Alabama Baseball Claims Series Win Over Texas A&M, 6-3

The Crimson Tide paired clutch offense with an impressive bullpen effort for the series-clinching victory

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Alabama baseball earned a 6-3 win over Texas A&M on Saturday afternoon at Blue Bell Park. The victory clinched the series for UA and moved the Tide to 18-12 on the season, including a 4-7 mark in Southeastern Conference play.

“I’m really proud of our guys, Crimson Tide coach Brad Bohannon said. “It is really, really hard to win on the road in the Southeastern Conference, especially in the SEC West. It was a really complete effort by our guys. Dylan (Smith) gave us a good start, kind of hit a lull there in the one inning, but Connor Shamblin really battled and got us to Landon Green. Landon did a great job of closing it out. 

“We made some beautiful defensive plays and they helped us out a little bit on offense, but we took advantage of it and got a really, really good win on Saturday.”

Alabama got on top early with a four-run rally in the third and added one more in the fourth for the 5-0 advantage. The Aggies cut the lead to two with a three-run fourth, but UA answered with one insurance run in the sixth on the way to the 6-3 victory.

The Crimson Tide was able to secure the win thanks to the bullpen, with the duo of Connor Shamblin and Landon Green combining for the final 4.2 scoreless frames. Shamblin (3-2) got the win while Green picked up his first career save. Green tossed the final 3.0 frames and added three strikeouts. Dylan Smith got the start for UA, contributing 4.1 innings of three-run baseball with seven punchouts in his return to Texas.

The Alabama offense delivered some clutch hits, finishing 3-for-5 with the bases loaded – all coming in that three-run fourth to put the game away early. Alabama’s effort at the plate was highlighted by a pair of three-hit games from Zane Denton and T.J. Reeves. Denton finished 3-for-5 with a team-high tying two RBI and two runs scored while Reeves went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a hit-by-pitch.

How It Happened

• T3 | Alabama used three hits, two walks and a pair of hit-by-pitch to post a four-spot in the third. Jim Jarvis was hit by a pitch to start the inning and was followed by back-to-back walks from Peyton Wilson and William Hamiter to load them up. Zane Denton then singled to move everyone up 90 feet and cross the game’s first run. A sac fly in the next at-bat from Sam Praytor added one more before an Owen Diodati hit-by-pitch loaded the bases once again. Following an A&M pitching change, a single from T.J. Reeves and another single by Drew Williamson added a pair. (4-0, Alabama)
• T4 | Wilson led off with a double and came around to score one out later when Denton sent a single to right to widen the gap. (5-0, Alabama)
• B4 | The Aggies loaded the bases with two down. A wild pitch brought across one before a two-RBI single up the middle made it a two-run affair. (5-3, Alabama)
• T6 | A two-out single from Denton put a runner on for Praytor. The Tide catcher delivered, sending an RBI-double deep to left-center. (6-3, Alabama)

Postgame Notes

• Dylan Smith struck out seven in today’s outing and has now punched out five-or-more batters in all eight starts this season.
• Smith issued just one walk and has allowed one or fewer walks in six of his eight starts.
• The Crimson Tide provided Smith with five runs of support against Texas A&M. He had received a combined seven runs of support in his previous seven starts coming into today.
• Landon Green picked up his first career save in today’s game.
• Zane Denton recorded three hits to tie his career-high total for a game. Denton has notched three hits on four previous occasions, most recently on Tuesday against ULM.
• T.J. Reeves matched his career-high total for hits with three. Reeves also recorded three hits against Troy on March 3 of this season.
• With his 1-for-3 effort, Peyton Wilson extended his hitting streak to 10 games. Across that stretch, the sophomore is batting .457 (21-46) with three doubles, a triple and three home runs to go with eight RBI, nine runs scored, one walk, a hit-by-pitch and four stolen bases.
• Wilson also extended his hitting streak in SEC play to eight straight contests. During that stretch, he is batting .487 (18-37) with three doubles, three homers, eight RBI, seven runs scored, one walk, a hit-by-pitch and four stolen bases.
• Sam Praytor posted a 1-for-4 afternoon to move his hitting streak to seven games overall. During that time, Praytor is batting .370 (10-27) with two doubles, two homers, seven RBI, five runs scored and four walks.
• Praytor also added one game to his SEC hitting streak, stretching it to six straight games. Praytor is batting .375 (9-24) with two doubles, two home runs, seven RBI, five runs and three walks during that time.
• William Hamiter finished 1-for-4 on Saturday to extend his hitting streak to six games. Across that stretch, Hamiter is batting .417 (10-24) with two doubles, a home run, two RBI, six runs, two walks and a hit-by-pitch.

Alabama will go for the sweep on Sunday afternoon at Blue Bell Park. The Crimson Tide and Aggies are set for a 1 p.m. CT first pitch with A&M sending freshman righty Nathan Dettmer to the mound. Alabama’s starter is still to be announced. Fans can catch the series finale on SEC Network+.