Takeaways: Auburn baseball beats EKU, 6-1, in game two to take series
The Auburn Tigers are starting the 2024 season on the right foot.
On the heels of their dismantling of EKU last night, a run-rule 17-6 victory, Auburn went ahead and clinched the series with a 6-1 victory in a chilly Plainsman Park on Saturday afternoon. Here's what you need to know from the contest.
Gonzalez knocks off the rust
One night after Chase Allsup set the tone for Auburn with five strikeouts in his 4.2 innings, Gonzalez made his first start in 364 days and it was vintage Gonzo - five innings with one run (unearned) on two hits, with two strikeouts and an uncharacteristic three walks.
He looked every bit like he had pitched one game in the last calendar year to open the game, putting runners on first and second in each of the first two innings, a fact Gonzalez acknowledged after the game.
"It feels good to be back and play with the boys. My command was a little off at first but then I got it going and the sinker got better through the game." He also gave credit to the Auburn defense and some timely double plays of theirs to keep EKU off the scoreboard early.
But in vintage Gonzo form, he settled down for only a walk in the 3rd and a clean sheet in the 4th. Finishing the outing in 69 pitches, Gonzalez showed that he's still the Gonzo that we all know and love, and that's a great thing for Auburn's rotation this season.
Auburn brings the lumber
Cooper McMurray hit his first homer of the 2024 season, launching a 86-mph changeup 386 feet to right in the bottom of the 3rd.
Bobby Peirce put up a power display as well, following up a triple off the right field wall in the 3rd inning with an absolute BOMB over the Monster in left field in the 8th, going an estimated 364 feet.
But as I've been seemingly talking about for almost a year now, Chris Stanfield continues to be a PROBLEM for opposing teams. Not only is he an exceptional defender in center field, but he's shown up big offensively in the first two games of this series.
A night after hitting Auburn's first homer of the season, he followed it up with a triple to the deepest part of the ballpark, flashing the exceptional wheels to easily get in ahead of the throw.
It would have been a homer if hit anywhere else, too - 384 and a half feet at over 100 mph - but when it's in the left-center alley, you've got to settle for a triple.
Stanfield's speed was evident last season, with him famously stealing home against South Carolina. But adding the power stroke into his arsenal makes Stanfield potentially a top two offensive threat on this team.
The bullpen showed their disguises
Auburn's bullpen usage tonight was more like expected, with a variety of pitchers giving different "sight pictures" to EKU hitters.
Zach Crotchfelt, the high-octane lefty, was the first man out in relief of Joseph Gonzalez. So if going from a sinker/slider righty to a higher-slot lefty with a fastball/changeup combo wasn't hard enough, Auburn head coach Butch Thompson followed Crotchfelt with sidearming righty John Armstrong and his "UFO" slider. Closing out the game (in a non-save situation) was Will Cannon, named the closer a season after finishing in the top five for saves in the SEC.
Thompson's talked about "the peacock" before - Auburn's ability to go with a variety of looks out of the pen - and it was on full display tonight.
What's next for Auburn?
Game three of the series is set for Sunday at 1 p.m. CT. The game can be streamed on SEC Network+ and the Auburn Sports Network broadcast can be heard on the Auburn Athletics app.