Thursday, May 16
Starkville, Miss.
6:00 p.m.
University of Missouri
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Mississippi State
Baseball Concludes Regular Season With Road Matchup at No. 18 Mississippi State
5/15/2024 7:38:00 PM | Baseball
STARKVILLE, Miss. – University of Missouri baseball hits the road for its final Southeastern Conference series of the 2024 season this weekend, as the Tigers take on No. 18 Mississippi State in Starkville, beginning with a 6 p.m. (CDT) contest on Thursday (May 16).
Mizzou enters its final regular-season series still looking to gain ground in the SEC standings in its quest to secure one of 12 spots in the SEC's postseason tournament in Hoover, Ala. (May 21-26). The Tigers (22-30, 8-19 SEC) enter the series two games behind LSU and three games back of both Ole Miss and Florida in the SEC regular-season standings.
Each of this weekend's contests will be streamed live on SEC Network+ with Bart Gregory and Charlie Winfield calling the action. Additionally, each of this weekend's games will be produced by the Tiger Radio Network for broadcast locally in Columbia via KTGR AM/FM (105.1 FM/100.5 FM/1580 AM) and streaming via the Varsity Network app (by searching 'Missouri'), with Tex Little and Matt Michaels once again handling broadcast duties.
PITCHING PROBABLES
- Game 1 (Thursday, May 16 – 6 p.m.) – RHP Kaden Jacobi (Mizzou) vs. RHP Khal Stephen (Mississippi State)
- Game 2 (Friday, May 17 – 3 p.m.) – TBD (Mizzou) vs. BHP Jurranelo Cijntje (Mississippi State)
- Game 3 (Saturday, May 18 – 2 p.m.) – TBD (Mizzou) vs. TBD (Mississippi State)
SERIES HISTORY
- Missouri and Mississippi State will square off for the 18th time Thursday to open the series.
- The Tigers bring a two-game win streak against MSU in Starkville into the series, but the Bulldogs hold an 11-6 overall edge.
- Mizzou has claimed each of the last three series against Mississippi State (2022, 2021 and 2018), with the Tigers winning six of the last nine contests overall.
- Two years ago, MU won the final two games of the series in Columbia.
- In 2021, the Tigers took two of three road games from a Bulldogs squad that went on to win the College World Series, marking the second-consecutive series win for Mizzou against a Mississippi State squad that ended the season in Omaha (2018).
- The Tigers have averaged 8.6 runs per game over their last nine meetings with the Bulldogs, going 6-3 over that same stretch.
SCOUTING MISSOURI
- Kerrick Jackson was named the 15th head coach in Mizzou history in June, returning to Columbia to lead a program for which he served as an assistant coach from 2011-15 under Mizzou Hall of Fame head coach (and current pitching coach) Tim Jamieson.
- The Tigers return three regular starters from last season, led by senior INF/OF Trevor Austin, who batted .311 with eight homers and 10 steals to help bolster the MU offense.
- Senior INF Matt Garcia turned in a solid debut season with the Tigers, providing clutch hitting and lock-down defense on the MU infield.
- MU should also receive a lift from sophomore INF Jackson Lovich and junior OF Juju Stevens, who each made key contributions in limited duty in 2023.
- Several newcomers could also make early contributions, including junior INF Danny Corona, who helped Wake Forest to a 2023 College World Series berth, C Jedier Hernandez, a standout behind the plate for Seton Hall the last two seasons, and sophomore OF Jeric Curtis, a Texas Tech transfer who brings significant speed to the Tiger outfield and batting order.
- On the mound, sophomore RHP Logan Lunceford is back to help anchor Mizzou's weekend rotation after posting 68 strikeouts to lead all SEC freshman hurlers last spring.
- Junior LHP Javyn Pimental also contributed mightily to the Tigers' mound efforts in 2023, making eight starts for the Tigers.
- Mizzou should also benefit from the potential return of a pair of veterans who missed significant time last spring; left-hander Ian Lohse and RHP Carter Rustad missed significant portions of 2023 due to injury following promising starts to the campaign.
- New arms like RHP Xavier Lovett and RHP Bryce Mayer could compete for starting rotation spots, while RHP Jacob Peaden may give the back end of the Tigers' bullpen a strong presence.
MIZZOU BY THE NUMBERS
- Mizzou dropped two of three games to Auburn last weekend, finishing off its 2024 home slate with a 15-14 record at Taylor Stadium.
