LEADING OFF: The Arkansas State Red Wolves baseball team travels to Oxford, Miss., to take on the No. 21 Ole Miss Rebels Tuesday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. The game time was originally supposed to be 4:00 p.m., but the threat of inclement weather caused both teams to agree upon moving the contest up one hour. A-State enters the game with a 2-1 record after winning a three-game set against UAB to open the 2016 season. Ole Miss comes in with a 3-0 record after sweeping Florida International to open the campaign. Tuesday's game can be heard locally on 95.3 FM The Ticket/970 AM KNEA with Matt Stolz on the call. The game can also be heard on the Red Wolves Digital Network on AStateRedWolves.com. The game can be watched on SEC Network +, which can be accessed through ESPN3. Play-by-play is Will Kollmeyer with David Dellucci as color analyst.

A-STATE/OLE MISS HISTORY

• A-State trails the all-time series with Ole Miss by a count of 82-23. Ole Miss has won six in a row against the Red Wolves, including 2-1 and 17-3 wins last season. A-State's last victory in the series came on May 15, 2012 when A-State claimed a 10-5 win over the 22nd-ranked Rebels.

• The two teams couldn't find any offense in the first meeting last season with Chandler Hawkins taking a hard-luck loss. The Red Wolves scored their only run of the game in the top of the first on a Ty White RBI groundout with the Rebels' Sikes Orvis scoring both runs for Ole Miss, including a solo home run. In the second game a season ago, Ole Miss scored eight runs in the first two innings before securing the 17-3 win over a depleted A-State pitching staff. The Red Wolves scored two runs on bases-loaded walks by Jeremy Brown and Zach George, before Ty Michelotti singled home the final run of the game.

• A-State coach Tommy Raffo is 1-14 against Ole Miss all-time with the only win being the 10-5 decision in 2012. The Red Wolves have lost four games to the Rebels by one run in his tenure and another by just two runs.

RED WOLVES REWRITE HISTORY WITH SERIES WIN VS UAB

• Arkansas State won two out of three games against UAB to begin the 2016 season and it marks the first time in school history that the Red Wolves have won a three-game set to begin a season in school history.

• The 14-5 win in the opener against the Blazers was the first time A-State has won a season- opener on the road since the 1997 season when A-State defeated Northeast Louisiana, now ULM, by a score of 8-6.

• The opening win on Friday also secured head coach Tommy Raffo his first victory in a road season opener in three tries.

HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT

• Arkansas State was hit by 11 pitches in this weekend's series against UAB, which is tied for the most in the nation after the opening weekend with Indiana and Florida State. A-State had one batter called back to the box for not making an attempt to avoid the pitch so it very easily could have been 12.

• The Red Wolves have a good start on chasing last year's team in the category after the 2015 squad was hit by a pitch 94 times, good for fifth in the country. Zach George led the team a season ago with 16 HBPs.

• Jeremy Brown, Austin Baker, Matt Burgess, and Jake Bakamus were all hit twice, while Ty White, Joe Schrimpf, and Frankie Alvarez were hit once. Six of those HBPs came around to score during the series.

• The Red Wolves also walked nine times to give them a total of 20 times reaching base via walk or hit-by-pitch.

ON THE MOUND AGAIN

• A-State's Bryan Ayers and Tanner Ring made their first appearances on the mound since the 2014 season during the second game of Saturday's doubleheader, a 5-2 win by the Red Wolves.

• Ayers tossed six innings as the starter in the game and allowed two runs (one earned) as he was able to scatter 10 hits. The Vilonia, Ark., native struck out six and walked two in his first action since pitching in nine contests during the 2014 season with three starts. He went 2-1 with a 3.14 ERA in 28.2 innings that year.

• Tanner Ring sealed the victory in the game for the Red Wolves with a scoreless ninth inning. He walked the first batter of the inning before getting a double play and striking out the last batter to earn the save. The Batesville, Ark., native has played in most games since the 2014 season, but hadn't appeared on the mound since that year due to an injury. He only pitched in five games during that season, but had appeared in 18 in 2013 as a freshman. The save was the third of his career.

