No. 10 Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. No. 4 Texas Longhorns
Another weekend in the Southeastern Conference, another excellent baseball team on the schedule. This will be the Longhorns’ sixth SEC series against a team that either ranked when we played them or now ranked (like Ole Miss). The Longhorns are 33-9 and 13-7 in the SEC, and 23-3 at home. Mississippi State is 35-10 overall and 13-8 in conference play. The Bulldogs are 8-3 in road games. Going to be a hard-fought series at Disch-Falk Field. Let’s just hope the rain comes at the right times.
Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday: Mississippi State LHP Tomas Valencius (7-1, 2.13 ERA) vs. Texas LHP Dylan Volantis (6-0, 2.06 ERA)
Saturday: Mississippi State RHP Duke Stone (6-1, 4.64 ERA) vs. Texas RHP Ruger Riojas (5-2, 3.88 ERA)
Sunday: Mississippi State LHP Myles Upchurch (0-2, 5.67 ERA) vs. Texas LHP Luke Harrison (4-2, 3.93 ERA)
Game times & Info:
Friday: 6:30 p.m., SEC Network+
Saturday: 2:30 p.m., SEC Network+
Sunday: 1:00 p.m., ESPN
Radio: 103.1 FM/AM-1300 The Zone, with the Voice of the Longhorns Craig Way and Roger Wallace on Friday. Saturday and Sunday, Craig and the Great Longhorn (and Chicago Cub) Keith Moreland.
I bet the Friday game gets pushed back (not money betting, like Brendan Sorsby, just betting like “I expect”. Poor Sand Aggies. I would bet that Cody was not betting on that).
Aiden Robbins watching the ball leave the park. Need some more of this!
From Josh Richter’s April 28, 2026 post on Instagram.
Texas Longhorns and Mississippi State Bulldogs
A little history.
The University and State have played 16 times, the first in 1922. Texas leads the series 9-7. We played the Bulldogs in Omaha in 1979, beating them 8-2. In 1985, the Horns beat the Bulldogs 12-7 at Rosenblatt. But a couple of the losses in the 2021 College World Series are among the more bitter of the last decade or so, when Mississippi State beat Texas twice in Omaha to eliminate the Horns. In Game 4, State pitchers Will Bednar (W) and Landon Sims (S) recorded 21 strikeouts. In Game 12, Texas rebounded with Ty Madden back on the mound and Ivan Melendez’s 4 RBI, for an 8-5 win. In Game 14, an elimination game for both, Will Bednar and Landon Sims (W) were on the bump again, and the Horns again fell short in a 3-4 loss. Mississippi State would go on to win their first and only National Championship.
Of note: Mississippi State has won 11 SEC Championships: 1948, 1949, 1965, 1966, 1970, 1971, 1979, 1985, 1987, 1989, and 2016. The Bulldogs have won the Southeastern Conference tournament (started in 1977) seven times, in 1979, 1985, 1987, 1990, 2001, 2005, and 2012. State has made it to Omaha 12 times. Texas the best, of course, with 38 CWS appearances, and the Horns have six National Championships. Texas Baseball has 80 regular-season conference championships and 16 conference tournament championships.
Series history here:
University of Texas Athletics Baseball History vs Mississippi State University
Statistics
Texas Pitching
Our weekend rotation is hanging in there, but 2 out walks are going to give me an ulcer. The hit batters are going to make that ulcer bleed.
| ERA | W-L | WHIP | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | 2B | 3B | HR | B/AVG |
| 2.016 | 6-0 | 1.02 | 56.2 | 41 | 14 | 13 | 17 | 80 | 7 | 0 | 1 | .193 |
Dylan’s numbers have actually improved in the last two series. He is pitching really well.
