PREVIEW: Kentucky opens SEC play on the road at No. 4 Georgia

Kentucky opens SEC play on the road at No. 4 Georgia Friday night.

These teams opened SEC play last season at Kentucky Proud Park, where the ‘Cats outscored the Bulldogs 37-15 over the three-game span to finish off the sweep. It really served as Kentucky’s coming out party to the entire sport, which eventually led to a Men’s College World Series appearance.

After 15 non-conference games for the ‘Cats, it’s finally time for big boy baseball. All three games this weekend will be streamed on SEC Network+.

No. 4 Georgia Bulldogs (19-1, 0-0)

After losing its fourth game of the season to UNC-Wilmington, No. 4 Georgia has rattled off 16 consecutive wins heading into conference play.

The Bulldogs aren’t just winning games though; they are destroying teams. Through 20 games, they boast a run margin of +103, which ranks fourth in the SEC behind No. 2 Tennessee (+166), No. 17 Alabama (+127) and No. 1 LSU (+127).

Georgia is led offensively by grad first baseman Ryland Zaborowski, whose .442 batting average ranks third in the SEC behind Mississippi State’s Gehrig Frei (.462) and Kentucky’s Cole Hage (.458). He has also belted 10 home runs this season, which is most in the conference. Senior second baseman Robbie Burnett (.362 BA, 27 RBI), senior catcher Henry Hunter (.333 BA), sophomore outfielder Tre Phelps (.329 BA, 5 HR), senior third baseman Slate Alford (.307 BA, 26 RBI) and grad outfielder Nolan McCarthy (.333 BA, 12 RBI) are all hitting over .300.

Speaking of McCarthy, the ‘Cats will face their former starting center fielder this weekend.

The Kalamazoo, MI native transferred to Georgia this offseason for his final season of college baseball. He followed hitting coach Nick Ammirati, who was also poached by the Bulldogs in the offseason. It was quite the surprising move, as McCarthy had established himself as a program legend during his time in Lexington.

“That’s one of the cool things about College Baseball,” Nick Mingione said about McCarthy following Kenutcky’s 9-2 win over NIU on Tuesday. “Obviously you wish him well, not while they’re playing us of course. But we’ll make sure we say hi and do all that, but these guys are super mature about separating while the game is going on.”

Georgia’s pitching staff hasn’t been quite as dominant as Kentucky’s, as the Bulldogs boast a 4.37 team ERA (14th in SEC). It’s been an especially rough stretch over its last five games, as teams are scoring 6.8 runs per game.

Its starting trio of grad left-hander Charlie Goldstein, junior right-hander Matthew Hoskins and junior right-hander Leighton Finley have pitched a combined 33 1/3 innings to a 4.05 ERA. Goldstein and Hoskins have allowed a combined five runs in 18 1/3 innings, while Finley has allowed 10 in 15 innings.

According to the SEC Availability Report, the entire Georgia team is healthy and ready to go.

Kentucky Wildcats (13-2, 0-0)

Kentucky has a chance to reintroduce itself nationally this weekend in Athens.

Through their first 15 games, the Wildcats are 13-2 with losses to Lipscomb and Wofford. They rode a 10-game winning streak from the Lipscomb loss to the Wofford loss, in which they outscored teams 105-20.

This weekend’s SEC opener will be the first major challenge of the season for the Kentucky pitching staff, which has been one of the best in the conference so far. The Wildcats’ 1.89 team ERA ranks second in the SEC, just behind No. 2 Tennessee (1.77 ERA).

The starting trio of right-hander Nic McCay and left-handers Ben Cleaver and Ethan Walker has been quite impressive. In 54 1/3 combined innings, they boast a combined 1.82 ERA with 53 strikeouts.

“Their starters do a really good job of throwing the ball where they throw the ball,” Georgia head coach Wes Johnson said about the Kentucky pitching staff. “Their starters elevate their fastball quite a bit, and they’ve got a secondary pitch to go with it.”

Kentucky’s bullpen has been nails as well, as senior right-hander Scott Rouse and left-hander Jackson Nove were (statistically) ranked the second and third best relievers in the entire SEC by 64Analytics.com. The duo has allowed just two earned runs in 24 combined inning with 37 strikeouts.

On the offensive side of the ball, three Wildcats rank in the top 15 of batting average in the SEC. Senior left fielder Cole Hage ranks second in the conference batting .458, senior third baseman Patrick Herrera ranks 12th with a .324 average, and outfielder Shaun Montoya ranks 15th with a .321 average.

Montoya in particular has been on fire lately, as he’s 8-15 in his last 15 at-bats with eight singles. Talk about consistency.

According to the SEC Availability Report, senior center fielder Will Marcy and sophomore DH Ethan Hindle are OUT for the entire series. Marcy collapsed and had to be carried off the field by teammates in Kentucky’s game against Northern Illinois on Tuesday.

ALL-TIME SERIES: Georgia leads 142-106-1

Friday, March 14, 2025 (Foley Field – 6:00 p.m. EST) SEC Network+
UK: RHP Nic McCay (3-0, 0.42 ERA, 21.1 IP) vs UGA: LHP Charlie Goldstein (0-0, 3.86 ERA, 7.0 IP)
Saturday, March 15, 2025 (Foley Field – 2:00 p.m. EST) SEC Network+
UK: LHP Ben Cleaver (2-1, 2.11 ERA, 21.1 IP) vs UGA: RHP Matthew Hoskins (0-0, 1.59 ERA, 11.1 IP)
Sunday, March 16, 2025 (Foley Field – 1:00 p.m. EST) SEC Network+
UK: LHP Ethan Walker (0-0, 3.86 ERA, 11.2 IP) vs UGA: RHP Leighton Finley (1-0, 6.00 ERA, 15.0 IP)

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