BamaOnLine.com - Alabama baseball heads to Clemson Regional

May 25, 2009

Chase Goodbread
BamaOnLine.com Senior Writer

The Alabama baseball team got about the best result it could hope for on Sunday, being sent to Clemson for NCAA Regional play as a No.2 seed. The Clemson Regional also includes No.3-seed Oklahoma State, which will be the Crimson Tide's first opponent, and No.4 seed Tennessee Tech.

After losing four of its last five Southeastern Conference games, including its only two at the SEC Tournament in Hoover last week, UA's players gathered at Coleman Coliseum Sunday to watch the selection show facing the very real possibility that it would be sent to the West Coast, or perhaps Texas.

Instead, UA was sent to Clemson, and will face OSU at 2 p.m. on Friday. Wells said he remembers well Alabama's regional trip to Clemson in 1995.

"We went down there and they had Billy Koch and Mordecai and like seven first rounders," Wells said, laughing. "... They can't be that good [this year]."

The rest of the SEC's qualifiers were able to stay relatively close to home as well. Vanderbilt is Louisville-bound, while Arkansas was sent to Norman, Okla.

Wells said he and his staff will try to obtain as much "good information" as possible between now and the beginning of the tournament.

"Little things, like who's hot right now, who handles the bat well in the bottom of the zone, who looks to run, who swings at a first-pitch breaking ball, who doesn't swing at a breaking ball until there's two strikes, who chases out of the zone, you've got to do all that," Wells said. "You just prepare."

Said infielder Brandon May: "Some of the stuff we do in practice, when [coaches] find out how their pitchers pitch, we'll work on that. If they're going to stay away, we'll work on hitting the ball up the middle and to the opposite field. We'll work on whatever comes."

Wells said he does not expect SEC Player of the Year Kent Matthes to see many strikes in regional play. That will place May and others hitting behind Matthes, who hit a school-record 28 home runs, to deliver RBI when given the opportunity.

"If I am getting on base the guys behind me will get the big hit," said Matthes. "I've never been a big walks guy until this year, but I've got my most walks by far this year, so if they want to put me on ..."

UA will also try to cover for the loss of Jake Smith, who tore ankle ligaments in the SEC tourney. May will play third base in place of Smith, but it's in the bullpen where Smith - UA's closer - will be missed most.

"That hurts, but that's just the way it is," Wells said. "He was just coming back [from another injury]."

While its pitching has struggled at times, Alabama enters the postseason with one of the most potent offenses in the nation. It's .331 batting average and 107 home runs led the SEC.

FEATURED PRODUCT

Alabama Crimson Tide Crimson 2009 BCS National Champions Long Sleeve Score T-shirt

Alabama NEWS

[More]

Latest Headlines:

Resources:


			Quick links: Latest Team Rankings Free Text Alerts Member Services