- INF Danny Corona led the offense with a .444 batting average last week, while INF/OF Trevor Austin logged his first four-hit game as a Tiger in Sunday's series finale.
- On the mound, LHP Ryan Magdic logged a career-best 6.0 innings in his start on Sunday, a 9-7 loss to AU. Magdic scattered four hits and retired 11 straight hitters to conclude his day.
- OF/INF Jackson Lovich turned in a streak of seven straight games with at least one RBI, April 27-May 11.
- Lovich also enters the weekend second on the SEC triples leaderboard after recording his fourth three-base hit of the season on May 5.
- Lovich has been Mizzou's top hitter on the road this season, hitting .295 with three homers and 11 RBIs in 16 road contests.
- As a team, the Tigers' 11 triples this season are tied for second in the SEC (with Alabama), trailing only Texas A&M (15).
- INF Matt Garcia logged his team-leading fifth game with at least three hits in Sunday's series finale with Auburn and has now recorded a hit in three-straight contests, hitting .385 (5-for-13) with five RBIs over the same span.
- Corona enters Thursday's game hitting .455 (15-for-33) over his last 10 games, recording hits in nine of those, including a current string of four straight.
- Austin registered his team-leading 15th multi-hit game of the season and the 33rd of his Mizzou career with his career-best four-hit performance Sunday.
- Austin belted his club-leading 11th home run of the season in his final home at-bat in the ninth inning Sunday, hiking his career total to 27 round-trippers.
- Austin has been hit by 20 pitches so far this season, ranking second in the SEC; additionally, his total of seven sacrifice bunts ranks fourth in the conference.
- Freshman C Mateo Serna has enjoyed a streak of recent success at the plate as well, reaching base safely via a hit, walk or hit by pitch in 11 straight games (April 9-May 10) before being held hitless Sunday vs. Auburn.
- Serna powered the Tigers in their season sweep of Missouri State, clubbing home runs in each of the two games and driving in a career-best five runs April 23 in a 10-6 victory over the Bears.
- Another MU rookie, SS Drew Culbertson, has been successful on 10 of his 12 steal attempts, becoming the first Tiger true freshman to reach double digits in steals since Kameron Misner swiped 17 bags in 2017.
- INF/OF Brock Daniels was Mizzou's most consistent hitter in the month of April, batting .343 (24-of-70) with 22 RBIs and seven steals. The sophomore has been the Tigers' second-leading hitter in SEC play, bringing a .280 mark in 20 conference games into Thursday's opener.
- The Tigers have outscored the opposition 49-32 in the first inning this season.
- Magdic has proven to be a valuable weapon out of the bullpen, securing either a save or a victory in each of his last three relief appearances (April 6-20).
- Magdic has drawn three starting assignments over the last three weekends as well, including his career-long outing vs. AU on Sunday.
- The Tigers are 10-7 in one-run contests this spring, including a 7-3 mark in SEC play.
SCOUTING MISSISSIPPI STATE
- Under the direction of sixth-year head coach Chris Lemonis, the Bulldogs enter the weekend 34-18 overall and 15-12 in SEC play, ranked as high as No. 15 nationally in this week's polling.
- The Bulldogs notched an 8-4 nonconference victory over North Alabama on Tuesday, following a series loss at Arkansas last weekend.
- Mississippi State is hitting .285 as a club, which is good for sixth in the SEC.
- The Bulldogs are led at the plate by sophomore OF Dakota Jordan, who brings a .370 batting average and team-leading totals of 17 home runs and 60 RBIs into the series.
- INF/OF Hunter Hines has clubbed 14 homers and driven in 50 runs, while INF David Mershon ranks among the SEC's leaders in steals with 23 on the season.
- On the mound, MSU's rotation features a pair of seven-game winners in RHP Khal Stephen and BHP Jurrangelo Cijntje, who have combined to go 14-4 with 174 strikeouts in their 147.2 total innings.
- LHP Tyler Davis helps anchor the Bulldogs bullpen with three saves in 21 total appearances, over which he has held the opposition to a .188 batting mark.
GARCIA HONORED BY SEC
- Graduate INF Matt Garcia was honored for his work off the field Wednesday with his selection to the SEC's Baseball Community Service Team.
- Garcia has logged the Tigers' top total in community service hours over the past two seasons since joining the Mizzou program as a transfer from Bethune-Cookman.
