Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Tuesday, March 28
Huntsville, AL
6:00 PM CT
Middle Tennessee
vs
Alabama
Photo by: Kaitlyn Hungerford/MT Athletic Communications
Middle Tennessee Baseball Set for Neutral Site SEC Test
3/27/2023 6:00:00 PM | Baseball
MADISON, Ala. – Middle Tennessee Baseball will see a Power Five foe for the first time this season, when they face the Alabama Crimson Tide on Tuesday night. The midweek neutral site game will take place at Toyota Field just outside Huntsville, Ala, with a first pitch slated for 6:00 p.m.
The game will be streamed on the Rocket City Trash Pandas' YouTube channel. It will also be available on radio on WGNS 101.9 FM / 1450 AM (Murfreesboro), WGNS 100.5 FM (Smyrna), GoBlueRaiders.com and the Varsity Network App. Tickets for the game can be purchased through the Rocket City Trash Pandas here.
All-Time Against Alabama
The Blue Raiders trail the all-time series with Alabama, 20-9. The Crimson Tide have won the five most recent meetings between the sides. MTSU's longest winning streak against the Tide came from 1981-88, when the Blue Raiders won four in a row in the series.
Quick Hitters
SS Brett Coker hit a combined .583 in MTSU's three-game series at Florida Atlantic this past weekend. With seven hits, two doubles, a walk and an RBI in Boca Raton, Coker now leads the Blue Raiders in both AVG (.387) and OPS (1.004) in 2023. The junior from Hendersonville, Tenn. has also reached base in 18 consecutive games, a season-high among all roster members.
Middle Tennessee is currently second in Conference USA in batting average (.313) across all games, and is first in the league (.321) in conference play. Four Blue Raiders hit over .300 in the three-game road series at FAU. Joining Coker in that category was Jackson Galloway (.462), Briggs Rutter (.385) and Jeremiah Boyd (.357).
Through 23 games this season, the Blue Raiders have used the same starting infield. DJ Wright has maned first base, JT Mabry has played at second, Brett Coker has been the everyday shortstop and Gabe Jennings has occupied the third base position. Defensively, Wright co-leads the conference with a 1.000 fielding percentage. Coker meanwhile is first in C-USA in assists (64).
Starting Pitcher
RHP Jalen Wirtz is slated to start Tuesday's matchup. The sophomore from Gallatin, Tenn. has five appearances and one start until his belt this year. His first start of the season was a five-inning, five-strikeout winning decision against St. Bonaventure.
Scouting the Crimson Tide
The Tide currently sit at 19-6 overall and 2-4 in the Southeastern Conference, having dropped series to league foes No. 2 Florida and No. 22 Kentucky so far this year. In both instances, Alabama prevailed in the Sunday series finale.
Alabama is 1-0 against Conference USA opponents, dispatching UAB 12-2 in eight innings on March 21. The Crimson Tide and MTSU have one comment opponent—Tennessee Tech—whom 'Bama defeated 7-4 at home on Feb. 21.
In its win over Kentucky on Sunday, the Tide came back to win for the first time this season when trailing after seven innings.
Alabama is fourth in the SEC with a .316 team batting average. Graduate student infielder Drew Williamson leads the squad with a .378 average. Freshman infielder Colby Shelton is the team's leader in home runs (11) and OPS 1.223. The Tide boast a lineup with six batters above a .300 AVG and two hitters with an OPS above 1.000 (among qualifying stat earners).
Up Next
MTSU concludes a five-game swing away from home Tuesday night, and returns to Murfreesboro this Friday to open a three-game C-USA series against FIU.
First pitch Friday against the Panthers is set for 6:00 p.m., with Games 2 and 3 on Saturday and Sunday scheduled for 3:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. start times. ESPN+ and the Blue Raider Radio Network will carry all three games.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Stay up to date with the Blue Raiders on Twitter (@MT_Baseball), Facebook (Blue Raider Baseball) and Instagram (@MT_Baseball).
The game will be streamed on the Rocket City Trash Pandas' YouTube channel. It will also be available on radio on WGNS 101.9 FM / 1450 AM (Murfreesboro), WGNS 100.5 FM (Smyrna), GoBlueRaiders.com and the Varsity Network App. Tickets for the game can be purchased through the Rocket City Trash Pandas here.
All-Time Against Alabama
The Blue Raiders trail the all-time series with Alabama, 20-9. The Crimson Tide have won the five most recent meetings between the sides. MTSU's longest winning streak against the Tide came from 1981-88, when the Blue Raiders won four in a row in the series.
Quick Hitters
SS Brett Coker hit a combined .583 in MTSU's three-game series at Florida Atlantic this past weekend. With seven hits, two doubles, a walk and an RBI in Boca Raton, Coker now leads the Blue Raiders in both AVG (.387) and OPS (1.004) in 2023. The junior from Hendersonville, Tenn. has also reached base in 18 consecutive games, a season-high among all roster members.
Middle Tennessee is currently second in Conference USA in batting average (.313) across all games, and is first in the league (.321) in conference play. Four Blue Raiders hit over .300 in the three-game road series at FAU. Joining Coker in that category was Jackson Galloway (.462), Briggs Rutter (.385) and Jeremiah Boyd (.357).
Through 23 games this season, the Blue Raiders have used the same starting infield. DJ Wright has maned first base, JT Mabry has played at second, Brett Coker has been the everyday shortstop and Gabe Jennings has occupied the third base position. Defensively, Wright co-leads the conference with a 1.000 fielding percentage. Coker meanwhile is first in C-USA in assists (64).
Starting Pitcher
RHP Jalen Wirtz is slated to start Tuesday's matchup. The sophomore from Gallatin, Tenn. has five appearances and one start until his belt this year. His first start of the season was a five-inning, five-strikeout winning decision against St. Bonaventure.
Scouting the Crimson Tide
The Tide currently sit at 19-6 overall and 2-4 in the Southeastern Conference, having dropped series to league foes No. 2 Florida and No. 22 Kentucky so far this year. In both instances, Alabama prevailed in the Sunday series finale.
Alabama is 1-0 against Conference USA opponents, dispatching UAB 12-2 in eight innings on March 21. The Crimson Tide and MTSU have one comment opponent—Tennessee Tech—whom 'Bama defeated 7-4 at home on Feb. 21.
In its win over Kentucky on Sunday, the Tide came back to win for the first time this season when trailing after seven innings.
Alabama is fourth in the SEC with a .316 team batting average. Graduate student infielder Drew Williamson leads the squad with a .378 average. Freshman infielder Colby Shelton is the team's leader in home runs (11) and OPS 1.223. The Tide boast a lineup with six batters above a .300 AVG and two hitters with an OPS above 1.000 (among qualifying stat earners).
Up Next
MTSU concludes a five-game swing away from home Tuesday night, and returns to Murfreesboro this Friday to open a three-game C-USA series against FIU.
First pitch Friday against the Panthers is set for 6:00 p.m., with Games 2 and 3 on Saturday and Sunday scheduled for 3:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. start times. ESPN+ and the Blue Raider Radio Network will carry all three games.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Stay up to date with the Blue Raiders on Twitter (@MT_Baseball), Facebook (Blue Raider Baseball) and Instagram (@MT_Baseball).
Players Mentioned
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