Andrew Pinckney, Alabama Eliminate Kentucky in SEC Tournament; Cats Mount Six Hits in 4-0 Loss
HOOVER, Ala. — Kentucky made some magic when it took the field at the Hoover Metropolitan Complex for the 2022 SEC Tournament a year ago.
Unfortunately for the 2023 Cats, there was no juice left in that wand. Alabama left-hander Hunter Furtado delivered a career-high five scoreless innings while right fielder Andrew Pinckney drove in three runs, propelling the No. 9-seeded Crimson Tide to a 4-0 win over the No. 8 Wildcats.
Kentucky managed only six hits and went 0-for-11 with runners on base in the elimination defeat. Starter Darren Williams went five innings and allowed three earned runs on five hits while striking out six. Furtado countered by allowing just a pair of hits and walks while also fanning two.
Jackson Gray, Émilien Pitre and Hunter Gilliam, Kentucky's top-three leaders in batting average, went 0-for-12, failing to reach base while leaving five runners on base. Ryan Waldschmidt was the only Cat to acquire multiple knocks in the cold showing at the plate.
Williams needed only 12 pitches to get through the top of the first, bookending it with strikeouts. He dropped a 79-mph breaker on a full count to leadoff-hitter Jim Jarvis, buckling the shortstop, then got ahead of slugging first baseman Drew Williamson, climbing the ladder with a fastball for a three-pitch K.
Kentucky got runners in scoring position each of the first three innings against Furtado, but couldn't break through despite making consistently-solid contact.
With a runner on third and one out in the bottom of the second, UK designated hitter Reuben Church skied a fly ball into straightaway right field that was expected to serve as a sacrifice fly, scoring Devin Burkes for the first run of the game. Pinckney had other ideas.
The Second Team All-SEC selection came up firing after making the catch, delivering a dart to the catcher Mac Guscette, who barely had to move before before catching the delivery and tagging Burkes to end the inning. Head coach Nick Mingione immediately challenged the play, saying that Guscette blocked the plate, but a review didn't overturn the call.
"I was trying to figure out where I was supposed to be because normally on a replay you're supposed to be in the box, and then I was going back, and then I was going back and forth, and there was some chirping going out and things like that. That's all," Mingione said. "It's a competitive game. I mean, people are going to have emotions and things like that. I thought the umpires did a good job."
The red-hot Grant Smith continued his late-season offensive tear with one out in the third, driving a double over the head of the Bama CF Caden Rose. Furtado put a second runner on with two outs, hitting Waldschmidt, but then got Gilliam to fly out to right-center to retire the side.
Williams cruised through the Bama order his first time around, mixing speeds and earning a fair-few ugly swings along the way. The Tide flipped the script the second time through.
Tommy Seidl reached to lead off the fourth after getting hit square in the back by a 1-0 off-speed pitch from Williams. Two batters later, Pinckney announced his loud arrival, tattooing the first pitch of the AB for an opposite-field two-run home run, breaking the deadlock, giving the Tide a 2-0 lead.
"He's a great player, one of the best in the league for a reason," Williams said of Pinckney. "We had a good game plan. I think we called a fast ball in there, which, you know, you just probably sit and spin based off the first AP against him and threw a sinker that didn't sink. Really good player."
DH Colby Shelton very nearly made it 3-0 later in the inning, smashing a ball all the way to the wall in dead-center, but Gray was leaned up next to the 405-foot marker to make the grab.
UK felt that same pain multiple times on Wednesday, sending plenty of balls to the warning track, only to find crimson leather. Pitre found that fate leading off the bottom of the fourth, starting Furtado's only one-two-three inning of the day.
With a runner on first and two outs in the fifth, Gray scorched a 2-0 pitch to almost the exact spot where he caught Shelton's drive, landing in the glove of Rose. That was the final out recorded for Furtado, who gave interim head coach Jason Jackson and the Tide much-needed length for what was supposed to be a ham-and-egg bullpen game.
Williams started the sixth, but was pulled after facing two batters, allowing a single to Seidl and double to Williamson. Mingione signaled to the pen, bringing in trusty right-hander Mason Moore to face Pinckney.
He induced a grounder to Jase Felker, who had Seidl dead to rights at home plate. Unfortunately for the Cats, the third baseman couldn't come up with the ball cleanly and instead had to rush a throw to first, leaving it short for Gilliam, who couldn't make the pick.
The ball bled toward the wall in foul ground for Felker's second error of the game, allowing both runners to advance 90 feet, putting a pair in scoring position once again. Down 3-0, Moore buckled down and gave UK a chance, picking up three mammoth strikeouts, stranding both runners.
Escaping the jam with minimal damage didn't yield momentum at the dish for the Cats, however. RHP Cade Woods relieved Furtado and delivered a pair of scoreless innings. Smith stepped up to the dish as the tying run with two outs in the seventh, but struck out swinging for Woods' only K of the night.
Pinckney started a two-out rally against Moore in the eighth, lacing a double down the left-field line. Shelton worked a seven-pitch walk, setting the table for the second baseman Ed Johnson, who smacked an RBI single into right-center field to make it 4-0, serving as the final nail in the coffin.
Alton Davis II slammed the door shut with a scoreless eighth and ninth inning, sending the Wildcats packing after nine lackluster innings that witnessed only a pair of extra-base hits.
"I give (Alabama's) pitching staff a lot of credit," Mingione said. "They threw the ball exceptionally well. Furtado did great, right on to Woods and Davis. They threw the ball exceptionally well on a night where the ball wasn't carrying. I think multiple teams just like hit balls where I thought they were going to be out, and they weren't on both sides. Congrats to Alabama for a well-played game.
Kentucky will now await to hear its NCAA Tournament fate. The Wildcats are in good position to be a Regional Host, thanks to a top-three RPI, top strength of schedule and winning record in SEC play.
"I've got to keep our heads on straight. It obviously sucks to lose tonight. We have bigger goals, like you said, and we talked about it in the huddle postgame," Williams said. "Now we have 10 days or whatever. We've got to get better. Everybody will be fresh come that first game of the regional Friday. We're going to get lifts in, get our bodies right, and 1 through 27 are going to be ready to roll come that first game of the Regional."
The sites for the 16 Regionals will be revealed on Sunday, May 28 following the conclusion of conference tournaments. The NCAA tournament bracket is scheduled to be revealed at noon EST on Monday, May 29. The reveal will air on ESPN2.
UK has not made an NCAA Tournament since 2017, when it hosted and eventually lost in a Super Regional to rival Louisville.
The SEC Tournament bracket can be found HERE.
Looking back at UK's series win over Alabama back in March HERE.
Where Kentucky stands in the rankings entering the postseason HERE.
Latest Field of 64 Projections HERE.
Two Wildcats earn All-SEC honors. More HERE.