Ruger Riojas. Ruger had a less than stellar start in Nashville. But strikeout to walk ratio is still excellent. He is pitching well, the batters are just getting good hits to where Horns aren’t. I believe he would be a Friday night starter on most good Power 4 teams.
| ERA | W-L | WHIP | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | 2B | 3B | HR | B/AVG |
| 3.88 | 5-2 | 1.15 | 55.2 | 52 | 24 | 24 | 12 | 89 | 16 | 5 | 3 | .242 |
Luke Harrison Luke has had some better outings. I think he is pitching better and will continue to improve. He is a good kid with good skills.
| ERA | W-L | WHIP | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | 2B | 3B | HR | B/AVG |
| 3.93 | 4-2 | 1.33 | 55.0 | 50 | 29 | 24 | 23 | 61 | 18 | 1 | 2 | .242 |
Sam Cozart. 6-0 with 6 saves. Probably the best freshman pitcher in the country.
| ERA | W-L | WHIP | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | 2B | 3B | HR | B/AVG |
| 1.83 | 6-0 | .64 | 39.1 | 16 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 57 | 5 | 0 | 3 | .119 |
Sara Diggins is an excellent photographer.
Texas Offense
Carson Tinney is in a groove. Team leading OPS of 1.210 (4th in SEC) and tops with 36 walks. He has 16 homeruns (6th in SEC) and 39 RBI. Great production from your catcher. His walk-off, game winning home run Tuesday night went 463 feet, leaving the bat at 112 mph. The inimitable Craig Way with call.
Aiden Robbins leads the team with a .737 slug, 18 home runs (4th in SEC), 46 RBI (9th in SEC), 47 runs scored, and 61 hits. His 1.166 OPS is 8th in the SEC. Aiden’s .357 batting average puts him 7th in the conference.
Anthony Pack, Jr. has taken over the team lead in batting average at .362, 6th best in the SEC. He leads the team with 15 doubles (tied for 4th in SEC). Leads the team with 16 stolen bases on 17 attempts. An excellent OPS of 1.043 and a .564 slugging percentage.
Mississippi State Bulldogs
State is having a really good season. Full schedule and results here. Games and series of note:
- Swept Hofstra, Delaware, and Lipscomb in their pre-conference series (including a 26-0 run rule of Lipscomb)
- In the Amegy Bank College Baseball Series, beat Arizona State 8-4 and Virginia Tech 15-8, then lost to No. 1 UCLA 7-8 in 10 innings (Will Gasparino had a 2-run homer to open the scoring, and he scored the go-ahead run in the 10th).
- Lost a Tuesday game to No. 10 Southern Miss 6-7 in Hattiesburg.
- Lost their first SEC series in Fayetteville to No. 5 Arkansas, 1-2. They won game 2 on Saturday 7-2
- Swept Vanderbilt in Starkvegas, including a 17-7 run-rule on Sunday.
- Swept No. 18 Ole Miss in Oxford (5-4, 6-1, 7-1). Very impressive.
- Got swept by No. 5 Georgia in Starkville. The games were close. 10-9, 3-1, and 8-5 (10).
- Got swept by Tennessee in Starkville. 6-5, 6-2, and 7-2.
- Swept South Carolina in Columbia.
- Swept Louisiana State in Starkville. They were hot against the Bayou Bengals. 31 hits, with 9 doubles and 8 home runs.
- Beat No. 17 Ole Miss this past Tuesday night, 7-3, in the Governor’s Cup game played in Pearl.
Mississippi State is coached by Brian O’Connor. O’Connor won a national championship with Virginia in 2015, beating Vanderbilt. Career record of 917-388-2. He is an elite college baseball coach.
Mississippi State Offense
Outfielder Bryce Chance (usually left) leads the Bulldogs with his .354 batting average, putting him 8th in the SEC behind Pack and Robbins. Ace Reese (3rd base) is top with his 1.102 OPS (11th in SEC) and 15 home runs (tied for 9th in the SEC), with 54 RBI (4th in SEC). Noah Sullivan usually DH’s, and he has a .345 batting average, 1.027 OPS, .568 slug, and 8 home runs.
