Mississippi State baseball had another perfect weekend here in the early part of the 2025 season. The Diamond Dawgs swept Missouri State in Starkville, moving to a 6-1 record. State rode an 8th inning comeback to win 3-1 on Friday, won comfortably on Saturday 9-3, and then withstood a late charge from the Bears on Sunday to complete the sweep with a 6-4 victory.
Pico Khon looks like a bona fide Friday night SEC starting pitcher
Pico Khon was Mississippi State's lone returning weekend starter on the mound from last season, and he's been thrust into the ace, Friday night role to start off 2025. So far, he's made the absolute most of those opportunities.
Friday afternoon against the Bears, Khon struck out 11 (he's posted 11 Ks in both starts this season) and allowed just one run on four hits in 6.1 innings of work. So far this season, he's given up an ERA of just 0.79 with a .135 batting average allowed. His 22 strikeouts put him second in the SEC, and he still hasn't allowed a walk.
Obviously quality of competition is going to be taken into account, but you expect an SEC-caliber ace to shutdown lesser opponents. That's exactly what Pico Khon has done so far, and he looks ready to have a big year leading the Diamond Dawgs' pitching staff.
Noah Sullivan living up to transfer portal hype
DH Noah Sullivan was one of State's top transfer portal additions, and so far, he's living up to that hype. Sullivan was the hero of MSU's Friday afternoon victory over the Bears. On a day when the Bulldog bats were cold, Sullivan delivered with an 8th inning double to drive in the winning runs.
For the weekend, Sullivan went 5-12 with a pair of walks and two RBI. He's tied for second on the team with a .364 average and seven RBI and is tied for the team lead with three doubles. State needs new faces to step-up in the lineup with so much of last season's production gone, and Sullivan is helping lead the way there.
Through two weekends Mississippi State baseball has done what it's needed to against lesser competition
Bulldog baseball has played two weekend series, and they've managed two sweeps in those series. They didn't handle Missouri State has emphatically as they did Manhattan, needing a late rally on Friday and holding on at the end on Sunday to secure that sweep. But all that ultimately matters is that they got the sweep.
You're going to have to work through things early in the season and occasionally grind out wins, especially when you have as many new pieces as this State team does. It may not be what fans want to see, but you've got to take the wins as they come right now. Losing these types of games is why the Diamond Dawgs weren't a regional host last season. Winning ugly is far preferrable.