Case Closed: Feigl outshines Mize as Rebels clinch series against Auburn

OXFORD | The capacity contingent of crosscheckers, executives and lower-level scouts packed into the brick-backed walkway just behind the premium lower seating at Swayze Field.

The radar guns went up on cue, the notepads filled with evaluations, and the collection that had highlighted this night since the rotations were announced got an eyeful of a draft-eligible right-hander carving up a Southeastern Conference contender.

An efficient 78 pitches through seven innings. A wipeout slider that also went for strikes. A fastball that hovered into the 90s and helped nail a career-high 12 strikeouts. An all-around ace-like effort that catapulted one team to a series clincher.

One pitcher dominated the game and set the tone from the start with five strikeouts through six batters. The other pitcher was likely first overall pick Casey Mize.

Brady Feigl, the Ole Miss No. 2, saved his best for the brightest opponent, pitching into the ninth inning and leading the 8-3 victory that set the Rebels up for a sweep opportunity Saturday at 4 p.m. Ole Miss (38-13, 15-11, remains a half game back of Arkansas in the SEC West race.

Feigl admitted he felt some added adrenaline opposing Mize and was excited when Auburn decided to hold its ace for the second game of the series.

"You're aware of who is on the other side," Feigl said.

Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco picked up his 700th win as a Rebel, giving him sole possession of fifth place on the all-time SEC wins list. The 15th SEC win also guarantees Ole Miss the 14th non-losing conference record in Bianco’s 18 years. The Rebels are No. 7 in the RPI as of Friday night.

“He was good, man, he was really good,” Bianco said of Feigl. “Mize is the best amateur pitcher in the country to beat him you have to have a great performance from your guy, and we got that tonight. He was lights out with a tremendous slider.”

Feigl retired 11 straight to start the game until Brett Wright hit a solo home run with two outs in the fourth. Feigl struck out three of the next four after that and didn’t get into meaningful trouble until three hits led to a run in the eighth and he exited with men on in the ninth.

The Tigers got the tying run to the on-deck circle before Greer Holston cleaned up the inning.

Meanwhile, Mize, who hadn’t allowed more than four runs in a game this season, and that just once, gave up six runs on a season-high eight hits including two-run home runs to Tyler Keenan and Chase Cockrell. A week after 15 strikeouts in a complete game win against Vanderbilt, Mize routinely left balls up in the zone, and Ole Miss didn’t miss many of the mistakes — piling up four extra base hits against the junior.

“The goal was to hit the fastball and stay away from the splitter,” Bianco said. “We had a lot of good at-bats. We got to the next pitch a lot and executed. It’s a credit to our guys.”

Keenan laced a two-out RBI into right field to start the scoring, and Cockrell followed with the home run to give Ole Miss a three-run lead in the second inning. Then Ole Miss scored in four consecutive innings to put a considerable cushion between the two teams.

Thomas Dillard and Keenan each had three hits, and Keenan tied his career high with four RBIs. Ole Miss was 8-for-20 with runners on base and used aggressiveness on the bases to maximize opportunities. The Rebels stole three bases and got the leadoff batter on base six of eight times.

“All (Mize’s) stuff was electric but I tied to shorten up and get to his fastball,” Keenan said. “It was crazy to play behind Brady. I went up to him constantly and told him he’s the best pitcher in the stadium tonight.”