Mississippi State

[ScoobaDawg]

I appreciate the input by the state fans & hope they continue to post & banter. I do get the overwhelming feeling that they think the regional is a forgone conclusion. While state is definitely the favorite to think this is all but over is silly. If we get hot at the plate and get some decent pitching we could win the regional. Is it likely.....probably not but it’s definitely possible.

You mean I shouldn't already be scouting out Stanford and then Ga Tech for the 1st round of the CWS..or our eventual rematch with Vandy in the 2nd round of the CWS ??

Nah we are all excited because we have a really good team. But we also know. We have had VERY good teams in the past and they didn't make it to OMAHA or past the first round. Or..well they never won the final game, and that's what we are hungry for... 11 SEC Championships, 7 SEC Tournament championships, 33 ncaa regionals, 10 trips to Omaha... twice to the final 4.. once to the big game. but still never won the big one. And this team can do it.


Concerns..as mentioned. Hitting. the last week has been flat. Nothing like some good ole SWAC and ACC pitching to wake up the bats though.
and our middle infield. not a huge concern but they lack the chemistry to turn 2 often.

 

[Canes2082]

We'll see what happens. Obviously MSU is gonna be favored especially since they are hosting.

You have 1st year head coaches going head to head (Lemoins 1st year at MSU) and DiMare 1st year as a HC

Crazy things happen sometimes....

 

[RedSquare]

Nobody was or is screaming. Nobody was demonized. Nobody (that I saw) thought we were going to sweep through the pool with ease.

People did undervalue the importance of the tournament, specifically the UNC outcome. I was one, specifically in the moment, but changed by the time we collapsed. We can have a conversation about these differences without devolving into rhetorical trench warfare.

I’m more interested in hearing a breakdown on the regional and from the MSU poster who’s stopped by than I am about how other posters are lunatics.

absolutely.

as if the powers that be would give short note to games played among the top teams in the conferences just a few days before selection day.

if the games count for W-L records, if they count for RPI, and SOS, .... then they sure as **** count on selection day.

 

[RedSquare]

Greeting all, I'm a State fan and figured I'd give my breakdown. Fist off let me say you can go to elitedawgs.com and read the opinions of far more than just me, and I'm by no means our best baseball poster. That said, here's my opinion on our draw:

It's fantastic. 1) the 4 seed is truly terrible so we can throw our #3 starter and should dominate. 2) Small is elite so we feel good about that game, then JT Ginn is a really good #2 starter and Brandon Smith is a decent 4th starter so we feel good that we can win game 3/4. 3) Stanford is as good of a SR match as you can want.

Small is a lefty, but there's not much of a dropoff when he's facing righties. He's a FP pitcher who's consistently 91-93, but he's got a high spin rate which gets lots of high swings, and his release is closer to the plate than most so it seems faster than it is. His curve is good too, but like I say 80% of what he throws is that FB. The thing that really separates him is his timing- sometimes he quick pitches it, sometimes he pauses at the top of his windup for a second or more. Really keeps hitters off balance, but that goes away if you can get men on and make him pitch from the stretch. Small is mentally tough and doesn't walk many so there's not much chance of him having a bad game.

Keys for ya'll (or CMU of course): Small gives out after 6-7 innings so you'll get the chance to score off the bullpen. Our lefty (Barlow) has good stuff but has sucked recently (walks). Our #1 reliever (Leibelt) has sucked his last 3 appearances. So that's where you'll have the chance to score runs, I doubt Small gives up more than 2 in 6 ip. Offensively Mangum, Jordan, and Westburg are slumping for us, and our 3rd best hitter is coming back from injury so who knows if he'll be on or not. Allen is the only guy who I'd call "hot" right now, but the rest of the lineup can do damage as well. We're hitting .316 in SEC play and top to bottom have a solid lineup that's got 2 switch hitters and 2 lefties... HOWEVER sometimes we can be too aggressive and gift pitchers with easy outs and low pitch counts. Defensively our infield is suspect but the outfield is elite.