WELCOME TO A-STATE BASEBALL

• The A-State baseball team saw nine newcomers receive their first action as Red Wolves over the weekend against UAB with Garrett Rucker, Tony Ortiz, Neil Lambert, Frankie Alvarez, Jake Bakamus, Garrett Huff, Bradey Welsh, Peyton Culbertson, and J.D. Miller all getting some playing time. Redshirt sophomore J.D. Rainwater, who has been a part of the program the last two seasons, also received his first career action during the weekend.

• Rucker started in all three games and had two hits along with his first career RBI against the Blazers, while Lambert and Ortiz started two games apiece. Both players picked up their first career RBI during the first game of the series. Bakamus and Alvarez started the second game of Saturday's doubleheader, while Huff entered the first game of Saturday's doubleheader as a reserve.

• Welsh entered the first game of Saturday's doubleheader to pitch the seventh inning and

allowed one run (unearned), while Culbertson tossed a scoreless eighth inning with one hit

allowed and a strikeout. J.D. Miller entered the second game Saturday tied at 2-2 and got the final two outs of the seventh inning before tossing a scoreless eighth inning. He earned the win after the Red Wolves scored three runs in the top of the ninth to put Miller in line for the win.

RING NAMED PRESEASON ALL-SBC

• A-State senior infielder/pitcher Tanner Ring was named to the 2016 Preseason All-Sun Belt Conference team as the squads third baseman.

• The Batesville, Ark., native posted a .275 batting average with a .368 on-base percentage in 2015 after playing in 50 total games, drawing the majority of his starts at third base (25). He registered a slugging percentage of .401 and was third on the team with four home runs. He also hit 11 doubles and tied for third on the team with seven steals.

• Senior first baseman Matt Burgess and senior outfielder Austin Baker were named to the

College Sports Madness Preseason All-SBC team with Burgess earning first-team honors and Baker picking up second-team honors. Burgess, a native of Greenbrier, Ark., hit .257 with a .322 on-base percentage in 2015 and also hit 20 doubles, which was the second most on the team and tied for second most in the conference. Baker, a native of Montesano, Wash., was one of only two players to start all 57 games. He hit .290 with a team-best seven home runs. He scored the most runs on the team (42) and was third in doubles (14) and RBIs (36).

• The Sun Belt Conference coaches selected the Red Wolves to finish eighth in the league with 50 points, seven points behind UT Arlington and 15 points ahead of Little Rock.

A-STATE IN SEASON OPENERS

• The Red Wolves are now 35-33 in season openers after defeating UAB 14-5 in Friday's opener. The road victory in a season opener was the first since 1997 season when A-State defeated Northeast Louisiana (now ULM) 8-6 in Monroe, La.

• Head coach Tommy Raffo is 5-3 in season openers with the wins coming against Texas State (2009), Southern Illinois-Carbondale (2010), Bradley (2013), Miami (Ohio) (2014), and UAB. The three losses came from Auburn (2011), Lamar (2012), and Illinois State (2015).

• This was the first time since 2012 the Red Wolves opened the season on the road. A-State played in a tournament at Lamar during that campaign and played the host twice while another game was rained out.

FRESH FACES

• A-State welcomes 13 newcomers to the program in 2016, including three junior college

transfers and 9 true freshmen. The team also welcomes Garrett Rucker to the mix, a transfer from the University of Arkansas, to the team after he sat out last season.

• The team is also welcoming back Bryan Ayers, who sat out all of last season with an injury. He is slated to start game three of the opening series versus UAB. His last appearances was in 2014, when he went 2-1 with a 3.14 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 28.2 innings.

• The team's three JUCO transfers are infielder Jake Bakamus, catcher Frankie Alvarez, and pitcher J.D. Miller. Bakamus was at Lower Columbia College (Wash.) and is a native of Issaquah, Wash. Alvarez was at Garden City Community College (Kan.) for two years and hails from Woodward, Okla. Miller is from Sherwood, Ark., and spent two years at Crowder College (Mo.), but is a sophomore because he received a medical redshirt while sitting out 2015.

• The team's nine true freshmen include native Arkansans Drew Tipton (Bryant) and Garrett Huff (Genoa) with Tipton set to play outfield and Huff on the infield. Pitchers Brandon Stuckenschneider (Poplar Bluff) and Bradey Welsh (Marshfield) hail from the state of Missouri. Illinois was also represented with two freshmen in pitcher Zach Haake (Breese) and infielder Neil Lambert (Pontiac). Pitcher and first baseman Tony Ortiz is from Washington, while pitcher Peyton Culbertson is from Collierville, Tenn. Pitcher Yasuhito Abe is from Oita, Japan and represents the team's only player from a foreign country.

