The Mississippi State-Ole Miss rivalry will be renewed once more Tuesday as the No. 9 Bulldogs and No. 19 Rebels will meet in a battle for the Governor’s Cup in Pearl.
For MSU coach Chris Lemonis, this will be his first time competing against the Rebels in a maroon-and-white uniform.
“It means a little bit more when you’re playing Ole Miss,” Lemonis said. “And our kids will be ready to play.”
After being swept by Arkansas on the road this past weekend, MSU is in desperate need of Southeastern Conference wins.
The Bulldogs now sit tied for fourth in the SEC West at 10-8 with Ole Miss and Auburn. Arkansas is first in the division at 12-6 in conference play.
“We need to play good baseball,” Lemonis said. “We didn’t play extremely great this past weekend so for us to get back out there and play a good game, that’s what I’m most looking forward to.”
Senior Peyton Plumlee will start Tuesday night’s game. As the de facto No. 3 starter of late, Plumlee has been streaky behind freshman JT Ginn and redshirt junior Ethan Small.
In outings against No. 20 Tennessee and Alabama, Plumlee pitched 10.1 innings of 2-run ball, giving up just 6 hits while striking out 5.
By contrast, Plumlee’s latest start against Arkansas was more adventurous. The right-hander was chased after just two innings, giving up five runs on three hits on Friday.
MSU’s pitching staff was rocked as a whole during its time in Fayetteville. The Razorbacks scored 27 runs off 31 hits on the weekend.
Lemonis pointed to the team’s inability to throw strikes as a problem area.
“In this league you’re facing a heavyweight every week,” Lemonis said. “You’ve just got to be able to get back up on your feet and respond.”
Ole Miss is 27-14 after a sporadic three weeks. Since sweeping then-No. 16 Florida on April 5 and 6, the Rebels are 4-4 in their last eight games — including series losses to No. 25 Auburn and Kentucky.
Ole Miss boasts a lineup with five players hitting .303 or better. Senior Ryan Olenek leads the pack at .370. Sophomore Tyler Keenan is the team RBI leader with 51 and has recorded multiple hits his past two games.
The Rebels will turn to junior Zack Phillips on the mound. Phillips holds a 4.58 ERA in 35.1 innings pitched this season.
MSU has won the past three Governor’s Cup games and five of the last six.
A team has won the trophy four times in a row just once, when Ole Miss won five straight between 2002 and 2006.
“It definitely means something a lot different than other games,” senior outfielder Jake Mangum said of Tuesday’s matchup. “There’s some bragging rights in the state. It’s the Governor’s Cup, so let’s roll.”
Ben Portnoy reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @bportnoy15.
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