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Cowbell Corner

Mississippi State Baseball Living Up to Hype After Two Full Months

The Bulldogs are living up to preseason expectations with top-five rankings, elite pitching and one of the SEC’s best records.
Taylor Hodges|
Mississippi State Catcher Andrew Raymond (#19) during the game between the Ole Miss Rebels and the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Swayze Field in Oxford, MS.
Mississippi State Catcher Andrew Raymond (#19) during the game between the Ole Miss Rebels and the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Swayze Field in Oxford, MS. | Mississippi State Athletics

Mississippi State is having the kind of season it hoped for in the preseason.

The Bulldogs have lost only four games by a combined seven runs, all to teams ranked in the top 10 at the time. They’re at the top of the SEC standings, in the top five of every college baseball poll and near the top of the NCAA RPI rankings.

That’s where fans expected this team to be after luring Brian O’Connor away from Virginia after two decades and building one of the top-rated transfer portal classes.

Sweeping their archrival, Ole Miss, on its home field and knocking the Rebels out of every major college baseball poll is just icing on the cake.

There are still two months to play, though. So nobody should be popping champagne bottles just yet. But after two months, the Bulldogs are where they need to be.

Mississippi State is ranked No. 4 by D1Baseball.com, No. 5 by Baseball America, No. 4 by the National College Baseball Writers Association, No. 4 by Perfect Game and No. 4 in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll.

The Bulldogs are tied at the top of the SEC standings with a 7-2 conference record, matching Texas and Georgia. The pitching staff ranks in the top five in every major category, and the offense sits in the top 10 across the board.

Individually, Bryce Chance’s .435 batting average leads the SEC. Ace Reese’s 12 doubles lead the league. Tomas Valincius has the second-lowest ERA at .91, the third-most strikeouts with 56, the most strikeouts looking with 20 and one of the lowest WHIPs in the conference.

And that’s just the Bulldogs sitting at the top of the leaderboards. Several others are having seasons that will put them in the conversation for postseason honors.

So, Mississippi State is where it needs to be, but the ultimate goals and expectations are still well ahead.

Mississippi State Batting Stats

  • BA: .337 (1)
  • SLG%: .564 (3)
  • OB%: .439 (3)
  • R: 272 (2)
  • H: 316 (1)
  • 2B: 70 (1)
  • HR: 46 (5)
  • RBI: 253 (2)
  • BB: 154 (9)
  • K: 212 (6)
  • SB: 42 (6)

Mississippi State Pitching Stats

  • ERA: 3.23 (3)
  • H: 181 (2)
  • R: 99 (3)
  • ER: 85 (3)
  • BB: 91 (4)
  • SO: 319 (4)
  • Opp. BA: .208 (2)

RPI Rankings

(Only SEC teams with national rankings.)

1. Texas (23-4)
2. Florida (23-6)
4. Auburn (20-7)
5. Mississippi State (24-4)
6. Alabama (22-7)
15. Ole Miss (19-10)
16. Texas A&M (22-5)
18. Kentucky (21-6)
19. Oklahoma (19-8)
40. Georgia (23-6)
42. Tennessee (18-10)
60. Arkansas (19-10)
82. LSU (19-10)
105. South Carolina (13-16)
118. Vanderbilt (17-12)
138. Missouri (17-12)

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Taylor Hodges
TAYLOR HODGES

Award-winning sports editor, writer, columnist, and photographer with 15 years’ experience offering his opinion and insight about the sports world in Mississippi and Texas, but he was taken to Razorback pep rallies at Billy Bob's Texas in Fort Worth before he could walk. Taylor has covered all levels of sports, from small high schools in the Mississippi Delta to NFL games. Follow Taylor on Twitter and Facebook.

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