SEC Tournament: Georgia vs LSU

WHERE: Hoover Met, Hoover, Alabama

WHEN: Tuesday, 5:30 p.m.

RECORDS: Georgia 30-23, LSU 34-21

STARTING PITCHERS: Georgia – Luke Wagner (3-3, 4.75); LSU – Landon Marceaux (6-4, 2.75)

TV/RADIO: SEC Network (Dave Neal, Todd Walker and Kyle Peterson); Georgia Bulldog Radio Network (Jeff Dantzler, David Johnston)

The way Georgia baseball coach Scott Stricklin sees it, his Bulldogs and LSU will be in the same boat when they meet in the single-elimination portion of the SEC Tournament Tuesday afternoon at the Hoover Met, just outside of Birmingham.

In the opinion of Stricklin, whichever of the two teams comes out on top will earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

“I think we’re in the same position,” Stricklin said of his Bulldogs and LSU. “We’ll do everything we can to win.”

Time will tell if he's correct. The eighth-seeded Bulldogs (30-23) finished 13-17 in SEC play to finish fifth in the East, while LSU (34-21), went 13-17 and finished fourth in the West.

Before anyone discounts Stricklin’s take, just be reminded that the SEC is typically awarded eight teams in the 64-team field. In 2019, Auburn went 14-17 in conference play and still received an NCAA bid.

According to noted RPI guru Warren Nolan, Georgia’s RPI stands at No. 41. For those wondering, that’s currently 10th in the SEC. On the other hand, the Bulldogs’ strength of schedule, another determining factor of picking teams to the NCAA, sits at No. 12.

Of course, if Georgia loses, it won’t matter. Win, however, and the Bulldogs advance to the double-elimination portion of the week-long tournament, which would provide at least two more opportunities to convince the committee they belong in the field.

Count sophomore pitcher Jonathan Cannon as one who believes it’s win-and-in for whoever comes out on top Tuesday afternoon.

“I think the winner of that game is going to get in the tournament. We’re going to approach every game as a game we’re trying to win,” Cannon said. “We’re more than capable of making a run, and if we play like we did (Saturday) we’ll be just fine.”

If the Bulldogs are going to win and put themselves in position for the coveted NCAA bid, it’s going to take a big effort from everyone involved.

Freshman Luke Wagner (3-3, 4.75) opened Thursday’s game against Ole Miss and went 1.2 innings after taking a shot off his leg. As the most rested of Georgia’s starters, he'll open for the Bulldogs after Liam Sullivan pitched Friday and Cannon on Saturday.

“The way he was throwing on Thursday night, we were really encouraged. That’s the best he’s looked, and all of a sudden, he gets knocked out,” Stricklin said of Wagner, who retired all five of the batters he faced before the injury occurred. “Jaden Wood will be right behind; That’s probably the 1-2 punch to go at 'em. Ben Harris, we’ll see how he bounces back. He threw 80 pitches (Friday), but may be available for one inning.”

Along with relying on its freshmen arms, the Bulldogs will also be without leading hitter Connor Tate (lower leg), although the Bulldogs seemed to have no trouble scoring runs by beating Ole Miss, 13-2.

“Baseball can be a game of momentum, so that’s the biggest thing,” Stricklin said. “We’ve got a little bit of momentum. We swung the bats really well, had a lot of great at-bats, drew some walks. Just overall, I thought we had great at-bats.”

Nevertheless, Georgia will have its collective hands full against LSU.

The Tigers will counter with top starter Landon Marceaux, who comes in with a record of 6-4 and an excellent ERA of 2.04.

Cannon, however, remains confident.

“The pitching staff just has to do what it did the last two days: limit the free passes and continue throwing the way we have,” he said. “We’ve thrown well all year. Yes, we’ve had a few games where we’ve walked a few people, but that happens. We’re a really young staff, but I think we’ve done a good job all year. The offense just has to do what it did today: just go out there and string some hits together.”

…The winner of Tuesday’s game will play top-seed Arkansas on Wednesday.

…Georgia has shown tremendous grit during the 2021 campaign after injuries and illnesses have decimated the pitching staff. It's had to lean on 10 freshmen, including starters Wagner, Liam Sullivan (1-1, 3.82), and Jaden Woods (3-1, 4.93). Overall, Georgia’s 10 freshmen pitchers have combined to go 13-8, with five saves in 26 starts with a 4.46 ERA. In 206 innings, they have allowed 102 earned runs with 120 walks and 204 strikeouts.

…Georgia enters the SEC Tournament with 13 wins, good for the No. 8 seed, including three victories over teams ranked No. 1. Georgia was never swept in league play, won a series over then top-ranked Vanderbilt in Nashville, and beat eventual SEC champion and current No. 1 Arkansas in Fayetteville. The last two weeks of the SEC regular season, Georgia went into the final game of a series needing a win to avoid a sweep, and responded with victories over No. 7 Florida in Gainesville and No. 11 Ole Miss in Athens.