Diamond Dawgs Rally Late, Take Down Alabama 7-6 On Walk-Off Home Run in Game 1
Mississippi State baseball used three big-time home runs to pull off the 7-6 comeback victory in extra innings over Alabama to take the 1-0 series lead.
Starting pitcher Preston Johnson allowed three runs on five hits with three batters walked and seven strikeouts. Brooks Auger closed things out for the Bulldogs and gave up only one hit in one inning to pick up the win on the mound. RJ Yeager hit the game-winning home run and went 2-for-5 at the plate with one RBI and one run scored. Hunter Hines was 2-for-3 at the plate with two runs scored, two RBI and two walks-- he also hit the game-tying home run in the ninth inning. Kellum Clark had a three-run home run in the seventh inning.
Mississippi State managed to get runners on base to start the game off in the bottom of the first inning, but a debatable officiating call cost the team big time. Logan Tanner was called out at first on the field, but upon review, it appeared that he was safe. However, the umpire upheld his initial ruling, giving the Bulldogs two outs. The Bulldogs couldn't produce anything with the bases loaded and two outs.
The Diamond Dawgs tacked on a run in the bottom of the second inning thanks to a double by Jess Davis that scored Brad Cumbest, but the lead didn't last long. Alabama scored three runs in the top of the fourth inning off of a walk and a few hits, including a sacrifice bunt and a triple. Mississippi State was suddenly at a 3-1 disadvantage. Head coach Chris Lemonis recognized Johnson's uncharacteristic struggles.
"He's one of our best pitchers with runners on base," Lemonis said. "He really competes, but he's got to do a better job of being more efficient."
Mississippi State had a big chance to even the score in the fifth inning, but with two on base and no outs, the Bulldogs simply couldn't get a timely hit. Johnson had an outstanding sixth inning to keep the Crimson Tide off the board, but the offense wasn't carrying their load.
Cam Tullar was brought in to start the seventh inning for the Diamond Dawgs in relief of Johnson, who finished the night with 105 pitches. Tullar struck out two looking but also gave up two runs to put the Crimson Tide ahead 5-1.
When hope seemed lost in the bottom of the seventh inning, some Bulldogs stepped up in big ways. Tanner and Hines walked with two outs to keep the Bulldogs alive, then Clark stepped up to the plate. He slammed a home run over the right-field wall to cut Alabama's lead to 5-4. The Dude was rocking, and the contest was competitive again.
Both teams went down easily in the eighth inning, meaning the ninth inning would be the make-it-or-break-it frame. Tullar hit a batter to put one on for the Crimson Tide with one out but rebounded with a swinging strikeout before being taken out of the game. Brandon Smith was brought in to get the final out but gave up a base hit that brought another run home for Alabama. It was crunch time in Starkville, and the Diamond Dawgs needed to come out of a 6-4 hole.
Kamren James and Luke Hancock got two quick outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, and fans started leaving the stadium. However, things weren't done. Tanner walked to get a runner on with two-outs, and freshman phenom Hunter Hines hit a two-run home run to tie things up at six apiece and send the game into extra innings.
In the top of the tenth inning, Auger was brought in to pitch. He hit the first batter he faced, putting one on base with no outs. James made the best defensive play of the season so far on the next at-bat: he dove across the infield to catch a popped-up bunt and threw down the runner at first to secure the double play. The Diamond Dawgs got out of the inning with plenty of momentum.
Cumbest was the first batter in the bottom of the inning, but he went down swinging to pick up the team's first out. When Yeager stepped up to the plate next, he seemed to know that something huge was about to happen. On the very first pitch, he swung hard and sent a ball sailing into the air. It flew over the center-field wall, and he rounded the bases as his teammates ran onto the field to celebrate the 7-6 victory. The only person who could describe the feeling was Yeager, who found himself at the bottom of a big dog pile once he made it back to home plate.
"I was kind of blacked out running around the bases," Yeager said. "I was so pumped up."