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OXFORD — Senior pitcher Riley Maddox broke down in a conversation with first-year Ole Miss baseball pitching coach Joel Mangrum before last week. It turned out to be a good thing.
The No. 7 Rebels beat No. 4 Tennessee 8-5 on Saturday, April 12. It evened the series and set up a rubber match for Sunday (2 p.m. CT, SEC Network). Maddox pitched five strong innings, but his outing started poorly. Gavin Kilen, Tennessee’s second batter of the game, hit a home run to right center field.
“Gavin Kilen is a great hitter,” Maddox said. “I threw him a fastball right down the middle. He should’ve hit it out. I just had to work around it. Executing pitches. I think that’s kind of what I’ve been doing the past two weeks that I didn’t do for a few weeks before that. Making a little better pitch here and there.”
Riley has been excellent his past two starts, including a five-inning performance April 4 against Kentucky in which he did not allow an earned run. Before that, however, he had been pitching poorly. He lasted 1⅓ innings on March 28 against Florida, getting pulled after allowing four runs. Maddox went to Mangrum for a heart-to-heart conversation.
“I was in a bad spot mentally,” Maddox said. “My mental health. I was fighting that. A lot of different things. To, I guess, dumb it down, just trying to execute. Making a better pitch here and there. Don’t leave the cutter up. Don’t leave sliders up. Fastballs need to be on the black. Make sure of those things.”
Mangrum, who was hired last June, has become a confidant for Maddox.
“I still haven’t really told my parents,” Maddox said. “I told my girlfriend a little bit. I remember Kentucky, before I went to him, I kind of broke down. I told him what I was going through and he helped me through it. Big help from Joel.”
Maddox’s final line Saturday was five innings pitched, two earned runs and five strikeouts. He got the win against an elite offense.
Before the Kentucky start, Maddox owned an 8.57 ERA. Now it’s down to 5.75. Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco said Maddox’s ability to settle in was probably the difference in the game Saturday.
“He’s hung in there,” Bianco said. “That’s the thing that I love. Today you could see the veteran in him.”
Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_
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