Mississippi State Week 3 Review/Preview
By Doug Kyle
To say the last seven days fell short of expectations and left most around the Mississippi State Baseball program crestfallen, following a one-run loss at home Tuesday against Troy, and a 1-2 showing in the Astros Foundation College Classic with a one-run loss to Arizona and a two-run loss to Oklahoma State, still might not fully convey the disappointment of the week that was.
Tuesday night, with former players of Head Coach Chris Lemonis coaching, and former Bulldog Shane Lewis playing, for Troy, the Trojans jumped on top 5-0, enlivened greatly by two solo homers by the obviously-motivated Lewis. After State tied the game, it had a bases-loaded, one-out chance to push ahead with at least a run in the 8th, then claim a win in the top of the 9th, but the opposite happened.
After the Bulldogs could not take the lead, Troy took it back, on another solo homer, in the 9th, and then after State again left the tying run at third, celebrated a 6-5 win over an SEC school at home, still a big deal for a team in the best non-“Power” baseball conference.
The Bulldogs headed to Texas with the motivation and intent for overcoming the gut punch, and the euphoria and satisfaction of an 8-run out-less inning that became a 14-3 run-rule win over local team Rice gave temporary hope and optimism on Friday.
Starter Pico Kohn finally gave up a walk, as well as his first home run, but the Bulldogs found some power too. Gehrig Frei, Bryce Chance, Sawyer Reeves and Dylan Cupp all hit doubles, Ross Highfill tripled, and Ace Reese, Aaron Downs, and Nolan Stevens all homered. Much of that came in the decisive 7th, when eight Bulldogs went to the plate, hit five extra base hits, and all scored before the game ended with no outs recorded. With the game shortened, the State bullpen also had to cover just 2/3 inning, saving arms for the next two days.
But, like Tuesday at home, falling behind early again, 5-1 to Arizona, was an obstacle too great to overcome on Saturday. Houston native Reese had a homecoming to remember in a big way, slugging two more home runs along with an RBI double in the bottom of the 6th inning, which would have tied the game had Arizona not added its 6th, and ultimate winning, run in the top half.
The Bulldogs came close to either tying or winning the game, getting runners at second and third with one out in the 9th. Frei bounced the seventh pitch he saw back to the pitcher, who picked off Michael O'Brien running on contact from third, and Bryce Chance hit a fly ball to LF, ending the game that would have been a tying sac fly one batter sooner.
It was an agonizing 6-5 loss, particularly when the bullpen of Ryan McPherson, Dane Burns, Mikhai Grant, and Nate Williams had performed so well after the departure of starter Karson Ligon, giving up a single run the last seven innings, none in the last four. Ligon took the loss, exiting after two innings, following three innings against Missouri State, and four against Manhattan, both wins when State outscored the opponents 22-4. With both Jacob Pruitt and Charlie Foster drawing midweek starts recently, Lemonis hinted in his post-game remarks at reviewing future starting assignments.
On Sunday, it was déjà vu all over again, except that State actually took an early 1-0 lead on Chance’s first home run. The game was quickly tied off starter Stone Simmons, who pitched relatively well, even when he walked two of his three in the third inning. Simmons got a strikeout, then a force out at second.
A couple hits scored two, but the inning appeared to be ending on a grounder to Frei that he bobbled on the way to touching second, with all safe. A passed ball by Highfill scored another, a double scored two more, and suddenly a manageable game blew up into a 6-1 Oklahoma State lead, all the runs charged to Simmons.
State got one run back in the 4th, but the deficit became ultimately insurmountable on a three-run homer in the 6th, one of those charged to Ben Davis, the other two to Robert Fortenberry. When Kevin Mannell was summoned for his first appearance of the season, he and Luke Dotson shut down the Cowboys the last 2 2/3, but even with a five-run seventh, MSU still needed two more it couldn’t produce, losing 9-7.
The hitting was even with Oklahoma State, 9 each, with State led in the game by Reed Stallman’s two homers and 3-4 day. Reese had a relatively quiet 1-4, and DH Noah Sullivan had two hits along with Chance.
While situational hitting has bitten the Bulldogs recently, being unable to get runners in after they’ve gotten on, on this day, it was mistakes and not getting off the field.
Sometimes the agony of observation obscures that the ones who want most to win are the players and coaches, and they also put in the most work by far.
With ranked Southern Miss scheduled to visit Dudy Noble Field on Tuesday, weather permitting, one of the six remaining contests before SEC play begins with Texas coming to Starkville for the first time in 103 years, it’s likely to be a couple weeks of reckoning for a team that has to fine tune roles and responsibilities.
Without assigning specific fault or blame, listening to Lemonis after the Tuesday and Sunday games, he loves every single one of his players, to whom he’s also extremely loyal, but he’s cognizant of his job to find a winning combination and put it on the field.
On the weekend following the 4:00 Southern Miss Tuesday game (to accommodate the Texas basketball game at 7:00), Queens comes in for a three game series, 6:00 Friday, 2:00 Saturday, and 1:00 Sunday. After taking two out of three from Appalachian State opening weekend, they’ve lost eight straight going into a Monday night completion of their four-game weekend series with West Virginia.
*****
Comments