Instant Analysis: No. 1 Wake Forest 22, No. 16 Alabama 5

The Crimson Tide's baseball season came to an end in blowout fashion in the second game of the Winston-Salem Super Regional.

SI Editorial | Jun 11, 2023

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.— In the end, Sunday's second game of the Winston-Salem Super Regional was far from what the Alabama Crimson Tide wanted.

The 22-5 defeat brought about a resounding end to a 2023 season with its share of twists and turns, but a lot of positives. Wake Forest got the nod to Omaha, but Alabama accomplished a lot.

Once again, the Crimson Tide had to play from behind on Sunday. The decision was made to start Jacob McNairy, normally the third man in the weekend rotation, instead of Garrett McMillan. It didn't work out. McNairy was unable to repeat his Tuscaloosa Regional heroics. He surrendered three home runs and seven earned runs in 2.1 innings.

The Demon Deacons' bats were too powerful for all seven Alabama pitchers in the game. Wake Forest hit nine home runs on Sunday.

Freshman phenom Colby Shelton had a pair of big flies for the Crimson Tide. Right fielder Andrew Pinckney and catcher Mac Guscette also sent one each over the wall. The Alabama scoring wasn't nearly prolific enough to counteract a day on the mound that was far from the club's best.

Wake Forest is the number one seed for a reason. The Crimson Tide couldn't get the job done and advance to the College World Series, but this season contained some bright spots the program hasn't had in a significant amount of time.

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