Baseball Bulldogs crank up Thursday

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast will start the 2026 baseball season on Thursday, already appearing in the national rankings. The Bulldogs have reloaded with depth and size after Zach Allen's first year in charge was a rousing success.

They're 25^th in the NJCAA Division II preseason poll, and the first pitch will be Thursday, a day earlier than scheduled, thanks to the weather forecast. They'll play Florida Post-Grad at Ken "Curly" Farris Field, with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m.

"Last year, we had some really good talent, but not much depth," Allen said. "This year, we have a ton of depth where it's gonna be really hard to make out the lineup card and have the same guys play back-to-back games because there's so much depth. That also helps if there are any injuries."

The full schedule can be found at https://mgcccbulldogs.com/sports/bsb/2025-26/schedule, and season passes are available at http://mgcccbulldogs.com/tickets. Home games will be streamed at https://mgcccbulldogs.com/watch.

Gulf Coast went 38-19, finishing fourth in the MACCC with a 19-9 conference mark. They closed out the year ranked 19^th and finished third at an NJCAA Region 23 Tournament. When the preseason poll came out, they were back in it. 

"It's definitely a start," Allen said. "You can get caught up in the numbers a lot of times, but last year's team got us this ranking. They set the foundation, and it's only up from here."

The pitching staff will be led by returners James Vines (So., Clinton, La./Silliman Institute) and Griffin Wells (So., Pascagoula/Pascagoula). Vines, a Western Kentucky signee, went 7-2 with a 2.78 ERA and 93 strikeouts in 68 innings, and his 12.31 strikeouts per nine innings were second-best in the MACCC. Wells, who has signed with New Orleans, is concentrating on pitching this year after posting a 3.45 ERA in 31.1 innings as a freshman.

Riley Hall (Fr., Mobile, Ala./Faith Academy) is the third starter now, and there's a pool of capable pitchers to choose a fourth starter and line up the bullpen duties. Wade Barr (So., Collins/Seminary), Knute Robinson (Fr., Pascagoula/Pascagoula), Jayden Madison (Fr., Petal/Petal) and Ty Herrington (Fr., Meridian/Lamar School) have shown the abilities, with Kaleb Dillon (Fr., Petal/Petal) coming on recently. Connor Tice (Fr., Wiggins/Stone) has been making strides after playing quarterback for the Bulldogs in the fall.

"I think those guys are really gonna pound the zone and keep us in a lot of games," Allen said. "I think the number for our offense is to get six runs in a game. I don't see us getting beat too many times doing that."

Catching that staff will be another deep group. Layton Eder (So., Vancleave/Vancleave), who batted .271 with 14 RBI last year, will take the lead, with fellow returnee Landen Wallace (So., Gulfport/West Harrison) joined by newcomers Banks Teater (Fr., Magee/Purvis) and Blane Green (Fr., Lucedale/George County). 

Third baseman Brandon Coakley (So., Covington, La./Covington) batted .331 with three home runs and 20 RBI last year, and he's joined on the left side of the infield by newcomer Erimel Rosado (So., Dorado, Puerto Rico/Centennial). The smooth-fielding shortstop played at Gulf Coast State last year and has signed with McNeese State.

Garrett Gardner (Fr., Madison/Madison-Ridgeland Academy) is expected to start at second base, with Brady Saxton (Fr., Brandon/Northwest Rankin), Landon Bush (Fr., Seminary/Seminary) and Green bringing different skillsets to the first-base options. 

"We're going to have a pretty physical team," Allen said. "From the offensive side, we're going to be able to split some gaps and put a lot of pressure on some teams."

The outfield is particularly deep, led by Jordan Davis (So., Neshoba/Neshoba Central). He batted .314 last year and got on base at a .486 clip from the leadoff spot while driving in 20 runs. Collin Smith (Fr., McComb/Parklane Academy) brings pop, joined by Anthony Tanner (Fr., Hurley/East Central) and Ben Davis (Fr., Lucedale/George County). Tripp Lightsey (Fr., Lucedale/George County) has perhaps the best arm out there.

"It's going to be fun to make a lineup with those guys because there's a little bit of a difference," Allen said. "It's going to be very interchangeable there, as well, which makes for a very competitive team."

Gulf Coast is one of four Region 23 teams in the preseason top 25, more than any other region. No. 2 Pearl River and No. 3 East Central were in the final four of the World Series, and Jones is 14^th in the poll.

"It's gonna be a grind like it always is," Allen said. "Our expectations are to win a conference championship and host a regional here; that's always the expectation. But we've got to take it one game at a time and keep our heads down. If we do that and play our brand of baseball, there's not many teams that are going to beat us."

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