We had a nice chat this morning with baseball coach John Cohen on a teleconference, and we were updated on a few things as he looked ahead to today's game with Alabama A&M (5 p.m.) and this weekend's series at Georgia.

• Outfielder Brent Brownlee, who injured his foot at Vanderbilt, had an MRI done this morning. The results aren't in yet – an X-ray last week did not reveal a stress fracture, although it is being treated as one – and Brownlee could miss the trip to Athens.

"He's such a tough kid mentally, he's able to keep battling through it," Cohen said.

• Left-handed pitcher Nick Routt will start Sunday, just as he did this week against Auburn. He was strong in his first SEC start of the season, going 3.2 innings.

Cohen: "We're probably going to keep stretching him out bit by bit. I anticipate if he pitches well, he'd be able to go a little deeper into Sunday. … The fastball I think is far beyond what it was a  year ago in terms of movement, deception. He's really found his cutter and curveball. I think he's going to be a big part of what we're trying to do (as) an experienced, older guy on a Sunday."

• MSU (18-6, 4-2 SEC) faces its second road test in league play this weekend, and Cohen likes the way his team is playing right now. State's won four in a row.

But Georgia, which went 5-23 in the SEC last year, just took two of three at LSU and stands at 11-14 overall, 3-3 in the conference.

"I think they're a little bit of a different club, and I think they're starting to find themselves," Cohen said.