No. 11 Diamond Dawgs Look to Tame No. 7 Tigers in Baton Rouge
April 21, 2016 | Baseball
STARKVILLE, Miss. – As has become commonplace for the 2016 Diamond Dawgs, a Top-10 opponent awaits on the horizon this weekend as the Maroon and White travel to Baton Rouge to take on No. 7 LSU at Alex Box Stadium.
The grind of the Southeastern Conference continues Friday for the Bulldogs as they begin their sixth series against a team ranked 11th or better in the past seven weekends. MSU has posted a 5-1 series record during that span. The Dogs and Tigers are set to kickoff the three-game set at 7 p.m. Friday at Alex Box Stadium on SEC Network+.
Game two of the series is set for a primetime first pitch on Saturday at 6 p.m. and will be available nationally on ESPNU. Game three will also be broadcast nationally on ESPN2, beginning at noon Sunday.
The Diamond Dawgs picked up a thrilling walk off victory in their first ever visit to MGM Park in Biloxi, Mississippi Wednesday, as they beat ULM 1-0 in 14 innings. With a full moon overlooking the Mississippi Gulf Coast, true freshman outfielder Jake Mangum played the role of hero for the Maroon and White with a two-out RBI single near midnight.
The Bulldogs are looking to get back to their winning ways after dropping their first true three-game series of the year last weekend to No. 3 Texas A&M (3-10, 6-10, 5-10). The Bulldogs are also looking to win their fifth SEC series of 2016 after winning just one in 2015.
Sitting at 8-7 in the conference, the Bulldogs are one game behind LSU for second place in the SEC Western division standings and three games out of first place in the league overall.
The Tigers enter the weekend having won 10 of their last 12 games and eight of their last 10 SEC contests. LSU completed a clean sweep of cross-divisional rival Missouri on the road last weekend (7-5, 9-5, 15-5).
The Bulldogs own a 209-172 edge against the Tigers in one of the Southeastern Conference's longest running rivalries, with the Bulldogs capturing the most recent contest 8-7 (12) in walk off fashion last season. Junior RHP Dakota Hudson picked up the win, tossing one inning of relief without allowing a hit and striking out one.
LSU leads the Bulldogs 93-84 in Baton Rouge. The Maroon and White have not won a three-game series against the Tigers since taking two of three in Baton Rouge in 2006.
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Need To Know
- In the latest rankings released Monday, MSU was voted 11th in the Coaches Poll, 7th by Baseball America, 6th by D1 Baseball, 5th by Perfect Game, 7th by the NCBWA and 10th by Collegiate Baseball.
- As of April 21, Mississippi State's offense ranks seventh in the country in doubles (87, 1st in SEC), 11th in hits (418, 3rd in SEC), 20th in batting average (.309, 3rd in SEC) and 22th in on base percentage (.402, 3rd in SEC).
- The Maroon and White pitching staff is sixth in the NCAA in strikeouts per nine innings (9.4, 4th in SEC).
- The Bulldogs have five shutouts in 2016 (12th in NCAA, 2nd in SEC) after not recording any in 2015.
- Individually, junior outfielder Reid Humphreys is 18th in the country with 15 doubles (T-1st in SEC).
- Junior RHP Dakota Hudson is fourth in the conference with a 2.08 ERA.
- After hitting .243 with two outs in 2015, the Bulldogs are terrorizing opposing pitching with a .314 clip (2nd in SEC) with two down this season.
- Bulldog pinch hitters are raking at a .438 mark in 2016 (1st in SEC), 70 points higher than the next closest opponent.
Starting Rotation
Friday: MSU's Jr. RHP Dakota Hudson (4-3, 2.08 ERA) vs. LSU's Jr. LHP Jared Poche' (5-3, 2.63 ERA)
Saturday: MSU's Jr. RHP Austin Sexton (3-2, 3.96 ERA) vs. LSU's So. RHP Alex Lange (4-2, 4.88 ERA)
Sunday: MSU's TBA vs. LSU's Sr. LHP John Valek III (6-1, 3.42 ERA)
Friday's Forecast (April 22) – High 83, Low 58 – Partly Cloudy (20%)
Saturday's Forecast (April 23) – High 85, Low 60 – Sunny (0%)
Sunday's Forecast (April 24) – High 85, Low 64 – Mostly Sunny (0%)
Live Video and Television
Friday's game will be available on SEC Network + via the WatchESPN app.
Saturday's game will be available nationally on ESPNU
Sunday's game will be available nationally on ESPN2
Live Audio and Radio
All three games will be broadcast live on the MSU Baseball Radio Network (WKBB 100.9 FM in Starkville). The contest will also be audio streamed live online at HailState.com/Plus (requires subscription).
