Alabama held No. 5 Auburn to just three hits in an 11-1 run rule victory.
Between the physical struggle of recovering from the high pitch count and the mental aspect, there were plenty of reasons to expect an underwhelming performance from Tyler Fay coming off of last week's historic performance against Florida.
Instead, he put together his second-best start of the season, allowing just one hit over five innings. He set the tone for a dominant team performance on the bump, as Alabama held Auburn to just three hits in an 11-1 run-rule victory. "It's what Friday guys do," head coach Rob Vaughn said. "Fay just approached this game like every other start. He had a great week and felt really good. And you're worried about it after an extended pitch count, how's the arm gonna feel, how you are you going to feel? But he said he felt awesome on Wednesday, which was great news, and I just thought it was the best version of him." Auburn jumped out to an early lead as Fay walked leadoff batter Bristol Carter, who came around to score on a two-out Eric Guevara double. That would be the only hit or run that Fay allowed, as he followed up that first with four scoreless innings. Going back to the no-hitter, he's now allowed one hit and one run over the past 14 innings after a shaky outing against Kentucky to start SEC play. The biggest change has come in his emphasis on avoiding high misses. "When his misses are down, we're going to be in good shape," Vaughn said. When his misses are up, that's when he gets in trouble. At Kentucky, his misses were up, and a good team goes and gets after him... When you're at the bottom of the zone, there's not a lot you can do with it. If you move, you're going to hit it straight in the ground; if you take it, it's a strike." Fay did get into some lengthy at-bats, running up his pitch count early. With the 132 pitches he threw last week, the team wanted to keep him below 90, which is why the former walk-on did not go back out for the sixth inning. "It was a workman-like outing for him," Vaughn said. "I told him, 'Man, we gave you this week, it's time to go saddle up and go give us 105 pitches and go get after it next week.' So he'll be ready to go." Matthew Heiberger came out for the sixth and allowed one hit over two scoreless innings. After walking the first batter of the eighth he was pulled, a move made to preserve him for another appearance later in the weekend. "Plain and simple, he's going to have to get some big outs for us, whether it's tomorrow or Sunday," Vaughn said. "If he starts getting around that 40 pitch mark, you might lose him for the weekend. So we kind of made the move to make sure we can bring him back." Sam Mitchell took over, allowing a fielder's choice and a single to start his appearance. Auburn was set up with a runner in scoring position, a rarity in this game. Mitchell was unfazed, striking out the next two batters to end the frame. Mitchell was coming off a high-leverage outing last Sunday, where he entered the game with the bases loaded in the first following Myles Upchurch's implosion and pitched 2.2 scoreless innings against Florida to set Alabama up for the sweep. "Sam has been nails in that spot," Vaughn said. "Came in and executed and did a tremendous job there." Alabama's bats were alive and well throughout the game, and scored three runs in the eighth to run-rule the Tigers, meaning that Mitchell did not have to pitch a second inning. He and Heiberger will both likely make another appearance this weekend, and having a completely fresh Hagan Banks and Ashton Crowther could prove vital as Alabama looks to win the series over the next two days.Theodore Fernandez is BamaCentral’s baseball beat reporter and a co-host of The Joe Gaither Show. He also works as a weekend sports anchor at WVUA 23 News in Tuscaloosa and serves as one of the station’s lead high school sports reporters. Fernandez is a news media student at The University of Alabama and is pursuing a master’s degree in sports management.Live Updates From Alabama's Series Opener Against Auburn
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Tyler Perry Attempted to Pay TSA Agents Amid ShutdownTyler Perry was seen attempting to give money to TSA agents agents at an Atlanta airport as the government shutdown continues
Read more »
Tyler Shough is Saints' Biggest Winner After Big Free Agency AdditionsThe New Orleans Saints have placed Tyler Shough in a position to succeed going into next season...
Read more »
Tyler Perry's New Thriller Strung Set to Premiere on Streaming Next MonthTyler Perry at the premiere of The Six Triple Eight
Read more »
Denver's City Park bandstand deemed total loss after fireTyler Melito joined the Denver7 newsroom in February 2026 as a multimedia journalist.
Read more »
Tyler Perry’s New Blumhouse Thriller Gets Release Date & StreamerA fresh thriller backed by Tyler Perry and Blumhouse Productions, premieres at the American Black Film Festival before streaming soon.
Read more »
Russell Wilson, Bobby Wagner, Tyler Lockett among ex-Seahawks still on free agent marketMaybe not all of these Seahawks will continue playing in 2026.
Read more »