Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama’s Eric Hines (42) laughs with teammates before the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winner’s bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
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Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama’s Eric Hines (42) laughs with teammates before the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winner’s bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
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Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama catcher John Lemm (33) wears shades as he walks onto the field before the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winner’s bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
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Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama catcher Will Plattner (3) walks in the dugout, spreading a smile before the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winners bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
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Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama coach Rob Vaughn talks to his teammates before the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winner’s bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
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Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Groundscrew members deploy tarps for the pregame weather delay at the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winners bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
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Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Groundscrew members deploy tarps for the pregame weather delay at the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winners bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
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Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; USC Upstate players Gage Griggs (15) and Devlin Smalanskas (11) return to the field after warming up before the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winner’s bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
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Photos of Alabama and USC Upstate in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional
May 30, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; USC Upstate’s Jake Armsey smiles as he talks to teammates before the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional winner’s bracket game between Alabama and USC Upstate at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
(Gary Cosby Jr., Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News)
Alabama baseball pitcher Myles Upchurch is preparing for the start of the first season of his collegiate career.
The No. 7 overall seed Crimson Tide held on for a weekend sweep that spent the entire year in the Tuscaloosa District. Tyler Fay pitched Friday’s 21-3 win over No. 4 seed Alabama State and Zane Adams responded with a 7-5 win over USC Upstate on Saturday, leaving freshman Upchurch in the state championship game on Sunday, May 31.
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Here are three things to know about the rookie right-hander.
REQUIRED READING: Why Alabama baseball still feels like an underdog before the regional tournament
Myles Upchurch was a multi-sport athlete in high school
Upchurch also played basketball and football during his varsity at St. Albans in Washington DC before committing to baseball only for his senior year.
In his one season of hoops, Upchurch averaged 6.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. On the gridiron, he was a quarterback for two seasons. As a sophomore, he played in 10 games, throwing for 936 yards with 91 passes. He threw 15 touchdowns in his career.
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The Tide rookie chose Alabama baseball over the big leagues
Coming out of high school, Upchurch was selected 564th overall by the Cincinnati Reds in the 19th round of the 2025 MLB Draft. He chose to forgo the big leagues and chose the Crimson Tide, which he committed to in December 2024.
How many maps are up Church’s sleeve?
Upchurch has four pitches: changeup, curveball, fastball and slider. His changeup is highly praised, but his fastball sits in the mid-90s and has touched 97 MPH.
The 6-foot-4, 215-pound Sunday starter has an 8-3 record on the season. His 3.34 ERA leads the Crimson Tide staff and ranks seventh in the SEC.
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Emilee Smarr covers Alabama basketball and Crimson Tide athletics for The Tuscaloosa News. He can be reached by email at esmarr@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared in Tuscaloosa News: Alabama baseball pitcher Myles Upchurch: What you need to know about playoff debut
