Pitching was the Rebels’ Achilles heel last season, and the main factor in hindering the 2015 team from making a postseason run.
Ole Miss was never able to find a reliable Sunday starter, and a thin bullpen left them in a tight spot late in games last year. Ole Miss eventually found its answer on Sundays at the end of the year in senior reliever Scott Weathersby, but moving him into a starting role made the bullpen even thinner than it already was. There a number of new faces on the pitching staff this year and Mike Bianco is hoping to find more depth in the starters and in the bullpen, a luxury he did not have a year ago. Here’s a look at what the Ole Miss weekend rotation might look like in 2016.
Mississippi pitcher Evan Anderson prepares to throw the ball in a game earlier this season.
Friday: Brady Bramlett
Bramlett was a pleasant surprise in 2015, to say the least. Before the season started, Bramlett was not projected to be in the weekend rotation, and instead slid into the role of Saturday starter and was arguably the Rebels’ most consistent starter over the course of the season. The 6-foot-4-inch, 250 pound right hander posted a 7-4 record with a 3.74 earned run average a year ago, and held opponents to a .246 batting average. Bramlett possesses a tricky fastball that many describe as “heavy,” meaning that it sneaks up on a batter as it gets closer to the plate. Bramlett set a career high for strikeouts in a game with 12 against Stetson, and will look to anchor the Ole Miss rotation in 2016.
Saturday: Sean Johnson
Many thought Johnson would be the no. two starter in the rotation a year ago, even after missing opening weekend due to tendonitis in his elbow. That tendonitis turned into more significant ligament damage, and the 6-foot-7-inch left hander was forced to miss the entire 2015 season due to Tommy John surgery. Johnson has since made a full recovery and is expected to be available for opening weekend. Johnson is an overpowering pitcher who can blow it by a batter with his fastball to complement his breaking ball and changeup. Again, a lack of pitching depth plagued the Rebels in 2015, and Johnson’s health will be paramount for this team’s success.
Sunday: James McArthur, Chad Smith
Like last year, Ole Miss enters the season with its Sunday start in question. James McArthur and Chad Smith appear to be the two most likely candidates to round out the weekend rotation.
McArthur is a 6-foot-7-inch, 215 pound freshman from New Braunfels, Texas. The right-hander finished his senior season with a 14-7 record and a 3.72 ERA in 96.2 innings of work. He was named the 48th-best player in the state of Texas by Perfect Game and ESPN San Antonio Student-Athlete of the week after a 13-strikeout performance last year.
Smith is a junior from McCalla, Alabama and arrived at Ole Miss by way of Wallace State Community College, where he went 3-1 in nine appearances a year ago. Smith is a 6-foot-4-inch, 198 pound right-hander who has pitched exceptionally well in intersquad scrimmages in both fall and winter. He will get a fair look at taking the ball on Sundays for Ole Miss.
Having a reliable Sunday starter is often what separates the good teams from the rest in college baseball, especially in a league as strong as the SEC.
Ole Miss will greatly increase its chances of having success in the SEC West if someone can step up and give them an advantage over other teams on Sunday, which is more often than not the deciding game of the series— especially once conference play begins.
Ole Miss opens the season on Friday, Feb.19 at home against Florida International. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.
