Georgia’s Keegan McGovern and Michael Curry may not be well-versed in baseball lore, but then their knowledge of the game’s history really isn’t of much use when they come to the plate anyway.
Speaking after the No. 8 Bulldogs’ 11-7 NCAA Regional victory over Troy on Sunday, neither McGovern nor Curry were familiar with the Oakland A’s famous (or perhaps infamous) Bash Brothers of the late 1980s, Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco.
“That was way before my time,” chuckled McGovern.
But Bulldogs fans could be excused if they have visions of McGwire and Canseco when they see McGovern, a senior outfielder, and Curry, a junior designated hitter.
The pair – fixtures in the third and fourth spots in Georgia’s lineup – put their power to good use against Troy, with four home runs between them Sunday.
Curry got things cracking early, sending a drive over the right-center field wall to put Georgia up 1-0 in the second inning. After Troy matched the run with a home run by Brandon Lockridge in the bottom half of the inning, McGovern launched a two-run homer close to the spot where Curry hit his an inning earlier.
Troy tallied four runs in the bottom of the third inning and one in the fifth to take a 6-3 lead, but the Bulldogs bats reawakened in the sixth when McGovern and Curry hit back-to-back shots to bring Georgia to within one run.
Georgia would go on to score two runs in the sixth inning, three in the seventh, two in the eighth and one in the ninth.
“These guys … hitting three and four in that lineup, that’s pretty scary as a pitcher and a defense and pitching coach to try to call pitches against these guys when they’re locked in and the ball’s jumping,” Georgia coach Scott Stricklin said.
“The ball’s been jumping the last two days, and that’s a scary thing to think about when you’ve got to face these two guys back to back. … Our offense, led by these two guys, won that game.”
McGovern’s second home run – his 18th of the season -- was notable in that it cleared the batter’s eye in dead center field, and it was the first time the Bulldogs hit back-to-back homers since late February, when McGovern and Cam Shepherd recorded consecutive blasts against Kennesaw State.
They may not be familiar with the Bash Brothers or even Murder’s Row, but McGovern and Curry are well aware of what they’re capable of and are frequently encouraging one another in competitive and complimentary ways.
“We talk about it all the time,” said Curry, who now has 12 home runs this spring. “Whenever Keegan hits a home run, I’m trying to do it, too. That’s kind of been our approach the whole season – to really support the offense and do what we’ve got to do. … I call him ‘beast.’ He calls me ‘beast.’ I always tell him I’m better than him. We just keep each other going.”
“It’s really nice when you get to hit right in front of (Curry),” said McGovern, who hit a home run in Georgia’s 18-5 win over Campbell on Saturday and has 50 RBIs this season. “He’s been one of the best hitters in the SEC for three years now.”
Troy coach Mark Smartt was asked after the game if he considered walking either player, and he pointed out that the hitter behind McGovern and Curry is junior first baseman Adam Sasser, who has 10 home runs and 44 RBIs in 2018 and clubbed a homer against Campbell.
“Which one do you want me to walk?” said Smartt, who got two home runs from Brandon Lockridge and one from Drew Frederic on Sunday. “Sure, there’s a lot of thought about those things, but I thought Sasser was a better hitter than both of them coming into the tournament. They had good days, and they’re good players.”
At 1 p.m. Monday, Georgia will play Duke, a 15-6 winner over Troy in an elimination game Sunday night. The Bulldogs would have to lose twice Monday to miss out on next weekend’s Super Regional. If Georgia loses the first game Monday, the teams would play again at 5 p.m. to decide the regional.
Freshman right-hander Emerson Hancock (6-4, 5.10 ERA) is expected to take the mound for Georgia, but it is unknown if Aaron Schunk, the Bulldogs’ starting third baseman and their most effective closer, with eight saves, will be in the lineup.
In the bottom of the third inning, Schunk collided with the railing on the third-base side of the field while chasing a four ball and sustained a broken nose. He left the game, but could be back Monday.
“(Doctors) feel he’ll be OK,” said Stricklin. “There’s no concussion and his vision is fine. He might need a stitch or two – there was some blood coming out. He cracked it. It was sideways when I got out there. But they put it back in place. The doctors said it might be a pain tolerance thing or a comfortable thing, but if he plays, he’ll be wearing a mask.”
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