Auburn Tigers baseball

Baseball team representing Auburn University

Auburn Tigers baseball

2025 Auburn Tigers baseball team
Founded| 1895 (130 years ago)
Overall record| 1,914–1,282–6 (.598)[1]
University| Auburn University
Athletic director| John Cohen
Head coach| Butch Thompson (10th season)
Conference| SEC
Location| Auburn, Alabama
Home stadium| Plainsman Park
(Capacity: 6,300)
Nickname| Tigers
Colors| Burnt orange and navy blue[2]

College World Series appearances
1967, 1976, 1994, 1997, 2019, 2022
NCAA regional champions
1976, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2025
NCAA tournament appearances
1963, 1967, 1976, 1978, 1987, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, 2025
Conference tournament champions
1978, 1989, 1998
Conference regular season champions
1905, 1916, 1920, 1928, 1931, 1937, 1958, 1963, 1967, 1976, 1978

The Auburn Tigers baseball team represents Auburn University in NCAA Division I college baseball. Along with most other Auburn athletic teams, the baseball team participates in the of the Southeastern Conference. The Tigers play their home games on campus at Plainsman Park, and they are coached by Butch Thompson.[3]

## History

[edit]

Auburn Baseball has won six SEC championships, three SEC Tournament championships, appeared in 25 NCAA Regionals, and reached the College World Series (CWS) six times.

Following the 2000 season, Hal Baird retired as head coach. After 16 years as head of the Auburn baseball program, Baird posted an impressive 634–328–0 overall record.

On September 1, 1999, Steve Renfroe was named head baseball coach at Auburn University, as the successor to Hal Baird following the 2000 season. Renfroe was longtime assistant coach at Auburn before being named head coach, having begun his coaching career at Auburn in 1981 as an assistant and remaining in that position until 1995 when he was named assistant head coach.

On June 7, 2004, Renfroe was relieved of his duties as head baseball coach at Auburn. He posted an overall mark of 145–92, including a 60–60 SEC record, during his tenure.[4] Each of Renfroe's first three Auburn squads advanced to the NCAA Baseball Tournaments, with stops in Tallahassee, FL, in 2001, Tuscaloosa, AL, in 2002, and hosting a 2003 Regional in Auburn.[5]

On June 29, 2004, Tom Slater was named as Steve Renfroe's replacement. After only having 2 coaches in 38 years, Auburn was now on the second coach within a five-year period. Slater was previously an assistant at Auburn during the 1990s before taking a head coaching job at his alma mater Virginia Military Institute following the 2000 season. After the 2003 season, Slater left VMI to take an assistant job at the University of Florida where he helped lead the Gators to their first ever Super Regional appearance.[6]

On June 20, 2008, John Pawlowski was introduced as the 16th Head Coach of the Auburn Tigers baseball program. Pawlowski was previously the head coach at the College of Charleston. He took over that program in 2000, and posted a 338–192–1 record during his tenure. Under his direction, the Cougars made three straight NCAA post-season appearances, including their first ever appearance in 2004. He was named the Southern Conference coach of the year in 2004, 2005, and 2007, and coached 17 All-Americans during his tenure.[7] At Auburn, he took over a very young baseball team that included two freshman all-American selections, Hunter Morris and Brian Fletcher.[8]

Tigers baseball players during a game in 2010

On May 27, 2013, John Pawlowski was fired after finishing the 2013 season with a 33–23 record overall and a 13–17 record in the SEC. The Tigers failed to reach the NCAA tournament for three straight years. Pawlowski compiled a 167–126 overall record and a 71–79 SEC mark at Auburn. His 2010 team won the SEC West, but his four other teams had losing conference records.

## Stadium

[edit]

Main article: Samford Stadium-Hitchcock Field at Plainsman Park

### Plainsman Park

[edit]

Samford Stadium-Hitchcock Field at Plainsman Park is a baseball stadium located in Auburn, Alabama. It is the home field for the Auburn Tigers baseball team. Commonly known as "Plainsman Park", it is widely considered one of the finest facilities in college baseball and has a seating capacity of 4,096 not including lawn areas.

The field was named in 1997 to honor two former Auburn players, Billy and Jimmy Hitchcock. The Hitchcock brothers were popular athletes in the 1930s. Jimmy was Auburn's first All-American in football and baseball, and later coached the Tigers during the 1940s. Billy helped Auburn make its first bowl appearance in football, as well as, helping the Tigers claim their first SEC baseball title in 1937. He later became a manager in the MLB.

