This Vanderbilt series has served as a glaring image of what life is like for Missouri baseball (27-13, 8-10 in SEC) without Kameron Misner.

Despite taking a 6-2 loss on Saturday to the No. 10 Commodores (24-16, 10-8), the Tigers secured their first SEC series win since the Auburn series three weeks ago. With excellent starting pitching and solid bullpen work, Missouri took the first two games of the series.

While in games one and two a lifeless offense was disguised by dominance on the mound, such was not the case Saturday. Missouri managed just six hits against Vanderbilt, which countered with 12 hits of their own. MU had just 14 hits across the series. It’s not a coincidence that offensive ineptitude has come as Misner has gone.

After playing in just two games at Florida, Misner didn’t play against Chicago State and has been left out of all three lineups this weekend as he nurses a hurt right foot. No strict timetable has been given, and the exact details of the injury are unknown, but coach Steve Bieser did provide some clarity after the game.

“He’s in a boot right now,” Bieser said. “It’s kind of unknown what his status is. He said he felt good enough to play this weekend, but we weren’t able to use him just based on the medical status on him. He’s got a little fracture in his foot and he’s been playing on it for a while.”

The absence of the Tigers’ leader in average, doubles, triples, slugging, walks and on-base percentage has shown the impact he really has, as the offense has averaged just 2.6 runs over the past five games he’s missed.

“We need to let him get healed up, but we know that we need him in our lineup,” Bieser added. “It really puts a presence in our lineup that puts fear in the other team. We need to get him back as soon as we can. I hope that by the time we get to Kentucky that we can use him again.”

Michael Plassmeyer continued Missouri’s trend of great starting pitching on Saturday — initially. Through three innings, he was dominant and displayed the qualities seen in nearly every start from the staff’s then-leader in ERA (1.96). The Commodores couldn’t muster a hit and struck out four times through three frames, but they began barreling up the ball in the fourth.

In each of the fourth and fifth innings, Plassmeyer allowed two singles and an RBI. The wheels came off in the sixth, when the lefty allowed four hits, including a Ethan Paul triple that hit the first-base line in right field and brought in two runs. A sacrifice fly then made it 5-0. After exiting in the sixth, Plassmeyer’s ERA had ballooned to .248.

“I didn’t bring my best stuff out,” Plassmeyer said. “They were able to put a few runs up and take the lead. It’s definitely frustrating as a pitcher, but it’s baseball. They came well prepared today.”

Jordan Gubelman, who has emerged as one of Missouri’s best relievers with a 2.76 ERA and 25 strikeouts in 16.1 innings, wasn’t immune to Vanderbilt’s offense either. After relieving Plassmeyer in the sixth, he gave up an RBI single in the seventh.

The Tigers finally broke through against Vanderbilt starter Mason Hickman in the seventh with a Matt Berler two-RBI double to left field, but it was all said and done by that point. Hickman limited hard contact from the Tigers all afternoon, allowing no earned runs and allowing just five hits over seven innings despite striking out just four.

“(Hickman) was good,” Berler, who went 2-4 with two doubles, said. “He found a way to hit spots and get guys out. But we have to keep finding ways to have tough at bats and get to guys like him. He did a good job but hopefully we’ll get him next time around.”

Missouri was beat soundly on Saturday, but taking two of three from Vanderbilt was crucial for its postseason hopes. Now 8-10 in the conference, the Tigers are right in the thick of the SEC East, one slot above (8-10) Kentucky (Missouri’s opponent next weekend) and one below (10-8) Vanderbilt.

“We came into a weekend series knowing we had to win the series,” Bieser said. “And we were able to do that. We came out and played really clean baseball the first two games and had some timely hitting. To beat a team like Vanderbilt three times — it’s a challenge. I knew they were going to come out hungry and I think they were just a little bit hungrier than we were.”