Mississippi State vs. Ole Miss baseball 2015: Preview and open thread for the Governor's Cup

After dominating the Crimson Tide on Friday and Saturday (outscoring them by a combined 14-2), Ole Miss (23-22, 10-11 SEC) dropped the finale in an ugly contest that has become somewhat of a familiar sight on Sunday. Now, the Rebels head on down to the treacherous blades of grass and dirt that is Trustmark Park to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs (23-21, 7-14 SEC) at 6:30 p.m. CT.

The Rebels (who will be the home team and man the third base dugout) have already dropped an in-state game in Pearl earlier this year to those pesky Mustard Buzzards of Southern Miss and now the Dawgs are trying to make it three straight in the Governor's Cup on Tuesday. Despite their less than impressive record, the boys from Starkville swing it well (.273 team average) and have been led this season by senior first basemen and resident Cowbells bouncer Wes Rea (.322, 4 HR, 30 RBI) and sophomore center fielder Jacob Robson (.353, 37 R, 53 H).

These two are table setters for John Cohen's offense as they go, the #HailState contingent goes. Robson is your traditional speedy, left-handed bat who finds any way he can to get on base and then make your life a living hell once he's on it (17-23 swiped bags). Rea has been on a tear of late, hitting a blistering .520 with 10 RBIs, six walks, four runs, two home runs and two doubles in his last eight games. Jake Vickerson (.324) and Cody Brown (.306) are two other bats that Mike Bianco's club will need to pitch carefully to.

On the mound for State will be senior southpaw and Gumby stunt man Ross Mitchell. The rap sensation from Smyrna, Tenn. has been a rock for pitching coach Butch Thompson's staff over the past four years as he has served in multiple roles as a setup guy in later innings, a closer or a starter. Regardless of where he starts or ends, the 2014 All-SEC selection and 2013 All-American is going to throw plenty of strikes, mix speeds and put State in a position to win (27-7 career record).

With his goofy windup and arm slot, Mitchell hides the ball well from batters and will throw a lot of junk to try and keep the Rebel bats off-balance. Mitchell, who goes by the stage name, "Slim Hossy", won his last Governor's Cup appearance in 2013 when he hurled six shutout innings and allowed only two hits.

As we hit the homestretch of the regular season, the brake lines are cut and we are barrelling towards Hoover, Ala. for the SEC Tournament. Both of these teams are absolutely desperate for wins and State is clawing to just make it into the field of 12. If the season ended today, Ole Miss would be the No. 9 seed and State would be sitting at home watching Malik Newman YouTube videos.

Tickets are still available for the clash in Rankin County, so be sure to get yours quickly before they sell out wait until the last minute to offer a scalper a jalapeño popper from Sonic for one. Plus, you don't want to miss a potential opportunity to see this.

The game isn't televised and there isn't a video stream, so those of us not in the Jackson vicinity are stuck listening to Rebelvision's online radio broadcast.

Game info

When: Tuesday, 6:30 p.m. CT
Where: Trustmark Park - Pearl, Miss.
TV: NONE
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Online audio: RebelVision
Mississippi State: LHP Ross Mitchell (3-2, 4.30 ERA, 14 K, 11 BB)
Ole Miss: RHP Scott Weathersby (2-1, 2.16 ERA, 40 K, 7 BB)

(Editor's note: RebelGrove.com's Chase Parham tweeted this on Tuesday at 9:10 AM CT.)

#RebsBSB has announced Scott Weathersby as the starter tonight. Good timing as I was just telling Jeffrey I had a hunch.

— Chase Parham (@RivalsChase) April 28, 2015