OMAHA, Nebr. – Once the dust settles at the College World Series, Mississippi State baseball will send three Diamond Dawgs to play with the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team this summer.

In July, Jackson Fristoe, Landon Sims and Logan Tanner will compete among the nation’s best collegiate talent in an 11-game head-to-head intrasquad schedule touring Appalachian League ballparks.

The trio is now the second, third and fourth Bulldogs on MSU’s 2021 roster to wear the stars and stripes, as Bulldog outfielder Tanner Allen was a member of the collegiate national team in 2019. Mississippi State baseball has seen 13 of its student-athletes represent the United States, and former head coach Ron Polk served as an assistant coach for the 1988 and 1992 Olympic teams.

 

Sims has been lights out as MSU’s closer this season. The freshman from Cumming, Georgia, owns a 1.60 ERA and has struck out 92 batters over 50 2/3 innings pitched. An All-America selection, Sims was a finalist for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award, given annually to the top relief pitcher in college baseball, and earned Newcomer All-SEC and All-SEC second-team honors.

Another Newcomer All-SEC Team honoree, Tanner is one of the top catchers in the nation. One of 17 semifinalists for the Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award, Tanner leads the Bulldogs with 14 home runs. Tanner has also thrown out 10 of 27 steal attempts.

Fristoe has made 13 starts in 15 appearances for MSU this season, striking out 67 batter over 48 innings. The true freshman right-hander earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors on March 8 after tossing six perfect frames en route to MSU’s combined no-hitter against Kent State (March 7).

 

Before they head to the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina, the Bulldog trio will look to help MSU finish its season strong at the College World Series. Next, the Diamond Dawgs will take on the winner of Texas and Virginia on Friday (June 25) at 6 p.m. CT in TD Ameritrade Park. State needs just one to advance to the College World Series Championship Series.