“It’s always good to go talk to those guys too, and we played with a couple of them, played against them,” said Seymour. “It’s just fun to see all the fans, and just play a game and have fun with it, I mean that’s what it’s all about right?”

The Lansing Lugnuts will use this exhibition as their final test before kicking off their 30th season on April 2 for their opening weekend against Dayton. MSU baseball alternatively is underway in its 142nd season, with its first organized season in 1884.

The Lansing Lugnuts are the High-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. High-A is the third level of Minor League Baseball, below Triple-A and Double-A. Players at this level are typically in the early stages of their professional careers, often coming off their first full spring training and preparing for a 140-game season over five months.

This Crosstown Showdown differed from previous matchups, as it was played with a unique set of rules. No pitchers were used, as the game featured machine pitching. Bunting and base stealing were not allowed, and there were no balls or strikes; each batter received six pitches to put the ball in play. Under a “second-chance rally” rule, innings consisted of six outs, with the bases cleared after the first three.

“That was something else,” Seymour said. When asked if he had ever been part of a game like that, he responded, “Not even close.”

For traditional baseball fans, this exhibition was a frivolous, but if you’re a fan of big hits and a lot of offense, then this was a great watch. 26 total runs were scored in what was pretty much a home run derby with the new rules put into place for the exhibition.

Though the result and performance should be taken with a grain of salt, given the rules and the fact there were no pitchers, the Spartan bats looked perfect in this game as they put on a good all-around performance. Defensively, MSU looked a little sloppy at times with a couple errors but still made some good plays.

Head coach Jake Boss Jr. emphasized his team's strong performance in the Crosstown Showdown.

“There were some things I thought that we did really well, but again, a lot of fun and the game moved really fast, it was just a really different type of atmosphere," said Boss. “Something our guys are never going to forget.”

The Spartans’ offense was strong throughout the game after falling behind 1-0 in the opening inning, posting four multi-run innings, including a five-run sixth. Despite the pitching machine creating an offensive slugfest, MSU hit just two home runs. Seymour launched a two-run shot to deep left field, and sophomore infielder Dayton Murphy added a solo homer to left.

This was a good final test for the Lugnuts ahead of their season opener. The Spartans are well into their season and starting to pick up some steam since their home opener. The Lugnuts struggled to get their bats going early in the game, but around the 5th inning, they started to get going with multiple home runs to try and put up a late comeback attempt with the deficit falling to as many as eight, but it wouldn’t be enough. 

This match-up was beneficial to both teams, giving the Lugnuts a chance to get some reps before their new season, and for the Spartans, it gave them a chance to get some momentum and learn from higher-level players.

“Yeah I think it’s always fun, it’s a little bit less pressure, it’s just kind of go out and have fun playing the game,” said Boss. “Try to learn from what the pro guys do and try to gain a little bit of a different perspective, my guys all want to play at this level at some point, so it’s a good opportunity to get a feel for that.”

This exhibition marked the final game of a nine-game stretch played in the state of Michigan as the Spartans now get ready for a series at Northwestern starting April 3. The next home series will start next Friday, April 10 against rivals Michigan.