When the Mississippi State baseball team opens its season this afternoon against Murray State, the team will hope to move past the disappointment of last season.The Bulldogs certainly faced their share of heartbreak in 2006.
Last year, the Bulldogs started off the season 18-0, earning them a No. 1 spot in Baseball America’s rankings.
It was only the fourth time in MSU history that the baseball team had claimed a top national ranking.
With their first loss against the LSU Tigers, everything went downhill. Senior first baseman and designated hitter Brian LaNinfa, who led the team last year with 11 home runs and 50 RBIs, said that the team is still confused about what caused their downfall.
“The season started out how we wanted,” LaNinfa said. “We just fell apart all of a sudden. When we lost, we just lost our confidence, and you just can’t win without confidence.”
Senior outfielder and catcher Joseph McCaskill said that some key injuries, especially that of then freshman Matt Lea, hurt the team, but that he believes the loss of confidence hurt them the most.
“After we won all those games, we got comfortable,” McCaskill said. “Then when we lost, our confidence went down, and it just got us out of the loop.”
The team is now ready to learn from their mistakes and take those lessons into making this baseball season a successful one.
“We’ve experienced the agony of defeat,” LaNinfa said. “We set our goals too high last year. I think we will know how to handle the pressure of being No. 1 now. We just have to take it each week at a time this year instead of just looking at the big picture.”
The team goes into the start of their season with many strengths, one of the biggest strengths being the strength of their coaching staff.
“Coach Polk is one of the best teachers of the game you could ask for,” LaNinfa said. “He’s definitely the best coach you could ask for. He’s got us prepared in every sense of the game.”
McCaskill said he thinks Polk’s consistency in his coaching brings a lot of depth to the team.
“Coach Polk has seen it all,” McCaskill said. “He goes over all the details. Even if it’s the smallest detail, he probably goes over it about a hundred times.”
Another strength of the team going into the season is the depth of hitting they are bringing to the plate this season.
They have 14 or 15 good hitters, which will provide a lot of backup in the case of injuries.
“Our pitching staff is also looking really strong,” McCaskill said. “We did lose a lot of good pitchers last year, but I think if our freshmen can step up to the plate, the pitching will be strong.”
The thirst to prove themselves is also something that is driving this year’s team.
“We’ve been picked dead last in the SEC,” LaNinfa said. “That’s something that’s really driving us to do good this year. We’ve got it posted in our locker room, and we’re determined to prove that ranking wrong.”
McCaskill also disagreed with the rankings the team has received for this year.
“Now we know we’re fighting for something,” he said. “We know we’ve got something to prove.
“Rankings really don’t affect us. Last year, Kentucky was picked last, and Florida was picked first, and they finished just the opposite. That’s something we’re hoping to do this year.