Unpacking Mississippi State baseball's series vs Alabama, including Bulldogs' hosting hopes

STARKVILLE — Mississippi State baseball continued its ascension toward an NCAA tournament hosting bid with its weekend series win against No. 17 Alabama at Dudy Noble Field, though the three-game set ended on a sour note for the No. 21 Bulldogs.

After winning the opening game 13-3 in seven innings Friday and clinching the series with an 8-1 win the next day, they dropped the finale Sunday 10-5.

“It’s on me,” coach Chris Lemonis said after the game. “It’s my job to motivate them and make sure they understand that. It is a frustrating day not to come out and be locked in like we should.”

Still, Mississippi State (32-16, 14-10 SEC) improved its RPI into the top 20 — a metric system used to help determine the NCAA tournament field. As the Bulldogs collect SEC wins, their hopes of playing postseason games in front of home fans increase.

Here’s what we learned about Mississippi State against Alabama (29-18, 10-14) before the Bulldogs open a series at Arkansas on Friday (6:30 p.m., SEC Network+).

Starting pitching puts Mississippi State in position to win

Sunday didn’t go as planned for the Bulldogs, but they were in position for a sweep — something that has become a regular occurrence when Khal Stephen and Jurrangelo Cijntje start the opening two games.

Stephen allowed three runs in five innings Friday, marking his shortest outing since his SEC debut against LSU on March 16. However, with MSU earning the run-rule win, Lemonis had to turn to his bullpen for only two innings.

Cijntje followed that up with seven innings Saturday, allowing only one run on 110 pitches.

“I think that’s where (Cijntje) is really growing — that competitive piece, holding the ball, going late in games,” Lemonis said.

The Bulldogs had nearly their full arsenal of pitchers available for the finale. Even with starter Brooks Auger lasting only two innings, there were options had the game stayed tighter through the middle innings.

Baserunning continues to trouble Bulldogs

Baserunning has continued to be a thorn in an otherwise promising season.

Amani Larry was thrown out on a wide turn at third base Friday following a Johnny Long infield single. The following day, shortstop David Mershon was caught in a rundown between second and third, though he advanced safely after an Alabama missed tag.

Connor Hujsak was picked off at first base Sunday in the second inning. That came during an at-bat for Logan Kohler that resulted in a home run. Had Hujsak remained on base, the blast would’ve trimmed the deficit to two in the second inning instead three.

In the following inning, Joe Powell was thrown out trying to advance from first to third on an infield single from Dakota Jordan. Instead of bringing Hunter Hines, who has 14 home runs this season, to the plate representing the tying run, the inning ended with Mississippi State still trailing by three.

“It’s focus level,” Lemonis said. “Just being focused and understanding what’s going on. We’ve got to be better.”

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Is the bottom of Mississippi State’s lineup finding momentum?

The series-opening win was fueled by Hines' two home runs, but it was the bottom half of the Bulldogs’ lineup that consistently provided runs. Larry, hitting sixth, launched a grand slam to left field in the opener. From there, Kohler carried the weight.

The Memphis transfer didn’t hit a home run in his first 37 games at Mississippi State. His first came in last Sunday’s rubber match at Vanderbilt. It was the start of a four-homer week.

Kohler had a solo shot Saturday before hitting a pair Sunday. He collected six hits against the Crimson Tide.

“The fact that he didn’t have much power the first half of the season was a little bit of a shock to us,” Lemonis said. “He’s swinging it well right now.”

Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, @skrajisnik3.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Can Mississippi State baseball host? Beating Alabama helps