Examining Auburn's top pitchers from 2024

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auburnwire.usatoday.com

 

Examining Auburn baseball's top pitchers from the 2024 season

Taylor Jones

7–9 minutes

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Auburn baseball’s season concluded on May 18 with a 12-5 loss to rival Alabama at Plainsman Park. Although the final game ended in defeat, Auburn closed its unorthodox season by winning its final two SEC series by taking two of three games over Missouri and Alabama.

The Tigers’ 8-22 SEC record was not enough to secure them a bid to compete in the SEC Tournament, which means that offseason preparations begin earlier than anticipated. One area that Auburn looks to improve next season is pitching. The Tigers ended the season with a 5.94 staff ERA, which ranked No. 12 in the SEC, and finished last in the SEC with 517 hits allowed.

As the season draws to a close, let’s recap Auburn’s pitching staff’s final numbers.

Grayson Belanger/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
22	0	3-2	12	23	24.0	6.00

Parker Carlson led the team in appearances despite being used as a reliever for the Tigers in 2024. His longest outing of the season was in Auburn’s 7-5 win over LSU on April 28 where he tossed three complete innings in a game in which he earned the save. He recorded a season-best four strikeouts in Auburn’s win over South Alabama on March 19.

Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
20	6	3-2	16	47	41.1	4.57

As was the case for so many others, Tanner Bauman was involved in the number of weekend rotation experiments that Butch Thompson performed in 2024. Bauman started a game in each of the Tigers’ final six SEC series, saving his best performance for last. In Auburn’s 4-2 win over rival Alabama on May 16, Bauman earned the win by striking out eight batters and allowing two earned runs on five hits while walking three in six innings of work.

Grayson Belanger/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
19	0	1-2	19	45	33.2	4.01

John Armstrong was one of Auburn’s go-to relievers this season, recording multiple strikeouts in 15 of his 19 appearances. He reached a season-best six strikeouts twice this season, once against Tennessee on April 5 and most recently against Ole Miss on May 4. In both outings, he pitched at least three innings.

Jacob Taylor/AU Athletics

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
17	1	0-1	15	26	23.2	7.99

A preseason candidate for the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association’s “Stopper of the Year” award, Will Cannon earned just two saves this season, tying John Armstrong and Christian Herberholz for the team lead. Cannon earned one start this season, where he lasted 1 and 1/3 innings in Auburn’s 19-5 loss to Tennessee on April 7. Cannon allowed six runs on three hits while issuing two walks and striking out one batter in the game.

He pitched a season-high three innings in Auburn’s 4-2 series-opening win over Alabama on May 16, earning the save after allowing zero runs on three hits with a strikeout in relief of Tanner Bauman.

Taylor Jones/ Auburn Wire

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
16	7	2-2	16	49	43.1	5.40

Christian Herberholz was mixed in and out of the rotation throughout the season but was a solid piece to the staff. He produced a season-high five innings twice, most recently in a start against Missouri on May 12. Herberholz earned the win after allowing zero runs on four hits while striking out four batters.

Grayson Belanger/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
15	5	0-4	6	33	30.1	7.12

Dylan Watts encountered bad luck several times this season. Watts failed to record a win in 2024, but his ability to find the strike zone would tell another story. One instance of this took place on April 26 in Baton Rouge. Watts started Auburn’s series opener at LSU and would allow just two runs on three hits while issuing zero walks and striking out nine batters… in a 5-0 loss.

Watts may be a candidate for a starting role next season after posting solid strikeout numbers.

David Gray/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
14	8	2-3	26	35	47.1	4.94

UAB transfer Carson Myers began the season as Auburn’s third starter in its weekend rotation before becoming a vital piece to the Tigers’ bullpen. He burst onto the scene in Auburn’s opening series with Eastern Kentucky when he struck out eight batters while allowing two hits in six innings of Auburn’s 9-1 win over the Colonels. He failed to reach six strikeouts over his subsequent outings but ended the season with great outings in wins over Missouri and Alabama.

Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
14	0	3-1	14	27	24.1	6.29

Cam Tilly concluded his season on May 5 in Auburn’s 10-9 win over Ole Miss when he jumped in to save starter Carson Myers by striking out a batter and walking another in 1 2/3 innings. Before his outing against Ole Miss, Tilly struck out a season-high seven batters in three innings in Auburn’s 3-2 loss to LSU on April 27.

David Gray/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
14	0	1-0	8	17	16.2	4.32

Hayden Murphy was a solid relief option for Auburn in 2024. He provided at least one inning of work in all but one appearance and produced two innings of relief in four games. He recorded six strikeouts over four innings over his final three outings to close the season.

Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
13	11	4-3	16	74	62.1	5.63

As Auburn’s top pitcher, Chase Allsup dipped in and out of the weekend rotation. However, he ended the season on a high note. Over his final four starts, Allsup struck out 31 batters while walking only four in 21 1/3 innings, earning three wins.

Noelle Iglesias/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
12	7	3-3	19	35	36.2	5.89

Conner McBride began the season as Auburn’s midweek starter before sliding into the weekend rotation in the early portion of SEC play. In his first six starts, McBride averaged 4 2/3 innings while allowing four hits, two runs, and four strikeouts an outing. However, following his start against Texas A&M on March 28, McBride made it through two innings only once.

Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
10	0	0-0	4	3	7.1	7.36

Ben Schorr was used primarily as a reliever during SEC play. Schorr recorded an inning of work or more in just three of his 10 outings, with his longest going for two innings on May 7 vs. Georgia Tech. In his last appearance, Schorr allowed one run on one hit while striking out a batter and walking another in Auburn’s 12-5 loss to Alabama on May 18.

Grayson Belanger/Auburn Tigers

Appearances	Starts	Record	Walks	Strikeouts	Innings Pitched	ERA
9	8	2-1	17	13	27.0	9.33

Joseph Gonzalez sustained more disappointment in 2024. After missing most of the 2023 season with a shoulder injury, Gonzalez returned to make just eight starts this season. In those starts, Gonzalez failed to last longer than five innings or strikeout more than three batters in a game.

The once-thought-of ace of the weekend rotation has another opportunity to regain the hype as a redshirt senior next season.

Edited May 22 by aubiefifty