In 2003, the stadium was renamed Samford Stadium-Hitchcock Field at Plainsman Park after W. James "Jimmy" Samford passed. Samford was a graduate of Auburn, a former board of trustees member, and was known for pushing the renovations of the stadium that began in 1996.

## Head coaches

[edit]

Records are through the 2024 season

Tenure  | Coach  | Seasons  | Won–loss record  | Winning pct.  | NCAA tournaments

|
|
|
|
|

1933  | Sam J. McAllister | 1  | 5–4  | .556  |
1934  | William Herschel Bobo | 1  |  |  |
1934–1939  | Dell Morgan | 6  |  |  |
1940  | Porter Grant | 1  | 4–5  | .444  |
1941–1942  | Jimmy Hitchcock | 2  |  |  |
1943–1946  | Bob K. Evans | 2  |  |  |
1947–1948  | Danny Doyle | 2  |  |  |
1949–1950  | Johnny Williamson | 2  | 21–23  | .477  |
1951–1957  | Dick McGowen | 7  | 90–76–2  | .548  |
1958  | Joe Connally | 1  | 17–8  | .680  |
1959–1962  | Erk Russell | 4  | 59–37–1  | .620  |
1963–1984  | Paul Nix | 22  | 515–376  | .578  | 4
1985–2000  | Hal Baird | 16  | 634–328  | .659  | 9
2001–2004  | Steve Renfroe | 4  | 145–92  | .612  | 3
2005–2008  | Tom Slater | 4  | 115–113  | .504  | 1
2009–2013  | John Pawlowski | 5  | 167–126  | .570  | 1
2014–2015  | Sunny Golloway | 2  | 62–50  | .553  | 1
2016–present  | Butch Thompson | 10  | 306–221–1  | .581  | 5
Totals  | 18 coaches  | 86  |  |  | 24

## Year-by-year results

[edit]

*Through 2024 season.
*Final rankings are from Collegiate Baseball Division I Final Polls (1959–2006)[9] *Auburn baseball history year-by-year results[10]

