Hot Start sees Alabama Baseball ranked in all five major polls

The Alabama Baseball team is off to a great start to the season with an 8-0 start to the year. The winning streak has seen the Alabama Baseball team ranked as high as 15th in the major polls with the team finding itself in the top 25 of every major poll.

The offense has been terrific to start the season and has complimented what was expected to be a strong pitching staff. As a team, the group is batting .364 through eight games scoring 86 runs for 10.75 runs per game. True freshman Justin Lebron has been a standout with a .444 batting average with two home runs, six RBIs, and six walks. Gage Miller and TJ McCants have provided the team with power each hitting .433 with five home runs each while combining for 31 RBIs. The team has five players hitting above .400 while seven everyday players are hitting above .300.

The pitching staff lost starting pitcher Riley Quick to Tommy John surgery in his first start of the season. Quick was three innings into his season allowing no hits and one walk with five strikeouts. The loss will certainly hurt the team as Quick was one of the top arms in the rotation coming off of a 2023 season where he pitched to a 3.68 ERA.

The staff overall however has performed as well as you could ask through eight games. The staff has a combined 1.31 ERA holding opponents to a .169 batting average. The group currently boasts a great strikeout-to-walk ratio striking out 79 opponents while walking just 19. Ben Hess continues to look like one of the better starters in the country with a 2.25 ERA through two starts. Pre-Season Second-Team All-SEC closer Alton Davis has only had to close out one game pitching two scoreless innings with three strikeouts while allowing two base runners.

Tougher tests ahead for the Crimson Tide

The Alabama Baseball team will face some of the tougher opponents before conference play in the weeks to come. The Tide will play UAB before heading to the Frisco Classic to face Arizona, Indiana, and Dallas Baptist. So far the schedule hasn't provided the team with a true test which will change as SEC play approaches. The team will get its first taste of SEC play on March 15th when they host the Tennessee Volunteers.

Note: All stats via Alabama Baseball