Auburn wins two of three in the State Farm College Baseball Showdown
Auburn head coach Butch Thompson was excited to open the season in Arlington, Texas as a participant in the State Farm College Baseball Showdown because he saw three games against three different Power 5 opponents as a good test of his team, and he’s happy with how the 2022 Auburn baseball team stepped up and answered the call.
“Being able to travel for the first time together, cycle up and get up for a 6:45 a.m. pregame meal and come out here and play a good, solid baseball game and not having the mental breakdown," Thompson said. "I like that. I like the mental toughness.”
Auburn finished the weekend 2-1 against their opponents from the Big 12, rebounding from a 3-0 loss to Oklahoma Friday morning to upset #12 Texas Tech 2-1 on Saturday afternoon and then dominate Kansas State on Sunday 11-1.
The loss to Oklahoma was a defensive battle, with both staffs allowing no runs through the first seven innings. Auburn started Notre Dame transfer Tommy Sheehan, who ultimately lasted one inning before being lifted for JUCO transfer Jordan Armstrong. No indication from the coaching staff postgame that there’s any injury concern for Sheehan in his first appearance back from a partial Tommy John recovery, just a high stress inning that featured multiple runners in scoring position. Armstrong proceeded to give Auburn 4 innings on one hit, five strikeout ball, flashing a fastball from a 3/4 arm slot that disguised his breaking stuff really well and frustrated the Oklahoma hitters.
Thompson was disappointed in the loss coming down to one pitch, a home run for Oklahoma SS Peyton Graham in the 7th inning.
“It was a little back and forth. It was one of those the whole time where you knew it was going to come down to one pitch,” he said.
Oklahoma added an insurance run in the bottom of the 8th against reliever John Armstrong, brought in after Hayden Mullins allowed runners on the corners with a walk and a single. Auburn only mustered three total hits against a talented Oklahoma squad, two of them being doubles by 1B Sonny DiChiara.
Saturday’s victory over a ranked Texas Tech team featuring reigning Big 12 Player of the Year Jace Jung was a big lift to the confidence of the Auburn team. “We faced an elite program that’s been consistent for a long time. When you do that, you know they’re not going to give it away. What we did bank mentally is we can play at a high level.” Auburn’s victory was keyed by the strong performance of sophomore RHP Joseph Gonzalez, who went five scoreless innings with five strikeouts and only two hits allowed. The Puerto Rican, who showed flashes of brilliance but also struggled with big innings over the 2021 season, showed off an improved slider with pinpoint command and a 2-seam fastball with a glove-side run that perplexed hitters at the plate. Closer Blake Burkhalter covered the final two innings, facing a minimum of six batters with one strikeout. In total, five Auburn pitchers combined to hold Texas Tech to three total hits, with 1 earned run and eight strikeouts, while striking out Jung 4 times and never allowing him to get on base in five total at-bats. More importantly, as Thompson discussed last week (https://www.si.com/college/auburn/baseball/auburn-baseball-butch-thompson-operation-atmosphere), they successfully passed the baton to the bullpen. “Our pitchers did an amazing job. "We still have some things left out here offensively, but to be able to win a close game is huge for this ballclub.”
Offensively, the first two days of the series were a struggle. After only posting three total hits and no runs on Friday, Auburn only had two runs on three hits against a good Texas Tech pitching staff led by 2022 MLB draft prospect (and 2021 draftee) Brandon Birdsell. “I knew he threw hard and had good stuff," said 2B Cole Foster, who scored Auburn’s first runs of 2022 with an RBI single that scored CF Bryson Ware in the 2nd. "With guys like that, I just try to stay simple. Once I got to 2-0 I knew a fastball was coming, and I just told myself to stay simple. Short and sweet." Auburn added on an insurance run in the 4th and almost got another on a 7th inning shot by Foster to the deepest part of right-center, but Texas Tech outfielder Dillon Carter made highlight reels with an over-the-fence catch to bring it back.
Any frustration Auburn may have been feeling at the plate after the first two games were exercised in Game three against Kansas State. After each team scored on sacrifice flies in the 1st, Auburn starter Trace Bright proceeded to shut down Kansas State, allowing only one more hit over the next four innings to finish with five shutout innings of two hit-ball with five strikeouts and only two walks. The “2nd time through the order” issues that plagued Bright were non-existent Sunday, as he flashed pinpoint control to both sides of the plate and put on a masterclass of pitch sequencing to keep Kansas State hitters off balance. He paired his 92-94 four-seam fastball with a running change and a slider, as well as the occasional curveball. His efforts to constantly change the eye levels of Kansas State hitters worked, as he didn't allow hard contact through his five innings. Offensively, the runs came from all over the lineup, with five RBIs coming from Auburn batters being hit by pitches, a steal of home by outfielder Josh Hall, and two sacrifice flies from catcher Nate LaRue, making his first appearance of the season at DH as Auburn tries to figure out the ideal rotation at catcher. Auburn finished the game with 12 runs on 13 total hits, with RF Blake Rambusch going 3-5 with 4 runs and 1B Sonny DiChiara continuing his torrid start to the 2022 campaign, going 2-2 with a double and two runs on the day to make him 5-9 with two walks, three doubles, and three runs on the season. “I finally felt like we settled in a little bit. I thought we got a little charge out of two guys who hadn't been in the lineup for two days. We got a little boost." Those two newcomers to the lineup Sunday, OF Brayton Brown and LaRue, accounted for five RBI in the game, including driving in the first four runs. "Those are two guys who hadn't had an at-bat this weekend who came in and got us going a little bit," Thompson added. "I feel like we relaxed and had some good at-bats."
In all, Thompson was happy about how the weekend went for his squad while still acknowledging there is still work to be done. “We still have some things left out here offensively, but to be able to win a close game is huge for this ballclub."
Auburn brings baseball back to Plainsman Park on Wednesday, February 23rd when they host the Troy Trojans to open the home non-conference slate.