So if ya'll win, it'll look something like this: Small doesn't have his usual control, can't get quick outs, and can't play with his timing. Gives up 2 runs in 6 but a high pitch count means he can't keep going. Leibelt comes on but on his 2nd innings gets touched, Barlow comes on to relief him but walks a couple and y'all get 2 more runs. On the other side we are way too aggressive at the plate, swing at junk, and make weak contact early in the count. Your starter goes deep, and we can't get enough off the relievers to come back.

To be clear though I think we win with Small out there. Our O is very tough to keep down just because the bottom of the lineup will still hit about .300 on the while, and they work the count better than the top does.

PS, idk what that other State fan was talking about when it comes to the atmosphere. Are we trashy? no. are we going to throw beer at you? No. But we will have 14k+ there and the TV makes it seem like we're just as loud as Baum or the Box gets. If you travel there expect to get lots of free food though, we're not animals

thanks for the write up..

pretty sure you guys will skate through the regional. good luck in the supers, and just tell your team to take it easy on us!

 

[the storm]

Read the Herald & Gino's comments....not where Canes should be playing.

 

[RedSquare]

Beautiful stadium. Looks like it would be a minor league clubs ballpark

it is. beautiful facility. will be a great experience.

just reminds you that even though these are poor states, and Mississippi is the poorest of the poor, they do know how to find resources for sports.

 

[CTCANE]

Do you mean Gil and VIlar?

No GIl and Rivera. both righties vs tough lefty.

 

[CTCANE]

thanks for the write up..

pretty sure you guys will skate through the regional. good luck in the supers, and just tell your team to take it easy on us!

Like I said in another thread to you. Maybe we shouldnt bother to show up since you have already conceded the regional to MSU.

 

[RedSquare]

I appreciate the input by the state fans & hope they continue to post & banter. I do get the overwhelming feeling that they think the regional is a forgone conclusion. While state is definitely the favorite to think this is all but over is silly. If we get hot at the plate and get some decent pitching we could win the regional. Is it likely.....probably not but it’s definitely possible.

wonder what gives them that idea??

 

[RedSquare]

My fellow ED MSU fan is being a little understated and hard on our team due to our 1-2 finish at the SEC tournament and losing our last regular season game of the year to USC. I mean we only scored 35 runs in the 2 games before that.. we must really suck on offense***

Let's see. First off. yes expect Ethan Small to start against you or CMU. Small is listed as #56 on the top 100 prospect watch for this years draft.
Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 50 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 50 | Overall: 50

MLB.com 2019 Prospect Watch

Check out MLBPipeline.com's 2019 Prospect Watch to get rankings, scouting reports, video and more for MLB's future stars.

m.mlb.com

Small has only given up more than 2 runs once this year. In his worst start of the year (and worst weekend for the whole team) @ Ark..where we got swept. he gave up 2 Er's in his 1st game of the season to Youngstown St (278 RPI), SH State (76), Auburn (19), LSU (16), TN (14), UGA (3), South Carolina (79). His Home ERA in 8 starts - 46 IP, (avg 5 2/3 innings) is 2.15 instead of 1.8. He is also 6-0 at home
Small has 2 loses on the year, the previously mentioned at Ark (3-5) and the lose to Vandy in SEC Tournament (0-1). In his 5 non-decisions, we are 3-2.
Ethan has 150K's through 90IP to go with 24 walks, 7 hbp, and 3 wp.
He does rely on his FB because it has so much movement and he doesn't have to rely on his change / curve as much. Hittes can't lay off when he changes and goes high for the K.

Hitting.

MSU has played 59 games (46-13) and has the 5th best BA at .316.along with the 2nd most doubles at 147.

Jake Mangum - Leadoff switch hitter. Lifetime .361 BA, with 372 base hits, which is 6th most hits in NCAA history.
This year he's JUST batting .363 with 97 hits (which is down 15 points or so after going 4 for 35 over the past 7 games). But I believe he will get back on a roll again to finish his career. Jake doesn't K much. 21 this season, but only 105 on his career with 1,039 AB's.


Mangum, Allen, and Foscue have all hit more than 20 doubles this season. All 3 are above .300 on the season.

