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Mississippi State

Freshman Charlie Foster takes the bump as No. 18 meets up with Southern Miss on Tuesday

3rupauk8_400x400by: Robbie Faulk02/17/25RobbieFaulkOn3
charlie foster
Charlie Foster (Photo by Mississippi State Athletics)

As No. 18 Mississippi State heads to a packed Pete Taylor Park in Hattiesburg on Tuesday night, the Bulldogs will do so with a fresh face on the mound.

Chris Lemonis and pitching coach Justin Parker have selected true freshman Charlie Foster to take the bump against Southern Miss in the midweek showdown. The Snellville, Ga., lefty will be making his second appearance in the M over S after throwing 1.0 inning last Friday against Manhattan and striking out two batters in a scoreless inning. He walked one for his only baserunner in the game.

Foster has been a player that has been pushing for a starting spot in the weekend all offseason and will have a chance to push his stock even more in this game. A Brookwood High School alum, Foster was  All-State a season ago after throwing 65.1 innings with a 0.96 ERA and an incredible 117 strikeouts to just 28 walks.

Previously committed to Georgia, Foster opened up his recruiting process and would sign with State back in June of last year. He was a potential MLB Draft selection but would turn down the opportunity to come play ball for the Bulldogs of MSU.

Foster will go head-to-head with Louisville native and former Starkville Academy player Colby Allen. A preseason All-American, Allen had a tremendous sophomore year last season as he finished 10-2 in 27 appearances and had just two starts. He finished with seven saves as he factored into the decision in 21 of the 27 games he pitched.

Allen threw 65.1 frames, gave up 26 earned runs and 18 walks while striking out 82 batters. Allen pitched in 3.0 innings last weekend against Lafayette and earned the save after giving up two hits, two runs and one walk and struck out three batters.

While the two teams have these announced starters, both are expected to pitch several different players during the game.

“We’ve got to reassess everybody because we threw so many arms,” Lemonis said. “I think you’ll see a lot of guys on Tuesday. You’ll see guys get out there and get their feet wet and have to compete I think that’s the strength of the pitching staff.”

It’s the battle of the unbeatens as USM comes in having won all four games against Lafayette last weekend and State knocked off Manhattan in a three-game series. Game time at Pete Taylor is set for 6 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN+.

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