Georgia, Georgia Tech baseball teams off to hot starts

LAWRENCEVILLE — Leading off the top of the fifth inning at Coolray Field, back in his home county, Georgia catcher Corey Collins and former North Gwinnett Bulldog clubbed a home run out to deep center field Sunday to extend the Bulldogs’ lead over rival Georgia Tech to 4-1.

“It was awesome,” Collins said. “I grew up coming to this park, coming to these minor league games and everything; it felt really good to get back there. I was really glad I got a fastball up in the zone and could put a good swing on it.”

Collins and the Bulldogs ended up winning the game 12-3 in the 19th annual Spring Classic for Kids, an event put on by Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta with proceeds going towards the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center.

Georgia Tech won the opening game of the series 11-7 in Atlanta and the middle game 7-0 in Athens, the third time in the last four seasons Georgia Tech has won the series against Georgia.

In the big picture, both teams are off to red-hot starts to the 2022 season and have given baseball fans in the state something to look forward to amid the Major League Baseball lockout. Georgia Tech is now 10-2 on the season after taking the weekend, and even with the series loss the Bulldogs exited the penultimate week of non-conference play with a 9-2 record.

“I hated losing yesterday in front of our home crowd,” Georgia head coach Scott Stricklin said. “We had a huge crowd, and we just couldn’t play well. So it was good to bounce back in front of a great crowd for a great cause today and play well.”

Collins — who knocked in two more runs on Sunday with a bases loaded single in the seventh inning to bring his season total to nine in as many starts — is one of the focal points of a Georgia roster that consists almost exclusively of homegrown players. Out of 46 Bulldogs, 40 are from Georgia, including two others who played high school baseball in Gwinnett County.

Mountain View’s Garrett Spikes is 7-for-18 at the plate with five RBIs on the young season, and former Grayson outfielder Josh Stinson is also playing for the Bulldogs.

The home schedule for Georgia at Foley Field features premium matchups, including visits from both teams who contested last season’s College World Series with Mississippi State traveling to Athens March 18-20 and Vanderbilt making the trip May 6-8. The rival Florida Gators will also play three games in Athens beginning on March 31.

Eight of the top 17 schools in the latest D1Baseball rankings play in the SEC, including Georgia, which is No. 15 in the country. But Stricklin is hoping the depth of his lineup can carry his team through the gauntlet. Four different Bulldogs recorded at least two hits, and Westminster School alum Parks Harber flashed his power with a two-run home run in the third inning.

“I think we learned that our team has some toughness,” Stricklin said about the outlook for his team after the weekend. “We’re a really good baseball team. We didn’t play good on Friday and Saturday. Not to take anything away from them because I thought they played really well, they deserved to win.”

And although Sunday’s contest got away from his team, Georgia Tech head coach Danny Hall still has plenty of reasons for optimism about his team as it prepares to tackle the ACC schedule.

Like their counterparts from Athens, the Yellow Jackets also loaded with local talent. Hall’s team has 27 in-state players on it, including his son and Wesleyan alum Colin Hall. In addition, former Grayson infielder John Anderson has three hits on the season and Parkview’s Xander Stephens has pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings so far in his 2022 campaign.

The Yellow Jackets are currently ranked No. 18 in the country, third in the conference behind No. 8 North Carolina State and No. 10 Florida State. Georgia Tech will have series against both squads, traveling to Raleigh March 25-27 before hosting the Seminoles at Russ Chandler Stadium April 8-10.

“I thought my team played well [and] competed hard,” Hall said after Friday night’s home win. “It was a fun game to be part of and a great crowd. And like I said, two good teams.”

Sophomore catcher Kevin Parada is already receiving attention from MLB scouts, and he continued his scorching start to the season with three more hits and an RBI on Sunday. Parada finished the Georgia series 24-for-50 (.480) with 21 RBIs in 12 starts and has already earned one National Player of the Week honor back in February.

His battery mate Friday was ace Chance Huff, who lowered his season ERA to an even 2.00 by allowing just one run on three hits in seven strong innings.

“He’s throwing strikes with all his pitches,” Hall said about Huff. “I think that’s the biggest change with him. His fastball is plenty good enough, but he’s got the slider and curveball. [He] mixed in a few change-ups but not many. He’s been in command of all of his pitches, throwing a lot of strikes.”

The two teams will go their separate ways, but one thing is clear after a three-game series where some of the biggest stars in college baseball shined in front of three different packed stadiums.

Even without any MLB action, the state of Georgia has two serious postseason contenders to watch on the diamond this spring.

Nicole SeitzNicole Seitz

Nicole Seitz