As Georgia prepares to face LSU in the elimination round of the SEC Tournament on Tuesday morning at 9:30, captain Wes Johnson acknowledges that his squad is not under as much duress as they would normally be.
Georgia is certain to be among the 64 teams that compete in the impending NCAA Tournament at 39-14. Experts concur that the Bulldogs will be among the sixteen hosts in the region.
Does this therefore alleviate some of the burden on Georgia as it faces the defending national champions? “A little bit,” Johnson responded to UGASports following his Hoover Metropolitan Stadium exercise on Monday evening.
“I admittedly lied when I said it didn’t. It is as I instructed our men. “All I care about is that we continue to improve and perform well,” Johnson said.
“I intend to focus on a single pitch at a time, further refine our approach, and reduce our pursuit efforts.”
Furthermore, Johnson’s communication with his pitchers is unequivocal. “Good pitches must be hurled into the strike zone with force.”
(LSU) They are physical. I obviously recognize quite a few of their men. Johnson stated, “They can swing it if you miss in the middle of the plate.” “Over the weekend, they heated up and swept an Ole Miss squad.
“All that remains is to pitch and perform defense.” Johnson desires that the message be read. It should be, given that Georgia relievers collapsed in the fourth inning of Saturday’s 19-11 loss to Florida.
“There are fundamental factors at play. Johnson continued, “However, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed; I informed our guys of that.”
“We regained our footing and are attempting to approach things in a different way; we accomplished this through yesterday’s discussions with some of them and today’s work.”
Johnson stated in his interview with UGA Sports that he had not yet determined a starting quarterback.
Jarvis Evans, a sophomore left-handed pitcher (3-1, 5.00), is one candidate. Evans did not throw a pitch against Florida last weekend.
As Kolten Smith, Leighton Finley, and Zach Harris will be kept on regular rest, they will not start on the weekend as usual.
Smith is anticipated to make his first pitch on Thursday, followed by Finley on Friday, should the Bulldogs remain in contention.
Each pitcher on the staff will be required to be prepared, per Johnson. “Today, that was the prevailing sentiment.” “Tomorrow, certain players will be given opportunities,” Johnson declared.
“We are, so to speak, working our way down that food chain. Perform to the point where I am unable to ignore you and proceed accordingly.”
Utilize a double first base throughout the tournament. A double first base will be utilized experimentally by the SEC for the duration of the SEC Tourney.
The league office states that the objective is to minimize first-base confrontations between the defense and the batter or runner.
This year, it has only been utilized in non-conference contests; none of those involved the Bulldogs. “When asked, I was among the guys who said, Let’s give it a try,” Johnson explained.
“During my tenure in college, there have been a number of truly catastrophic player injuries in this sport.
I hold a favorable opinion of it. “However, that was precisely why we arrived; I wanted our personnel to get a feel for it.” In accordance with the double first base, one should:
A fair ball is one that bounds over the white portion of the receptacle.
A foul occurs when a pelted ball passes through or bounds over the colored bag (orange or green) without first passing through or bounding over the white section.
The defense is required to utilize the white section of the double base when an initial play is being executed on the batter-runner at first base. In contrast, the batter-runner is permitted to utilize the colored base, unless a mishandled third strike occurs.
The runner would advance to the white base, and the fielder would return to the colored base if the fielder was drawn to the side of the base following a mishandled third strike.
The batter, runner, and fielder may impact either the white or colored base on a fallen third strike.
It is equivalent to missing the base if the defense appeals before the batter-runner returns to first base following a play on the batter-runner in which the batter-runner contacts only the white portion of double base. The batter-runner is out as a penalty.
In situations where a play at double base is not feasible due to extra-base hits or other projectiles hit to the outfield, the batter-runner is permitted to make contact with either the colored or white portion of the base.
In the event that the batter-runner advances past first base, their potential return is limited to the white area of the base. Once the batter reaches first base, the white base may only be utilized.