The Cats (26-21, 9-15 SEC) still have hope of ending up on the right side of the wall after taking two of three from No. 4 South Carolina (36-11, 17-7 SEC).

UK entered the weekend series two games out of the eighth and final spot for the SEC tournament with three weeks left in the season. Facing the league-leading Gamecocks wasn’t an easy team to start the turnaround against.

But UK put a dent in the wall behind two dazzling pitching performances — one from freshman Jordan Cooper, who was thrust into the starting role, and another from Alex Meyer, who showed just how dominant he can be — that propelled them to two weekend wins.

Cooper, pitching on Saturday after a series-opening 13-9 loss, came up with a gutsy game on the mound. Making just his third career SEC start, Cooper led the Cats to a 2-1 victory that evened the series.

Sunday, Meyer showed exactly why his ceiling is considered to be so high. He went seven innings, allowing three unearned runs while striking out six. And all that after missing three weeks with mononucleosis. Behind his smoldering fastball, UK rolled to a 9-3 win that gave them the series victory.

The weekend win was important for a multitude of reasons. Beating the No. 4 team in the nation, and the best team in the SEC, can do wonders for a team’s confidence. UK got great starts from all three pitchers, even as they removed junior Logan Darnell from the rotation (at least for this weekend). There may be some renewed trust in the bullpen, which held onto slim leads Saturday and Sunday after a year of blown late-inning leads.

However, with all that, UK didn’t receive the all-important boost in the standings. They still stand two games behind eighth-place Tennessee, who swept Georgia. Even worse, Tennessee holds the tie-breaker over UK because they won the series earlier in the season.

But still, UK kept it’s postseason chances alive with the win. Next up are defending national champion LSU, in a down year for the Tigers (12-11 SEC), and SEC cellar dweller Georgia (3-18 SEC).

Making the postseason tournament is a possibility. Tennessee has to play Auburn and Alabama, both middle-of-the-pack but very solid SEC teams. UK may have given itself enough of a boost to win these next two series and sneak in after all is said and done.

For right now, though, they are still peering over the wall. On the wrong side.

That is what UK baseball faces as it enters the homestretch of the regular season.

Look one way, and the golden promise of the Southeastern Conference tournament waits, where anything can happen. Look the other, and it’s a dull and bleak offseason, where nothing will happen.

UK (24-20, 7-14 SEC) sits in tenth place in the conference, two spots behind the eighth and final spot that makes it into the postseason conference tournament.

The Cats dropped a series to Tennessee (24-21, 8-13 SEC) this weekend. The two teams were tied for ninth place entering the weekend but Tennessee captured the position, dropping UK to tenth in the SEC.

UK has three series remaining in the regular season. They play SEC frontrunner South Carolina (16-5 SEC) May 7 to 9, powerhouse Louisiana State (11-9 SEC) May 14 to 16 and last-place Georgia (3-16 SEC) May 20 to 22, the last weekend of the season.

“We’re still fine,” second baseman Chris Bisson said. “We still got LSU, we got Georgia, and those are going to be important series for us to go out and do our best at.”

The Georgia series could be beneficial for UK should the race for one of the last spots remain in reach, as the Cats match up favorably with the Bulldogs. Georgia ranks near the bottom of the SEC in nearly every major hitting and pitching statistic.

Variable pitching is UK’s biggest concern as it enters the final stretch. Starter Alex Meyer is out with mononucleosis, although he should be able to return in time for one or two starts. The shaky pitching has put more pressure on the offense to consistently produce runs.

“We’re going to have to get more consistent at the plate,” head coach Gary Henderson said. “We can’t have the on Friday, off Saturday, on Sunday stuff. If you’re going to win, you have to be consistent every game and give yourself the most opportunities you can.”

The offensive inconsistency is reflected in the team’s contradictory performances. Since SEC play began, UK has had only two winning streaks of more than one game and has won only one series.

