Lexington native Tyler Guilfoil named SEC Pitcher of the Week
It sure was a fun weekend on the diamond at Kentucky Proud Park — and the good vibes are still rolling.
On Monday afternoon, it was announced by the Southeastern Conference that Kentucky Baseball junior Tyler Guilfoil has been tabbed as the league’s Pitcher of the Week. The former Lafayette High School product played a massive role in the Bat ‘Cats stealing two of three games this past weekend against the No. 1 ranked Tennessee Volunteers.
Guilfoil limited the top-ranked Vols to just one hit throughout his six innings of relief during Thursday’s thrilling, 13-inning series-opener. He stepped in ahead of the eighth inning and ultimately finished off the 3-2 victory for Kentucky (26-21; 9-15 in SEC), which came thanks to a walk-off single from Alonzo Rubalcaba.
It was the first win of the season for Guilfoil.
Following a terrific four-year high school career in Lexington, Guilfoil first committed to Lipscomb, where he would spend the next three years (2019-21) before coming to Kentucky ahead of the 2022 season. The 6-foot-4 righty was one of the premier relief pitchers in the Atlantic Sun Conference, posting a 6-2 career record with 13 saves in 45 total appearances.
Now at Kentucky, Guilfoil, who grew up roughly one mile from UK’s campus, has brought over his success to the SEC. He boasts an earned run average of 1.45 over 37.1 innings on the season, which looks even better during conference play: 1.01 ERA in 26.2 SEC innings pitched.
Guilfoil’s stellar play has Kentucky right back in contention for the SEC and NCAA Tournaments. With the series win over Tennessee, the ‘Cats now have just two more series remaining in the regular season. Up first is a three-game slate on the road against South Carolina this weekend before Auburn comes to town the weekend after to close out the schedule.
UK will return to action on Tuesday for a midweek home contest against UT Martin, which is set for 6:30 p.m. EST on the SEC Network+.
While I’ve got you here, why don’t we reminisce on this past weekend’s much-needed upset?
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