Year-by-year results

Year  | Coach  | Record  | Notes
1933  | Sam McAllister  |  |
1934  | Herschel Bobo  | 10-8-1  |
1935  | Del Morgan  |  |
1936  | Del Morgan  | 13-5  |
1937  | Del Morgan  |  |
1938  | Del Morgan  |  |
1939  | Del Morgan  |  |
1940  | Porter Grant  |  |
1941  | Jimmy Hitchcock  | 12-11-1  |
1942  | Jimmy Hitchcock  | 10-8  |
1943  | Bob Evans  | 8-3  |
1944  | Bob Evans  |  |
1945  | Bob Evans  |  |
1946  | Bob Evans  |  |
1947  | Danny Doyle  |  |
1948  | Danny Doyle  |  |
1949  | Johnny Williamson  | 9–10  |
1950  | Johnny Williamson  | 12–13  |
1951  | Dan McGowen  | 14–11  |
1952  | Dan McGowen  | 13–11–2  |
1953  | Dan McGowen  | 9–12  |
1954  | Dan McGowen  | 17–5  |
1955  | Dan McGowen  | 9–16  |
1956  | Dan McGowen  | 12–11  |
1957  | Dan McGowen  | 16–10  |
1958  | Joe Connally  | 17–8  | SEC Champions
1959  | Erk Russell  | 15–11–1  |
1960  | Erk Russell  | 15–8  |
1961  | Erk Russell  | 14–11  | SEC East Champions
1962  | Erk Russell  | 15–7  |
1963  | Paul Nix  | 17–8  | SEC Champions, Lost to Florida State in Gastonia Regional
1964  | Paul Nix  | 21–7  | SEC East Champions
1965  | Paul Nix  | 13–7  | SEC East Champions
1966  | Paul Nix  | 14–12  |
1967  | Paul Nix  | 31–10  | College World Series (4th place), SEC Champions
1968  | Paul Nix  | 22–12  |
1969  | Paul Nix  | 20–17  |
1970  | Paul Nix  | 17–16  |
1971  | Paul Nix  | 23–16  |
1972  | Paul Nix  | 18–17  |
1973  | Paul Nix  | 20–17  |
1974  | Paul Nix  | 31–13  |
1975  | Paul Nix  | 24–21  |
1976  | Paul Nix  | 37–15  | College World Series (8th place), SEC Champions
1977  | Paul Nix  | 28–18  |
1978  | Paul Nix  | 33–21  | SEC Champions, SEC Tournament champions, Lost to Memphis in Auburn Regional
1979  | Paul Nix  | 21–21  |
1980  | Paul Nix  | 27–24  | SEC West Champions
1981  | Paul Nix  | 27–27  |
1982  | Paul Nix  | 27–20–1  |
1983  | Paul Nix  | 16–34  |
1984  | Paul Nix  | 27–24  |
1985  | Hal Baird  | 30–22  |
1986  | Hal Baird  | 31–24  |
1987  | Hal Baird  | 24–18  | Lost to Clemson in Huntsville Regional
1988  | Hal Baird  | 39–16  |
1989  | Hal Baird  | 44–20  | SEC Tournament champions, Lost to Clemson in Tallahassee Regional
1990  | Hal Baird  | 34–24  |
1991  | Hal Baird  | 35–24  |
1992  | Hal Baird  | 30–25  |
1993  | Hal Baird  | 40–23  | Lost to NC State in Stillwater Regional
1994  | Hal Baird  | 44–21[11] | College World Series (8th place)
1995  | Hal Baird  | 50–13[12] | Lost to Oklahoma in Oklahoma City Super Regional
1996  | Hal Baird  | 32–24[13] |
1997  | Hal Baird  | 50–17[14] | College World Series (6th place)
1998  | Hal Baird  | 46–18[15] | Lost to Florida State in Tallahassee Super Regional
1999  | Hal Baird  | 46–19[16] | Lost to Florida State in Tallahassee Super Regional
2000  | Hal Baird  | 41–20[17] | Lost to Stetson in Atlanta Regional, Baird retired following the 2000 season
2001  | Steve Renfroe  | 37–21[18] | Lost to Florida State in Tallahassee Regional
2002  | Steve Renfroe  | 34–23[19] |
2003  | Steve Renfroe  | 44–21[20] | Lost to Ohio State in Columbus Regional[20]
2004  | Steve Renfroe  | 32–24[21] | Steve Renfroe fired after season[22]
2005  | Tom Slater  | 34–26  | Lost to Florida St. in Tallahassee Regional Final
2006  | Tom Slater  | 22–34[23] |
2007  | Tom Slater  | 31–25[24] |
2008  | Tom Slater  | 28–28[25] | Tom Slater resigned after the season[26]
2009  | John Pawlowski  | 31–25[27] | John Pawlowski hired in off-season[28]
2010  | John Pawlowski  | 43–21[29] | Lost to Clemson in Auburn Regional Final
2011  | John Pawlowski  | 29–29[30] |
2012  | John Pawlowski  | 31–28[31] |
2013  | John Pawlowski  | 33–23[32] | John Pawlowski fired after season[33]
2014  | Sunny Golloway  | 28–28[34] | Sunny Golloway hired on June 14, 2013.[35]
2015  | Sunny Golloway  | 36–26[36] | Golloway was fired following the 2015 season.[37]
2016  | Butch Thompson  | 23–33[38] | Butch Thompson was hired on October 22, 2015[39]
2017  | Butch Thompson  | 37–26[40] | Lost to Florida St. in Tallahassee Regional final, June 5, 2017.
2018  | Butch Thompson  | 43–23  | Lost to Florida in Gainesville Super Regional
2019  | Butch Thompson  | 38–26  | College World Series (7th Place)
2020  | Butch Thompson  | 13–5  | *season cancelled before SEC play
2021  | Butch Thompson  | 25–27
2022  | Butch Thompson  | 43–21  | College World Series (5th Place)
2023  | Butch Thompson  | 34–23–1  | Lost to Southern Miss in Auburn Regional
2024  | Butch Thompson  | 27–26  |

## Auburn Tigers in the NCAA tournament

[edit]

Since the NCAA Division I baseball tournament began in 1947, the Auburn Tigers have played in it 24 times and made it to the College World Series six times.

