Alabama Baseball Made Strides, Built for Something Bigger in 2025 Season

For a team as doubted as Alabama was entering the 2025 college baseball season, the Crimson Tide did well for itself.

Initially unranked, the team went unbeaten in midweeks, sustained only one nonconference loss and won 17 games against SEC opponents.

To cap it all off, head coach Rob Vaughn got a contract extension after his second year in charge.

Alabama had not won 40 games in a regular season since 2002 until this season, and it finished 41-18 overall with a third consecutive NCAA Tournament berth.

A 16-0 start that set a new record for most wins to start a season was one of several early high-water marks.

Coming back from a deficit of 10-0 against Ohio State to win the Jacksonville Classic on a Will Hodo walk-off home run Feb.

23 was another, as was a road sweep of Texas A&M in the first weekend of league play.

An early-May home series win against Georgia placed the Crimson Tide in contention to be a regional host, which didn't come to pass.

Late-season series losses at Vanderbilt and Florida dented those chances, which were not helped by a second-round SEC Tournament exit at the hands of Tennessee.

Still, Alabama got a postseason draw that would have looked a lot better if it had come out of the Hattiesburg Regional.

Instead, it was eliminated last Saturday (going 0-2 in the regional) by No.

16 national seed Southern Miss, a team the Crimson Tide beat 10-6 at home on April 8.

No.

1 national seed Vanderbilt did not make it to supers, therefore causing Crimson Tide faithful to wonder what could have been.

In Vaughn's two seasons, Alabama has not yet won a game in the NCAA Tournament.

A 16-14 SEC regular season record is nothing to scoff at.

Following multiple successful years in the Big Ten, Vaughn and his Crimson Tide team accomplished that in year two.

Roster makeup for the 2026 campaign is now at the forefront of what's next for the program at large.

Aside from big changes to the sport's scholarship situation (roster sizes will decrease to 34, with all of those athletes able to receive a scholarship), it's also about replacing departing names and retaining players from the 2025 squad.

Superstar shortstop Justin Lebron, who just completed his sophomore season, is not eligible to be drafted until 2026.

Third baseman Jason Torres, who struggled at the plate against conference opposition, can also return.

The right side of the infield, however, cannot.

First baseman Hodo is out of collegiate eligibility after four years.

He was second on this season's team in home runs (15) behind Lebron (18).

Second-base options Brennen Norton and Garrett Staton are in the same boat.

The weekend pitching rotation at the end of the season was, in order, Tyler Fay, Riley Quick and Zane Adams.

Quick was 8-3 with a 3.92 ERA in his redshirt sophomore year but will not be back.

Instead, he will be a high selection in the MLB Draft.

Fay and Adams are draft-eligible as well, with paths less certain than Quick's.

Closer Carson Ozmer led the country in saves (17), setting a program record for a single season in the process.

That's the biggest loss for the bullpen; he was a fifth-year senior.

Right-hander Braylon Myers, who appeared in 23 games as a senior, will be gone too.

Two of the three starting outfielders can come back.

Despite this, center fielder Richie Bonomolo Jr.

and right fielder Bryce Fowler played well enough to be considered draft prospects.

Left fielder and team captain Kade Snell, the team's batting average leader (.363) with 10 home runs, had his eligibility lapse.

The catching corps doesn't have to go anywhere.

That group lost Luke Vaughn for the season to a preseason shoulder injury, operating with a two-man battalion of LSU transfer Brady Neal and Will Plattner.

All three players are able to remain with the program.

Young players like (but not limited to) outfielder Peyton Steele and infielder Jon Young Jr.

are in-house candidates to take over starting spots next year.

Portal season has just begun, and possible fits in that area (as well as corresponding departures) will be explored over the coming weeks.

Disappointing postseason finish aside, the 2025 season was memorable due to several factors.

Vaughn has emphasized building the program the right way.

The long-term goal is still a College World Series appearance, which has eluded Alabama this century.

This year was a step in that direction.

Being competitive in the deep SEC is just a start, but the Crimson Tide did it while handling its business against its other foes.

With new contract terms and forward momentum, Vaughn and his staff will be looking to keep going forward in the spring of 2026.

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