- Most recently, he completed a mission trip to Nicaragua through Athletes in Action this past December.
- A graduate student from Orlando, Florida, Garcia has volunteered with Columbia Public Schools, in addition to taking part in numerous on-campus service opportunities, including Mizzou's Tree Service project, Homecoming and Move-In Day.
- Last year, Garcia was named to the SEC's First-Year Academic Honor Roll and completed his bachelor's degree in general studies in December.
TIGERS AT THE TURNSTYLE
- For the second season in a row, Mizzou baseball fans are leaving their mark on the Tigers record book.
- With Sunday's announced crowd of 1,395 spectators for the final home game of the season, the Tigers established a program single-season record for total attendance, finishing with 39,167 in 28 home dates.
- Additionally, the Tigers' average home crowd of 1,399 ranks second all-time in program history, trailing only last spring's average of 1,614.
SENIOR SENDOFF
- Mizzou honored eight graduating student-athletes as part of Senior Day festivities last weekend during the Tigers' final home series against Auburn.
- The Tigers recognized Trevor Austin, Jackson Beaman, Ian Lohse, Xavier Lovett, Ryan Magdic, Jacob Peaden, Javyn Pimental and Carter Rustad in an on-field ceremony.
- Austin saved his best performance at Taylor Stadium for last, turning in a 4-for-4 afternoon on Sunday to close out his home career.
- The Jefferson City native clubbed a two-out homer in the ninth inning in his final at-bat to cap the first four-hit performance of his Mizzou career.
- In 83 career home games at Taylor Stadium, Austin finished with a .362 batting average and 16 home runs.
MIZZOU MILESTONES
- Several Tigers have reached or are approaching significant career milestones this season.
- INF/OF Trevor Austin sits atop the Tigers' leaderboard for career hits with 161 entering Thursday's contest.
- Austin, who played in his 150th career game April 7 vs. Florida, ranks third all-time at Mizzou in HBP (49) to go along with his 27 career homers, the latter of which is just five shy of cracking the Tigers' all-time top 10 list.
- INF Matt Garcia sits right on Austin's tail with 158 career hits, combining his two Division I years at Bethune-Cookman and his last two seasons as a Tiger.
- RHP Logan Lunceford surpassed the 100-strikeout milestone for his career April 12 at Georgia; the sophomore enters the week with 119 punchouts to his credit.
- LHP Ian Lohse reached the 100-K plateau as well with his performance vs. Auburn last weekend and enters this weekend's series with 102 strikeouts to his credit.
- C Jedier Hernandez's game-winning hit vs. Florida on April 5 marked the 100th hit of his collegiate career.
- Mizzou's April 2 contest with UT Martin marked Kerrick Jackson's 200th career game as a Division I head coach. The Tigers first-year bench boss enters the weekend two victories shy of the 100-career win plateau.
- INF Danny Corona recorded the 100th hit of his collegiate career March 19 vs. Kansas at Kauffman Stadium. The junior transfer also belted his first home run as a Tiger April 23 in MU's win over Missouri State and needs one more RBI to reach the 100-mark for his career.
TERRIFIC WITH TWO
- The Tigers have been clutch this season with two out, both at the plate and on the mound.
- Mizzou's offense has recorded 125 two-out RBIs in 52 games, while hitting .297 (180-for-607) after the second out has been recorded in an inning.
- MU went 6-for-12 with two out, producing seven two-out RBIs in its 13-1 win over Lindenwood (April 30).
- In its three games vs. LSU, MU went 10-for-33 (.303) with two out, scoring seven two-out runs in its 8-7 victory in game two of the series.
- The weekend of April 11-13 at Georgia, the Tigers hit .325 (13-for-40) with two out, producing 11 RBIs.
- Against vs. No. 6 Florida, Mizzou recorded eight two-out RBIs, including all four of its runs in its game two victory (April 6).
- INF/OF Brock Daniels and INF Danny Corona have been MU's most consistent two-out threats, hitting .419 (13-for-31) and .421 (16-for-38) in such situations, respectively.
- Additionally, INF/OF Jackson Lovich and INF Matt Garcia have combined for 37 two-out RBIs this spring, accounting for 30-percent of the Tigers' two-out RBIs.
- Mizzou pitchers have been equally dominant, holding the opposition to a collective .227 (129-for-568) two-out batting average this spring.
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