FAMU baseball 'very lucky' for minimal tornado damage, plans keep final games on schedule

All systems go for Florida A&M’s baseball schedule this week.

After Tallahassee was hit by three tornadoes last weekend, two EF-2s and an EF-1, with heavy rain forecasted on Monday and Tuesday, the Rattlers expect to play their three-game Southwestern Athletic Conference baseball series against the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils as planned this weekend from Thursday to Saturday.

FAMU head baseball coach Jamey Shouppe said in a phone call with the Tallahassee Democrat that the Rattlers’ Moore-Kittles Field, built in 1983, experienced no significant structural damage.

Meanwhile, across the railroad tracks, Florida State’s Dick Howser Stadium was severely damaged by last weekend’s storm. The Seminoles are scheduled to host their final Atlantic Coast Conference series this weekend against Georgia Tech and are working to make needed repairs from the games.

“We’re very lucky,” Shouppe said of the minimal stadium damage. “There’s no structural damages ― that’s noticeable, anyway. I think we’re okay. No changes there.”

The FAMU baseball team returned to Tallahassee Sunday night following its SWAC series at Alabama State, which the Rattlers won 2-1.

Shouppe gave his team Monday off. The Rattlers plan to practice tomorrow, depending on storm outcomes.

FAMU’s (25-24, 20-7 SWAC) series against Mississippi Valley (11-32, 3-24 SWAC) will be its final games of the regular season. The FAMU-MVSU schedule is 5 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and 1 p.m. on Saturday.

The graduating Rattlers will also be honored for Senior Day at Saturday’s game.

FAMU currently leads the SWAC East division, with Bethune-Cookman trailing by 1.5 games. Winning the division would be FAMU’s first SWAC East regular season title since joining the league ahead of the 2022 season.

The Rattlers will defend their SWAC Championship in the league’s tournament starting on May 22 at Georgia Tech’s Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta. The SWAC Tournament’s winner earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Regional Round.

Florida A&M vs. Mississippi Valley State SWAC Baseball Series

Thursday, May 16: 5 p.m.

Friday, May 17: 5 p.m.

Saturday, May 18: 1 p.m.

All games will be played on Moore-Kittles Field.

Gerald Thomas, III covers Florida A&M University Athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at gdthomas@tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU Baseball: Here's an update on the Rattlers finale after tornadoes