Bulldog Brushback: What can Mississippi State do opening weekend in quest to get back to Omaha?

Tyler Horka
Mississippi Clarion Ledger

Welcome to Bulldog Brushback, the Clarion Ledger’s weekly look at where the Mississippi State baseball team stands throughout the 2019 season. Every Tuesday, we’ll ‘brush back’ over the biggest topics surrounding the Bulldogs as they try to make it back to Omaha.

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State will officially unveil the new Dudy Noble Field and play its first baseball game in the renovated ballpark Friday when it hosts Youngstown State in a three-game series on opening weekend.

State starts the year as the No. 15 team in the country, according to USA Today Coaches Poll, and the Bulldogs are expected to follow up its surprising trip to Omaha in 2018 with a more consistent, stout season in 2019.

For State to do so, here are five things that first-year head coach Chris Lemonis needs to focus on starting with this weekend’s series.

1. Who is in the starting rotation?

Last month, Lemonis still didn’t know. Junior left-hander Ethan Small takes the bump on opening day, but who gets the ball beyond that? The Clarion Ledger already looked at rotation possibilities a few weeks back, and at that time freshman J.T. Ginn, senior Peyton Plumlee and redshirt juniors Keegan James and Jack Eagan seemed like likely options. There can only be three, which leaves Lemonis with mid-week arms to choose from as well. Those mysteries will be solved in a few short days.

Mississippi State pitcher Ethan Small works against Oregon State in the first inning of an NCAA College World Series baseball elimination game in Omaha, Neb., Saturday, June 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

2. Can the Dogs avoid a slow start?

Starting the season on the road against Southern Miss isn’t exactly easy but getting swept by the Golden Eagles certainly wasn’t the plan last year. It happened anyway. There is immense pressure on Lemonis’ team to win this weekend’s series with at least two wins out of three – especially because those same Golden Eagles head north to Starkville for a three-game series one week later. USM is the No. 21 team in the country according to Baseball America and is the second team receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll, so a healthy record heading into that series would do the Bulldogs some good. 

3. Will sophomores take the next step?

Part of the problem in Mississippi State’s 3-5 start last season was heavy reliance on a group of freshmen who might not have been mentally prepared to be standard bearers of the M over S. Those players grew up as the season progressed and helped the team get to the College World Series against all odds. Now they’re sophomores, and they sound as confident as ever. Look for outfielder Rowdy Jordan, first-baseman Tanner Allen, shortstop Jordan Westburg and third-baseman Jordan Foscue to have big impacts on the daily.

Mississippi State hitter Rowdy Jordan (4) congratulates his teammate Jake Mangum (15) following Mangum's home run Sunday in Tallahassee, Fla.

4. Where does State stand in the SEC?

This has been a hotbed issue ever since the preseason coaches’ predictions came out last week. Mississippi State was picked to finish sixth in the SEC West. The only team picked to finish worse than State was Alabama. Now, is that slighting State or is that a testament to the depth of the division? In the USA Today Coaches Poll, there are four SEC West teams ranked higher than MSU including No. 1 LSU. SEC coaches picking the Bulldogs to finish sixth in the division doesn’t necessarily mean they think last year’s trip to the CWS was a fluke as senior outfielder Jake Mangum suggested. It just indicates that the SEC – which has eight total teams ranked in USA Today’s poll – is going to be an absolute gauntlet this season.

5. Can the Dogs reset and refocus?

When Mangum brought up the idea that outsiders view Mississippi State’s 10th College World Series appearance as a fluke, he was in the middle of explaining to local media why the Bulldogs can go for No. 11 this season. He likes the team’s personnel in terms of the talent it takes to make a postseason run, but that wasn’t his main argument. He believes this team’s biggest strength will be the ability to draw on last year’s experiences while at the same time not letting those memories be too much of a distraction. Being three wins away from a national title and having to settle for a trip home from Omaha empty-handed can do one of two things to a team: motivate it to get back there and finish the job, or demoralize it to the point that every pitch, hit, catch, etc. is a reminder of how hard it is to win big-time games in May and June. If it’s the former, Mississippi State might come out of the gate looking like one of the most determined teams in the country. If it’s the latter, look for some early-season jitters again.

Contact Tyler Horka at thorka@gannett.com. Follow @tbhorka on Twitter.