RED WOLVES TIE RECORD WITH FOUR MLB DRAFT PICKS

• A-State had four draft picks in the 2015 Major League Baseball draft with David Owen going in the 19th round to the San Francisco Giants, Stuart Levy to the Baltimore Orioles in the 27th round, Chandler Hawkins in the 33rd round to the St. Louis Cardinals, and Zach George in the 35th round to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

• That number ties the amount selected in the 1995 MLB draft when Keith Horn, Chad Soden, Jon David French, and Toby Anglen were all chosen. The Cleveland Indians selected Horn in the 18th round, while the Seattle Mariners picked Soden in the 23rd round. French was selected by the Oakland Athletics in the 35th round, while the Atlanta Braves selected Anglen in the 45th round to close out the A-State picks.

LOST PRODUCTION

• The Red Wolves said goodbye to eight seniors plus junior David Owen after the 2015 season. • Zach George had one of the best seasons in A-State baseball history with a .399 batting average, and .548 on-base percentage, which was the best mark in the country in 2015 and set a new school record. He was named to the ABCA and Louisville Slugger All-American squads as a third-team selection.

• Other position players lost were Stuart Levy, Lucas Feddersen, Collin Massanelli, and Ty Michelotti. Levy played in all but two games a season ago and will be missed behind the plate. Feddersen was the team's second-leading hitter with a .314 average, while Massanelli hit .275 with a .410 on-base percentage in 39 games.

• Owen will be missed as he started 15 games last season and pitched to a 3.25 ERA and 3-5 record with a team-high 73 strikeouts. Chandler Hawkins tossed 64.2 innings a year ago and tallied a 4.87 ERA and had the second-most wins on the team with five. Colton Kibler appeared in 29 games to lead the team in 2015 and pitched to a 4.06 ERA in 57.2 innings. He was also the team's leader in saves with five. The other senior pitcher was Jon Glidewell, who battled back from numerous injuries to pitch in 2015. He made 11 starts and went 2-1 with the lowest batting average against on the team at .204.

SAVE YOUR RAIN (AND SNOW) DANCES

• A-State has already had two games altered due to potential rain chances causing UAB and the Red Wolves to play a doubleheader last Saturday and now move the game time with Ole Miss up to 3:00 p.m.

• The Red Wolves had 26 games altered to weather a season ago with a healthy mix of both rain and snow as the culprits. The Red Wolves optioned to go to the Perfect Game Complex in Emerson, Ga., to play No. 7 Louisville instead of to Northwestern State where rain was likely on Feb. 20-21. The Red Wolves would go on to take two-of-three from the Cardinals.

• The second big alteration to the schedule was when Arkansas State shifted its home-opening Sun Belt Conference series versus UT Arlington to Smith-Wills Stadium in Jackson, Miss., due to winter weather preventing the team from playing in Jonesboro.

• All in all, the Red Wolves ended up playing seven doubleheaders, with the only one that was originally scheduled versus Illinois State on opening weekend. A-State played six consecutive doubleheaders on weekends to open the season.

ROAD WARRIORS

• Arkansas State began the 2016 season how they finished 2015 with solid play on the road. The Red Wolves took two-of-three from UAB and now head to the road again for their showdown with No. 21 Ole Miss.

• The Red Wolves finished the 2015 regular season with a 14-13 road record after sweeping Texas State May 8-10. A-State was 6-0 in the state of Texas this season with three wins each over Houston Baptist and Texas State.

• The winning road record marks the first time in the Tommy Raffo era that A-State has had a winning road record. Additionally, it is the first time the program has had a winning mark on the road since the 1998 season when Arkansas State was 14-8 in road contests.

203 AND COUNTING FOR RAFFO

• A-State head coach Tommy Raffo won his 202nd and 203rd games in the opening weekend series against UAB. His 202nd win came Friday in A-State's 14-5 win over the Blazers, while his 203rd came when A-State claimed the series with a 5-2 victory in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader.

• The 200th win tied Raffo with Richard Johnson for third-most wins all time in A-State baseball history, while the 201st pushed him into third place for most wins by himself.

• Coach Raffo only trails Bill Bethea and J.A. Ike Tomlinson on the A-State baseball career wins list.