Auburn suffers fifth straight loss in series sweep
AUBURN, Ala. (BVM) — The struggling Auburn Tigers suffered their third sweep in Southeastern Conference play this season, losing to the fifth-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs on Sunday. This was the Tigers fifth straight loss and the story continues to be the same as the pitching can’t silence the opposition’s bats.
Freshman Joseph Gonzalez had the mound for the Tigers on Sunday but failed to make it out of the first inning. He surrendered nine earned runs, eight hits, a walk and a hit batter before head coach Butch Thompson called on his bullpen.
The Tigers have yet to win an SEC series and have managed just a single win within the conference. The Tigers starting pitching had a solid three-game series against Arkansas a week ago in which the trio of Cody Greenhill, Jack Owen and Joseph Gonzalez combined for 17.1 innings, three earned runs and 10 strikeouts. The same triad pitched in this three-game set against the Bulldogs, and the pitching was unraveled by the series finale in which Gonzalez allowed 9 runs to open the game.
Auburn faces a daunting SEC schedule for the remainder of the year featuring Alabama, Georgia, Florida, LSU, Texas A&M and Missouri. In a tough season with few positives, Thompson noted, “I still think we can produce enough offense to be competitive with our peers.” He also added, “This is a tough tough run that I didn’t want to happen, didn’t want to see coming, didn’t believe it would, but where we find ourselves.”
Moving forward, Thompson had some positive takes from another unfortunate series. Bullpen appearances from Hayden Mullins and Payton Glavine leads Coach Thompson to believe, “all this experience is going to help them.” Thompson, after speaking with the team and giving them a clear message said, “I think they got a message loud and clear after the ball game that things have to improve.”
Auburn’s offense put together a nice game offensively, but a 10 spot from Mississippi State in the first inning was too much to come back from.. They managed 10 runs on eleven hits and three solo home runs from Ryan Bliss, Bryson Moore, and Kason Howell. Butch Thompson appreciates the effort he is receiving from his guys, noting, “They just keep playing, and there’s respect there.”
The Bulldogs, however, scored 19 runs on 17 hits and rode the first inning momentum to their 20th win. The middle of the order produced all day for head coach Chris Lemonis. Kamren James and Luke Hancock pieced together a six for seven day and four RBIs between them.
As for Joseph Gonzalez, Coach Thompson stands by the young right hander, proclaiming, “He’s going to have a great career for us.” Thompson recognizes that it was just one of those days that pitchers run into.
He plans to keep riding with his guys and looks to improve moving forward.
