Mississippi

Arkansas vs. Mississippi State Baseball Game 2: How to watch, pitching matchup, forecast, what to know | Whole Hog Sports

Published

2 years ago

May 11, 2024

Press Room

Arkansas vs. Mississippi State Baseball Game 2: How to watch, pitching matchup, forecast, what to know | Whole Hog Sports

SCHEDULED GAME TIME

Saturday, 6 p.m. at Baum-Walker Stadium (11,531) in Fayetteville

RECORDS

Arkansas 41-9, 18-7 SEC

Mississippi State 32-17, 14-11 SEC

STREAKS

Arkansas won 1

Mississippi State lost 2

LAST 10 GAMES

Arkansas 7-3

Mississippi State 7-3

COACHES

Arkansas: Dave Van Horn — 880-450 in 22nd season at Arkansas and 1,200-607 in 30th season overall in Division I.

Mississippi State: Chris Lemonis — 199-110 in sixth season at Mississippi State and 340-201-2 in 10th season overall.

SERIES HISTORY

Arkansas leads 60-57, including 28-19 in Fayetteville.

LAST MEETING

Arkansas defeated Mississippi State 7-5 on Friday in Fayetteville.

TELEVISION

The game will be streamed on SEC Network+ and can be accessed on WatchESPN.com and via the ESPN app (carrier login required). Brett Dolan (play-by-play) and Troy Eklund (analyst) will be on the call.

RADIO

Phil Elson (play-by-play) and Bubba Carpenter (analyst) will call the game on the Razorback Sports Network, which can be accessed through local FM and AM affiliates, via the Arkansas Razorbacks Gameday app, via the Varsity Network app or on ArkansasRazorbacks.com. Blackouts may apply.

STARTING PITCHERS

Arkansas: RHP Brady Tygart — 4-2, 3.34 ERA, 1.27 WHIP in 56 2/3 innings.

Mississippi State: BHP Jurrangelo Cijntje — 7-1, 3.53 ERA, 1.13 WHIP in 66 1/3 innings.

TEAM COMPARISONS

Earned Run Avg.: Arkansas 3.35; Mississippi State 4.23

Runs Per Game: Arkansas 6.80; Mississippi State 7.08

Batting Avg.: Arkansas .271; Mississippi State .284

Opp. Batting Avg.: Arkansas .207; Mississippi State .233

Slugging Pct.: Arkansas .444; Mississippi State .446

On-Base Pct.: Arkansas .389; Mississippi State .396

Fielding Pct.: Arkansas .982; Mississippi State .982

FORECAST

According to the National Weather Service, Saturday will be clear with a high of 79 degrees and a low of 56 in Fayetteville. Northwest winds will become calm.

WHAT TO KNOW

• Arkansas has a two-game lead over Texas A&M and a four-game lead over Mississippi State in the SEC West standings. The Razorbacks are one game behind Kentucky and tied with Tennessee for second place in the overall SEC race.

• Arkansas is ranked third and Mississippi State is ranked 15th in the USA Today Baseball Coaches Poll.

• The Razorbacks were predicted to win the SEC and the Bulldogs were predicted to finish last in the SEC West by league coaches.

• Arkansas has a 32-2 record at Baum-Walker Stadium. Mississippi State is 7-8 on the road and 10-9 in all games away from home.

• Since losing a series at Ole Miss in mid-April, Mississippi State has won 8 of 11 games against SEC competition, including a midweek game against Ole Miss at a neutral site that did not count against either team’s conference record.

• Arkansas has won its last four series against Mississippi State with three sweeps. The Bulldogs have not won a series in Fayetteville since 2007.

• The Razorbacks and the Bulldogs rank first and second, respectively, in the SEC in team ERA.

• Mississippi State right fielder Dakota Jordan is an All-America candidate who entered the series batting .367 with an OPS of 1.201. Jordan has 16 home runs, 11 doubles and 56 RBI, and earlier this week was named a finalist for the Ferriss Trophy that goes to the best college baseball player in Mississippi.

• Arkansas right fielder Kendall Diggs (shoulder) did not start Friday’s game but entered as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning. Diggs has played through an injury to his left shoulder since March 9 and appeared to aggravate the injury during the Razorbacks’ finale at Kentucky last weekend.

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Mississippi

Mississippi State’s Roster Rebuild Added Another In-State Piece

Published

11 hours ago

May 17, 2026

Press Room

Mississippi State’s Roster Rebuild Added Another In-State Piece

We interrupt your downpour of college baseball news for a reminder that some basketball programs are still building out their roster for next season.

Mississippi State landed a commitment from Ashton Magee on Saturday.

Magee becomes the latest piece in what has turned into a near-total roster rebuild for Mississippi State, and his addition fits the broader theme of what the staff has been chasing this spring.

He’s a 6-7 forward coming off his freshman year at Southern University, where he played steady rotation minutes and showed enough long-term upside to draw interest once he hit the portal. He’ll arrive in Starkville with three seasons of eligibility and the option to redshirt if the staff wants to stretch his development.

The Laurel native and South Jones product didn’t put up big numbers in Baton Rouge, but he played in 31 games and logged 350 minutes as a true freshman.

