ATHENS – Big series.
No other way to sum up Georgia baseball’s trip to Tuscaloosa, Ala., this weekend. At the midway point of the SEC schedule, there’s a lot riding on this three-game set: Standings. Momentum. Direction. That goes for Alabama as well as the Bulldogs.
No. 10 Georgia (26-11, 9-6 SEC) physically has been bruised and battered the whole first half. But they’re getting well now and have emerged with goals still intact.
The most significant development is the return of ace pitcher Jonathan Cannon. The hard-throwing righty (6-1, 1.71 ERA) has skipped his past two outings with arm soreness. But after a live session against Georgia hitters in practice this week, Cannon has been deemed fit to return. He’ll be on a pitch count and start Saturday rather than his normal Friday night spot, but that’s obviously a welcome turn of events for a team that has been in need of some good news.
“The first pitch that came out of his hand was 95, and he threw four pitches for strikes,” coach Scott Stricklin said of Cannon’s live session Wednesday. “It was like he never left, so it was really nice.”
Cannon’s return comes a week after the return of No. 2 starter Liam Sullivan (3-1, 5.40). Starting shortstop Cole Tate (leg) has not been cleared to play this weekend, but the .331 hitter is traveling with the team to Tuscaloosa and is on track to be back next week.
For now, Sullivan will remain in the Sunday slot, so Nolan Crisp (0-1, 4.62) will get the ball again Friday night. Barring further setbacks, the pitchers soon should be back in their Friday-Sunday, 1-2-3 positions.
Just in the nick of time.
“The second half of season, that’s when you can look at records and RPI,” Stricklin said. “We’ve put ourselves in a great spot in the first half at 26-11 and a top-10 RPI (No. 7). We’ve had some lopsided losses, certainly, and those aren’t fun. Nobody likes to see them, especially us. But we have to keep things in perspective with us being a little short on the mound.”
Alabama is looking to make a move, too. Both teams are sitting in second place in their respective divisions, but teetering between the top of the league and middle of the pack overall.
The Crimson Tide (23-15, 8-7) have lost three of their past four, but their one win was significant. It was the first conference defeat of the season for No. 1-ranked Tennessee (34-3, 14-1). Taking two of three this weekend would pull Alabama even with the Bulldogs in the overall standings, important for SEC Tournament seeding.
Georgia likewise has had a rough week. The Bulldogs let a series that was in their grasp against Texas A&M slip away with late-inning, pitching-and-defense collapses, then dropped a tough-fought game versus Clemson on Tuesday. They need to get back on track in Tuscaloosa as the next three conference sets are against LSU, Vanderbilt and Tennessee.
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