Through four innings at Plainsman Park, Tanner Burns and Bryce Montes De Oca were having themselves an extensive pitcher’s duel.
Mizzou’s Montes De Oca had worked up 11 straight batters retired, while Auburn’s go-to series closer Burns had 13 in a row by the top of the fifth inning. The freshman hadn’t seen a Missouri Tiger on base since walking leadoff hitter Trey Harris.
Harris came back with a vengeance.
The Tigers’ senior leader shattered Burns’ no-hit bid in fashion by launching a grand slam over left to crack the deadlock in the fifth, as No. 24 Missouri toppled No. 9 Auburn 5-0, claiming the SEC series on Easter Sunday.
“It’s like playing Russian Roulette,” Auburn head coach Butch Thompson said. “Once you allow an SEC team to have a third at-bat, they’ve seen all your marbles. That draws them closer to a big swing…then it’s one hit that makes a difference.”
After a Luke Jarvis error ended Burns’ streak, the pitcher walked the end of Mizzou’s lineup to set the table for Harris, who was already 3-for-9 with a double and two RBI through Games 1 and 2.
The senior now has two of Missouri’s (21-7, 5-4 SEC) three grand slams in 2018. Harris added a sacrifice fly in the seventh to account for all five of Mizzou’s RBI.
Montes De Oca (4-1) touted a no-hit bid of his own until Steven Williams’ single in the sixth, which served as Auburn’s first hit since the same inning of Game 2. The 6-foot-7 redshirt junior was relieved in the seventh by Nile Ball by after pitching six innings, allowing one hit and four walks while tossing five Ks in 97 pitches.
In Auburn’s (22-7, 4-5 SEC) final two games of the series, both losses, the top of its lineup went M.I.A at the plate, as the 1 through 5 batters finished 2-for-35 with 10 struck out in that span. Williams is the only Tiger to boast a hit since Saturday.
Through nine SEC contests, Auburn is down to a paltry .206 clip offensively.
“When you just get one hit, a single, it’s hard to produce offense in that manner,” Thompson said. “Give them all the credit, Missouri absolutely got after us to win the last two games. We were beat for two days and we must get better.”
Burns (2-4), suffered the loss after Jack Owen relieved him in the top of the sixth. The 2017 Gatorade Alabama Player of the Year pitched the opening five innings, tossing six strikeouts, walking a trio and allowing only one hit — Harris’ “big swing.”
Calvin Coker finished off the last three innings, allowing six hits with no strikeouts.
“We need a leader, we need our best players to step up,” Thompson said. “We need a senior…somebody that’s been around and has enough credit with the ballclub to lead right now. Those are the things we’ll be trying to call out heading into next week.”
Thompson said he “hopes” to get injured pitchers Andrew Mitchell and Cody Greenhill in the game Tuesday vs. Alabama A&M, which should result in a decision on whether to bring the pair to Arkansas.
Auburn has now dropped its last two SEC series after opening conference play with a home series win over Texas A&M. Before traveling to Fayetteville for three games with the Razorbacks next weekend, Thompson and the Tigers will look to regroup in a tune-up vs. the Bulldogs on Tuesday. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. CT at Plainsman Park.
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