Part of that problem is the bullpen’s inability to lock down wins. Opponents have consistently climbed out of deficits to snag wins against the Cats’ corps of relievers.

Plenty of examples exist. Vanderbilt climbed from seven runs down for a 9-8 walk-off win against UK. Arkansas hit a two-out, two-strike, walk-off grand slam in a 17-16 heartbreaker defeat. Alabama scored 11 unanswered runs in an 11-9 UK loss. Auburn hit a two-out single that handed UK a 6-5 loss. Louisville scored four runs in the final inning to bury the Cats 10-9.

“We’ve got to figure out our bullpen,” Henderson said. “We’ve got to get tougher in the bullpen, there’s no question about it.”

Those losses have been major contributors in putting UK on the tightrope that leads to Hoover, Ala., for the SEC postseason tournament. It’s the second year in a row the team has been in this situation. Last year, UK had to win against Florida in the last game of the season to make it and lost.

This year, UK wants to write an alternate ending — one that ends on the right side of the brink.

“We’re going to figure it out,” Bisson said. “We need to just keep on fighting.”

- The closers from both teams – Matt Litle for UK and Neil Holland for U of L – both blew leads in the ninth inning. Both are really good closers. They combined to give up nine runs in the final frame. Wild stuff.

- This was the first road game I’ve covered for any sport. However, the game was in familiar territory. I played at Louisville’s Patterson Field in a high school fall baseball league. Sadly, the only real memory I have of it was making artwork out of the black pebbles from the Field Turf stuff they use. I don’t think I got that much playing time. And deservedly so.

- Probably the biggest difference I’ve noticed between the two teams is that the Cards actually have girls play a part on the team. Unlike UK, they use bat girls. They also have cheerleaders who occasionally perform on top of the dugout. UK has neither of these things at Cliff Hagan Field. It might have something to do with distractions. When I was on the high school baseball team (and, once again, not receiving much playing time), we used girl managers for one year. That idea lasted all of one season. I think the bench players tried too hard to flirt with them rather than support the boys (I don’t think I was guilty, at least not if you count success as evidence).

-  A star athlete from my hometown made an appearance tonight. Dean Kiekhefer, who now pitches for the Cards, was the high school superstar at Oldham County. (Probably one of the biggest in school history, too. The only others I can think of off the top of my head were Jon Rauch, another pitcher who went on to win an Olympic gold medal and now pitches for the Minnesota Twins, and Dante Smith, who was drafted in the second round by the Atlanta Hawks but quickly ended up in the NBDL.) Kiekhefer came on in the sixth inning and got a crucial out.

Back in the day, Kiekhefer was an unhittable force. He isn’t as unhittable in the college ranks – he owns a 4.15 ERA as a weekend starter, which is still pretty good. I faced him one time in my high school career, during an intrasquad scrimmage. I was a sophomore going up against a senior lefty with a twisting windup and a mid-90s fastball and who had scouts showing up to watch him almost every game. At our ballpark. Our little Oldham County ballpark with a concession stand that was a trailer and some weird-looking garden outside the visitor’s dugout. That part, the part where scouts showed up to watch one of ours, was really cool. But when I faced him, I planned on swinging three straight times, trying to avoid getting hit in the head and heading back to the dugout as soon as possible. I couldn’t hit pitchers who touched 70, much less this guy. And let’s just say I executed my game plan to perfection.

Anyway, it was weird to see someone from my high school take the mound in an important situation in an important game. He hasn’t lost anything. Although he has gained some facial hair, from what I saw in passing down on the field after the game.

- I can’t escape Drake. I think two U of L players had his songs as their walkup songs. This isn’t a bad thing.

UK saw a three-run lead in the ninth inning crumble as Louisville scored four runs in the bottom of the ninth to send the Cats (23-18) walking off the field and walking onto the bus after a 10-9 loss to the Cards.

