The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Blazer Baseball Welcomes Auburn for Midweek Tilt
3/16/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
UAB (10-7, 0-3 C-USA) vs. Auburn (13-7, 0-3 SEC)
Details: 6:30 p.m. • Regions Field •Birmingham, Ala.
Game Coverage: Twitter • Live Stats •Live Video
Game Notes: UAB
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - UAB and Auburn meet on the diamond for the 54th time on Tuesday when the Blazers welcome the Tigers to Regions Field for a 6:30 p.m. midweek tilt.
Tuesday's game will be the only meeting between the two schools this season, in a series that dates back to 1979.
Both squads enter looking to snap losing streaks, as Auburn has lost four straight and UAB has dropped three in a row.
UAB head coach Brian Shoop will be honored Tuesday night and will receive the 2015 Jerry Kindall Character in Coaching Award. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes announced the honor in early March, and Shoop will be presented his award prior to Tuesday's game.
Live stats and live video will be available for Tuesday's contest. Links to that information can be found in the links above or at UABSports.com.
Leading Off
• UAB and Auburn meet for the 54th time on Tuesday, a series that dates back to UAB's first year fielding a team in 1979.
• UAB's last time out resulted in a Conference USA opening-weekend sweep at Middle Tennessee, where the Blazers could only scratch across two runs in three games. Middle Tennessee's pitching staff held UAB to just 11 hits over the three games in Murfreesboro.
• As a pitching staff, UAB ranks fourth in C-USA in ERA (3.23), first in runs allowed (58), first in opposing batting average (.218), tied for second in saves (6), second in earned runs allowed (51), first in hits allowed (111) and first in doubles allowed (14).
• Tyler Mims enters Tuesday's game with an 11-game reached base streak. Evan Peterson has reached safely in 10-straight. Mims and Chase Davis have both led UAB at the plate in the last five games, both with seven hits and two RBI each. Griffin Gum has a team-best four RBI over the last five contests.
• Of UAB's first 21 scheduled games, four have been postponed, one has been moved up to earlier in the day, two have been moved to Saturday to force a doubleheader, one was moved back to its original Sunday, and a home-and-home series' locations have been swapped. In all, extreme cold weather and rain has forced some type of adjustment to 12 of UAB's scheduled 21 games they were slated to play to begin 2015.
• UAB's defense has picked up where it left off from last season, only committing 14 errors -- well ahead of the second most in C-USA -- to lead the league in fielding percentage (.978). The Blazers are also tied for second in fielding double plays (17).
• Tuesday's game at Regions marks the beginning of a four-game home stand for the Blazers.
Series History
The Blazers and Tigers meet for the 54th time on Tuesday night, a series that dates all the way back to UAB's first year fielding a baseball team back in 1979.
UAB enters the midweek tilt looking to snap a 16-game losing streak against the Tigers, a series Auburn holds a 44-9 advantage in.
Scouting The Opponent
Auburn makes the two-hour trip to Regions Field on Tuesday having lost four in a row, including three to top-25 Texas A&M this past weekend in College Station to open league play. Tuesday's game will mark just the fifth road game for the Tigers this season, a squad that is 0-4 thus far away from Plainsman Park.
The Tigers are 13-7 heading into the midweek tilt. Auburn went on a 7-game winning streak early in the year, and also won four in a row early in March before dropping four-straight to Samford and Texas A&M.
Auburn is led offensively by Anfernee Grier and Cody Nulph at the plate. Grier has a team-leading 33 hits with a .423 batting average, while Nulph is hitting .359 and a .513 slugging percentage. Blake Logan and Jordan Ebert both have 13 RBI for the Tigers, and Ebert also leads the team in home runs with three.
The Tigers' pitching staff has a cumulative 3.70 ERA, and ranks fifth in the conference with 178 strikeouts this season. Junior RHP Dalton Rentz gets the start for Auburn Tuesday night, a JC transfer that is 1-0 on the season with a 3.46 ERA in 13.0 IP.
Promotional Schedule
St. Patrick's Day - FREE t-shirt giveaway and UAB student appreciation night.
For more information on the UAB baseball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_Baseball). For more on all Blazer sports teams follow the official Twitter account of UAB Athletics (@UABAthletics).
