The Samford transfer was hit by a pitch on Tuesday against Middle Tennessee.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama baseball third baseman Garrett Staton, who hit a grand slam last Saturday and was just beginning his journey with the Crimson Tide, will undergo surgery on Thursday for a broken finger he sustained when hit by a pitch on Tuesday.
The Samford transfer took a two-strike pitch off his hand during the first inning against Middle Tennessee and was called out on strikes after it was ruled he swung at the pitch. Staton immediately left the game, where he was starting at second base, and was replaced by Brennen Norton.
Head coach Rob Vaughn was uncertain about the exact timeline for Staton’s recovery, but more details will emerge after the surgery.
“Obviously, it’s tough for him because he’s been playing at an elite level,” Vaughn said Wednesday after the team’s win over Alabama State. “But he’s an older guy, a senior, and he’s in a good mental place considering the circumstances.”
Vaughn estimated Staton could be sidelined for at least a couple of weeks. Norton has stepped up, with multiple hits in back-to-back games, including two RBIs against Middle Tennessee. Alabama won 12-2, capped by an eighth-inning walk-off home run by shortstop Justin Lebron.
Last season, Staton hit 19 home runs at Samford and was named a third-team Preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers’ Association ahead of the 2025 season.
