Bulldog Pitcher is Taken in the MLB Draft

Tyson Hardin is drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers.

Mississippi State head coach Chris Lemonis watches from the dugout against Ole Miss at Swayze Field in Oxford, Miss., on Friday, Apr. 12, 2024. / Bruce Newman/Special to the Clarion

The Milwaukee Brewers selected Tyson Hardin with the 365th overall pick in the 12th round. Expectations were not high for Hardin coming into the 2024 season for Mississippi State, and quite frankly, it was surprising he did not enter the transfer portal after the 2023 season. 

He came to Starkville after two seasons at Daytona State College, a junior college in Florida. In his final season there, the Dover, Fla. product racked up a 5-3 record with a 5.40 ERA. 

Hardins's numbers were not jaw-dropping, but the stuff was clearly there: He had a nice sinker and high 90s velocity on his fastball. However, he did not harness his skills much under former MSU pitching coach Scott Foxhall, as he finished the 2023 season with a 12.81 ERA in 15 appearances. 

Mississippi State head coach Chris Lemonis decided to part ways with Foxhall and hired South Carolina pitching coach Justin Parker. In his first season, Parker made an immense impact, turning around Khal Stephen, Jurrangelo Cijntje, Tyler Davis, and Brooks Auger, but Hardin may have the biggest rejuvenation. 

Under Parker's tutelage, Hardin found his groove with his nasty sinker and sat in the mid to high 90s with his fastball. The righty finished the 2024 season with a 3-3 record and a 3.22 ERA, and was a reliable arm out of the Bulldog bullpen.