From staff reports

The trophy is different, but the action should be as heated as always tonight when Mississippi State battles archrival Ole Miss in the newly named Governor’s Cup game at Trustmark Park in Pearl.

The game will not count as a Southeastern Conference game for both teams and the first pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Ole Miss (25-13) enters the contest coming off a series loss at LSU. The Rebels dropped Friday and Saturday’s game before rallying to win 16-5 on Sunday. Evan Button led the way with a three-run home run as he went 3-for-6 at the plate with four RBIs.

Mississippi State (23-8) enters the week with an SEC-leading .339 team batting average and three Bulldogs rank among the SEC’s top 10 hitters. Freshman shortstop Brandon Turner, currently riding a 12-game hitting streak, is second with a .421 average, while junior catcher Edward Easley (.405) is fourth and junior first baseman Mitch Moreland (.363) stands 10th.

The Rebels will send senior left-hander Craig Rodriguez to the mound to start tonight’s game. Rodriguez (1-2) holds a 4.26 ERA and has struck out 16 batters on the year.

True freshman Tyler Whitney (3-1, 6.91) of Lakeland, Tenn., will open on the hill for the Bulldogs. Whitney worked a season-long six innings, registered a career-high eight strikeouts and earned his third win of the season in last Wednesday’s 5-1 win over South Alabama at Trustmark Park.

Played the past 27 years at Smith-Wills Stadium in Jackson and known previously as the Mayor’s Trophy Game, the Governor’s Cup makes its debut at three-year old Trustmark Park, the home of the Atlanta Braves’ Class AA franchise, the Mississippi Braves.

Ole Miss freshman booted from team

Ole Miss starting first baseman Andrew Clark has been dismissed from the team for violating team rules, coach Mike Bianco said.

Clark did not travel with Ole Miss on its four-game road trip last week because of the violation. Bianco refused to reveal specifics of Clark’s dismissal Monday.

&#8220I met with him this morning and after thinking about it over the weekend and for about four days, I thought it was in the best interest of the program that we end his career here as an Ole Miss baseball player,” Bianco said. &#8220It’s disappointing but it’s something we will overcome.”

Clark started 30 games at Ole Miss and was hitting .311 with four home runs and 12 RBIs. His spot in the lineup will be filled by C.J. Ketchum and Peyton Farr.

Delk twins leaving Mississippi State

Two key starters will transfer from the Mississippi State men’s basketball team.

Twins Richard and Reginald Delk, and little-used reserve Bernard Rimmer will transfer, coach Rick Stansbury said Monday.

The Delks’ father, Rickie Delk, said the decision to leave came late last week after meetings with Stansbury. The twins made a significant contribution last season as the Bulldogs advanced to the NIT semifinals.

Reginald Delk started all 35 of the Bulldogs’ games, averaging 9.5 points in 26 minutes per game. Richard Delk started 33, averaging 5.7 points in 23 minutes a game.

Rimmer saw little action last season.

&#8220Reginald, Richard and Bernard are all good people from terrific families, and we wish them the very best of luck in their future endeavors,” Stansbury said in a release. &#8220All three players are looking to play more minutes and want to play bigger roles than are currently available on this team.”

The Delks were challenged for playing time last season by freshmen Barry Stewart and Ben Hansbrough, as well as each other.