It's Opening Day for the 2025 college baseball season. The Alabama Crimson Tide has plenty of reason for optimism heading into year two under head coach Rob Vaughn. Vaughn led Alabama to an NCAA Regional last year with a 33-24 overall record and a 13-17 mark in SEC play.
Alabama had significant roster turnover from a year ago, losing key pieces such as Ben Hess, TJ McCants, Gage Miller, and Ian Petrutz. Losing Alton Davis II to Georgia in the Transfer Portal was a big blow as well.
But there's plenty of reason for optimism, too. SS Justin Lebron returns for his sophomore season after a breakout freshman campaign in Tuscaloosa where he slashed .356/.444/.559. He's one of the best players in the country at his position and a legitimate All-American contender. 1B Will Hodo adds some pop to the lineup.
LSU transfer catcher Brady Neal was a big coup in the portal. He started 33 games behind home plate a year ago for the Tigers and slashed .276/.409/.578 last season in Baton Rouge. Alabama also added INF Jason Torres from Miami. He slashed .331/.385/.529 last season for the Hurricanes.
If Riley Quick is healthy again after undergoing Tommy John surgery, he'll join Zane Adams, Hagan Banks, and Tyler Fay to form what should be a pretty good pitching rotation. If one of the true freshmen can step up - right-handers Nash Wagner and Ashton Alston or left-hander Connor Lehman - the Tide will have some serious depth in the rotation.
Vaughn's second squad in Tuscaloosa should be a good one. Unfortunately, being merely good isn't likely to be good enough to seriously compete in a loaded SEC.
Nine SEC teams are in D1 baseball's preseason Top 25. That includes six Top 10 teams and four of the top five.
Alabama Baseball's Upcoming Schedule
Alabama opens the season tonight at The Joe with a weekend series against Bradley. The Crimson Tide plays a three-game set with the Braves in Tuscaloosa.
Following that, Alabama plays midweek games against Middle Tennessee State and Alabama State on Tuesday and Wednesday before heading to Jacksonville, Florida for a Round-Robin Tournament next weekend featuring Ohio State, NC State, and Coastal Carolina.
The Tide finishes out February back in Tuscaloosa with a mid-week matchup against Jacksonville State and then a weekend series against North Dakota State.