It was a game that saw closers from both teams blow leads, a game that saw the bases loaded three separate times in the last two innings, a game that saw two ninth-inning comebacks and a game that drew a Patterson Stadium regular season school-record 4,039 fans.

“That’s how it goes,” UK junior infielder Chris Bisson said. “You never know in baseball, and especially when you’re playing a team like Louisville. It’s very disappointing. Tonight they were a little tougher than we were.

However, Bisson and the rest of the Cats were not able to come out on top. The Cats had clawed back from a two-run deficit in the top of the ninth inning to take a three-run lead. Closer Matt Little was on the mound. Three runs up, three outs away — it looked like UK had completed the season sweep.

“Your plan with a three-run lead is that your closer can go get you three outs,” UK head coach Gary Henderson said. “That’s the plan. It didn’t work.”

It turned out Louisville didn’t even need all three of its outs. After a quick out to start the inning, six consecutive Louisville batters reached base safely as the Cards tied the game 9-9. Little was yanked in favor of sophomore Braden Kapteyn.

Now the bases were loaded, bottom of the ninth, intrastate rival on the ropes, and it was Louisville freshman Zak Wasserman who delivered the knockout blow. He lined a single into left field as UK shortstop Taylor Black jumped and tried to haul in both the ball and any remaining hope of salvaging the game.

The ball easily cleared Black’s glove. Louisville scored the winning run. The Cards’ celebration started at the plate and slowly moved toward the outfield as more and more players kept piling on the circle.

“We owed them one,” Wasserman said. “We really hit the ball well tonight.”

Still, the fact UK was even able to get a lead that could be blown was an achievement unto itself. Down by two runs entering the top of the ninth inning, and facing Louisville closer Neil Holland, the Cats mounted a comeback. Bisson singled. Chad Wright singled. Andy Burns singled. Lance Ray doubled. Keenan Wiley was intentionally walked. Navarro Hall walked on four straight balls, bringing home the go-ahead run. A Cory Farris groundout scored two more runs that gave UK a three-run lead. Just three outs away from a season sweep.

“The two best arms of the evening pitched in the ninth and both offenses really locked in,” Louisville head coach Dan McDonnell said. “It’s what I told the coaches at the end of the game, it was a great college baseball game. Obviously, we feel better than they do because we came away with the win.”

Even though UK ended up on the gut-wrenching side of the score, it found solace in its fight.

“The spirit of the team right now is really good,” Henderson said. “I was really pleased with the way the guys came back. That’s a lot of heart in being behind and coming back. I was proud of the effort, especially on the road. Still disappointed that we couldn’t close out a game that we clearly should have won.”

The ninth inning, home of so many magical moments, showed its magic twice in this game. UK ended up on the wrong side of the magic, but some players enjoyed the close battle.

“Fun,” Bisson said. “Those games are fun. It’s a lot better when you come out on top, but I love competing.”

- Drake is a very popular choice (maybe not that surprising, considering the artist’s reception at his recent concert in Memorial Coliseum). The lineup is bookended by Drake songs, with leadoff man Chris Bisson playing Drake’s verse off “4 My Town” and nine-hole hitter Taylor Black going with Drake’s “Still Fly.” Personally, I can’t say I love Black’s choice, but that’s probably because my roommate’s alarm clock is “Still Fly,” and there’s an unwritten rule that you have to hate alarm clock songs after months of hearing it way too early each and every morning.

- The hometown love is a big deal. Chris Bisson gets his second mention here — both Bisson and Drake are from Canada. Nick Kennedy, as mentioned in the paper, plays “California Love.” Mike Kaczmarek, who hails from Illinois, plays Common’s “Chi-City.” And I’m sure there are plenty more if I was able to get a full set list of the player’s songs. I think the hometown shout-outs might have to do with a little bit of subconscious homesickness (after all, some of these guys are playing ball far away from home) and a little bit of just representing where they come from (think of football players writing area codes on eye black).

