Baseball Travels To Kentucky For First Road Trip Of 2015
STARKVILLE, Miss. – After a season-opening 23-game homestand, No. 20 Mississippi State (16-7) travels to Kentucky (13-7) for a three-game Southeastern Conference battle at Cliff Hagan Stadium. The series begins Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT, with game two taking place Saturday at 1 p.m. CT. First pitch of the series finale is scheduled for 12 p.m. CT Sunday.
VIDEO: Head Coach John Cohen | RHP Trevor Fitts
State is 58-36 all-time against the Wildcats, but the Blue and White hold a 20-19 advantage in Lexington. Bulldog skipper John Cohen is 6-6 overall against Kentucky and is looking to snap a three-game losing streak against them.
Before returning to Starkville, Cohen was the head coach at Kentucky from 2004-08, tallying a 175-112-1 record in the Bluegrass State. In 2006, Cohen led UK to its first SEC baseball championship in history on his way to earning SEC Coach of the Year honors.
Need To Know
- Mississippi State starting pitching has gone six innings or longer in four-straight games for the first time since Feb. 25-March 1, 2011.
- MSU’s four starters (P. Brown, Sexton, Tatum, Laster) are a combined 11-1 with a 2.34 ERA in 119 1/3 innings.
- In the first 16 games of the season, the Bulldog bullpen went 5-1 with a 1.87 ERA and six saves in as many opportunities. In the seven games since, the unit has three blown saves, is 1-4 with a 9.00 ERA and has been outscored 18-0 in the eighth inning alone.
- Defensively, the Maroon and White are first nationally in double plays, second in the country with 15 runners caught stealing and 25th in the NCAA with a .976 fielding percentage.
- Offensively, State ranks second in the nation in walks (140), third in on-base percentage (.425), fifth in hit by pitch (37), 15th in runs scored (153) and 21st in hits (212).
- Dating back to last season, senior shortstop Seth Heck has reached base safely in 52 of his last 53 games overall, including 21-straight games in SEC play.
- Redshirt sophomore center fielder Jacob Robson enters the weekend with multiple hits in three-straight games and ranks top-10 nationally in OBP (.578), stolen bases (14) and walks (22).
Weather
Friday Forecast: High 57, Low 42 - AM Light Rain - 70% Chance of Rain
Saturday Forecast: High 67, Low 40 - Partly Cloudy - 10% Chance of Rain
Sunday Forecast: High 57, Low 34 - Partly Cloudy - 0% Chance of Rain
Live Video and Television
All three games will be available on SEC Network + via the WatchESPN app. SEC Network + replaces HailStateTV as MSU’s online video streaming service.
Watch Friday’s Game | Watch Saturday’s Game | Watch Sunday’s Game
IMPOTANT VIDEO: The SEC Network and SEC Network + are two distinct channels with separate offerings.
Live Audio and Radio
All three games will air live on the Mississippi State Baseball Radio Network. All three games will also be audio streamed live online at HailState.com/Plus (requires subscription).
Probable Starters
Friday – RJr. RHP Preston Brown (3-1, 2.15 ERA) vs. So. RHP Zack Brown (1-2, 2.77 ERA)
Saturday – So. RHP Austin Sexton (3-0 ERA, 2.12 ERA) vs. Jr. RHP Dustin Beggs (2-2, 3.23 ERA)
Sunday – So. LHP Vance Tatum (2-0, 2.73 ERA) vs. Jr. RHP Kyle Cody (2-1, 3.62 ERA
Rankings
Mississippi State – No. 20 in USA Today Coaches’ Poll and Baseball America, No. 22 in NCBWA, No. 25 in Perfect Game and unranked in Collegiate Baseball and D1 Baseball
Kentucky – Unranked
Social Media
For more information on head coach John Cohen’s club, follow the team on Twitter, like them on Facebook and join them on Instagram by searching for “HailStateBB.” You can also find all-access coverage of the program on SnapChat by searching for “HailStateSnap.”