The sound of aluminum bats cracking in the distance, players diving on the ground to catch a line drive, and the freshly cut grass has been planted on all the diamonds. The time has finally rolled around for SEC baseball. After Vanderbilt won it all last year what are some of the top SEC schools that could have a dream season just like the year before.

1.)   Vanderbilt- Vanderbilt has consistently been a dominant force in the SEC as last year they built the record 51-21. With new attributes on the team there’s no surprise that every team they go up against will give all they have towards Vanderbilt. They are currently 10-2 sitting near the bottom of the SEC East division. Conference play has not started yet and the team is still trying to create chemistry early into the season. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Vanderbilt makes a deep run in the playoffs again because of their dynamic hitting consisting of Freshman Liam Sabino, and Sophomore Dansby Swanson.

2.)   Florida- It comes with no surprise that the Gators come in as favorites in the SEC after having a disappointing postseason run in 2014. With only one loss on the season so far (10-2) they currently sit in the #5 ranked team in the country. A large part of that has to do with junior shortstop Richie Martin. Martin has already ran in three runs on the season. What will come down to a deep postseason run for the gators is if their pitching rotation can stay in elite fashion. Earlier in the season they beat FAU 10-8 and if the pitching rotation or the bullpen gives up 8 runs consistently there’s just no way that Florida will make a deep postseason run.

3.)   Ole Miss- After the 2014 season Ole Miss surprised many spectators by finishing in the top 5 of the college postseason. Now with the magnificent season they had they have targets on their backs as everyone is looking to knock them down. They’re currently #18 in the country sitting on a 6-4 record after beating Arkansas State 2-1. The downside of this Rebel’s team is the hitting. Most of their elite bats graduated after the 2014 season and now someone will have to step up offensively to carry this team. Their postseason run this year will come down to their elite pitching rotation. They relied on the heavy bats last season but now that those are gone it seems that this Ole Miss team has focused on pitching during the offseason as they are allowing a little under 3 runs a game.

4.) LSU- The Tigers are currently third in the SEC with home wins as they are 11-1. It shouldn’t come as a surprise however since the Tigers have dominated the SEC West for the past four years. Their early season series were so successful because of third baseman Conner Hale, who had a 12 game hitting streak during the homestand. Their relief pitching has also come out strong on all cylinders because of sophomore Hunter Newman who has yet to give up any runs while in relief. “He has developed into a vital role as a guy we can count on in tough situations. He has a good fastball that he compliments with a couple secondary pitches, and he has really elevated himself in our eyes,” said LSU head coach Paul Mainieri (SECsports.com). With so much competition in the SEC West it’ll be tough for the Tigers to win the division but they have the talent to get the job done and bring home yet another SEC title.

5,) Texas A&M- The Aggies are currently riding the best home record (13-0) and show no signs of slowing down. Leading the team in homeruns (5) Logan Taylor continues to come up clutch hitting dingers near the end of the games. Their offense has become so explosive it has moved their ranking up to #11 in the country. The Aggies have yet to be tested in SEC play as they have tough road trips against Mississippi State and LSU coming up. As long as they continue to hit dingers they could be real darkhorse in the SEC that everyone else will have to look out for.

These fives teams in the SEC are nothing to mess around with as they’ve dominated so far this season. It will be very interesting to see how these teams will develop throughout this season and as long as all five teams can maintain good health they could all be forced to make a deep postseason run.