Caden Rose Keeps Alabama Baseball in the Fight in First Winston-Salem Super Regional Game

Rose had the most production of anyone in the Alabama lineup while batting at the bottom of the order.

Alabama Athletics

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.— Wake Forest threw it all at Alabama in Game 1 of the Winston-Salem Super Regional. The Demon Deacons took the victory, but didn't come away without a fight from the visiting Crimson Tide.

The uber-confident Crimson Tide (43-20, 16-14 SEC) battled at every turn. It wasn't enough to take one from the tournament's top overall seed. A big reason why Alabama stayed in it was center fielder Caden Rose.

Rose is having a heck of a postseason. He scored the winning run and hit a two-run bomb in the regional game against Troy. He's been slotted as the nine-hole hitter, and on Saturday, his production in that spot mattered significantly.

Rose hit two solo home runs against Wake Forest. The first came off of Deacon ace Rhett Lowder on a two-strike pitch in the third inning. Rose didn't need the short porch in left to eke out the ball. It was a colossal shot that got Alabama on the board.

His next home run came in the top of the eighth. With six outs left to play with, the Crimson Tide was down a pair. Starting pitcher Luke Holman did everything he could, but all five runs yielded in the game were his. On the first pitch of the inning, Rose sent Sean Sullivan's offering way out to left center. It was another hit that didn't leave any doubt as to whether it was going out of David F. Couch Ballpark.

"I got some good pitches to hit," Rose said. "No offense to this ballpark, but it doesn't play the biggest. If you get it up here, it's gonna go out."

Rose's production was all the more important because the numbers three and four hitters, right fielder Andrew Pinckney and first baseman Drew Williamson, combined to go 0-for-8 on Saturday. Those veteran bats have some pop in them. The Demon Deacons silenced them both and surrendered a single walk in nine innings.

"The hardest part about games like this is... it's tough to score when they don't give you free passes and you have to earn everything you get," said Rose.

Despite dropping the opening game of the series, the Alabama players remain confident and poised to try and keep the Super Regional alive on Sunday.

"This is the two best teams in the country going at it right now," Rose said. "I don't care what they have us ranked. It's the best two teams in the country slugging it out [...] [We have] to come back out tomorrow and play our best baseball."

See Also:

Alabama Baseball Pitching Staff Needs Consistency Against Wake Forest

Changing Sides: Alabama Pitcher Hunter Furtado Familiar With Wake Forest