Baseball Series Preview: Georgia vs. UMass

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Third-ranked Georgia welcomes UMASS to Foley Field for a three-game series starting Friday. First pitch is scheduled for 6:02 p.m (SECN+).

At 11-2, the Bulldogs have matched their start from a year ago after 13 games. The 2019 club roared out to a 19-2 start and finished 46-17 in the sixth season under Ike Cousins head baseball coach Scott Stricklin. This past Tuesday, Ga. Southern snapped Georgia’s four-game winning streak with a 6-3 win at Foley Field. Then Wednesday’s rematch at SRP Park in N. Augusta, S.C. was postponed due to rain. It will be made up Tues., March 10 at SRP Park.

The Minutemen (1-5), coached by Matt Reynolds, are in the middle of a 19-game road trip to open their season. They began the year with a 6-3 win over Delaware State but have lost five straight including getting swept by Navy last weekend in Annapolis. UMASS opens Atlantic 10 conference play March 20 at Davidson and its first home series will be against Richmond March 27. Georgia has never faced UMASS.

The Bulldogs will stick with their same rotation for the first two games of the UMASS series, going with junior RHP Emerson Hancock (2-0, 5.40 ERA) on Friday and sophomore RHP Cole Wilcox (2-0, 2.00 ERA) on Saturday. Sunday’s starter is TBA.

Georgia’s leading hitters are junior outfielder Tucker Bradley (.438-6-19) and sophomore outfielder Ben Anderson (.425-0-11) while the Minutemen are paced by junior outfielder Anthony Videtto (.400-1-6) and freshman outfielder Ryan Coleman (.368-0-9).

Bradley has enjoyed one of the hottest starts in the country. He leads the SEC in home runs, RBI, total bases and is second in hits. Bradley has reached base in all 13 games this year. Also, he has made two relief appearances for a total of 3.1 scoreless innings with five strikeouts. In four games last week, Bradley hit .412 (7-for-17) with eight runs scored, one double, three home runs and nine RBI to earn Southeastern Conference Player of the Week honors. Against the Eagles Tuesday, he was 0-1 with a walk, and the out was a leaping catch over the left center wall by Parker Biederer, taking away a potential two-run home run.

Anderson is second in the SEC in runs scored with 19. He has an eight-game hitting streak (which ties his career-high from Furman), a team-high five doubles, 11 walks and ranks second on the club in batting. Bulldog senior SS Cam Shepherd (.255-4-18) ranks third in the league in RBI and stolen bases. As a four-year starter, Shepherd is poised to enter the top 10 of the Bulldog record book in several categories this season. He has started every game since stepping on campus, a streak of 193 games. Also, he earned a Rawlings Gold Glove from the ABCA last year as the nation’s top defensive shortstop.

Fans, please note that before Saturday’s game, a G-Club event will be held in the Foley Field outfield bleachers. This area will be closed to the public before the game. However, at 2 p.m. Saturday, it will be open to the public for the game.

UGA-UMASS Pitching Matchups & TV-Streaming Links

Fri. Emerson Hancock (2-0, 5.40), RHP, Jr. vs. Sean Harney (1-1, 7.00), RHP, Jr.

Sat. Cole Wilcox (2-0, 2.00), RHP, So. vs. Ben Shields (0-1, 4.00), LHP, Jr.

Sun. TBA vs. Jack Steele (0-1, 11.37), RHP, So.

SECN+ Links

Fri. https://gado.gs/4n6

Sat. https://gado.gs/4n8

Sun. https://gado.gs/4na

Radio Georgia Bulldog Sports Radio Network (Jeff Dantzler & David Johnston)

Stations: 960 AM-WRFC and selected affiliates (check your local listings), also via the Georgia Bulldogs app and TuneIn app.

Fri. Audio Link: https://gado.gs/4ng

Sat. Audio Link: https://gado.gs/4ni