Mississippi State Pitching
Tomas Valincius (No. 4, Virginia transfer) leads the State staff with a 2.13 ERA, putting him 4th in the SEC right behind Volantis. Valencius is 7-1 in 11 starts. Duke Stone is a big (6-5, 235) right hander who leads the State starters with his 1.41 WHIP. Ben Davis has 5 saves in 17 appearances with a 3.97 ERA and 1.07 WHIP.
Link to their stats: https://hailstate.com/sports/baseball/stats/2026
No. 10 Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. No. 4 Texas Longhorns
As I continue to work on the content and structure of the Texas Baseball AHFD, I welcome suggestions and criticism.
Pitching comparison. National rank and stat. Not sure what the 12 runs surrendered to Sam Houston did to some of these!
| ERA | WHIP | IP | SO | BB | K/BB | H/9 | |
| Texas | No. 10: 3.69 | No. 5: 1.19 | 363.1 | 474 | 139 | No. 6: 3.41 | No. 6: 7.31 |
| State | No. 7: 3.61 | No. 7: 1.22 | 391.0 | 515 | 146 | No. 3: 3.53 | No. 13: 7.60 |
I like this stat – Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP): FIP is similar to ERA, but it focuses solely on the events a pitcher has the most control over — strikeouts, walks, hit-by-pitches and home runs. It entirely removes results on balls hit into the field of play. For example: If a pitcher has surrendered a high average on balls in play, his FIP will likely be lower than his ERA. Balls in play are not part of the FIP equation because a pitcher is believed to have limited control over their outcome.
The formula: Where the “FIP constant” puts FIP onto the same scale as the entire league’s ERA: ((HR x 13) + (3 x (BB + HBP)) – (2 x K)) / IP + FIP constant.
Batting:
| AVG | OB% | Runs | Hits | SLG% | BB | |
| Texas | No. 51: .299 | No. 25: .417 | No. 52: 341 | No. 103: 416 | No. 23: .515 | No. 12: 258 |
| State | No. 18: .314 | No. 31: .415 | No. 13: 387 | No. 9: 482 | No. 14: .537 | No. 54: 229 |
College Baseball Analytics PEA Ratings comparison and projection and some statistics.
TSR – Team Strength Rating | WAR – PEAR’s WAR Approximation | WPOE – Win Percentage Over Expected (Luck) | PYTHAG – Pythagorean Win Percentage | KSHOTS – Inning where team scores 2+ runs and allows 0 | CONCD – Conceded Killshots | KSHOT R – Killshot Ratio | KSHOTS/G – Killshots Scored Per Game | CONCD/G – Conceded Killshots Per Game | ERA – Earned Run Average | WHIP – Walks + Hits per Inning Pitched | K/9 – Strikeouts Per 9 Innings | RPG – Runs Per Game | BA – Batting Average | OBP – On Base Percentage | SLG – Slugging | OPS – On Base Plus Slugging | PCT – Fielding Percentage
https://pearatings.com/cbase/d1/stats?season=2026
Ratings and Resume:
https://pearatings.com/cbase/d1?season=2026
Baseball’s Trapezoid of Excellence. Interesting concept. Justin Nash thinks that it pretty likely the 8 teams in the trapezoid get to Omaha.
Texas Longhorns Killshots
https://pearatings.com/cbase/d1/team-profile?team=Texas&season=2026
Mississippi State Killshots
https://pearatings.com/cbase/d1/team-profile?team=Mississippi%20St.&season=2026
Mississippi State’s Preview. State Set For Top 10 Showdown At Texas
TCT Thoughts
Mississippi State is a very solid, well-coached baseball team. In pure basic stats, I say it is basically even in pitching, but offensively I think the Bulldogs have the edge. Some of Coach Schlossnagle’s comments.
So, Texas pitching is going to have to step it up. Dylan needs to replicate his success, Ruger needs to be freaky good Ruger (not College Station or Nashville Ruger), and Luke needs to continue his upward trend. The arms in the bullpen are going to be the key. We need some guys other than Sam Cozart to take the mound and compete. And for pete’s sake, quit walking guys with two strikes (right Judd?). I am going to be optimistic and say those keys (Dylan same, the Good Ruger, and Luke with the Force with him, some good relief pitching) happen. If so, Texas for sure wins 2, maybe sweeps.
