The Leadoff Hitter, Auburn vs. Arkansas: Game times, probable starters, weather forecasts and more

The final weekend of the regular season is here, as Auburn plays host to Arkansas at Plainsman Park. Believe it or not, the Tigers still have a chance to play their way into the NCAA Tournament, something that seemed impossible after the series loss at Missouri three weeks ago. If they can win their third straight SEC series, their odds will only increase.

Last weekend

Auburn 7, Florida 4

Auburn's offensive hot streak continued, as the Tigers hit two doubles and two home runs to extend their winning streak to five.

Florida 5, Auburn 4

Michael O'Neal was one out away from a complete game, 5-1 win. But then he gave up a three-run shot, and Reid Carter came on and allowed the winning run to score.

Auburn 4, Florida 1

The Tigers showed a ton of moxie to bounce back from Saturday night's rough loss. Ryan Tella hit his second three-run homer of the series to provide the winning margin.

Midweek

Jacksonville State 6, Auburn 1

Needing all the wins they can get, the Tigers dropped a winnable home game to the Gamecocks. If Auburn barely misses the NCAA Tournament, this game will play a role.

No.11 Arkansas(34-17, 17-9)

at Auburn (31-20, 11-16)

Probable starters

Thursday, 6 p.m. CT

LHP Conner Kendrick (4-3, 2.25 ERA) vs. RHP Barrett Astin (4-3, 2.21 ERA)

Friday, 6 p.m. CT

LHP Michael O'Neal (8-3, 2.85 ERA) vs. RHP Ryne Stanek (7-2, 1.70 ERA)

Saturday, 1 p.m. CT

TBA vs. RHP Randall Fant (5-1, 2.00 ERA)

Weather forecast

Individual stats

	Auburn	Arkansas
Batting average	Garrett Cooper, .360	Brian Anderson, .339
On-base percentage	Garrett Cooper, .477	Brian Anderson, .447
Runs	Ryan Tella, 41	Brian Anderson, 40
RBIs	Ryan Tella, 37	Tyler Spoon, 43
Doubles	Three players with 12	Brian Anderson, 10
Triples	Five players with 1	Brian Anderson, 4
Home runs	Cooper and Damek Tomscha, 7	Anderson and Spoon, 4
Stolen bases	Ryan Tella, 13-of-15	Matt Vinson, 8-of-9
Errors	Dan Glevenyak, 15	Brian Anderson, 20
Starting ERA	Conner Kendrick, 2.25	Ryne Stanek, 1.70
Relief ERA	Justin Camp, 2.13	Tyler Wright, 0.00
Starting BA against	Michael O'Neal, .228	Randall Fant, .200
Relief BA against	Reid Carter, .212	Michael Gunn, .114
Strikeouts	Conner Kendrick, 66	Ryne Stanke, 68
Wins	Michael O'Neal, 8-3	Ryne Stanek, 7-2
Saves	Terrance Dedrick, 8	Colby Suggs, 10

Team stats

	Auburn	Arkansas
Batting average	.273	.265
On-base percentage	.356	.351
Runs	255	265
RBIs	232	239
Extra-base hits	132	100
Home runs	30	26
Stolen bases	28-of-47	43-of-55
Errors	62	75
ERA	3.42	1.87
BA against	.253	.204
WHIP	1.32	1.06
Walks	175	154
Strikeouts	296	417
Saves	16	16

Around the SEC

Alabama at No. 1 Vanderbilt

No. 23 Ole Miss at No. 2 LSU

No. 14 South Carolina at No 24 Mississippi State

Florida at Georgia

Texas A&M at Tennessee

Kentucky at Missouri

Bottom line

Auburn is trying to scratch and claw its way into the NCAA Tournament, and getting a series win against the Razorbacks would provide a big boost to the Tigers' odds. In his latest regional projections, Perfect Game's Kendall Rogers appears to have Auburn as the first team out of the tournament, and he says winning two of three against Arkansas "would likely put (the Tigers) on the good side of the bubble" going into the SEC Tournament. So, to say this season-ending series is crucial would be an understatement.

Despite the Hogs coming in with a projected RPI of 41, compared to Auburn's 35, the Tigers shouldn't be considered favorites. Arkansas has an excellent 17-9 conference record and the best pitching in the SEC. If the John Pawlowski's team isn't patient at the plate and fails to have consistently good at-bats, it will be long weekend. However, the Razorbacks aren't a great hitting team, and they lead the conference in errors. When their opponents commit at least one error, the Hogs are 23-6, but they're just 11-11 when opposing teams are error-free. And when Arkansas pitchers give up at least three runs, the team is 9-17.

So if Auburn can play clean baseball and take advantage of opportunities on offense, they'll have a great chance to take at least two games. Although, those are big "ifs."