AUBURN, Ala. - The No. 23 Auburn Tigers will take on the No. 13 Vanderbilt Commodores this weekend at Plainsman Park to kick off conference play.
Auburn rides back onto the plains coming off a win over the UT Martin Skyhawks at Toyota Field in Madison, improving their record to an impressive 14-3. The Tigers will welcome the Commodores to Plainsman Park, which has been magical for them both this season and historically against the Commodores. The Tigers have boasted a 10-2 record this season at Plainsman Park, and have a 56-23 record against the ‘Dores all time when playing in the loveliest village.
The Tigers have relied heavily on their starting pitching this season, especially senior Samuel Dutton and freshman Christian Chatterton. Dutton, a right-handed transfer from LSU that is 2-1 with an eye-popping 1.31 ERA in four starts, will get the ball on Friday night while Chatterton, who is 2-0 with a 2.66 ERA, will start the rubber game on Sunday. Cade Fisher, a junior with a 5.14 ERA, will get the start on Saturday.
Vanderbilt will go a similar route as the Tigers, starting junior JD Thompson (2-0, 3.66 ERA) on Friday and sophomore Ethan McElvain (0-2, 8.74 ERA) on Saturday. Commodores long-time head coach Tim Corbing has elected to throw his ace on Sunday, as junior Cody Bowker (2-1, 1.89 ERA) will get the ball to wrap up the weekend for the Commodores. These three, along with the Commodores bullpen, will look to slow down the red-hot Tiger offense and pick up a series win to start SEC play.
Offensively for the Tigers, they are led by fifth-year senior Cooper McMurray, as he leads the Tigers in almost every offensive category, including home runs, RBIs and batting average. However, the Tigers will be without one of their most feared bats, Ike Irish, as he nurses a wrist injury he suffered earlier this season. The Tigers will look for production from others in their lineup, such as freshman Chase Fralick and junior Eric Snow, both of whom have exceeded the .400 batting average mark.
Auburn has enjoyed a nice long stay in the state of Alabama since returning from their stay in Arlington, Texas earlier this month, as they have only had to travel to Birmingham and Huntsville for midweek games against UAB and UT Martin, respectively. The Tigers will round out their homestand after their series with the Commodores with a midweek game against the Alabama State Hornets before traveling to Lexington, Kentucky to take on the Wildcats.
First pitch between the Tigers and Commodores is set for 6 p.m. CST on Friday. Saturday’s first pitch is tentatively slotted for 6 p.m. with severe weather pending, while Sunday’s rubber match will be a 2 p.m. start. Each game will be broadcast on SECN+ and on the Auburn Sports Network.
