it’s not really built to score 10-12 runs, it’s built to grind down another team’s pitching staff.
What we’ve done this week so far is very similar to what’s gone on for the entire year, so it’s nothing different for us.”
NOTES: Stricklin said pitcher C.J. Smith (lower back) is improving, but that the sophomore is not expected to pitch during the rest of the SEC Tourney. “He could, but we’re being cautious. He threw a bullpen two days and felt really good, we were really encouraged with how he threw,” Stricklin said. “He’ll throw off the mound either (Saturday) or Sunday and throw a simulated game next Wednesday to get those innings back up. He will be available, unless something happens, on the 27-man post-season roster.” … If Georgia advances to Sunday’s SEC Tourney title game, the Bulldogs would play the winner of Saturday’s other semifinal game, which will feature Vanderbilt against either LSU or Mississippi State.