Pitching continues to be Ole Miss’s downfall, but once again, the bats were there to save the day for the Rebels.
Ole Miss won another high-scoring game on Tuesday evening with a 12-6 victory over UT Martin that brings the Rebels’ record to 5-2 only a week and a half into the season. Thomas Dillard continued his campaign for the Golden Spikes award, hitting his fifth home run of the season.
Ole Miss outfielder Tim Elko steals second base during the Rebels’ matchup against UT Martin on Tuesday. Ole Miss won the game 12-6. Photo by Christian Johnson
“I’m just going out there and being aggressive,” Dillard said. “I just try to put a good swing on it. Whether it’s a fastball, slider or a changeup, I’m trying to jump on something early.”
Ole Miss lefty Jordan Fowler made his first start on the mound Tuesday. With the Rebels’ pitching woes so far through six games, Fowler had high hopes of getting himself into the weekend starter conversation. Unfortunately for him, he only lasted 1.2 innings against UT Martin.
Fowler finished with an ERA of 9.00, allowing five runs on three hits, although only two of those runs were earned. He also walked three while striking out two.
Despite Fowler’s performance, Ole Miss bounced back quickly, scoring 9 runs in the first three innings and essentially putting the nail in UT Martin’s coffin.
Facing a 4-0 deficit early in the game, third baseman Tyler Keenan smashed his fourth home run of the year, a two-run shot to left field. Three batters later, Zabowski, who was batting .269 coming into the game, followed Keenan’s lead. He hit a two-run dinger to right to tie the game at four.
“One of the things that made the offense so good last year was the bottom of the lineup,” head coach Mike Bianco said. “Guys like Keenan and (Chase) Cockrell were at the bottom. It’s hard for an opposing staff to work through that lineup if the bottom can hit, so certainly the more production you get from them the better.”
UT Martin took the lead in the second thanks to a Jordan Stoner RBI single. However, that lead wouldn’t hold. The Rebels outscored their four-run first inning in the third, putting an additional five runs in the scoring column.
“(Our offense) looks good, but surprisingly there’s a lot more in the tank,” Dillard said. “There are a few things I think we can do better, as a team, to be more consistent. Right now we’re scoring double-digit runs, but I think it could get really scary eventually.”
Though the starting pitching has struggled so far, the bullpen has been good, especially on Tuesday.
Following Fowler’s outing, Ole Miss only gave up four hits and one run. Senior Connor Green threw 2.1 of those innings, earning the win after allowing 1 hit and 2 strikeouts.
“I feel like, mentally, I’m in a good spot,” Green said. “It’s all about trying to help the team and help the team win.”
Alongside Green was a face new to the bullpen: senior Ryan Olenek.
“It’s just tough when it’s a position player,” Bianco said. “The hope was (Olenek) could eat up an inning or two. The better that he pitches, the more he’ll pitch.”
Olenek has pitched sparingly during his time at Ole Miss, but he put on a show in his one inning against UT Martin, striking out two of the three batters he faced.
“From what you saw tonight, I don’t know why (I’d) only be used for midweeks,” Olenek said. “I think it’s a serious thing. I wouldn’t be out there if it wasn’t serious. We’re trying to win every baseball game, so I think they seriously want me to pitch.”
