STARKVILLE — Based on its first three games of 2023, the Mississippi State baseball team has a lineup that can compete with just about anyone.
But as Saturday’s loss to VMI at Dudy Noble Field showed, the Bulldogs are only as good as their pitching will be.
MSU (2-1) allowed 13 free passes — 12 walks and a hit batter — and 11 stolen bases, giving up a 10-1 lead in an eventual 14-13 loss.
Coach Chris Lemonis admitted Sunday the game “went off the tracks,” but Mississippi State’s season isn’t derailed regardless.
MSU displayed offensive promise and pitching progress in an 11-2 win in Friday’s season opener and a 9-3 victory in the finale of the three-game set, taking the series from the Keydets.
The level of competition gets much harder before long — VMI went just 16-40 in 2022 in the Southern Conference — as Arizona State (3-0) visits Starkville from Friday to Sunday.
Before that, MSU welcomes Louisiana–Monroe (2-1) to Dudy Noble at 4 p.m. Tuesday and 3 p.m. Wednesday.
Lemonis said a five-game opening week (from the VMI series to the ULM set) is tough and that the Bulldogs have yet to finalize pitching plans for the midweek series.
“We have to assess it. We have to look at everything,” he said. “It’ll probably be a lot of spot, two or three innings here and there, trying to keep everybody fresh for the weekend.”
No MSU starter went more than five innings in the opening series, although junior Cade Smith’s four-inning start Friday was at least partially a result of cold weather on Opening Day.
Landon Gartman turned in the longest start of the weekend, going five innings in Sunday’s game.
“He’s just calm and cool,” Lemonis said. “He’s the old guy. He’s one of our older veterans. Shoot, he’s married. He’s just pitched and won a lot of games.
“He’s not explosive, but he knows how to pitch, and he just keeps you in a game.”
Bullpen report
The Bulldogs do have some explosive arms on their staff, and the opening series hinted at the bullpen roles they will fill.
Ball State transfer Nate Dohm pitched in key spots Friday and Saturday. JUCO transfer Tyson Hardin saw action Friday and Sunday, and Texas transfer Aaron Nixon pitched the ninth inning in the third game.
Freshmen Jurrangelo Cijntje and Bradley Loftin both made their debuts Sunday, pitching a scoreless inning apiece. Gartman said he had a lot of confidence in the pair and the other young pitchers on the team.
“All these guys are really talented, and I don’t think they really let the environment get to them,” Gartman said. “They just kind of do what they know how to do and have done their whole lives.”
Cijntje, who tossed a scoreless sixth, didn’t get to show off his switch-pitching talent. Even with a left-handed batter at the dish, the Curaçaoan freshman threw exclusively from the right side.
Lemonis said Cijntje “slept on his (left) wrist a little bit” and wasn’t available to pitch lefty Sunday.
“He will still throw left-handed, but his wrist was bothering him a little bit,” Lemonis said. Getting him back out there and being able to use both hands will be huge.”
Larry leads loaded lineup
After Sunday’s game, Lemonis recalled the scouting report on transfer second baseman Amani Larry he’d heard during the recruiting process.
“In recruiting, everybody told us, ‘Amani, he’s just OK in practice, but he’s really good in the games,’” Lemonis said.
Midway through Sunday’s game, Lemonis said he told assistant coach Kyle Cheesebrough, “I guess they were right.”
That’s no knock on Larry, who came to MSU from the University of New Orleans and has yet to stop tearing the cover off the baseball.
Batting leadoff for the Bulldogs, Larry is hitting .571 with two walks, three doubles and a home run. The long ball came Sunday, a two-run shot inside the left-field line.
“He had a great weekend, all the way around,” Lemonis said.
Larry is tied for 63rd in all of Division I in batting average, but he’s not even the top Bulldog on the list.
Redshirt freshman designated hitter Bryce Chance sits tied for 51st with a .583 mark (7 for 12).
Catcher Luke Hancock is hitting .545, outfielder Colton Ledbetter is at .462, and third baseman Slate Alford is at .429.
Those averages won’t last as the sample size gets bigger, but for now, Mississippi State’s lineup is loaded and playing well.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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