Mississippi State
Memphis
Diamond Dawgs Host Memphis In Midweek
April 28, 2025 | Baseball
STARKVILLE – For the second time this season, Mississippi State will meet Memphis in midweek action on the diamond.
Tuesday's contest is slated for a 6 p.m. start at Dudy Noble Field and will be streamed on SEC Network+.
The Bulldogs got the better end of a 5-3 matchup earlier this month in Memphis on April 1. Noah Sullivan and Hunter Hines both homered in that game with Ryan McPherson picking up the win on the mound following four scoreless innings of relief with eight strikeouts and only surrendered one hit. Stone Simmons came on to close out the game and recorded his first save in 1,431 days.Â
MSU has won its last five meetings against the Tigers and lead 59-27 in the all-time series that dates back to 1950.
Just as he did in the previous game against Memphis, Sullivan will get the start on the mound. The junior right-hander has made six midweek starts and sports a 2.35 earned run average, 10 strikeouts and three walks across 15 1/3 innings but has not factored into a decision.
The Tigers counter will also go with the same starter in junior righty Caden Robinson. Robinson went five frames against the Diamond Dawgs earlier this month giving up a pair of runs on two hits with six strikeouts and a walk. He has made seven starts this season with a 6.12 ERA, 24 strikeouts and 14 walks in 25 innings and is 1-2 overall.
State enters Tuesday's game at 25-19 overall and coming off a series loss at now 10th-ranked Auburn. The Diamond Dawgs have won eight of their last nine midweek matchups.
Mississippi State is hitting .300 as a team with 74 home runs and scoring 7.5 runs per game. The Bulldogs have stolen 39 bases in 46 attempts and maintain a .972 fielding percentage.
Senior left fielder Gehrig Frei leads MSU's batting .372 while sophomore third baseman Ace Reese is tied for third in the SEC with 16 homers and leads the team with 58 hits, 53 RBIs and a .698 slugging percentage. Sophomore right fielder Ross Highfill is the Diamond Dawgs' leading base thief with 10 steals in 12 tries.
Hines, a senior first baseman, ranks second among active Division I players with 64 career home runs and is three shy of tying Rafael Palmeiro (1983-85) for the most in school history.
State's pitching staff has been one of the nation's best under now interim head coach Justin Parker. The Bulldogs rank third nationally in both strikeouts per nine innings (11.8) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.39).
Mississippi State collectively has a 4.59 ERA with 482 strikeouts and 142 walks through 368 2/3 innings this season. Opposing hitters are batting just .231 against the Diamond Dawgs.
Pico Kohn leads MSU and ranks fifth in the conference with 89 strikeouts this spring while Cade O'Leary and Gavin Black sport flawless ERAs. Simmons, Chase Hungate and Luke Dotson all have two saves on the season and top the team in that category.
Memphis heads to Starkville with a 16-27 record having lost four straight. The Tigers were run-ruled on the road at UTSA 12-2 and 17-7 this past weekend and also dropped the finale 6-5 in 11 innings on Sunday.
Matt Riser's roster is hitting .240 with 45 homers and averaging 5.5 runs a game. Memphis has managed 49 steals in 68 attempts and sports a .969 fielding percentage.
 Will Vasseur leads the regulars in the Tigers' lineup with a .277 batting average while Shane Cox tops the team with seven long balls and is tied for the lead with 25 RBIs with Chase Nixon. Cy Turner is Memphis' biggest baserunning threat with nine steals in 13 tries.
The Tigers' pitching staff has compiled a 5.14 ERA with 333 strikeouts and 206 walks through 367 2/3 innings. Their opposition has hit .284 against them with 56 home runs.
David Case paces Memphis with 55 strikeouts while Eli Curtis has a perfect ERA. Brayden Sanders has recorded three of the Tigers' eight saves on the year.
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