I hope the Georgia baseball record book is written in pencil because there may be some heavy erasing by season’s end.

In his first season as the go-to guy on offense (without some dude named Gordon Beckham) junior first baseman Rich Poythress has taken to assaulting the offensive record books.

Through the first 25 team games, he is batting .447 with 13 home runs, 47 RBIs and has an on-base percentage of .556. His batting average, RBIs and OBP are all first in the SEC, and his 47 RBIs are tops in the country.

He is coming off a week in which he did the equivalent of stealing opposing pitchers’ lunch money before stuffing them in a locker. He batted eight-for-13 with five dingers and 12 RBIs. Poythress also was named the SEC Player of the Week and Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week for his Herculean efforts.

Prior to the season, head coach David Perno penciled Poythress in the four-hole, but moved him up to third in Georgia’s 10-6 win over Mississippi State to get him extra at-bats and has kept him there ever since. It’s safe to say, it’s worked pretty well.

Last season, when Beckham broke the school record for home runs, he had 15 home runs through 25 games, just two ahead of Poythress.

But a record that seems sure to fall is Beckham’s RBI record of 77, also set last season (Poythress was second with 75).

It seems whenever Big Rich comes to the plate, Georgia has runners on base. And more often then not, Poythress comes through. Look at his first game in the three-hole against Mississippi State when he hit a game-tying two-run single to tie the game in the eighth inning.

He leads the team in both multiple hit games and multiple RBI games with 13 each, not to mention his stellar defense. Last season, he became just the second Bulldog ever to win a Gold Glove for any position.

He is a man amongst boys, and he hits like it. And pitchers pitch like it. He has struck out only nine times in 94 official at-bats and has walked 22 times, a team-high.

My only advice to opposing pitching staffs, namely the No. 22 Clemson Tigers who face the top-ranked Dogs tonight at Foley Field, is don’t pitch to Rich.

He will make you pay for it.

- Michael Fitzpatrick is a sportswriter for the Red & Black.