Mississippi State vs LSU. College Baseball at it’s finest. And boy did it live up to it’s billing. Mississippi State started the 1st inning with the bases loaded but they were only able to get 1 run in the top of the 1st. LSU continued to get Runners in scoring position inning after inning but they were unable to capitalize in the first 7 innings. Meanwhile the Bulldogs bats were silent for the next 6 innings. And then the Eighth Inning came. And boy was that fun.

Mississippi State was up 1-0 in the top of the Eighth. With Runners on 2nd and 3rd, who else would you want to come up to bat than Cody Brown. Yes I know Brent Rooker, but Cody Brown has definelty been the best player for Mississippi State in the postseason and without him, MSU is not even playing in this SUper Regional. With Brown’s 2 RBI’s the Bulldogs were able to take the 3-0 lead heading to the Bottom of the 8th.

Nothing sums up the Bottom of the 8th inning than this tweet:

All right first of all let’s get this out of the way. This Peyton Plumlee vs Riley Self debate might be the most overblown twitter controversy I’ve seen. To act like Riley Self is this Jonathon Holder type closer is absurd. Both have been great at times and both have fallen short. And do you automatically forget that Riley Self when he was pitching had the game lead at 3-2 yet gave up 2 runs to make it 4-3 LSU. I think Riley Self is a great young pitcher with great potential. But he did not make or break this game. And I really don’t know where this is stemming from. What really broke the game was that Pilkington wasn’t able to pitch anymore. He had a great outing. A really good one. But this team’s weakness is the bullpen. And the more you go to it, the more this stuff happens. And while I understand the frustration of Mississippi State Fans, I myself cannot be mad at this team because they played a remarkable game last night against a team that on paper dominates them in everything.

So LSU get’s the 4-3 lead in the B8th and the Bulldogs have one last opportunity with the Bottom of the lineup in the T9th. Mississippi State was able to get a runner to 3rd base with 2 outs, but LSU is able to get a strikeout to end the game. Alex Lange and Konnor Pilkington both had incredible nights. It just came down to the bullpen. And LSU’s is better.

The LSU-Mississippi State Rivalry is Back. And it’s More Heated than ever before.

Boy is this an understatement. The handshake between Cannizaro and Mainieri is one of the coldest you will see. Mainieri had this to say about the possible tensions between the two programs in the Advocate:

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Cannizaro had this to say:

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On paper they seem to downplay it. But there also seems to be a hint of a rivalry between the two. And if that’s the case, it’s good for the SEC and College Baseball. The sport needs a big time rivalry to make it fun. And this is the best candidate, not just because of the history, but because these two programs look like they are the future of the SEC. With South Carolina down, really only Florida and Vanderbilt have a chance to match the bright future. And as good as the Florida-Vanderbilt Baseball series has been, this rivalry has an edge to it unmatched with any other SEC Baseball Rivalry and maybe even nationally. And both Mississippi State and LSU have staying power. Check out Perfect Game’s Recruiting Rankings:

2017:

2. Florida

4. Vanderbilt

6. Arkansas

8. Louisiana State

10. South Carolina

11. Auburn

12. Mississippi State

2018:

1. Vanderbilt
2. Florida
3. Louisville
4. Louisiana State
5. Mississippi State

2019:

1. Vanderbilt

3. Florida

5. Louisiana State

6. Alabama

9. Mississippi State

Can Mississippi State Force Game 3?

Oh yeah. Tonight’s scenario is child’s play compared to last weekend’s regional just based on the fact that MSU has enough pitching to play 3 games. And I almost forgot, Mainieri doesn’t want to play on Monday. Check it out:

If Mississippi State forces Game 3, it could potentially be an advantage to Mississippi State simply due to the fact that MSU has less players than LSU that they expect to be drafted. And if we know one thing about this Mississippi State team, they tend to do the improbable.

IF tonight does end up being the end for Mississippi State then what a season. But if MSU ends up making this magical journey last another game, then I will enjoy every second of the ride. Mississippi State has nothing to lose, because the future in baseball is bright. Andy has proven himself to be one of the best coaches in College Baseball already with the season he has performed. And since he is recruiting at such a high level in the future, watch out. Mississippi State Baseball is back, and it’s better than ever before.