HOOVER, Ala. — The 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament opens Tuesday morning at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, with the first of 15 games starting at 10:30 a.m. ET. The bracket is set, all 16 SEC programs are in town, and every game is on television.
Here is everything you need to know about how to watch, when to tune in, and what’s new about this year’s tournament.
TV & Streaming
- TV (Games 1-14, May 19-23): SEC Network
- TV (Championship, Sunday May 24): ABC
- Streaming: ESPN App, ESPN+, Fubo (free trial available), Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV Stream, Sling TV (Sports Extra add-on required for SEC Network access)
Every game from the first round through the semifinals airs on the SEC Network and streams via the ESPN App. The championship game on Sunday is on ABC. Some session-overlap games may shift to SEC Network+ — check the ESPN App or ESPN.com for those streams (login required via television provider or ESPN+ subscription).
Where
Hoover Metropolitan Stadium — 100 Ben Chapman Drive, Hoover, Ala. The Hoover Met has hosted the SEC Tournament in 1990, 1996, and continuously since 1998. Capacity is 10,800 with expansion to 16,000+ via patio, banquet, and grass-seating areas. The venue was also home to the Double-A Birmingham Barons (Chicago White Sox affiliate) from 1988 to 2012.
Format
16-team single-elimination. First round Tuesday, second round Wednesday, quarterfinals Thursday and Friday, semifinals Saturday, championship Sunday. The top eight seeds receive a first-round bye and enter Wednesday’s second round. The bottom eight play in Tuesday’s first round.
Full Schedule
All times Eastern. Second game of each session begins approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first.
Tuesday, May 19 — First Round (SEC Network)
Game 1: No. 9 Ole Miss vs. No. 16 Missouri — 10:30 a.m.
Game 2: No. 12 Vanderbilt vs. No. 13 Kentucky — 2 p.m.
Game 3: No. 10 Tennessee vs. No. 15 South Carolina — 5:30 p.m.
Game 4: No. 11 Oklahoma vs. No. 14 LSU — 9 p.m.
Wednesday, May 20 — Second Round (SEC Network)
Game 5: Winner Game 1 vs. No. 8 Mississippi State — 10:30 a.m.
Game 6: Winner Game 2 vs. No. 5 Florida — 2 p.m.
Game 7: Winner Game 3 vs. No. 7 Arkansas — 5:30 p.m.
Game 8: Winner Game 4 vs. No. 6 Auburn — 9 p.m.
Thursday, May 21 — Quarterfinals (SEC Network)
Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. No. 1 Georgia — 4 p.m.
Game 10: Winner Game 6 vs. No. 4 Alabama — 8 p.m.
Friday, May 22 — Quarterfinals (SEC Network)
Game 11: Winner Game 7 vs. No. 2 Texas — 4 p.m.
Game 12: Winner Game 8 vs. No. 3 Texas A&M — 8 p.m.
Saturday, May 23 — Semifinals (SEC Network)
Game 13: Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10 — 1 p.m.
Game 14: Winner Game 11 vs. Winner Game 12 — 5 p.m.
Sunday, May 24 — Championship (ABC)
Game 15: Winner Game 13 vs. Winner Game 14 — 2 p.m.