Magee shot 44.4 percent from the field, averaged 3.0 points and 1.7 rebounds, and got a taste of what a full college season feels like. Southern finished 17-17 and 11-7 in SWAC play, and Magee’s role grew as the year went on.

His path to Mississippi State has already taken a few turns. Magee originally committed to Kansas State out of high school before reopening his recruitment and signing with Southern.

Now he’s back in his home state with a chance to carve out a role on a roster that has plenty of room for new contributors.

And that’s the real context here. Mississippi State returns only one full-time starter in rising senior Josh Hubbard, who will carry the scoring load again.

King Grace is back after playing meaningful minutes as a freshman, and redshirts Cameren Paul and Tee Bartlett will finally get their first real look after sitting last season. Everything else is open. Everything else is up for competition.

Mississippi State Basketball Transfer Portal Tracker

Women

Incoming

Reese Beaty, 5-8, G, Fr. (Iowa State)
Aryss Macktoon, G, 5-11, So. (La Salle)
Arianny Francisco De Oliviera, F, 6-4, So. (Gulf Coast State College)
Macie Phifer, 6-1, G, Fr. (Middle Tennessee)
Cali Smallwood, 5-9, G, Jr. (UAB)

Outgoing

Awa Fane, 5-8, G, Jr.
Nataliyah Gray, 6-3, F, Fr.
Rocío Jiménez, 6-7, C, R-So.
Saniyah King, 5-7, G, So.
Jaylah Lampley, 6-2, Fr.

Men

Incoming

Thomas Bassong, 6-8, F, Fr. (Florida State)
RJ Johnson, 6-4, G, Jr. (Kennesaw State)
Ashton Magee, 6-7, F, Fr. (Southern)
ND Okafor, 6-7, F, Sr. (Washington State)
Kendyl Sanders, 6-8, F, Fr. (Utah)
Tajuan Simpkins, 6-4, G, (Seton Hall)

Outgoing

Gai Chol, 7-0, C, Jr.
Jamarion Davis-Fleming, 6-10, F, Fr.
Dellquan Warren, 6-2, G, So.
Amier Ali, 6-8, G/F, So.
Sergej Macura, 6-9, F, So.
Brandon Walker, 6-8, F, Sr.

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Mississippi

Alyssa Faircloth’s no-hitter is Mississippi State’s first in NCAA softball tournament

Published

23 hours ago

May 17, 2026

Press Room

Softball

May 16, 2026

Alyssa Faircloth’s no-hitter is Mississippi State’s first in NCAA softball tournament

May 16, 2026

Alyssa Faircloth threw a no-hitter in Mississippi State’s regional win over Oregon, the Bulldogs’ first in an NCAA tournament game. Watch the extended highlights from the no-hitter here.

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Mississippi

Why Mississippi State baseball pitching is struggling heading into SEC Tournament

Published

1 day ago

May 16, 2026

Press Room

Why Mississippi State baseball pitching is struggling heading into SEC Tournament

Despite scoring 33 runs in its final three-game series, Mississippi State baseball didn’t leave College Station, Texas, with a series victory.

No. 10 Texas A&M beat the visiting No. 12 Bulldogs 7-6 on May 16. It was the rubber match of the three-game series. MSU (39-16, 16-14 SEC) won the first game 18-11 and Texas A&M (39-13, 18-11) took the second game 11-9.

The Bulldogs are still entering the postseason in good position. MSU will be anywhere between the No. 8 and No. 10 seed in the SEC Tournament and has a case to be awarded a top-16 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.

MSU can hit and does it well. The Bulldogs entered May 16 with the No. 2 batting average in the SEC (.314) and the third-most runs (471). Pitching was more hit-or-miss.

Here’s what stood out regarding MSU’s pitching in the regular season finale as the Bulldogs head into the postseason.

Ryan McPherson is back, but can he find peak form?

Getting star sophomore Ryan McPherson back in any capacity is big for MSU, but the Bulldogs need him to look like his old self to have their best chance at a deep postseason run.

McPherson started Game 3 against Alabama. He pitched 2⅓ innings, allowing one earned run on 44 pitches. He got into some trouble in the third inning and was pulled.

McPherson has only pitched one other time since March 20, when he suffered a forearm strain against Vanderbilt. That was on May 9 vs Auburn, but he only threw 1⅓ innings before he injured his ankle after tripping behind home plate while backing up a potential throw in the second inning.

At his best, McPherson has lights-out stuff that can win a postseason game. He was 5-1 with a 2.45 ERA before getting injured.

Ben Davis quietly shined in bullpen

The MSU bullpen got plenty of action against Texas A&M. Senior reliever Ben Davis pitched all three days.

Davis threw one inning in the first game, 2⅓ in the second game and 1⅓ in the finale. Across the 4⅔-inning span, Davis allowed four hits and no earned runs. He struck out three.

It’s the first time this season Davis pitched three consecutive days.

Walks, not hits, cost Mississippi State the series

The Bulldogs outhit the Aggies 11-7 in Game 3, but the discrepancy in walks was too much to overcome.

MSU walked 13 batters and drew just one.

Four of the walks went on McPherson’s ledger, but the bullpen struggled with control as well. Five of the six relievers who pitched after McPherson walked at least one batter. Only 96 of the 176 pitches MSU threw were in the strike zone.

Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_

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