Offensively, Texas has got to get some help from the bottom of the order. We cannot rely on Robbins, Tinney, and Pack to carry the team against a very good Mississippi State staff. I am hoping that Borba’s important homerun in the Chairman’s Inning Tuesday night ends his борьба, and that Casey is off the schneid. That would be huge. Ethan seems to be incrementally better. Need some more this weekend. What will be the key to winning at least one of the games will be timely situational hitting. Getting that 2-out hit with a runner in scoring position, working a single into the gap, patience at the plate.
I really think Texas can win the series. That’s a must. A sweep would be huge. No. 5 Georgia has Missouri at home and will probably sweep. No. 7 Texas Agricultural and Mechanical gets No. 8 Auburn at home. Aggies will most likely win two. So just to keep pace Texas (and stay ahead of the Bulldogs) just win the series. To gain any ground, the Longhorns need a sweep. So let it be written …
Texas Longhorns Baseball
The Horns have rebounded well from the loss of the rain-shortened series at Texas Agricultural and Mechanical. Texas came home and thumped the Island Aggies that Tuesday night, beating Texas A&M – Corpus Christi 14-7.
Texas won the home series against No. 11 Alabama, 2-1. Game 1 on Friday night was beatdown, as Texas crushed the Crimson Tide 10-2. Volantis had 6 solid innings in his first Friday night start, giving up 2 runs but striking out 12 and walking 1. Cozart came in for a 3-inning save, giving up no hits or runs and striking out 5 whilst walking 1. And neither of them hit a batter. Robbins and Pack each had 2 doubles, Tinney had a double and the only home run. The Horns had 16 hits. A very well-played game, other than the uncharacteristic 4 errors.
Game 2 on Saturday was much tighter, as Alabama got a run off of Ruger Riojas in the first inning. Riojas settled down after that and ended up striking out 11 Tide batters. Haiden Leffew came in for 2 innings of relief and got the win. Cozart closed in the ninth, striking out the side to get the save. Offensively, Texas didn’t do anything until the 7th inning, but good fundamental station to station baseball would earn the Horns their 3 runs: Becerra walked, Borba walked, and Duplantier singled to drive in Temo. Robbins singled to load the bases. Tinney singled to score Borba, and then Rodriguez hit a big sacrifice fly to center to bring Gumbo in. An error free game on defense.
Sunday wasn’t so pleasant. Texas would manage 4 hits and 3 walks in the game, with Pack’s 9th inning double being the Horns’ only extra base hit. Mendoza drove Anthony home, but that was all that Texas could muster in a lackluster day at the plate. Luke Harrison was saddled with the loss, but he didn’t pitch bad, giving up 2 runs in 7 innings, with 10 strikeouts. He did walk 3 and hit 1.
But, it was one helluva weekend on the mound for Texas pitching. 49 strikeouts, the most in a 3-game series in Texas history, with all 3 starters in double digits – Volantis 12 Ks, Riojas 11 Ks, and Harrison 10Ks. Cozart with 8 in relief.
Last weekend, Texas went to the other music city, Nashville. Friday night Volantis got the start again, and he pitched great and the Longhorn offense was hitting all the right notes. Texas scored one run in the 3rd, three in the 4th, five in the 5th, and two in the 6th to build an insurmountable lead behind Volantis’ mastery. Tinney, Pack, and Larson all had doubles. Aiden Robbins had two big home runs, and Livingston and Rodriguez also had home runs. Robbins, Rodriguez, and Livingston each had 3 RBI. Texas stole 2 bases and also worked five walks to go with the 11 hits. As I furtively watched the stats while enjoying an excellent meal at Clancy’s in New Orleans, I noted to Kathy that I was a bit worried that we might want to save some of those runs for Saturday. That turned out to be a little too prescient, as Texas would get shut out in Game 2, only being able to pick up five hits and only one extra base hit with Carson Tinney’s double. It didn’t help that Ruger only made it through 3 innings and gave up 5 earned runs. On a positive note, Thomas Burns only gave up two hits and one earned run in 3 1/3 innings, and Jason Flores put in one and 2/3 innings, giving up one hit and no runs. The Dores beat us 6 to nothing, the first shutout suffered by Texas this season.