The Bracket
Top Eight (Wednesday entry):
- Georgia (43-12, 23-7 SEC) — Wes Johnson, 3rd season
- Texas (40-12, 19-10 SEC) — Jim Schlossnagle, 2nd season
- Texas A&M (39-13, 18-11 SEC) — Michael Earley, 2nd season
- Alabama (37-18, 18-12 SEC) — Rob Vaughn, 3rd season
- Florida (37-18, 18-12 SEC) — Kevin O’Sullivan, 19th season
- Auburn (36-18, 17-13 SEC) — Butch Thompson, 11th season
- Arkansas (36-19, 17-13 SEC) — Dave Van Horn, 24th season
- Mississippi State (39-16, 16-14 SEC) — Brian O’Connor, 1st season
Bottom Eight (Tuesday first round):
- Ole Miss (36-20, 15-15 SEC) — Mike Bianco, 26th season
- Tennessee (37-19, 15-15 SEC) — Josh Elander, 1st season
- Oklahoma (32-20, 14-16 SEC) — Skip Johnson, 2nd SEC season
- Vanderbilt (32-24, 14-16 SEC) — Tim Corbin, 23rd season
- Kentucky (31-20, 13-17 SEC) — Nick Mingione, 10th season
- LSU (29-27, 9-21 SEC) — Jay Johnson, 5th season
- South Carolina (22-34, 7-23 SEC) — Monte Lee, 1st season (interim)
- Missouri (23-30, 6-24 SEC) — Kerrick Jackson, 3rd season
WBN’s Full Seed-by-Seed Previews
For deeper coverage of every team in the bracket — All-SEC selections, top players, program history, and storylines — World Baseball Network has previewed all 16 seeds across four pieces:
- Seeds No. 1-4: Georgia, Texas, Texas A&M, Alabama — Five of six conference awards land in the top four
- Seeds No. 5-8: Florida, Auburn, Arkansas, Mississippi State — Florida’s Aidan King is SEC Pitcher of the Year; Mississippi State starts a new era
- Seeds No. 9-12: Ole Miss, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt — The defending SEC champ and the defending NCAA champ are among the bracket’s dangerous middle
- Seeds No. 13-16: Kentucky, LSU, South Carolina, Missouri — Defending national champion LSU lurks at No. 14; South Carolina plays under an interim
What’s New This Year: ABS Challenge System
The 2026 SEC Tournament is the first in conference history to use an automated balls-and-strikes challenge system. The technology mirrors what Major League Baseball rolled out earlier this year — Hawk-Eye cameras at the Hoover Met track every pitch, and players can challenge ball/strike calls in real time.
How the system works:
- Each team begins each game with three challenges.
- A successful challenge is retained; a failed challenge is lost.
- Once a team uses its three failed challenges, no more are available in regulation. Each team receives one additional challenge per extra inning.
- Only the batter, pitcher, or catcher can initiate a challenge — by tapping the top of their helmet or cap within roughly two-to-three seconds of the pitch. Coaches and other players cannot request one.
- Human umpires still call every pitch in real time. The technology only engages on a challenge.
- The strike zone is individualized for each hitter — 19 inches wide, with vertical boundaries set at 58% and 23% of the player’s measured height.
- The SEC has prohibited the use of electronic devices or outside information to help determine whether to challenge, and will conduct random spot checks of dugouts.
The conference is using the tournament as a trial run before evaluating broader regular-season implementation. According to Baseball America, one league source described regular-season ABS as “a realistic future step” for the SEC.
2026 SEC Postseason Awards
- Player of the Year: Daniel Jackson, C, Georgia
- Pitcher of the Year: Aidan King, RHP, Florida
- Freshman of the Year: Anthony Pack Jr., OF, Texas
- Newcomer of the Year: Aiden Robbins, OF, Texas (Seton Hall transfer)
- Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Gavin Grahovac, 1B, Texas A&M
- Coach of the Year: Wes Johnson, Georgia
What’s at Stake
The SEC Tournament winner receives the conference’s automatic bid to the 2026 NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Selection Show is Monday, May 25, at 12 p.m. ET on ESPN2, where the 64-team bracket, top-16 national seeds, and regional host sites will be revealed.
Vanderbilt enters as the defending SEC Tournament champion. The Commodores beat Ole Miss 3-2 in last year’s championship game — head coach Tim Corbin’s fourth SEC Tournament title at the program.
The Tigers from Baton Rouge — LSU — are the defending national champions after sweeping Coastal Carolina at the 2025 College World Series. They enter this week’s bracket as the No. 14 seed.
