As basketball is still in full swing, the college baseball season is just around the corner. The SEC today released the 2010 Coaches Poll this past week. LSU is picked to repeat as the SEC champs again while our own Diamond Dawgs are picked for the bottom of the pile.
Its really no surprise considering how we played last year (I was there to see 2 outfielders come in to pitch against Kentucky during Super Bulldog).
Coach John Cohen will be starting his 2nd year at the helm of one of the most storied baseball programs in college with what seems like an entirely new team. He was one of the first to criticize the team's lack of depth and talent on the mound last year and put his money where his mouth is by signing a recruiting class loaded with pitchers - a recruiting class that ranked #9 in the country by Baseball America and was the highest ranked class for MSU since 2002.
Check out some of the coverage of the new team around the web:
Kyle Veazey says the Dogs look much better on the mound with this incoming class of freshmen. The Clarion Ledger also breaks down the 2010 team by position.
Jim Mashek suggests that Cohen is counting on all those incoming freshmen pitchers this year.
While the team still has a ways to go, it really looks like Cohen has them back on the right track. Only time will tell. The Bulldogs kickoff the 2010 season with a 13-game homestand, starting with a 3-game series against Rhode Island Februray 19-21.
Season ticket sales are also reported to be strong and are just over 170 shy of the all-time record set in 2002.