Diamond Dawgs Travel To South Alabama Tuesday
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Coming off a 3-1 victory against Auburn this past Sunday, the Mississippi State baseball team (19-11) travels to South Alabama (18-10) for a 6:30 p.m. first pitch Tuesday at Stanky Field. The Bulldogs are coming off a 2-1 home series loss to Auburn, while the Jaguars return to Mobile after a 2-1 series win at Louisiana-Monroe.
The two teams met last season at Dudy Noble Field, with MSU picking up a 3-0 shutout victory thanks to the pitching trio of Preston Brown, Ross Mitchell and Jacob Lindgren. Current senior Wes Rea led all Bulldog hitters against USA, going 2 for 3 with a walk.
State has won six straight games against the Jaguars dating back to 2010, including wins in Mobile in 2011 (15-9) and 2013 (6-4). As head coach at MSU, John Cohen is 7-1 against South Alabama.
Need To Know
- Sophomore southpaw Daniel Brown is slated to make his first career start.
- Offensively, State is second nationally with 167 walks and 18th in on-base percentage (.400).
- Defensively, the Bulldogs are third in the country with 35 double plays and lead the NCAA since 2012 with 236 twin killings.
- Since 2012, the Bulldogs are fourth in the nation with 1,872 strikeouts.
- Sophomore center field Jacob Robson is the only player in the country to rank in the top 20 nationally in walks, on-base percentage and stolen bases.
- Senior first baseman Wes Rea ranks sixth nationally with 28 walks and is 13th in on-base percentage (.510).
- In three games against Auburn this past weekend, junior second baseman John Holland hit .545 (6 for 11).
- In six games since returning to regular action, sophomore Gavin Collins is 7 for 22 (.318) with three RBIs, three runs, three walks and two doubles.
Rankings
Mississippi State – Receiving Votes in NCBWA Division I Poll
South Alabama – Unranked
Tuesday’s Forecast (March 31) – High 80, Low 62 – Partly Cloudy (10%)
Live Video and Television
Tuesday’s game will be available on JagNationTV.com. Fans can purchase a 24-hour pass to watch the game by clicking here.
Live Audio and Radio
Tuesday’s game will air live on the Mississippi State Baseball Radio Network and will also be audio streamed live online at HailState.com/Plus (requires subscription).
Probable Starters
Tue. - MSU LHP Daniel Brown (1-0, 3.77 ERA) vs. USA RHP Matt Peacock (0-0, 16.88 ERA)
Tickets
Tickets are still available and can be purchased at tickets.southalabama.edu or at the ticket office located at Stanky Field, which opens one hour before first pitch every game.
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.”