STARKVILLE — From last spring to this one, Josh Lovelady traded crutches for the ice bath. His legs still require daily maintenance and attention, but he prefers this way much better — this way he gets to play.
Last year, Lovelady was recovering from a torn anterior cruciate ligament that forced him to miss almost all of what would have been his senior season. After redshirting in 2016, Lovelady is getting a chance to start nearly every game for the Mississippi State baseball team.
Lovelady, a 5-foot-11, 214-pounder from Prattville, Alabama, is making the most of his opportunities. He has reached base at least once in each of the last six Southeastern
Conference games he finished. Lovelady shows no signs of slowing down as No. 9 MSU (30-16, 14-7 SEC) prepares for Game 1 of a three-game SEC series against Texas A&M at 6:30 p.m. Thursday (ESPNU) in College Station, Texas.
“He’s such a competitor,” MSU coach Andy Cannizaro said. “His work ethic is off the chart. He’s a leader for our team and we love sending him back there.”
Since March 24, Lovelady has started 22 of 24 games, including all 18 SEC games. Cannizaro sees the impact on Lovelady’s body — “He’s coming off the field in between innings and he’s sweating bullets,” Cannizaro said. — but he trusts Lovelady can handle it. Lovelady has committed only one error in 238 chances. He is hitting .240 with 15 RBIs.
“I take a lot of ice baths, regularly,” Lovelady said. “I stretch a lot. Basically putting a lot of fluids in your body, eating right and eating a lot. It takes all-day management, especially when we have a doubleheader like (last Saturday).”
While Lovelady has come understand the physical toll catching every day takes on his body, he knew how to approach the mental side of handling the Bulldogs’ pitchers.
“I just have a couple more months left to play in my career, really, and that’s what I think about,” Lovelady said. “I can still do it. I have a lot left in me. That’s what I think about.”
It’s easy to see where the mental side of Lovelady’s job is more taxing than the physical. Being a redshirt senior and an every-day catcher, Lovelady has been granted certain liberties when it comes to managing pitchers.
“I think coach Cannizaro and (pitching coach Gary) Henderson really trust me,” Lovelady said. “When I go back into the dugout, we discuss stuff. Where is he, how is he doing, can he keep going. I’m really honest. I’ll tell them, ‘Maybe he can keep going,’ or, ‘This guy’s probably done for the night.’ It’s more them, obviously, but every input I can give them helps.”
Lovelady’s help has been useful for the bullpen, where injuries have forced younger pitchers into difficult situations. In those situations, Lovelady has two go-to moves. His first, one he said he has used on freshman reliever Riley Self, is to reassure the pitcher of his abilities by saying, “You’re better than those guys.”
The other is more traditional.
“If we have a guy out there for the eighth (inning), I tell them to pitch this inning like it’s the last inning you’re ever going to pitch,” he said.
Lovelady said he makes his decision which approach to use based on the depends on the pitcher. It’s part of the physical and mental grind of catching. It’s a role Lovelady wants to continue as long as he can.
“You can look back and think, ‘Man that’s a lot of catching,’ but 365 days ago I’m on crutches, in a brace, and can’t do anything,” Lovelady said. “I would rather catch all day every day then do rehab to get my knee back.
“I was driven from the time I got hurt to come back and be a warrior for these guys. Anything that could help this team is what I was coming back for.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brett Hudson on Twitter @Brett_Hudson
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