Year  | Record  | Pct  | Notes

|
|
|

1963 |  |  |
1967 |  |  | College World Series (4th place)
1976 | 3–2  | .600  | Won the South Regional in Tallahassee; College World Series (8th place)
1978 |  |  |
1987 |  |  |
1989 |  |  |
1993 |  |  |
1994 |  |  | College World Series (8th place)
1995 |  |  |
1997 |  |  | College World Series (6th place)
1998 | 3–2  | .600  | Runner-up in the Tallahassee Regional.
1999 | 3–3  | .500  | Won the Auburn Regional; Lost to Florida St. in the Tallahassee Super Regional.
2000 | 1–2  | .333  | Eliminated by Stetson in the Atlanta Regional.
2001 | 2–2  | .500  | Eliminated by Florida St. in the Tallahassee Regional final.
2002 | 0–2  | .000  | Lost to Florida Atlantic and Alabama in the Tuscaloosa Regional.
2003 | 2–2  | .500  | Eliminated by Ohio St. in the Auburn Regional final.
2005 | 2–2  | .500  | Eliminated by Florida St. in the Tallahassee Regional final.
2010 | 3–2  | .600  | Eliminated by Clemson in the Auburn Regional final.
2015 | 1–2  | .333  | Eliminated by College of Charleston in the Tallahassee Regional semi-final.
2017 | 2–2  | .500  | Eliminated by Florida St. in the Tallahassee Regional final.
2018 | 3–0  | 1.000  | Winner of Raleigh Regional. Eliminated by Florida Gators in the Gainesville Super Regional.
2019 | 5–3  | .625  | Winner of Atlanta Regional. Defeated North Carolina in the Chapel Hill Super Regional; College World Series (7th Place)
2022 | 5–1  | .833  | Winner of Auburn Regional. Defeated Oregon State in the Corvallis Super Regional; College World Series (5th Place)
2023 | 0–2  | .000  | Eliminated by Southern Miss in the Auburn Regional.
TOTALS |  |  |

## Auburn's first-team All-Americans

[edit]

Player  | Position  | Year(s)  | Selectors

|
|
|

Larry Nichols  | Third Base | 1962† | ABCA
Q.V. Lowe | Pitcher | 1967† | ABCA
Gregg Olson | Pitcher  | 1987†, 1988† | ABCA, BA
Frank Thomas | First Base | 1989† | ABCA, BA
John Powell | Pitcher  | 1993  | BA
Jay Waggoner | First Base  | 1994  | NCBWA
Mark Bellhorn | Shortstop | 1995  | ABCA
Ryan Halla | Pitcher  | 1995  | ABCA, NCBWA
Tim Hudson | Pitcher  | 1997† | ABCA, BA, CB, NCBWA
Todd Faulkner | First Base  | 2000† | ABCA, BA, CB, NCBWA
Gabe Gross | Outfield | 2000† | ABCA, BA, CB, NCBWA, LS
Steve Register | Pitcher  | 2003  | NCBWA
Hunter Morris | First Base  | 2010† | ABCA, BA, & NCBWA
Ryan Bliss  | Shortstop  | 2021  | NCBWA
Source:"SEC All-Americas". secsports.com. Archived from the original on May 28, 2008. Retrieved July 24, 2008.

ABCA: American Baseball Coaches Association BA: Baseball America CB: Collegiate Baseball NCBWA: National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association LS: Louisville Slugger
† Denotes consensus All-American

## Player awards

[edit]

### National awards

[edit]

* Rotary Smith Award

Tim Hudson (1997)

* Collegiate Baseball Freshman of the Year Award

Hayden Gliemmo (1998)
Pat Duke (1958)

* Auburn 1st All-American Archived October 29, 2017, at the Wayback Machine

### SEC Awards

[edit]

* Player of the Year Award

Tim Hudson (1997)
Hunter Morris (2010)

* Freshman of the Year Award

Hunter Morris (2008)

## Coaches awards

[edit]

### SEC Awards

[edit]

