Auburn had a chance to sweep No. 2 Arkansas last weekend but instead finished 1-2 and will have another tough test in No. 5 Mississippi State.
The Bulldogs will come into Auburn winners of their last four games and the series is already Auburn’s third against a top-five opponent.
While the Tigers are 1-8 in SEC play, they still have 21 games left to play and will have a chance to climb in the standings.
“There’s still so much baseball to be played,” said Auburn head coach Butch Thompson. “We shouldn’t be sitting right here right now with the quality of ball that we’ve played. It’s not going to get any easier and we can’t feel sorry for ourselves. This is a life lesson if you can persevere.”
One of the bright spots in the series against Arkansas was the defense, which Thompson called some of the best he’s seen. The defense turned seven double plays and Kason Howell made several great catches in center field.
Pitching was a tale of two stories as the starters combined to go 1-0 with a 1.55 ERA, 10 strikeouts and six walks in 17.1 innings. On the other hand, seven relievers combined to go 0-2 with a 10.00 ERA, four strikeouts and 13 walks in 9.0 innings.
Some much-needed reinforcements may be coming for the bullpen as Carson Skipper has returned from injury and Hayden Mullins could also return as well. Mason Barnett has also returned into his role as the team’s starter after injuries forced him to be a starter at the start of the season.
The Tigers offense will face a tough test in a Mississippi State pitching staff that ranks second in the SEC in ERA (2.76) and batting average (.189) and leads the league in strikeouts with 372. Offensively, the Bulldogs are much closer to the middle of the pack, ranking eighth in batting average, 12th in slugging and ninth in runs scored.
Auburn’s bats have been much more impressive, ranking top five in batting average (.298), slugging (.484), OBP, (.386).
Pitcher of the Week: Cody Greenhill
Greenhill set the tone for the starting pitchers on Thursday when he led the Tigers to their first SEC win. The senior held Arkansas to one run on three hits over 7.0 innings of work. He also struck out five Razorbacks and did not walk anyone.
Hitter of the Week: Brody Moore
Moore was excellent at the plate, hitting .462 with six runs scored, one double, one home run and one RBI and was just as good in the field. The junior had five assists and 15 putouts and was a key part of most of the double plays the Tigers turned.
Auburn and Mississippi State will open the series Friday at 6 p.m. CT on SECN+/ESPN+. Games two and three will be at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.