- Here’s what a fan would hear on a typical day as the soundtrack of the lineup (in the general batting order of recent games).

1. Chris Bisson – Birdman, 4 My Town
2. Chad Wright – Justin Moore, Backwards
3. Gunner Glad – Wale, Nike Boots
4. Lance Ray – Bad Company, Bad Company
5. Andy Burns – DJ Khaled, All I Do is Win
6. Keenan Wiley – Randy Houser, Boots On
7. Marcus Nidiffer – Stevie Wonder, Superstitious
8. Cory Farris – Fabulous, My Time
9. Braden Kapteyn – Atreyu, Becoming the Bull
10. Taylor Black – Drake, I’m Still Fly

– I wish I had been able to look into what pitchers used. Kennedy said his first song was Fort Minor’s “Remember the Name,” because it defined him during his comeback from an arm injury that kept him out for over a season. Closers, in particular, always have interesting song choices, mainly because their mindset is usually so different from other pitchers.

They are the walk-up songs, accompanying each batter as he strolls toward the batter’s box and each pitcher as he jogs toward the mound to fight for any one of the aforementioned results. Each individual player gets to pick his own song.

From Drake to Randy Houser, bumping bass to twangy tunes, the song represents the player each time he plays, like his uniform number. It is a part of a player’s identity and in baseball, the most individual of team sports, that counts for something.

“There’s more thought than there probably needs to be going into these songs,” reliever Nick Kennedy said. “But you look for something that defines you as a player and a person. There’s actually a lot of thought and preparation that goes into it.”

A player can choose a certain song for a variety of reasons. Senior outfielder Keenan Wiley chose Randy Houser’s “Boots on” to be his personal soundtrack at the plate.

“It’s kind of a picture of me, kind of how I grew up,” said Wiley, a Richmond, Ky., native.  “It reminded me of where I came from.”

Representation of a player’s hometown is a common theme. Kennedy, of Los Angeles, uses “California Love” as his backdrop to entering a game.

“‘California Love,’ is a little tribute to my home state,” Kennedy said. “And it gives love to L.A. It ties back to my roots. It just felt right when I heard it.”

For others, the decision is less a reflection of their life and more a reflection of their musical tastes.

“I picked mine because I like it,” said Andy Burns of his song, DJ Khaled’s “All I Do Is Win.” “It’s just a cool song.”

However, Burns’ choice has developed into something more than a personal playlist. Members of the UK baseball staff have tried to create an “Andy Burns dance” that plays off the lyrics — when the song says, “everybody’s hands go up,” well, everybody’s hands go up — to varying degrees of success.

“I heard that was going on at one point,” Burns said.  “I’m guessing it’s nowhere close to the John Wall dance.”
While it may not have developed into a campus-wide sensation just yet, Burns said the song did play a part in the habitual part of baseball. A slump can mean hitting the next-track button.

“If things are going bad, the song is one of the first things to go,” Burns said.

“I’ve had a good year with my song. Why change it?” Wiley said.

Perhaps that is the key to the importance of the walk-up song. It doesn’t imbibe the player, or his bat, with any added superpowers. It doesn’t add extra miles per hour to a pitcher’s fastball. But in an environment as ritualistic as that of a baseball clubhouse, the song is one of those constants that just needs to be there.
And on the road, where walkup songs are not played for visiting teams, the silence can break the ritual.

“I hear my song when I’m pitching at home,” Kennedy said. “Just to keep the habit going, I listen to my song on my iPod just to remind me it’s there. Having it there is just something that completes the routine.”

But even if performance were faltering, Burns would be wary of changing his tune.

“I’ve had a couple new ideas for songs,” Burns said. “But I don’t think the fans would like it too much if I switched it up.”

UK’s brand of baseball seems to favor the side of being an exciting brand to watch.

The Cats’ offense is diverse in their approach. They hit the long ball (ranking third in the Southeastern Conference with 53 home runs). They run and then run some more (leading the league in stolen bases with 75). They swing a lot and put balls in play (ranking second-to-last in walks drawn with 141).

