Ohio ceases betting on Alabama Baseball following ‘suspicious’ activity

Licensed sportsbooks in the state of Ohio were instructed to cease wagers placed on Alabama baseball this past weekend. The Crimson Tide were on the road in Baton Rouge, facing off against the top-ranked LSU Tigers. Friday night’s series opener was the game in question.

ESPN obtained a message from Ohio Casino Control Commission executive director Matthew T. Schuler that says “the acceptance of any wagers on University of Alabama baseball effective immediately.” This was due to “suspicious wagering activity.”

Heading into the eighth inning on Friday, LSU held an 8-1 lead and was comfortably cruising to another win comfortable against an SEC opponent. Alabama was then able to put up five runs over the final two frames, four of which came in the top of the ninth inning.

LSU pitcher Griffin Herring allowed five runs on six hits and two walks in 2.2 innings pitched. Bryce Collins was brought into the game to close things out, allowing a hit and striking out the final batter of the inning.

The game ended with an 8-6 score in favor of the Tigers. LSU was able to win the final two games of the weekend series as well and earn a sweep. Unfortunately for those in Ohio looking to bet on the games, they were not able to.

Alabama will take the field next on Thursday, going up against Vanderbilt. They will be looking to get back on the right track after a rough weekend down on the Bayou.

Alabama baseball now under .500 in SEC play

Going to Baton Rouge and escaping with a series win was always going to be a tough task. But they were coming off a series win of their own against Auburn and then a sweep of Missouri. The wins brought them back to .500 in SEC play before dropping three straight.

Vanderbilt, Texas A&M, and Ole Miss are next up on the conference schedule and will all be huge series for the Crimson Tide. The last two of the three all fall below Alabama in the SEC West standings. While there is a healthy lead when discussing making it to Hoover, a hefty slide could make things interesting.

Only Texas A&M will be away from Tuscaloosa, being favorable in that sense. Head coach Brad Bohannon will want his team to shake off the LSU performances and bounce back in front of the home crowd in a big way.