2014 SEC Baseball Tournament: Preview and Schedule

SEC Baseball

Photo by Tim Casey - Florida Athletics

The Florida Gators have earned the No. 1 seed in 2014 SEC Baseball Tournament, which commences Tuesday, May 20, at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, Hoover, Alabama, as the Vanderbilt Commodores (40-16, 17-13) will host the Tennessee Volunteers (31-22, 12-18) at 9:30 a.m. (EST).

The Volunteers took two of three in a three-game series against the Commodores in early-April, outscoring Vanderbilt by a combined score of 23-13. Sophomore right-hander Walker Buehler (9-2, 2.31) will get the starting nod for the Commodores, facing off against Tennessee’s freshman right-hander Hunter Martin (4-3, 3.12).

Three other games are scheduled to commence SEC Tournament play on May 20. Arkansas (35-21, 16-14) will host Texas A&M (33-23, 14-16), as the Razorbacks took two of three against the Aggies in College Station two weekends ago. A duel of staff aces will ensue on the mound, as Daniel Mengden (4-7, 3.41) will face off against Trey Killian (3-8, 2.34).

Alabama (34-21, 15-14) will take on Kentucky (32-22, 14-16) at 4:30 p.m., as Freshman right-hander Nick Eicholtz (3-1, 3.06) will take the mound for the Crimson Tide against the Wildcats’ junior southpaw A.J. Reed (10-2, 2.11). Alabama took two of three against Kentucky in their only meeting of the season, a three-game set in mid-March.

Mississippi State (35-20, 18-12) and Georgia (26-28-1, 11-18-1) will finish off the first day of competition, as the Bulldogs from Starkville will send junior right-hander Lucas Lester (0-0, 1.52) to the mound to face off against the Bulldogs from Athens’ senior right-hander Dylan Cole (1-0, 4.72). Mississippi State took two of three at Georgia in mid-March.

The Top 4 ranked teams of Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana State, and South Carolina will face off against the winners of the aforementioned four matchups on Wednesday. Below are the seedings for this year’s SEC Tournament, as 12 of 14 SEC teams (excluding that of Auburn and Missouri) have made the tournament field.

2014 SEC Tournament Seedings

Seed Rank Team SEC Record
1. Florida 21-9
2. Mississippi 19-11
3. Louisiana Tech 17-11-1
4. South Carolina 18-12
5. Mississippi State 18-12
6. Vanderbilt 17-13
7. Arkansas 16-14
8. Alabama 15-14
9. Kentucky 14-16
10. Texas A&M 14-16
11. Tennessee 12-18
12. Georgia 11-18-1

The first round of the tournament will be single elimination style, wherein each losing team will be eliminated from further contention in the SEC Tournament. The second round of play will feature a double elimination format, as each losing team is given a second chance at moving on in the tournament. Single elimination commences once again in semi-final play, as the two remaining teams will compete in a single-game matchup to decide the winner of the tournament.

Below is a complete schedule of the 2014 SEC Tournament in Hoover, Alabama.

2014 SEC Tournament Schedule

Game No. Date Time (EST) Matchup
1. May 20 9:30 a.m. Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee
2. May 20 TBD Arkansas vs. Texas A&M
3. May 20 4:30 p.m. Alabama vs. Kentucky
4. May 20 TBD Mississippi State vs. Georgia
5. May 21 9:30 a.m. Louisiana State vs. Game 1 Winner
6. May 21 TBD Mississippi vs. Game 2 Winner
7. May 21 4:30 p.m. Florida vs. Game 3 Winner
8. May 21 TBD South Carolina vs. Game 4 Winner
9. May 22 9:30 a.m. Game 5 Loser vs. Game 6 Loser
10. May 22 TBD Game 7 Loser vs. Game 8 Loser
11. May 22 4:30 p.m. Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner
12. May 22 TBD Game 7 Winner vs. Game 8 Winner
13. May 23 3:00 p.m. Game 9 Winner vs. Game 11 Loser
14. May 23 TBD Game 10 Winner vs. Game 12 Loser
15. May 24 12:00 p.m. Game 13 Winner vs. Game 11 Winner
16. May 24 TBD Game 14 Winner vs. Game 12 Winner
17. May 25 3:30 p.m. Game 15 Winner vs. Game 16 Winner

About the Author

Josh Vadeboncoeur
Follow Josh on Twitter @vadeboncoeurCBC Josh is currently a student at the University of Florida pursuing a Master of Science degree in Sport Management. He’s an avid fan and scholar of the game, who although has a place in his heart for his Gators, is as objective as they come. Josh is a member of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, giving him official votes in the Dick Howser Trophy, Regional Players of the Year, and NCBWA All-America voting. Josh’s knowledge of the game of baseball ranges from the post-Civil War baseball boom to the current modern era, covering topics such as business and politics of the game to the minor leagues to negro league baseball and even international expansion. But most of all, a strong passion lies in his heart for college baseball.
  • Drexler Edwards

    Trying to find out when and if ull will be playing in a regional at LSU’s alex box stadium in baton rouge.