South Carolina dominated the Ole Miss lineup, except for Tim Elko, and knotted the series with a 4-2 win over the Rebels. The rubber game begins at 2 p.m. CT on Saturday. That’s a change from noon.
The Rebels are 21-13 overall and 5-9 in the SEC. Jack Washburn will start for Ole Miss on Saturday.
Derek Diamond was good enough on Friday for the Rebels to win a baseball game. The junior went 5.1 innings and allowed four runs, three of which came on a 2-out three-run home run in the third inning. He struck out four, didn’t walk anyone and threw 58 of 80 pitches for strikes.
The home run is the talking point since Diamond has struggled mightily the second time through the order this season, and that was just as the lineup saw him for a second time. And it’s a valid gripe, but honestly I thought he was still sharp and didn’t have the usual issues. The home run was pretty wind-aided and came after a single and a bunt single. The batter thought he flew out when he hit it. The bigger issue is that the Rebels, outside of Elko, couldn’t take advantage of the same wind. Diamond hung a couple pitches but mostly located better than I’ve seen him in weeks. The 10 fly outs aren’t the best number, but at the end of the day it was good enough. The offense lost the game.
Mike Bianco said Diamond was “terrific” and said both teams play in the same ballpark when I asked him about the home run. He was clearly more annoyed with his offense than Diamond. The run in the fourth inning scored on a wild pitch that bounced off Calvin Harris’ shin guard.
Riley Maddox was excellent out of the bullpen. He retired all eight he faced and threw 20 of 20 pitches for strikes. It was a dominant outing with a lot of weak contact.
Elko hit two home runs and went 4-for-4. He was great and did all he could. He now has 15 home runs on the season. But for the rest of the offense you should look away if you’re squeamish.
Outside of Elko, Ole Miss went 2-for-30. Peyton Chatagnier had a single and Hayden Dunhurst had a double. Ole Miss didn’t walk a single time and only got the count to three balls twice. Noah Hall is good and riding a streak of three straight starts of more than seven innings, but Ole Miss made him look great.
A day after there were a lot of good at-bats that moved runners and forced defenders into plays, Ole Miss was 0-for-10 with runners on, 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and only advanced a runner once in 10 opportunities. It was home run or nothing, and it was all nothing except for the team captain.
Bianco said the team isn’t known for taking a lot of pitches and all the credit goes to Hall for “filling up the zone.”
Elko and Harris are the only two regulars hitting above .300 on the season.
Dunhurst jammed his shoulder diving into second base on his double. Bianco said he felt better after the game, but there was no indication of his status for Saturday.
It’s an understatement to say tomorrow is a critical game for Ole Miss in its pursuit to make the NCAA Tournament. A loss and the Rebels are 5-10 at the halfway point and need to go 9-6 the rest of the way to get to 14-16. A 6-9 record is far from good, but it makes the task more manageable. South Carolina has arguably its most talented starter taking the ball in Will Sanders.
Sanders is a preseason All-SEC selection who has gone at least six innings in seven of his last eight starts. He’s allowed more than three earned runs once this season — Tennessee got to him for five in 4.2 innings. He has 56 strikeouts and 16 walks in 50 innings.
The Rebels are 21-13 overall and 5-9 in the SEC. Jack Washburn will start for Ole Miss on Saturday.
Derek Diamond was good enough on Friday for the Rebels to win a baseball game. The junior went 5.1 innings and allowed four runs, three of which came on a 2-out three-run home run in the third inning. He struck out four, didn’t walk anyone and threw 58 of 80 pitches for strikes.
The home run is the talking point since Diamond has struggled mightily the second time through the order this season, and that was just as the lineup saw him for a second time. And it’s a valid gripe, but honestly I thought he was still sharp and didn’t have the usual issues. The home run was pretty wind-aided and came after a single and a bunt single. The batter thought he flew out when he hit it. The bigger issue is that the Rebels, outside of Elko, couldn’t take advantage of the same wind. Diamond hung a couple pitches but mostly located better than I’ve seen him in weeks. The 10 fly outs aren’t the best number, but at the end of the day it was good enough. The offense lost the game.
Mike Bianco said Diamond was “terrific” and said both teams play in the same ballpark when I asked him about the home run. He was clearly more annoyed with his offense than Diamond. The run in the fourth inning scored on a wild pitch that bounced off Calvin Harris’ shin guard.
Riley Maddox was excellent out of the bullpen. He retired all eight he faced and threw 20 of 20 pitches for strikes. It was a dominant outing with a lot of weak contact.
Elko hit two home runs and went 4-for-4. He was great and did all he could. He now has 15 home runs on the season. But for the rest of the offense you should look away if you’re squeamish.
Outside of Elko, Ole Miss went 2-for-30. Peyton Chatagnier had a single and Hayden Dunhurst had a double. Ole Miss didn’t walk a single time and only got the count to three balls twice. Noah Hall is good and riding a streak of three straight starts of more than seven innings, but Ole Miss made him look great.
A day after there were a lot of good at-bats that moved runners and forced defenders into plays, Ole Miss was 0-for-10 with runners on, 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and only advanced a runner once in 10 opportunities. It was home run or nothing, and it was all nothing except for the team captain.
Bianco said the team isn’t known for taking a lot of pitches and all the credit goes to Hall for “filling up the zone.”
Elko and Harris are the only two regulars hitting above .300 on the season.
Dunhurst jammed his shoulder diving into second base on his double. Bianco said he felt better after the game, but there was no indication of his status for Saturday.
It’s an understatement to say tomorrow is a critical game for Ole Miss in its pursuit to make the NCAA Tournament. A loss and the Rebels are 5-10 at the halfway point and need to go 9-6 the rest of the way to get to 14-16. A 6-9 record is far from good, but it makes the task more manageable. South Carolina has arguably its most talented starter taking the ball in Will Sanders.
Sanders is a preseason All-SEC selection who has gone at least six innings in seven of his last eight starts. He’s allowed more than three earned runs once this season — Tennessee got to him for five in 4.2 innings. He has 56 strikeouts and 16 walks in 50 innings.
