No. 18 Mississippi State Baseball 2025 College Top 25 Preview

Image credit: Mississippi State's Hunter Hines (Photo courtesy Will Porada/Mississippi State)

Last season: 40-23 (17-13 SEC); eliminated in Charlottesville Regional
Final 2024 ranking: No. 17
Coach (record at school): Chris Lemonis (207-116, 7th season)

You can find our complete 2025 preseason Top 25 ranking here.

The Good News

The best news in Starkville over the last year was Mississippi State’s return to competitiveness after winning just 53 total games in the two years after it won the 2021 College World Series. The Bulldogs piled up 40 total and 17 conference victories, which allowed them to reach the NCAA Tournament as a No. 2-seed in the Charlottesville Regional, where they went 2-2 and lost to host team Virginia.

Seventh-year head coach Chris Lemonis returned several important pieces from his previous squad, including senior first baseman Hunter Hines, senior outfielder Bryce Chance and senior starting pitchers Pico Kohn and Karson Ligon. The Bulldogs also made several nice pulls from the transfer portal, including middle infielder Sawyer Reeves from The Citadel, third baseman Ace Reese from Houston, designated hitter Noah Sullivan from USC Upstate and righty Jacob Pruitt from Indiana State. The Bulldogs’ projected main contributors on both sides of the ball are largely upperclassmen, a potential advantage in today’s college game.

The Bad News

Mississippi State’s 2024 pitching, which ranked fourth in the SEC in ERA and third in fewest walks per nine innings, was largely decimated by the draft when eight Bulldogs heard their names called and signed. Those eight—Jurrangelo Cijntje, Khal Stephen, Cam Schuelke, Brooks Auger, Tyson Hardin, Tyler Davis, Nate Dohm and Colby Holcombe—combined to throw 73% of Mississippi State’s total innings, positioning the program to replace effectively all of its most valuable production. Mississippi State coaches have expressed confidence in players such as Kohn, Ligon and Pruitt, a trio that could very well make up the Bulldogs’ rotation this year, but none are terribly experienced, especially in the daunting SEC.

Player To Know

There’s no doubt that first baseman Hunter Hines is a player to know on this Mississippi State roster. But Hines is entering his fourth season with the program with 54 career home runs and should be a familiar face at this point. Enter two-way newcomer Noah Sullivan, a senior transfer from USC Upstate. As a junior last season, Sullivan hit .324/.453/.613 with 27 extra-base hits, including 17 home runs, and pitched his way to a 4.88 ERA with a career-high 51 strikeouts in 75.2 innings. The expectation is that Sullivan will continue to contribute in a two-way capacity with his new school.

Path To Omaha

Lemonis is well familiar with what it takes to make a deep run in the postseason, having reached Omaha twice and won the national title in his five full seasons at the helm of the program. Interestingly, however, he also knows how quickly things can go wrong, having experienced back-to-back very down years. “It all tends to come down to how well you can pitch,” Lemonis said. And that’s exactly the question facing the Bulldogs this season. If they’re successful on the mound, they could make another strong push.

Projected 2025 Lineup

Pos	Player	Year	AVG	OBP	SLG	AB	HR	RBI	Note
C	Ross Highfill	Jr.	.100	.214	.100	10	0	2
1B	Hunter Hines	Sr.	.257	.346	.486	249	16	56
2B	Sawyer Reeves*	Sr.	.304	.377	.445	191	5	31	The Citadel
3B	Ace Reese*	So.	.278	.395	.506	162	7	34	Houston
SS	Dylan Cupp	So.	.258	.367	.318	66	0	13
OF	Bryce Chance	Sr.	.286	.370	.429	217	6	36
OF	Michael O’Brien	So.	.125	.462	.125	8	0	1
OF	Nolan Stevens	So.	.269	.321	.423	139	1	2
DH	Noah Sullivan*	Sr.	.324	.453	.613	204	17	56	South Carolina-Upstate
Pos	Player	Year	GS	IP	ERA	WHIP	SO	BB	Note
SP	Pico Kohn	Sr.	8	29.1	3.38	1.26	35	11
SP	Karson Ligon	Sr.	2	23.2	4.56	1.61	21	21
SP	Jacob Pruitt*	Jr.	5	41.2	3.02	1.42	57	23	Indiana State
RP	Chase Hungate	Sr.	0	53	3.74	1.17	37	13	Virginia
RP	Noah Sullivan	Sr.	12	75.2	4.88	1.30	51	22