Alabama baseball All-American to be honored during SEC tourney

Doug Dark

I read the other day that the Southeastern Conference plans to honor former Alabama catcher Doug Duke as a member of the 2019 Class of SEC Baseball Legends during the SEC Baseball Tournament next month in Hoover.

The tournament is scheduled to be played May 21-26, and this year’s Legends class will be recognized on the field during the tournament semifinals on Sat., May 25. Joining Duke in this year’s class will be Johnny Ray of Arkansas, Josh Fogg of Florida and Jeremy Sowers of Vanderbilt.

Duke played catcher at Alabama from 1984 through 1986. I was in elementary school at that time, so I have to admit that I was unfamiliar with Duke’s accomplishments at Alabama. Among other honors, he was named All-SEC twice and was named as an All-American twice. He went on to play pro baseball after the Montreal Expos drafted him in the seventh round in 1986.

After wrapping up his baseball career, Duke went to medical school in Missouri and graduated with honors in 2004. Nowadays, he works as a surgeon and wound care specialist in Dothan.

I was also interested to learn that 2012 marked the inaugural class of SEC Baseball Legends and that two other Alabama players have been previously honored. Jeff Laubenthal was honored in the first class of 2012, and Andy Phillips was honored in 2015.

Laubenthal, who also went on to become a doctor, was a four-year letterman at Alabama, playing as an outfielder and designated hitter from 1990 to 1993. He was a career .284 hitter and played in 133 games, starting in 78 of them.

Laubenthal was also a first-team Academic All-American in 1993 and received the SEC’s highest academic honor, the H. Boyd McWhorter SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, in 1992. His grades allowed him to receive an SEC post-graduate scholarship, and he used it to attend UAB’s Medical School. He graduated from that prestigious institution in 1997.

Phillips, while not a doctor, is arguably the most famous player in Alabama’s group of SEC Legends. Phillips went to Demopolis Academy before going on to Alabama, where he played shortstop and third base from 1996 to 1999. When he graduated, he held eight Alabama baseball records, including the record for most home runs (61).

After graduation, he was drafted by the New York Yankees and went on to make his professional debut with the Yankees on Sept. 14, 2004. He played for the Yankees through 2007 before moving on to play for the Reds and the Mets. When his MLB days ended, he went to Japan, where he played a couple of seasons of professional baseball. He currently serves as an assistant coach for Alabama’s baseball team.

The SEC rotates its annual Legends class, so while players from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida and Vanderbilt will be honored this year, players from other schools (like Auburn) will be honored next year. On Monday, I tried to find a list of Auburn players who’ve been previously honored as SEC Legends, but I didn’t have any luck. If anyone in the reading audience has that information, please share it with me.