Sunday was a hard-fought game, but Texas was able to get the 4-3 win in 10 innings. Luke Harrison, Brett Crossland, and Haiden Leffew pitched 6 innings, giving up just 2 earned runs. Sam Cozart came in to start the 8th inning and gave up a rare earned run after Texas had taken a 3-2 lead in the top of that frame. But he was solid in the 9th and 10th to earn the win. Offensively, it was the top of the order saving the series. Robbins, Tinney, Pack, and Rodriguez would each score a run. Rodriguez drove in Pack for the first Horns run, and Mendoza had the next two runs batted in. In the top of the 10th, Tinney got hit and then advanced to 2nd on a wild pitch. Pack walked, and with 2 outs, Early got hit to load the bases, then Becerra was walked on 4 pitches to score Tinney for the go-ahead and eventually game winning run.
Tuesday night, Texas got in a fist fight with Sam Houston State. I went to the Disch thinking it might be an easy win and early night, but nothing like that at all. Bottom line, Texas came back a couple of times to get a walk off win on Carson Tinney’s two run bomb in the bottom of the ninth for the 15-14. All the fun offense here.
Aiden Robbins & St. Baldrick’s Foundation
In kindergarten, Aiden lost a friend to cancer. Fighting childhood cancer has been a lifelong passion and commitment. Please join me in supporting him and St. Baldrick’s Foundation.
Aiden Robbins St. Baldrick’s Mission | A St. Baldrick’s Fundraiser
Texas One
Unlike football and basketball, Texas Baseball receives zero (0) House Settlement revenue share funds – meaning our players depend entirely on the generosity of members and business partners like you to create real earning opportunities. When you join Texas One, you’re not just supporting a brand – you’re providing our student-athletes who wear the burnt orange every single day, compete at the highest level, and represent The University of Texas with pride. Join Texas One and help us make sure our Horns have every opportunity they deserve. Outside of joining, please contact Britt Peterson for opportunities and for how you and your business can get started with Texas Baseball players representing your products or services. We need everyone to pitch in. Join me in supporting Texas Longhorns Baseball. Texas One.
RBI Austin
The RBI programs have been a huge success around the country, and RBI Austin is one of the best. Lots of Longhorns (like Drew Stubbs, Justin Simmons, Cat Osterman, Huston Street, and Robert Guantt involved), as well as some great friends like Jason Becker, Ronnie Miksch, and Jennifer Stevens. RBI Austin started a Bullpen Lunch series awhile back, and this week Shawn Clynch moderated a great discussion with Brett Crossland, Luke Harrison, and Temo Becerra. Great cause. Heartily endorse and highly recommend!
UT Dell Medical Center
Susan and Michael Dell’s extraordinary philanthropy has been changing Austin for decades, but the announcement of $750 million for The University of Texas at Austin and our collaboration with M.D. Anderson Cancer Center is world-changing. That brings Dell’s commitment to U.T. to a billion dollars.
A $1 Billion Commitment to Build What’s Next in Health and Life Sciences
SEC This Weekend
Southeastern Conference Baseball
SEC Baseball Stats: Stats – Baseball – Southeastern Conference
Standings:
Rankings
USA Today Coaches Poll
D1 Baseball
National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Poll
Jim Nicar
1936: While construction of the U.T. Austin Tower was nearing completion, it still had an outdoor elevator in the back for work crews. You can see it in use at the base of the Tower proper. A few brave students snuck aboard for a thrilling ride in wee hours of the morning.
From Jim’s April 29, 2026 Post on X.
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