Series Preview - Marshall and Alabama A&M

After going 4-0 over the opening weekend, Mississippi State looks to continue the momentum this weekend against Marshall and Alabama A&M.

Marshall

Last season, the Thundering Herd posted a putrid 20-31 record, 10-19 in conference. This year, they return their entire team except one pitcher, Ryan Hopkins. They return their leading hitter from last year, sophomore outfielder Corey Bird, who, although was the leading hitter, had a horrible .232 average at the plate.

To open the 2015 year, Marshall faced Florida A&M in a three game series, going 2-1. Marshall averaged nine runs over the weekend and gave up an average of four runs. The hot bats for Marshall over the weekend were Corey Bird and first baseman TJ Diffenderfer, Bird going 6-14 with seven RBIs and five runs, and Diffenderfer went 5-15 with three RBIs and two runs.

Mississippi State plays Marshall Friday at 4 PM and Saturday at 3:30 PM.

Alabama A&M

Last season, Alabama A&M limped to finish 21-32, 12-8 in conference. They return their best hitter, 2014 SWAC hitter of the year, senior outfielder Andrew Utterback.  He had a very impressive .398 average in 2014, including five home runs and 42 RBIs.

This season, Alabama A&M opened with a four game series against Indiana University-Purdue Fort Wayne (yes, that's a real college), and went 1-3. Utterback struggled, going 2-12 with one RBI and two runs, but fellow outfielder Brandyn Crutcher had a big weekend, going 6-8 with five RBIs and six runs.

Mississippi State plays Alabama A&M Saturday at 12 PM and Sunday at 3 PM.

Recap

To sum this all up, both Marshall and Alabama A&M are bad teams. Although they are filled with experienced upperclassmen, these teams are still terrible. Mississippi State should go 4-0 this weekend with no struggles. Expect another weekend with the Bulldogs getting into double digits.