How Do The 2017 Alabama Softball Pitchers Compare To The Past Five Years?
By Chris Dodson
No. 2 – 2017 Alabama Pitching Staff
It is too early to predict where the 2017 Crimson Tide pitching staff ranks at the end of the season. So far they are performing like the best pitching staff in the last six years, maybe even in program history. There’s more season to evaluate, but Alabama’s pitching is what has kept the Tide going in 2017.
Osorio has been red hot in her junior season. She started out with a perfect game in the season opener. That momentum has been carried through the season, as she has now thrown 38 consecutive scoreless innings. She has a .069 ERA and a rise ball that has been a factor in 168 strikeouts.
Check these Osorio numbers from Fast Pitch News
"“She leads the NCAA in strikeouts per seven innings (14.4). Her season-high for strikeouts in a game is 19 and in 16 games she has hit double-digits eight times.”"
And this tweet from rolltide.com
#DYK Alexis Osorio has thrown 38-consecutive scoreless innings, passing Stephanie VanBrakle (37, 2006) for the longest streak in UA history pic.twitter.com/tizwFMljf7
— Alabama Softball (@AlabamaSB) March 16, 2017
Littlejohn, in her senior season, has been equally as impressive. She’s got a 9-0 record and .048 ERA. Madi Moore, while she has had a high ERA, has been injured. Nonetheless, she has done well in relief.
This could be one of the greatest rotations in Alabama history, but that’s all depending on how the season ends. If these statistics hold, it will put the 2017 staff in an excellent position to be rated the Tide’s best all-time.