PREVIEW: Reeling Kentucky hosts No. 20 Auburn in first home SEC series

Kentucky, who has lost three of its last four games, has a major opportunity to regain some momentum this weekend when it hosts No. 20 Auburn at Kentucky Proud Park.

Last season, the ‘Cats traveled to Auburn for their fifth conference series of the season and swept the Tigers at Plainsman Park. Auburn jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first three innings of the series finale, but Kentucky outscored them 13-1 over the final six innings to walk away with a 13-8 win.

A series victory would go along way for the ‘Cats, as they will travel to College Station next weekend for a series against Texas A&M. The Aggies aren’t off to the best of starts, but they are still an extremely talented team that was ranked No. 1 preseason.

No. 20 Auburn Tigers (17-4, 2-1)

Auburn and head coach Butch Thompson look well on their way to surpassing last season’s win total by a lot.

The Tigers finished with a less than stellar 27-26 (8-22) record in 2024, missing the NCAA Tournament. They have won 17 of their 21 games this season, and look primed to head back to the Big Dance for the first time since 2023.

They could however be without their best player this weekend in junior catcher Ike Irish, who was named Preseason First Team All-SEC. Irish missed Auburn’s SEC opening series against Vanderbilt last weekend due to a back injury. Prior to the series against the Commodores, head coach Butch Thompson had this to say about Irish’s status.

“Looking under the hood and giving that rest and letting all the muscles in that area calm down. I don’t think there’s anything to do with that except give it some time,” Thompson said. “If I start counting 10 days, I think that puts the first two weekends in jeopardy. We’re really playing two teams (Vanderbilt and Kentucky) that like to run and do some things. They’re very, very similar. I think we missed three or four weeks with him last year. Even tried to play hurt last year. So that was a challenge for us. Almost half of the SEC slate. If he misses two and is back, we’ll take it at this point.”

He is currently batting .278 with a home run and 13 RBI.

The Tigers are getting great backup play at the position however, as freshman catcher Chase Fralick is hitting for a .392 average (fourth in SEC among freshmen) with 19 RBI. He will more than likely be behind the plate this weekend in Lexington.

As a team, Auburn is hitting for a .321 team average and has eight players (with at least 40 at-bats) hitting for at least a .300 average. Fralick, senior first baseman Cooper McMurray (.385 AVG, 6 HR, 24 RBI) and junior third baseman Eric Snow (.361 AVG, 4 HR, 16 RBI) are all in the upper echelon of Southeastern Conference hitters this season.

On the pitching side, the Tigers’ 4.09 team ERA ranks 13th in the SEC. The starting trio of senior right-hander Samuel Dutton, Ole Miss transfer junior left-hander Cade Fisher and freshman right-hander Christian Chatterton boast a combined 3.41 ERA in 60 2/3 innings pitched this season. Dutton leads the way with a 1.63 ERA in a team-leading 27 2/3 innings.

Kentucky Wildcats (14-5, 1-2)

Heading into this weekend’s series, Kentucky has struggled over its last six games.

After scoring just two runs in a 2-1 series clinching win over Wofford, the ‘Cats bounced back for a nice 9-2 win over Northern Illinois on March 11. However, they traveled to Athens for an SEC opening series against No. 4 Georgia and gave up 36 runs in three games. They then returned home on Tuesday, where they suffered a disappointing midweek loss to Murray State.

It’s been a struggle at the plate for Kentucky this season, as it is hitting for a .290 team average (12th in SEC) and is tied for the least amount of total bases in the entire conference with Texas A&M (277). Senior left fielder Cole Hage is however living up to his Preseason All-American selection, as he’s hitting for a .424 average with six home runs and 18 RBI.

Senior third baseman Patrick Herrera (.354 AVG, 16 RBI), senior outfielder Shaun Montoya (.314 AVG, 11 RBI) and freshman shortstop Tyler Bell (.300 AVG, 20 RBI) have all emerged as the other true threats in the Wildcat lineup.

Entering the Georgia series, Kentucky boasted the second best team ERA in the entire conference (1.89). Just four games later, that mark has ballooned to 3.59, which is now 10th in the SEC.

It was a rough go around for Kentucky last weekend, as two of its starters (Nic McCay and Ethan Walker) and relievers Evan Byers, Jackson Nove and Scott Rouse suffered their worst outings of the season in Athens.

The starting trio of right-hander Nic McCay and left-handers Ben Cleaver and Ethan Walker entered the weekend with a 1.82 ERA in 54 1/3 combined innings. Following the weekend series however, their combined ERA is now 3.11 in 63 2/3 innings.

As for seniors Byers, Nove, Rouse and Robert Hogan, Kentucky’s most experienced relievers allowed 13 earned runs in just 7 2/3 innings (15.26 ERA). Georgia wasn’t just crushing the pitching, it was also being handed a large amount of free passes. Over the three-game series, Kentucky pitchers walked 23 batters and plunked 11. Definitely not a recipe for success.

A bounce back weekend for the Wildcat pitching staff this weekend would be extremely welcomed, as the ‘Cats have Texas A&M and Ole Miss lurking on the schedule. That series against A&M however doesn’t look too menacing anymore, as the Preseason No. 1 ranked Aggies are now 11-10 this season.

ALL-TIME SERIES: Auburn leads 80-54

Friday, March 21, 2025 (Kentucky Proud Park – 6:30 p.m. EST) SEC Network+
UK: RHP Nic McCay (3-0, 1.52 ERA, 23.2 IP) vs AUB: RHP Samuel Dutton (3-1, 1.63 ERA, 27.2 IP)
Saturday, March 22, 2025 (Kentucky Proud Park – 2:00 p.m. EST) SEC Network+
UK: LHP Ben Cleaver (2-1, 2.77 ERA, 26.0 IP) vs AUB: LHP Cade Fisher (0-0, 6.75 ERA, 9.1 IP)
Sunday, March 23, 2025 (Kentucky Proud Park – 2:00 p.m. EST) SEC Network+
UK: LHP Ethan Walker (0-0, 6.43 ERA, 14.0 IP) vs AUB: RHP Christian Chatterton (2-0, 4.18 ERA, 23.2 IP)

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