Columbia News

The University of Missouri baseball team is set to face No. 16 Alabama in a three-game Southeastern Conference series at Sewell-Thomas Stadium in Tuscaloosa, beginning Thursday, April 24. This marks Missouri’s first visit to Tuscaloosa in four years.

Alabama currently holds a 12-7 advantage in the all-time series against Missouri and has won seven consecutive games dating back to 2018. The Crimson Tide swept the last two series between the teams, including their most recent meetings in Columbia during April 2023 and in Tuscaloosa in May 2021.

Thursday’s game will be broadcast on SEC Network, with Derek Jones and Todd Walker providing commentary. The following games will be available via SEC Network+. Fans can also listen locally on KTGR AM/FM or stream through the Varsity Network app, with Tex Little and Matt Michaels calling the action.

Missouri enters the series with a 13-27 overall record and an 0-18 mark in conference play after falling to Missouri State earlier this week. Head coach Kerrick Jackson is leading his second season at the helm for the Tigers after returning to Columbia last year. "Jackson, who earned his 100th career coaching victory February 15 vs. UConn, was named the 15th head coach in Mizzou history in June 2023, returning to Columbia to lead a program for which he served as an assistant coach from 2011-15 under Mizzou Hall of Fame head coach (and current pitching coach) Tim Jamieson."

Junior third baseman Jackson Lovich has been a key contributor for Missouri, batting .408 since late February with seven home runs and 34 RBIs over his last 28 games. Sophomore outfielder Kaden Peer leads the team with 11 stolen bases and reached base safely in 21 straight games earlier this season. Newcomers such as Pierre Seals and Cayden Nicoletto have also played significant roles; Nicoletto is hitting .303 with five home runs and nineteen RBIs through forty games.

On the mound, senior right-hander Kaden Jacobi leads Missouri pitchers with forty strikeouts over thirty-eight innings. Graduate left-hander Ian Lohse has posted thirty-nine strikeouts across twenty-nine innings, while left-handers Kadden Drew and Wil Libberth have combined for five wins and sixty-two strikeouts this season.

Missouri’s pitching staff has recorded more than three hundred strikeouts for the twenty-ninth time in thirty years. The Tigers’ offense ranks among conference leaders in stolen bases—currently fourth with an average of nearly one-and-a-half steals per game—and triples, standing second with twelve so far this season.

Alabama brings a strong offensive lineup into the matchup under second-year head coach Rob Vaughn. The Crimson Tide is batting .288 as a team while averaging nearly eight runs per game. Outfielder Kade Snell leads Alabama hitters at .370, while infielder Justin Lebron ranks seventeenth nationally with fifteen home runs and leads the SEC with sixty RBIs.

On Alabama’s pitching staff, right-hander Carson Ozmer leads the league with fifteen saves alongside a sub-2 ERA over twenty-one appearances. Starter Riley Quick holds a five-win record with a sub-four ERA; Zane Adams paces Alabama pitchers with forty-one strikeouts.

In their most recent meeting on April 24, 2023, Missouri fell to Alabama by a score of three to two despite Logan Lunceford holding Alabama hitless through more than five innings.

Mizzou continues to emphasize aggressive baserunning—its fifty-nine steals rank fifth among SEC teams—and consistent production at critical moments; collectively they are batting .292 with runners in scoring position this season.

"Missouri pitching has fanned 322 batters in 324.1 innings this season, marking the 29th time in the last 30 years the Tigers have topped the 300-K plateau in a season."

The Tigers aim to break their losing streak against Alabama when they open play Thursday evening at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.