STARKVILLE — Mississippi State’s 2021 and 2022 baseball seasons could not have been more different.
But the Bulldogs’ messages heading into the campaigns to come could not have been more similar.
“It’s a new year,” graduate catcher Luke Hancock said Friday. “Nobody cares about last year.”
It was true last winter after Mississippi State’s first national championship in any team sport, and it’s still true coming off a rare down season for a storied program.
Hampered by injuries and unable to find a groove, the Bulldogs went just 26-30 last season, finishing at the bottom of the Southeastern Conference and missing the NCAA tournament by a significant margin.
And as unforgettable as MSU’s 2021 Men’s College World Series title run was, 2022 was unforgettable, too — in a different fashion.
“We all know what happened last year, whether you were part of the team or not,” junior outfielder Kellum Clark said. “I think it’s going to help us because nobody wants that bad taste in their mouth anymore.”
With less than three weeks until the 2023 season begins, the Bulldogs hope they’ve assembled the roster to cleanse their palates and return the program to its typical heights. MSU opens against VMI on Feb. 17 at Dudy Noble Field.
Mississippi State returns a good portion of last year’s key players and brings in a highly rated class of freshmen and transfers. MSU’s newcomers were ranked second by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper; of course, the top four teams and six of the top eight were all from the mighty SEC.
“Our league is probably as good as it’s ever been right now,” Bulldogs coach Chris Lemonis said. “Every day’s going to be a knock-down, drag-out fight.”
That was certainly the case last season, and Mississippi State continually found itself pummeled to the mat. After losing ace starter Landon Sims to a torn UCL in nonconference play and relievers Stone Simmons and Brooks Auger to the same injury along the way, the Bulldogs’ pitching depth struggled. Factor in the team’s inconsistent offense, and the 9-21 SEC record that came about as a result was understandable.
Understandable — but not acceptable.
“Last year was embarrassing to this program, embarrassing to us,” Hancock said. “It’s not what Mississippi State baseball is about.”
The down year came after three straight College World Series appearances, culminating in the 2021 title. That run of success is what has the Bulldogs confident in making 2022 an aberration rather than the beginning of a trend.
It’s also what helped MSU recruit such a strong crop of players to Starkville. Jackson Academy outfielder Dakota Jordan and DeSoto Central left-hander Bradley Loftin lead a freshman class ranked eighth nationally by Perfect Game, and the Bulldogs’ transfer additions might be yet more impressive.
Mississippi State’s best gets include Texas reliever Aaron Nixon, Samford outfielder Colton Ledbetter and VCU infielder/outfielder Connor Hujsak. The Bulldogs beat all three of those schools in the 2021 postseason, perhaps getting an early look at the players they would eventually sign.
The Bulldogs’ lineup will be anchored by returnees Hancock, Clark and first baseman Hunter Hines, all of whom bat from the left side — as does Ledbetter.
But Mississippi State also boasts some right-handed pop in New Orleans transfer second baseman Amani Larry and returning third baseman Slate Alford, whose performance in fall practice turned heads.
“Left-handed, right-handed, I don’t care what kind of handed power it is as long as you can drive in runs,” Clark said.
On the pitching side of things, Lemonis said Mississippi State’s weekend rotation is very much “to be determined.” Junior Cade Smith should have a starting spot cinched up, though, and KC Hunt and Parker Stinnett could have inside tracks to the other two.
But Hunt and Stinnett both worked out of the bullpen during the fall, and they’re not the only ones prepared to help out at any position.
“There’s guys who are more open to doing whatever role that they’re told to do rather than having something set in stone in their head or something like that,” Stinnett said.
For a Mississippi State team looking to climb back to the top of the rugged SEC, that mentality can go a long way.
The talent has always been there, but the grit and resilience the Bulldogs showed in 2021 won them the national title. The latter was missing last year, and it showed.
“We have to get back to being a tough team,” Lemonis said.
When pressure mounts and expectations are sky high, that’s not always easy.
But that’s how it works at Mississippi State, and the Bulldogs have always known that.
“Everybody expects so much of you,” Hancock said. “Whenever you don’t perform, people talk about it. We have to be ready to come out this year and perform and just play good baseball for Mississippi State.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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