“It definitely has to do with our skill set,” said third baseman Andy Burns, who leads the team in home runs with 11. “Every guy has the potential to hit one out of the yard or steal a base late in the game.”

That dual-threat nature of the lineup puts pressure on the opposing pitcher who has to worry about the guy in the batter’s box and the guy on the bases.

“It messes with the pitchers, knowing that the guy on first can steal and the guy at the plate can hit a homer,” outfielder Keenan Wiley said.

This type of offense was something UK set as a goal entering the season.

“We expect a more exciting offense,” UK head coach Gary Henderson said before the season. “It will be more diversified, more power, more stolen bases, a much more competitive club offensively.”

Without a shutdown starting pitcher — none of the three starters have a sub-5.00 ERA — the offense has had to consistently manufacture runs. It’s happened because of a balanced lineup. Six players have five or more home runs, and seven players have six or more stolen bases.

“Every guy brings something to the table,” Burns said. “We have a lot of weapons. It’s a good thing to know you can have what it takes to win.”

The offense hasn’t always had enough to win, though. UK is now 23-17 on the year with a 6-12 mark in the SEC. The Cats currently sit in a tie for ninth place with Tennessee, two wins behind Alabama for the final spot in the SEC Tournament. They have won just one conference series, against Alabama.

Perhaps even more troubling is UK’s inability to drive all those runners home.   UK ranks second-to-last in batting average with runners on base. But the hitters continue to just focus on what they can do, and that’s to score runs.

“Our guys have been more relaxed at the plate these past few weeks,” Burns said. “Everyone in the lineup is doing something, so that takes pressure off everyone else. As a group, we’re just trying to have fun and score runs.”

Lance Ray heating up

A big part of the offensive surge lately has been Lance Ray’s productivity at the plate.

Over the last five games, Ray has reached base safely in 15 of 22 plate appearances.

That includes last weekend’s series at Auburn in which Ray headlined the offense in two of the three games. In the first game, a 13-6 loss, Ray ripped three doubles in four at-bats. In the third game, an 8-7 loss, Ray went 2-for-3, including a three-run home run in the sixth inning that tied the game.

Ray didn’t see much playing time early in the year, but his recent hot streak has made it difficult to keep him out of the lineup. He is now hitting .362 with a robust .690 slugging percentage in 51 at-bats.

“(I’m) very glad to see Lance Ray get some hits,” Henderson said following a recent game where Ray was the offensive star.

Then Henderson checked to see where Ray’s average stood after his recent outburst at the plate. He saw how far it had risen.

“Isn’t that something,” Henderson said simply. “How about that?”

UK (22-16, 5-11 SEC) starter Logan Darnell allowed a career-high nine runs in 6.1 innings.  He was relieved by Walter Wijas, the hero of the Florida game last Sunday.  This time, however, Wijas didn’t record an out, allowing two home runs in his short outing.  He was followed on the mound by Braden Kapteyn and Mike Kaczmarek.

The Cats were led offensively by Lance Ray, who went 3-for-4 with three doubles.  Ray, in his last three starts, has now reached base safely in 11 of 13 plate appearances.  Braden Kapteyn also had a good day at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI.

The series resumes Saturday at 1 p.m.

For three players on the baseball team, it’s all about the bottom of the bat.

Andy Burns, Marcus Nidiffer and Gunner Glad all tape up the knobs on their bats to unnatural dimensions.  It doesn’t really do much.  It’s just their own little thing.

“We started doing it in Cincinnati,” Burns said.  “Ever since then, the numbers have been ridiculous.”

Here are the numbers: when the Cincinnati game was played, Burns was hitting .237, Nidiffer .250 and Glad .348.  Currently, Burns is hitting .276, Nidiffer .281 and Glad .338.  Burns leads the team in home runs with 11 and Glad leads the team with 35 RBI.

