STARKVILLE – Wes Rea said he would like to admit he wasn’t trying to
hit a home rum in the 12th inning Tuesday night.
However, if he did say that – he’d be lying.
“You’re definitely looking for something to drive and move the runners
up with a chance to score at that point,” Rea said.
The Mississippi State University freshman first baseman sent the 1,519
fans home happy with two-run shot off into Left Field Lounge for a 2-0
victory in 12 innings over South Alabama University at Dudy Noble
Field.
Rea took the third straight fastball he saw from right-handed reliever
Tyler Huffer (0-1) over the 330-foot sign in left field that curved
around the foul pole.
“I knew I got that one no doubt,” Rea said. “They got me off guard and
then I just decided to sit on that one pitch.”
The victory marked the second straight walk-off victory for MSU
(21-12) after defeating Vanderbilt University Sunday in similar
fashion in the bottom of the ninth inning.
The drama of the night came in the sixth inning when in his first ever
career start on the mound freshman right-hander Brandon Woodruff was
pulled from the game while still throwing a no-hitter through six
completed innings.
“We want to take care of his arm and to tell you how stupid I am is
that I didn’t even know the situation in the game right there,” Cohen
jokingly said. “I know we did the right thing there. He is such a
mature young man he absolutely knows how his body works and he
understood that he didn’t have anything left.
Woodruff, who was a fifth round selection by the Texas Rangers in 2011
Major League Baseball draft, allowed just one walk and struck out
eight USA batters in just 67 pitches. The prize high school product in
the Magnolia state last year said he’d never been taken out of a game
with a no-hitter still intact but did confirm he asked out after the
sixth inning.
“I was expecting to go just three or four innings tonight and
stretched it out tonight a little bit,” said Woodruff.
MSU used five more pitchers in the final six innings to hold USA
(12-21) to six total hits and record eight more strikeouts in the
game. Trevor Fitts (3-0) got the victory after recording two
strikeouts in the 12th inning.
The play which may have saved MSU from an embarrassing loss Tuesday
was sophomore C.T. Bradford throwing right fielder Nolan Earley out at
home plate in the 11th inning to preserve a scoreless tie. Bradford
didn’t start and was a pinch running option in the bottom half of the
previous inning. Therefore, the former High School Mr. Baseball
selection out of the state of Florida two years ago watched the first
three hours of the game on the bench before having the assist be his
first defensive play of the night.
Mississippi State will return to Southeastern Conference action Friday
night when they travel to the University of South Carolina with first
pitch in Columbia being 6 p.m.
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