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SEC Baseball Tournament 2016: Ole Miss drops semifinal game to Texas A&M

The Rebel bullpen was 38-0 with a lead after six innings coming into the game, they finally showed they were human after the Aggies rallied back. Can the Rebs still get a national seed?

By Zach Berry
Josh McCoy-Ole Miss Athletics

There were some bad calls and some funky things that happened as Ole Miss bowed out of the SEC Tournament with a 12-8 loss to Texas A&M. Oddly enough, the loss came with Wyatt Short on the bump and a lead after the sixth inning.  There were a few weird plays that really threw a wrench in the Rebels' momentum. Let's take a look at a couple.

Errol Robinson made a helluva play off a deflected ball and Will Golsan made the catch and stretch. But, the umpire reversed the call after A&M argued. You be the judge.

Then, later in the game, the Rebs were trying to add an insurance run to their lead when J.B. Woodman singled and then tried to steal second. After sliding in safely, the umpire decided that he had slid through the bag and came off. Once again, you make the call.

After this call was made, Henri Lartigue laced a single up the middle that scores Woodman easily and the Rebs extend their lead and who knows what happens after that. Momentum in sports is a funny thing, one could say these calls could've shifted it towards the Aggies.

Ole Miss had the lead late before Texas A&M took it back with a pinch hit three-run dinger to take the lead off Short. After some add ons in the final innings, they eventually put Ole Miss away. Tip your cap to the Aggies, they chipped away and chipped away and eventually took the lead off of one of Ole Miss' best closers. But, the Rebels' impressive showing at the Hoover Met included big-time wins over South Carolina and Vanderbilt, both top 10 RPI teams.

You have to think with the two teams they beat and how hot they have been of late that the committee would give them the nod for a national seed. The resume sure as hell makes the case.

Let's take a look at said resume.

Mike Bianco's club has 43 wins, 18 SEC wins, three wins at the conference tournament, No. 5 RPI, No. 12 strength of schedule and a 13-12 record against the top 50. The Rebs put up double digit runs against the SEC East Champion Gamecocks and a top 10 Vanderbilt squad. Oh, by the way, the Rebs touched up both of those squads' aces.

Ole Miss also has series wins over Louisville (RPI No. 1), LSU (RPI No. 7) and non-conference wins over Coastal Carolina (Big South champ and RPI No. 12) and Southern Miss (RPI No. 19). They also have sweeps over Arkansas, Auburn and Kentucky. The marquee wins are there, the conference wins are there and the deep run at Hoover should be enough. The only other teams that could have possibly made a case to steal a national seed from the Rebs were dealt losses by Ole Miss at the SEC Tourney.

D1Baseball's Kendall Rogers seems to think that the Rebs are not out of the woods yet when it comes to a national seed but if you're Ole Miss, you have to be happy with where you are at. After losing the finale series in College Station, it appeared the national seed dreams were gone, but Mike Bianco and Co. really did a masterful job in Hoover to win three games, two against national seed contenders.

The Rebs are definitely hosting a regional. But, the selection show on Monday could bring some real good news. Stay tuned.