STARKVILLE — Mississippi State pitcher Lucas Laster noticed a difference the moment he picked up the new flat-seam baseball.
With seams stitched closer to the surface to resist drag in an effort to increase scoring and rescue home run totals from near-record lows in 2014, Laster and his mound mates used the new baseballs for the first time in the fall. For Laster, the adjustment wasn’t immediate.
“I wasn’t able to command the ball as well,” said Laster, who is 4-1 and has emerged as MSU’s Friday night starter. “It feels smaller in your hand. Even though it’s not smaller, it feels that way. At first, I lost a little command. But once I made the adjustment to the new ball, I’ve been able to get the sink and movement I need.”
Laster is tied for the team lead in wins and sports a 2.53 ERA in seven starts. But the numbers suggest the rest of MSU’s pitching staff hasn’t made a similar adjustment.
A year after allowing 13 home runs in 63 games, the Bulldogs have surrendered 23 home runs in 35 games, and are on pace to surrender the team’s most home runs since the 2010 season. Additionally, MSU’s ERA is 3.85, nearly a full run worse than last year (3.06).
MSU coach John Cohen said the difference brought about by the new baseballs has been minimal.
“I think there’s a subtle difference,” Cohen said. “I don’t think it’s altering the game to an extent where everyone is going to line up and get physical guys, trying to knock the ball out of the park every time. I don’t think the game will change in that direction.”
Much of MSU’s pitching drop-off can be attributed to turnover. Bullpen standouts like Jacob Lindgren and Johnathan Holder are gone. In their place, MSU has younger, more inexperienced relievers. But while youth and the inability to adjust to new roles can explain part of MSU’s numbers, evidence remains that the new baseballs have made a difference.
Of MSU’s nine returning pitchers, more than half sport ERAs higher than 2014. Most noticeable has been the performance of senior left-hander Ross Mitchell, who entered the season with a career record of 24-5 for his career and won eight games and had a 2.53 ERA last season. This season, Mitchell has allowed 20 runs in 42 2/3 innings, and his 4.03 ERA easily is the highest mark of his career.
Then there are the home runs. MSU allowed an average of one home run every five games in 2014. That number has ballooned to 23 in 35 games, or roughly one every 13.5 innings. Additionally, MSU pitchers allowed 100 extra-base hits in 2014. This season, they have allowed 69, a pace that would result in 124 extra-base hits if MSU plays 63 games again.
Laster said the propensity to see longer fly balls was noticeable when working with the new baseballs.
“You definitely see more long balls. There’s more long flyouts,” Laster said. “I think that’s the biggest thing. If you make a mistake, guys can take advantage a whole lot more because the ball is going to go farther.”
NUMBERS UP
The increase in home runs isn’t limited to Starkville. Home runs are up across the nation, which was a desired result from the change to the flat-seam ball.
According to results released by the NCAA media coordination and statistics staff, home runs were up from 0.39 per game in 2014 to 0.5 per game this season through April 1. At the same point a season ago, the national average was 0.36 home runs per game. As of March 29, runs scored in a game are up 5 percent. However, strikeouts also have risen from 6.64 per nine innings in 2014 to 7.34 per nine innings in 2015, an increase of 10.5 percent.
The improvements have been most evident in the home run numbers, as the nationwide batting average has moved from .269 to .270 with the new baseballs.
In Starkville, the numbers are in line with the national average. A year after hitting 16 home runs, MSU has 15, and is on pace for 24 regular-season home runs.
While he hasn’t hit a home run this season after missing time with a wrist injury, MSU catcher Gavin Collins has seen a difference in the flight of the new balls.
“I definitely think it’s an extra 10 to 20 feet on the ball with the right spin,” Collins said.
Offensively, MSU has seen incremental improvements in every category. After collecting 95 extra-base hits last season, MSU has 80 this year. The Bulldogs’ team batting average has jumped from .275 to .281.
Elsewhere, the improvements have been even more dramatic.
MSU’s next opponent, No. 2 Texas A&M, is hitting .319 as a team and has 38 home runs in 33 games. As a result, the Aggies are 31-2 and sitting atop the Southeastern Conference. By contrast, the Aggies batted .286 and hit 25 home runs last season.
Across the SEC, the story is the same, as all 14 SEC teams are on pace to improve home run totals.
For some Bulldogs, the difference has been minimal.
“Not too much,” said MSU outfielder Cody Brown when asked if he’d noticed a difference. “I don’t think that has played a huge part. I think we did a great job preparing for that by using the new baseballs in the fall.”
DIFFERENCES SUBTLE
While home runs are well up, runs haven’t seen as drastic an incline. Teams scored an average of 5.08 runs in 2014. This season, it is up to 5.4.
Cohen said the new baseball is down on the list of reasons that MSU’s pitching staff has seen its numbers rise.
“The first couple of weekends, home runs jumped out a little more, but we still have a lot of baseball to be played,” Cohen said. “But for us and our ballpark, I think it’s a subtle difference. Looking at the bat and the way the bat has changed, I think that’s been the biggest difference in the past three years.”
Cohen said the dimensions and layout of MSU’s Dudy Noble Field provide a unique advantage to pitchers. Until those dimensions and layout are changed, such as when MSU moves into a renovated Dudy Noble in a few years, the style of play in Starkville won’t change dramatically.
“If the new facility allows a southwesterly wind to get through our stadium, that’s when our style of play might change,” Cohen said. “Without the roof, without the Palmeiro Center, it could really change the flight of the baseball. That’s something, and it’s still a ways off, that we will take under consideration when it comes to recruiting and game-planning.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brandon Walker on Twitter @BWonStateBeat
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