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Mississippi State baseball lands first power conference transfer of the offseason

Mississippi State baseball's fifth transfer commit comes from the Big 12.

ByAndrew Miller|
Mississippi State University mascot participates in MSU's 2021 Baseball National Championship parade at the school's campus on Friday, July 2, 2021. Msu Parade And Ceremony4
Mississippi State University mascot participates in MSU's 2021 Baseball National Championship parade at the school's campus on Friday, July 2, 2021. Msu Parade And Ceremony4 | Eric Shelton/Clarion Ledger via Imagn

Things had gone quiet for Mississippi State baseball in the transfer portal. The Diamond Dawgs, who are attacking the portal hard out of necessity this offseason, hadn't gotten a commitment in over a week.

But now they've seemed to have picked up some steam.

Houston transfer Ace Reese commits to Mississippi State baseball

Mississippi State baseball picked up one of its biggest transfer commitments of the offseason when former Houston Cougar Ace Reese announced for the Diamond Dawgs.

The left-handed Reese had an outstanding season for Houston as a true freshman in 2024. He batted .278 with seven home runs and 34 RBI. He led the team with four triples and slugged at .506. Reese walked 29 times last season, the second most on the team, and had an on-base percentage of .395.

Also of note, his strikeout rate was just 19%. That's been a common theme with Mississippi State's portal additions thus far. There's been a clear effort by Chris Lemonis to prioritize players that don't strikeout much after State struggled with that last season.

Ace Reese was named to the All-Big 12 Freshman team for his debut performance in Houston. An outfielder for the Coogs, Reese played shortstop in high school and was a three-time 1st Team All-State selection in Texas.

Ace Reese is an important get for Mississippi State baseball

Over the last few weeks, it has felt as though State had very little momentum in the portal, with several potential targets committing to rival SEC programs. And while the commitments they do have range from solid to genuinely good, the lack of power conference transfers was becoming somewhat of a concern.

Landing Ace Reese, who had great freshman season in a strong league, was important for Chris Lemonis and Mississippi State baseball if for no other reason than to finally get some much-needed momentum in the portal. State needs an impressive portal haul to replace the lost talent from last season.

They ideally need players who have shown they can play at a high level against power conference competition. They're getting that with Reece.

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