Defending National Champion Mississippi State will get their season kicked off tomorrow, and it won’t be an easy one as they will welcome a top 25 opponent to town in the #24 Long Beach State Dirtbags.

These two teams matched up back in February of 2020 in Long Beach, with the Dirtbags taking 2 of 3 from the Bulldogs.

Last season the Dirtbags had a record of 28-15 finishing 3rd in the Big West, and would miss the NCAA Tournament, however, they had a very strong finish to the season winning 18 out of their last 24 games, winning a series at Cal State Fullerton, and splitting series with 2 tournament teams in UC Santa Barbara and UC Irvine.

This year the Dirtbags enter the season ranked #24 in D1Baseball's preseason Top 25, and were picked to finish 1st in the Big West Conference Coaches Poll.

Pitching Matchups

Friday: RHP Landon Sims vs. RHP Luis Ramirez

Saturday: RHP KC Hunt vs RHP Marques Johnson

Sunday: RHP Cade Smith vs RHP Juaron Watts-Brown

The Long Beach rotation is headlined by righty Luis Ramirez, who made 11 starts for the Dirtbags last year, resulting in a 4-4 record and a 4.27 ERA. Ramirez also had a solid summer in the Cape Cod League posting a 3.10 ERA in 33 innings and struck out 28 hitters. Mississippi State saw Ramirez back in 2020 when he was a freshman and he impressed, earning a win going 7 innings allowing just 2 runs in a 6-2 Long Beach State victory.

Marques Johnson played a small role for LBSU last year pitching just 13 innings out of the bullpen, but the hard throwing righty made the most of it with a 3.56 ERA and striking out 18 batters.

Sunday starter Juaron Watts-Brown redshirted as a freshman last season, but was a highly recruited right hander who was originally committed to Texas Tech, but injured his shoulder playing quarterback in high school, and ended up at Long Beach State. If Watts-Brown is fully healthy, he’s got a heater that can reach 95 that could give hitters trouble.

The star of the Long Beach State roster is relief pitcher Devereaux Harrison, who dominated hitters last season with 1.57 ERA in 18 appearances, holding his opponents to a .175 batting average. Harrison was named Big West Pitcher of the year last season and earned Freshman All-American Honors, and had the opportunity to play with the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team over the summer. Harrison has also been named a Preseason 2nd Team All-American by D1Baseball.

The Dirtbags have a couple of other solid arms in their bullpen. They return Jack Noble, a righty who began his career at Oregon before transferring to Long Beach State where he started 10 games and had a 2.79 ERA a season ago, but looks to be poised for a bullpen role this weekend. They also bring back righty Matt Fields who’s had a solid career with a 4.50 ERA over his 4-year career with a 4.24 ERA last season.

The Long Beach State offense doesn’t wow you with their power, hitting just 45 home runs a season ago, however they have a multitude of guys that hit for a high average, as six of their expected starters batted over .280 last season, including three that batted over .315.

The headline of their offense is first baseman Jonathan Long, who hit .341 with a 1.001 OPS and 5 home runs in 27 games last season, but unfortunately he missed the last month of the season with an injury. They also return outfielder Chase Luttrell who hit .316 with a .867 OPS and 8 home runs, and shortstop Sebastian Murillo who hit .316 with a .904 OPS, and led the team with 11 doubles in just 25 games.

Outfielders Charlie Loust and Alex Pimental, and utility man Isaac Ramirez round out the group of guys who hit over .280 last season, and should all be solid pieces in the Dirtbag lineup. LBSU also returns catcher Connor Burns, who struggled at the plate as a true freshman, but was solid defensively committing just 1 error and throwing out 7 of 15 base stealers.

True freshman infielder Eddie Saldivar and redshirt freshman infielder Rocco Peppi both have high expectations for the Dirtbags this season, both were highly recruited kids out of Southern California that are expected to be making their first starts this weekend.