The ? Mark. Elijah MacNamee. The character of the team (rally banana) and the guy who hit 3 different walk off HR's in the postseason to keep us alive to a 3rd place finish in OMAHA. Has a foot issue but hopefully will be back for friday..or saturday.


Pitching
Ethan's already been talked about. No need to talk about JT Ginn (All sec FR... #30 MLB draft pick.) and Payton Plumlee
but instead we can focus on the whole staff. 19th best staff ERA at 3.59 compared to yours at 44 and 3.88

shouldn't even bother playing the regional. tell your team to relax and not strain themselves against us.

 

[RedSquare]

Like I said in another thread to you. Maybe we shouldnt bother to show up since you have already conceded the regional to MSU.

I concede nothing.

On paper? We probably get waxed.

On the field? Anything can happen. Which is why you have to play all nine innings.

 

[SWFLHurricane]

Nice to see Rival Fans come here being respectful....MSU and UM had some Classics in Regionals and Omaha....Who could ever forget Greg Elena's HR off of Thigpen in 85....(Palmiero was on that team as well)

 

[canesproponent]

Am a huge "homer", but UM's relative likelihood of winning this regional is quite low. In a Super Regional, it would be much closer because UM would win 1 of 2 with McKendry or McMahon, and we match up decently with MSU's 3rd pitcher.

Am still highly chagrined that the NCAA placed us against the #4 team in the country. LSU or Old Miss was a much fairer allocation. Heck, FSU has a much better draw than us!

 

[IndayArtHauz]

Am a huge "homer", but UM's relative likelihood of winning this regional is quite low. In a Super Regional, it would be much closer because UM would win 1 of 2 with McKendry or McMahon, and we match up decently with MSU's 3rd pitcher.

Am still highly chagrined that the NCAA placed us against the #4 team in the country. LSU or Old Miss was a much fairer allocation. Heck, FSU has a much better draw than us!

Florida and FSU have easier draws than us. Neither should have made the tournament.

 

[ScoobaDawg]

Read the Herald & Gino's comments....not where Canes should be playing.

Well...needless to say we were very surprised to be the #6 seed when everything was pointing to #3 or 4. But I'll take it. Now we aren't paired up with a fellow SEC foe in the SR round.

 

[ScoobaDawg]

Nice to see Rival Fans come here being respectful....MSU and UM had some Classics in Regionals and Omaha....Who could ever forget Greg Elena's HR off of Thigpen in 85....(Palmiero was on that team as well)

Funny the thing I remember learning about that regional in history is **** texas. Line drive off Gene Morgans ankle. MSU was up 3-0 in the 5th and Morgan was dealing. He kept pitching but lost his touch. We lost to Texas 12-7 . That ball misses Gene, we go on to win, and never play UM the next day...instead play Ark in the winners bracket.

 

[SWFLHurricane]

Funny the thing I remember learning about that regional in history is **** texas. Line drive off Gene Morgans ankle. MSU was up 3-0 in the 5th and Morgan was dealing. He kept pitching but lost his touch. We lost to Texas 12-7 . That ball misses Gene, we go on to win, and never play UM the next day...instead play Ark in the winners bracket.

Yup....Loved those days...I was Lucky enough to be in Omaha in 99 to see us Win #3....

 

[native]

Actually played in a couple softball tournaments with Bobby Thigpen. Good dude.

 

[tcgrad1014]

Small has been unhittable, but he hasn't gone very deep. 7 innings is his longest start. Need to bring up his pitch count...something we've actually been very good at. That assumes we win game 1...which is no guarantee.

 

[TheRichtShow]

https://twitter.com/PitchingNinja/status/1106906848194633728

The guy we should be facing Saturday if we win Friday

That stall in his delivery will be illegal for him at the next level. Probably why he's not a projected 1st round pick. His fastball isnt that great but because alternates so unpredictably between that, a regular motion, and a quick pitch, as someone said hitters cant get their timing down so it's a devastating pitch at the college level.

Him and Detmers have almost the same curveball