The tape on the knob isn’t for everyone, as each player has a unique way of preparing the bat they use in a game.  But Burns said others are close to joining their “club.”

“Luke Maile is on the border,” Burns said of the freshman catcher.  “We’re trying to work him in.  But not everyone can get in it.”

Speaking of Maile, he had one of the weirdest statistics on the team up until the last game.  He was 2-for-15 before the WKU game on Tuesday.  Both hits were home runs.

“It’s definitely contradictory to me as a hitter, I’ve never been a home run guy,” Maile said of the stat a week ago.  “I’ve hit for average, hit the other way.  I don’t know if it’s the weightlifting, if that’s what’s happened, but I’ve been fortunate to put a couple good swings.  If it continues, not going to complain.”

However, the trend changed in the WKU game.  Maile entered the game and went 1-for-2 with a single, his first hit in which he didn’t round the bases all the way.

Maybe it was the knob.

Sophomore Alex Meyer was diagnosed with mononucleosis and is out for three to four weeks, UK head coach Gary Henderson announced last Wednesday.

“I feel really bad for Alex,” Henderson said in a news release. “He has really been making some good strides and is obviously getting better daily. This will only be a temporary setback for him.”

Meyer, who was unavailable for comment, is 4-2 in eight starts with a 7.30 ERA, which is slightly inflated by two outings where he gave up five or more runs but didn’t last more than two innings.  He leads the team and ranks fifth in the Southeastern Conference with 52 strikeouts in 40.2 innings pitched.

Meyer’s absence is still a big blow to UK, who also lost projected starter James Paxton before the season.  Now, the Cats will be sending at least two pitchers to the mound every SEC series who they wouldn’t have expected to before the season began.

In his last outing before being diagnosed with the illness, Meyer showed his potential dominance, shutting out Alabama through the first five innings.

Despite the loss of their usual Sunday starter, the Cats refuse to be beaten by adversity.

“Meyer’s out, but the whole team knows we’re not going to moan and say bad stuff,” second baseman Chris Bisson said. “We won’t say this isn’t fun because we don’t have our Sunday starter.”

UK is focusing on what it can gain rather than what it loses.

“What this will do is provide an opportunity for some of our guys to step up and fill a vital role on our club,” Henderson said in the news release.

Who will fill Meyer’s spot now becomes the obvious question.

On Sunday, UK turned to freshman Walter Wijas, who threw 3.1 innings and gave up just one run while retiring the first 10 batters he faced.

But while he filled in with a spot start this week, next week’s starter — and the three following that — have yet to be determined and may not be until any given Sunday morning, as was the case against Florida.

UK could pull from one of many weekday starters — Jordan Cooper, Sam Kidd, Kyle Jackson and Sean Bouthilette have all started at least one game — or it could cobble together a string of relievers as it did Sunday.  None of them have proven the ability to consistently go six or seven innings deep in a game, though.

“Sometimes kids surprise, but I’m not sure we have a guy with 18 outs (6 innings) in him right now,” Henderson said. “I think I’d rather just match it up and do the best we could.”

There’s also the issue of whether to save anybody for Sunday or to go all-out on Friday and Saturday to try and pick up the wins and see what situation presents itself Sunday.

“It’s going to be whatever happens,” said Henderson about whether Wijas was going to be the starter or if it would be a mix-and-match deal. “I don’t think at this point I would save anybody for Sunday. I think I try to win Friday and Saturday, do whatever we have to do, and then whatever we got left we do that.”

If that’s the case, UK will need Logan Darnell and Taylor Rogers, its Friday and Saturday starters, to assume a heavier workload to ease the strain on the bullpen, which will presumably be seeing more action in each series finale.

“We clearly have to be consistent with our starting pitching so our starters chew up at least six innings, especially with Alex out,” Henderson said. “Those two starting pitchers have got to pick up extra outs. We can’t afford to not have them get six or seven innings.”