If it wasn’t clear before, it is now. With this Mississippi State baseball bullpen, no lead is safe.

In Friday’s game at No. 24 Tennessee, MSU’s bullpen was credited for eight earned runs and two homers, as the Volunteers quickly erased a 7-2 deficit and beat the Bulldogs, 12-8, to take a 2-0 lead in the weekend series. 

Tennessee (29-14, 10-10 SEC) scored 10 of its 12 runs after the fifth inning. 

Landon Gartman, MSU’s starter who returned to the rotation after missing last Saturday’s game at Auburn with an undisclosed injury, gave up two, two-run homers, the second off the bat of Jared Dickey to cut MSU’s lead to 7-4 in the fifth inning.

The Volunteers then tagged four runs on Colby Holcombe in 1/3 of an inning, two more off Brock Tapper and two off Evan Siary to take a 12-8 lead in the seventh.

Gartman allowed five hits, four runs and struck out one in 4 2/3 innings. 

Seven of MSU’s eight runs came off of homers, including a three-run shot by Dakota Jordan in the first inning and two off the bat of Hunter Hines, which gave MSU a 6-2 in the fifth inning. Bryce Chance later added a sacrifice fly to give the Bulldogs a 7-2 lead inning. 

MSU (24-19, 6-14 SEC) will try avoid the sweep in Saturday’s series finale with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. (ESPNU)

Justin Frommer is the Mississippi State sports reporter for The Dispatch.