* SEC Coach of the Year

Dell Morgan (1937)
Joe Connally (1958)
Paul Nix (1963, 1967, 1976, 1978)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ [1] Archived April 8, 2015, at the Wayback Machine "Auburn Baseball Record through 2014 season
2. ^ "About Auburn". March 28, 2019. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
3. ^ "AuburnSports - Thompson Time". October 22, 2015.
4. ^ "Renfroe Relieved of Duties as AU Head Baseball Coach". cstv.com.
5. ^ "AuburnTigers.com – Official Athletics Site of the Auburn Tigers – Baseball". cstv.com.
6. ^ "Tom Slater Named Auburn Baseball Coach". cstv.com.
7. ^ "John Pawlowski Named Head Baseball Coach At Auburn". cstv.com.
8. ^ "Fletcher And Morris Named Freshmen All-Americans By Baseball America". cstv.com.
9. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on February 27, 2007. Retrieved April 26, 2007.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Official 2007 NCAA Baseball Records Book
10. ^ [2] Archived June 24, 2016, at the Wayback Machine Auburn Baseball History
11. ^ "Auburn". auburntigers.com.
12. ^ "Auburn". auburntigers.com.
13. ^ "Auburn". auburntigers.com.
14. ^ "Auburn". auburntigers.com.
15. ^ "Auburn". auburntigers.com.
16. ^ "AuburnTigers.com – Official Athletics Site of the Auburn Tigers – Baseball". auburntigers.com.
17. ^ "AuburnTigers.com – Official Athletics Site of the Auburn Tigers – Baseball". auburntigers.com.
18. ^ "AuburnTigers.com – Official Athletics Site of the Auburn Tigers – Baseball". auburntigers.com.
19. ^ "Auburn Falls to LSU, 1–2". auburntigers.com.
20. ^ a b "Auburn Baseball Falls To Ohio State, 9–7". auburntigers.com.
21. ^ "Auburn Falls in Regular season Finale To No. 12 Arkansas, 15–3". auburntigers.com.
22. ^ "Renfroe Relieved of Duties as AU Head Baseball Coach". auburntigers.com.
23. ^ "Auburn Falls To #15 Razorbacks In Season Finale, 11–2". cstv.com. Archived from the original on August 16, 2007. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
24. ^ "Tigers Fall In Season Finale, 8–7, At Kentucky". cstv.com.
25. ^ "Auburn Falls In Season Finale, 11–7, To LSU". cstv.com.
26. ^ "Tom Slater Resigns As Auburn Head Baseball Coach". cstv.com.
27. ^ "Auburn Baseball Season In Review". auburntigers.com.
28. ^ "John Pawlowski Named Head Baseball Coach At Auburn". auburntigers.com.
29. ^ "Baseball Season In Review". auburntigers.com.
30. ^ "Auburn Ends Season with 3–2 Loss to Georgia at SEC Tournament - AuburnTigers.com - Official Athletics Site of the Auburn Tigers". Archived from the original on March 24, 2014. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
31. ^ "Auburn Eliminated From SEC Tournament By South Carolina, 5–3". auburntigers.com.
32. ^ "Auburn Eliminated From SEC Tournament With 6–3 Loss". auburntigers.com.
33. ^ "John Pawlowski out as Auburn baseball coach". AL.com. May 28, 2013.
34. ^ "Auburn's season ends with 8–1 loss to LSU". auburntigers.com.
35. ^ "Auburn aims high, hires away Oklahoma's Sunny Golloway to lead baseball program". AL.com. June 15, 2013.
36. ^ "AUBURN BASEBALL FALLS SHORT ON SUNDAY IN TALLAHASSEE". auburntigers.com.
37. ^ "Sunny Golloway dismissed as Auburn baseball coach - AuburnTigers.com - Official Athletics Site of the Auburn Tigers". www.auburntigers.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2015.
38. ^ "2016 Season Ends For Auburn Baseball". collegeandmagnolia.com. May 21, 2016.
39. ^ "AUBURN HIRES BUTCH THOMPSON AS BASEBALL COACH". auburntigers.com. Archived from the original on June 19, 2016. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
40. ^ "2017 Auburn Baseball Schedule". auburntigers.com.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website

* v
* t
* e

Auburn Tigers baseball

Venues|

* Auburn Athletic Field (?–1910)
* Drake Field (1911–1949)
* Plainsman Park (1950–present)

People|

* Head coaches

Seasons|

* 1895
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College World Series appearances in italics

* v
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Auburn University

Located in: Auburn, Alabama

Academics|

* History of Auburn University
* Raymond J. Harbert College of Business
* Publications: Southern Humanities Review

Athletics|

* Auburn Tigers
* Football
* Men's basketball
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* Rivalries: Iron Bowl
* Deep South's Oldest Rivalry
* Tiger Bowl

* Facilities: Jordan-Hare Stadium
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Campus|

* Main: Auburn University Chapel
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* Other: Auburn University at Montgomery
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Student life|

* Auburn University Marching Band
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Traditions|

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Outreach|

* Alabama Cooperative Extension System

* Founded: 1856

* v
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Southeastern Conference baseball

Teams|

* Alabama Crimson Tide
* Arkansas Razorbacks
* Auburn Tigers
* Florida Gators
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* Kentucky Wildcats
* LSU Tigers
* Mississippi State Bulldogs
* Missouri Tigers
* Oklahoma Sooners
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Championships & awards|

* Southeastern Conference baseball tournament
* Major awards
* Coach of the Year
* Player of the Year
* Pitcher of the Year
* Freshman of the Year

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