On Deck for SEC Baseball: April 18

We’ve got another weekend slate of action that’s set to begin on Thursday night.

First up is a matchup between Mizzou and Georgia. The Tigers are coming into Athens on the heels of a 14-6 blowout win over Missouri State. They have won their last three games and six of their last seven, the lone loss coming to LSU, whom they still claimed a series win over this past weekend. The Dawgs, meanwhile, are likely thankful for the day of respite. They came out on top over Clemson on Tuesday, but the game was certainly a lengthy one. UGA pulled out the 3-2 win over the Tigers in 20 (!) innings. Talk about a marathon. This game will be at 6 p.m. ET on ESPNU.

22nd-ranked Tennessee will begin a weekend series against Kentucky in Lexington. UK has been struggling a little bit, and the 18-6 loss they took against rival Louisville on Tuesday did not help matters. They’ll hope to get back on the wave that allowed them to take two of three from Ole Miss last weekend. They will have their hands full against the Vols, who took two of three from Georgia last weekend and defeated Morehead State back on Tuesday. The Volunteers are 7-3 in their last 10 games, so they’re certainly playing great ball right now. This game is at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network+.

In the first of two ranked-vs.-ranked matchups on the night, Ole Miss will face off with Auburn. The 17th-ranked Rebels are 8-3 in their last 11 games as they come into play tonight. That includes a sweep of Florida two weeks ago, but they did of course lose that aforementioned series to Kentucky last weekend. The Rebels were able to defeat rival Memphis 5-2 earlier in the week, so they’ll come in with at least a shred of momentum. Auburn, meanwhile, is looking to collect themselves. They have lost six of their last seven games, including an 11-6 loss to Georgia Tech earlier this week. They’ve lost their last two series to Arkansas and Texas A&M, so they are hoping to pick up the pieces now as the Rebels come to town. This game is at 7 p.m. on SEC Network+.

Speaking of the Aggies, Texas A&M will travel to Columbia to face off with the South Carolina Gamecocks. 9th-ranked A&M has been up-and-down lately. They are 4-5 in their last nine games as they come into this matchup. They were able to of course win their series with Auburn last weekend, but dropped one to Houston in Houston back on Tuesday. Hopefully for their sake, they rattle off a win to get them back to .500 in their last 10 games and get them really on the right track. South Carolina, meanwhile, has been playing pretty well. They upset 13th-ranked North Carolina with a 5-2 win on Tuesday in Chapel Hill. It was their fourth win in their last six games, although they have lost their last two SEC series to Alabama and Florida. They have struggled against SEC teams all season, but perhaps the win over the Tar Heels will spur their confidence this time around. This game is at 7 p.m. on SEC Network+.

A Top 10 matchup will be going down in Fayetteville. 2nd-ranked Mississippi State is set to travel to face off with 10th-ranked Arkansas. This will certainly be a very fun one between two of the best teams in the nation. It also features two of the best hitters in the conference, in the form of Matt Goodheart and Jake Mangum. Goodheart and Mangum are 2nd and 3rd in the conference in batting average as they’ve been tearing it up. Mangum, though, is not the only weapon that State has. Jordan Westburg, Elijah Macnamee and Justin Foscue are no slouches themselves. Neither are Heston Kjerstad and Dominic Fletcher for the Hogs, either. If you like offense and star power, this series will be for you. This series starts tonight at 9 p.m. on ESPNU.

Finally, let’s talk about the last matchup of the night. LSU will host Florida to start their weekend series. The 14th-ranked Fighting Tigers are coming off a series loss to Mizzou this past weekend, the first time they’ve lost a series to Mizzou since they joined the conference. It didn’t get much easier for LSU this week, as they lost 6-5 to Louisiana on Tuesday night. The Tigers have lost four of their last five and five of their last seven games as they enter play, so they are looking to avoid a total derailment. Florida, meanwhile, has had a disappointing season. But lately, they’ve been playing better. They come in having won four of their last five games, but did take it on the chin to Ole Miss two weeks ago, having been swept by the Rebels. Still, they should be able to pose a bit of a threat to the Fighting Tigers in what will be a very fun series in the Bayou. This series starts at 9 p.m. on SEC Network.