Mississippi State fires pitching coach Scott Foxhall

Photo courtesy: Mississippi State Athletics

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI)- Two years after playing a crucial role in the Bulldogs winning their first national championship in program history, Scott Foxhall is out at Mississippi State’s pitching coach. Head coach Chris Lemonis announced the news on Monday.

“While this is a difficult decision because of the tremendous respect I have for Scott as a person and a coach, it is in the best interest of our program,” Lemonis said. “I want to thank Scott for his contributions to Mississippi State over the last five years, and I am appreciative of all he’s devoted to our program. He has played a significant role on our staff during his time here, including helping us win a College World Series Championship. I sincerely wish Scott and his family the absolute best in the future.”

Foxhall was crucial in the development of pitchers Will Bednar, Houston Harding and other key Bulldog arms who ultimately led MSU to a national title in 2021. Since then, Mississippi State finished last in the SEC in 2022, didn’t make the conference tournament and also had the worst team ERA in the SEC (6.07). This year, the Dawgs sit at 6-15 in conference (only ahead of Missouri and Ole Miss) and the team ERA is even worse and remains at the bottom (6.62).

“Mississippi State is the premier program in college baseball,” Lemonis said. “There’s no question our expectations are to be the gold standard of the sport. That has and will always be true. No one is satisfied with the results since our run to a national title not long ago. Starting with me as the leader of our program, I can assure you we are going to continue to work, prepare and compete as hard as possible to put a product on the field that meets the standard of Mississippi State Baseball.”

Mississippi State hasn’t announced who the interim pitching coach will be yet.