Kentucky entered the weekend having dropped their previous two SEC series to Vanderbilt and Georgia. The Cats needed a series win to stay in the hunt for an NCAA bid and a sweep to finish the year with a winning conference record. They didn't get the sweep, but they did take the series to finish the regular season on a high note.
Game 1: Kentucky 1 - Missouri 0
Twice in their previous 8 games the Wildcats entered the 9th inning with a 1-0 lead and both times they blew it and lost in extra innings. Zack Brown ensured it would not happen a third time. With two outs and the tying run on third base, Brown struck out Mizzou cleanup hitter Josh Lester to finish the game just one pitch shy of throwing a Maddux. Brown's final line: 9 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 5 K, 0 BB.
Offensively, Kentucky scored the lone run of the game in the 5th inning. Storm Wilson led off with a double and moved to third on Thomas Bernal's almost-HR to left that was turned into an out by a leaping catch from Jake Ivory. Greg Fettes singled through a drawn-in infield to score Wilson. Kentucky had another opportunity to score in the 6th with three straight singles by Ka'ai Tom, Javon Shelby, and Dorian Hairston, but Tom was tagged out trying to leap over catcher Jack Klages.
#UKbaseball had seen 29 shutouts vs an SEC foe since 1934. That was before Zack Brown. UK has 32 now.
— Kentucky Baseball (@UKBaseball) May 15, 2015
Game 2: Missouri 6 - Kentucky 3
Dustin Beggs was dinged for 6 runs over 7 1/3 innings on just 7 hits and a walk. The Wildcats' offense continued to be mostly dormant, a result of good pitching by Tigers starter Tanner Houck. UK had a chance for a big inning in the 3rd when they loaded the bases with one out on a single, HBP, and walk with Shelby at the plate. However, JaVon hit a grounder to short that scored the run at the cost of an out and Hairston followed by grounding out to the pitcher to end the rally.
Neil Price commented several times during the game about the Wildcats' poor approach at the plate and how they were not forcing Houck or Williams to work very hard to get outs. Situational hitting has been an issue for the Cats for the last several years and especially during their recent skid. To wit: Houck needed just 6 pitches to complete the 7th inning thanks to Conner Heady and Kyle Barrett swinging at the first two pitches, producing a pop-out to short and a grounder to third. The Cats entered the 9th inning down 6-2 but rallied to score a run and bring the tying run to the plate. But Evan White swung at the first pitch he saw from closer Breckin Williams and flew out harmlessly to center.
Game 3: Kentucky 8 - Missouri 2
Kyle Cody is back. 7 Innings, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K is a fantastic line. Kyle only had one tough inning, the 5th, when Missouri loaded the bases with 1 out, but he was able to induce a double play to get out of the inning. This is the third straight good start for Kyle and comes at a great time. Brown, Beggs, and Cody is a formidable trio to bring to postseason play.
Kentucky got on the board early today, scoring a run on three straight hits to start the game. They should have scored more, with runners on 2nd and 3rd with no one out, but Shelby and Hairston both struck out and Fettes grounded out to end the frame. The Cats added on in the 2nd though, scoring 3 more times and staking Cody to a 4-0 lead that lasted until the 8th inning. Missouri used four 2-out hits to score two runs off Zach Strecker and Logan Salow, but Bo Wilson came on to strike out Shane Benes and end the threat. Kentucky struck back in the 9th with 2-run homeruns by Evan White and JaVon Shelby to give Kentucky an 8-2 lead and the final margin.
KENTUCKY WINS!! #UKbaseball defeats Missouri 8-2! pic.twitter.com/ELthzfNUj1
— Kentucky Baseball (@UKBaseball) May 16, 2015
What's Next
Kentucky will start their SEC Tournament appearance sometime Tuesday. The time and opponent will become known sometime later today as other games finish up around the conference today. I'll have a SECT preview up on Monday.
Kentucky is still in position for an NCAA Tournament bid, but they will need to do some work in the tournament. I would think a minimum of 2 wins is necessary to feel good about a bid.