College Baseball 2024

[pancho]

this is what normal is for a lemo coached team. Parker saved lemo's butt this season.

[maroontide06]

10 hours ago, Dawg83 said:

State loses in a game that looked like many of their other losses this year. Blowing a lead late, struggling with runners on base, and then throw in a game losing boot at second base of a would be double play ball.

 

My gut says State doesn’t have enough pitching left to come all the way through the loser’s bracket. They can win a game, maybe even two games, but three is gonna be really tough. That said, weirder things have happened. But then again if St. John’s sends State home tomorrow that won’t shock me either.

What about hitting and scoring?  Would there be enough of that to go around?

[pancho]

lemo continues to play a 2nd baseman who cost the team a host site vs vandy in hoover. he played a 2nd baseman last night who blew 2 consecutive double play balls that cost dearly. Folks are saying the hitting coach needs to go and i agree but it's all on lemo's lack of ability to either attract enough quality talent or his inability to evaluate talent. but I say it's both.

[Dawg83]

State beats St. John’s comfortably and just used two pitchers in the process. Not a bad deal all things considered. USM also rolling Indiana right now.

 

State vs UVA and USM vs Tennessee incoming tonight. We shall see if either can force a Monday game.

[Bulldogs4]

One down

Just need to win tonight. We are going to have to hit but we may just have enough pitching to still win this thing.

Glad to see Jordan/Hines heating back up.

Let’s Go Dawgs!!!

[maroontide06]

This anemic offense continues to plague Mississippi State.  Let’s see if anything changes in these final two innings.

[maroontide06]

Is disaster the appropriate term?  Why do you pull Gavin Black?

[Dawg83]

37 minutes ago, maroontide06 said:

This anemic offense continues to plague Mississippi State.  Let’s see if anything changes in these final two innings.

Boy howdy did something change…. In absolutely catastrophic way. Holy heck that bottom of the 8th and top of the 9th were a disaster in every facet of the game.

[Bulldogs4]

Our defense has been good all year but it has let us down this weekend. 
Plus just did not hit with runners in scoring position. And then have a runner picked off and Jordan over slides second base. 
Too many mistakes. 

[Dawg83]

5 minutes ago, maroontide06 said:

Is disaster the appropriate term?  Why do you pull Gavin Black?

I thought the decision to steal Jordan in the 8th was arguably worse.

 

With the pitching change, I kinda get it given how good Davis has been. Zero indication something like this was coming. But with benefit of hindsight yeah that was obviously a disaster and riding with Black probably doesn’t blow up like the alternative did.

[Bulldogs4]

Jordan had the base stolen. Just unfortunate that he overslide the base. 

[Bulldogs4]

It is one thing when the other team wins a game.

But when you give a game away it just completely sucks. 
That was tonight. 

[Bulldogs4]

In final summation, we were about the 25th best team in the country. A good year but not nearly elite. 

[Dawg83]

I would consider a change at hitting coach/recruiting coordinator. I think Gautreau did some good things at State early on but the last three years have been subpar. A change at pitching coach made a big difference for this year, I think you need to think long and hard about doing the same for your offense.

 

Lemonis will be back and I think that’s perfectly reasonable given the 40 win season and 20 wins against SEC teams. But I don’t think he’s so safely back that he can afford another regression. If State struggles next season I think there will be a change at the top. Now I don’t know what to expect exactly, I mean as recently as mid April I was skeptical about the current team making the NCAAT. And they did end up being better than I thought.

 

Ultimately though I think this season just kicked the can down the road one more year. Solid enough to be a tolerable year, but by no means a game changing year and there are still lots of questions to be answered in the long run.

[Dawg83]

Four SEC teams in Supers already (Tennessee, Kentucky, A&M, Georgia)

 

LSU and Florida are both one win away as well today. Additionally, LSU will host a Super if they win today.

 

Had State made it out of Charlottesville they would be hosting Kansas State at The Dude in a Super. But given that they didn’t beat Virginia once it’s hard to say that should’ve happened.

[Dawg83]

The Evansville Purple Aces are going to a Super Regional. That is a real sentence.

 

Not going to happen but how funny would it be if they beat Tennessee.

[Bulldogs4]

How cool is Evansville going to a SR? That is what makes CBB so fun. I remember when we played them in March and though we swept you could tell they were a good team. 

And yes it would be so appropriate for them to beat Tennessee and shut their cocky arrogant mouths up. I know it is doubtful but that would be the ultimate comeuppance to the Vols. 

[pancho]

Lemo needs 2 SEC ready outfielders an entire SEC ready infield and roughly 5 SEC ready arms.  he is in way over his head.

[Bulldogs4]

But how do you fire someone who just won 40 games and was in a Regional Final? 

[Dawg83]

27 minutes ago, Bulldogs4 said:

But how do you fire someone who just won 40 games and was in a Regional Final? 

He’s not getting fired this year. I think that ship has sailed. But he can’t field a bad team next year or he’s probably done. And does have a major roster rebuild to oversee. A ton of pieces from this team will not be back.

[Bulldogs4]

NC earned the win against LSU. LSU had a nice run there but NC was just a bit better. 
Had we not imploded in the ninth inning the loss would be easier to accept. Of course the end of the eighth inning fed into the ninth inning. 
Overall the SEC had 17% of the bids and 31% of the SR teams. Which is solid. Every year there are going to be a few teams that surprise by winning a regional or knocking out a one seed. This year, Arkansas swallowed that bitter pill. 
I can remember some gut wrenching losses at Dudy Noble by State when we were the number 1 seed. 1984, 1989, 1992 come to mind. All three of those teams could have won the CWS. The 2016 SR was another.

As 83 noted in a Regional or SR, so much can happen in a short series. And the fact is, everyone is 0-0. Effectively speaking, the regular season now means zip. Yes, it helps you earn a host spot or a higher seed. But all that ends when the first pitch is thrown. 
I see and hear criticism of the HC and hitting coach. And our expectations are high as they should be.
However my frustration with the weekend was with our fielding defense and then base running mistakes. We were so good in the field all year long but it was the primary reason we lost the two games to Virginia. Hitting is always going to be tough in Regionals. But fielding defense can keep you in a game until you are able to get some timely hits. Saturday night an error costs us the game. Sunday an early error gave them the lead. Then throw in some critical base running mistakes.

And at that level mistakes will cost you a game. 

[pancho]

fielding at 2nd base vs Vandy in Hoover cost them a host site.   I guess Lemo doesn't like Pulliam since he plays football.

[Dawg83]

You know with State, you can look at a number of different things, but in some ways it was kinda as simple as this: State was tough to beat at home, but really struggled on the road.

 

Didn’t lose a weekend series in Starkville all year…. But only won a single road series, and then went 0-2 versus a Regional host.

Edited June 4, 2024 by Dawg83

[pancho]

big question remains is if Lemo can attract the nearly double digit amount of SEC ready players needed to finish middle of the SEC pack next year. My money is still resting on Lemo not knowing what he's looking at or either takes bad advice. gotta love coaching in the SEC with vultures circling daily

[Bulldogs4]

In the new realm of unlimited transfers and NIL it is crap shoot at best. You are correct that being able to fit the pieces is like putting together the pieces of a chess board. Gotta be able to get the correct pieces.