Peyton Steele helps lead No. 12 Alabama to a 10-6 win over No. 23 Southern Miss in his first collegiate start

Freshman Peyton Steele, a Decatur, Alabama native, got his first collegiate start on Tuesday night in No. 12 Alabama’s 10-6 win over No. 23 Southern Miss. Batting eighth and starting in left field, he did not disappoint, going 2 for 4 with his first home run at the college level.

“That's something I’m not going to ever forget.” Steele said on his first career start, “I go out and hit with all the other freshmen every day. It's just constant hard work, and it feels great that it finally paid off.”

Steele has been solid in his very small sample size so far this season, going into Tuesday's game. Coming off the bench in blowout wins against Bradley and Alabama State, he was 2 for 4 with an RBI and a double. 

Steele recorded his first career collegiate hit and RBI in a pinch-hit opportunity in Alabama's 19-3 win over Bradley in the second game of the season. 

Peyton then picked up his first career extra-base hit and run scored a couple of days later in Alabama’s fifth game of the season in a 15-1 win over Alabama State.  

The captain, Kade Snell, who is normally the starting left fielder, has started the last couple of games as the designated hitter due to him not being 100% healthy following a collision he had with center fielder Richie Bonomolo Jr. in last Sunday’s 8-6 win over Oklahoma. This allowed Steele to make his first collegiate start in left field. 

“With Kade being a little slow and hobbled, we wanted to take a load off him.” Head coach Rob Vaugh said, “I didn't know Peyton would go out and do what he did tonight, but I knew he wouldn't be scared, and I knew he would play hard, and that's exactly what he did.” 

Following a two-run top of the 8th inning from Southern Miss to cut Alabama’s lead to 8-6, Peyton helped the Crimson Tide quickly respond as he picked up his first collegiate home run to lead off the bottom of the 8th inning and make it a 9-6 ballgame.

Catcher Brady Neal, who was the hero in Tuesday night's 10-6 win over Southern Miss with a bases-clearing double with two outs in the bottom of the 6th to give the Crimson Tide a 6-4 lead, spoke very highly of Steele in his postgame press conference.

“You watch him in live at-bats and think that guy should be hitting on the weekends.” Neal said, “I’ve seen it a couple of times over the past couple of years where a young freshman will be working hard, but no one is watching. It's tough not to play as a freshman on a top-ranked team in the country, but he’s been working his butt off and finally got an opportunity and just did what he does." 

Crimson Tide fans might not see much playing time out of Peyton down the stretch this season, assuming everyone stays healthy, but they could see Peyton play a big role next year in the 2026 season. 

“Peyton's just been working his tail off.” Vaughn said, “He shows up every day, his attitude is awesome, he’s a great kid, and we look at him as a huge part of our future.”