Third baseman Joseph Sanders might be available to play for the Auburn baseball team in its regular season-ending series against Alabama that starts Thursday, a little over three weeks after having his jaw broken by a pitch.

Sanders, the team leader in home runs (18), RBIs (54) and doubles (14), took batting practice for the first time since the injury yesterday, stepping into the cage with a protective guard on the side of his helmet to cover his jaw.

While it was a positive first step, head coach John Pawlowski still has some concerns he'd like to see alleviated before Sanders is back in the lineup.

"How he reacts. How it feels," Pawlowski said. "When you're out, obviously an extended period of time but certainly when you have an injury like that, I think the fear factor of stepping into the box, the ball being thrown at you (are concerns). How he's going to react to that we may not know until we actually stick him in a game."

Sanders did not take any ground balls during practice, so if he is able to return, he might DH. Pawlowski said it could be a case where Sanders enters the game as a pinch hitter.

Auburn is required to post its 25-man roster for the series by tomorrow, so Pawlowski said a decision will be made after the team practices this afternoon or early tomorrow.

The Tigers (29-24, 9-18 SEC) failed to qualify for the conference tournament, but they still could earn an NCAA regional berth with a solid showing against No. 12 Alabama. Auburn is 4-8 since Sanders was injured against Samford.