Monthly Archives: September 2016

24 Sep

isn’t this fun?

Of the 14 games with postseason implications played in the big leagues on Friday, the one deserving the most attention took place in Oakland. Mississippi State product Kendall Graveman threw six perfect innings for the A’s before Texas put together a rally in the seventh and went on to a 3-0 win that clinched the American League West title. Ex-Bulldogs star Mitch Moreland took an 0-for-3 for the Rangers, but we can assume that didn’t put a damper on his celebration. … In Chicago, former Ole Miss standout Chris Coghlan contributed an RBI double for the Cubs as they clinched home-field advantage throughout the National League playoffs by beating wild card contender St. Louis 5-0. … In Pittsburgh, the wild card hopeful Pirates, with State product Adam Frazier driving in two runs, knocked off Washington 6-5 in 11 innings, denying the Nationals in their bid to clinch the NL East. … At Tampa Bay, former Ole Miss star Drew Pomeranz worked five strong innings for Boston as the red-hot Red Sox, closing in on the AL East title, beat the Rays 2-1 for their ninth straight win. Pomeranz is now 3-5 for the BoSox. … In Detroit, Southwest Mississippi Community College alum Jarrod Dyson smacked his seventh triple of the year and picked up two RBIs, but Kansas City was dealt a crushing blow by Detroit in an 8-3 loss. Jackson Mets alum Ned Yost’s defending World Series champs appear to be toast in 2016. The Tigers, meanwhile, remain very much in the playoff hunt. … In Toronto, former JaxMets star John Gibbons watched his Blue Jays pummel the New York Yankees 9-0, and in Baltimore, ex-State standout Buck Showalter and his Orioles got a lift from Mark Trumbo’s walk-off homer in a 3-2 win against Arizona. And in Miami, Brian Snitker’s surging Atlanta Braves won their seventh straight, damaging the Marlins’ NL wild card chances with a 3-2 victory. Former Mississippi Braves closer Mauricio Cabrera got the save, with ex-M-Braves star Mallex Smith making a diving catch in left field to end the game. Snitker, who managed the first M-Braves team in 2005, has done a good job with the last-place Braves and is building a strong case for returning as manager in 2017.

23 Sep

a funny thing happened …

For the first time in four years, former Itawamba Community College star Tim Dillard is back in The Show. Well, sorta. The 33-year-old Dillard, who pitched in Triple-A this season, was summoned to Milwaukee this week not as a relief pitcher but as a “comedic relief specialist.” That is, he joined the Brewers’ social media team (#BrewersLastCallUp), not their bullpen. Dillard has gained a certain measure of fame recently as the producer/star of hilarious videos, and the Brewers wanted to make use of his talents at the big-league level. “There’s no doubt that Tim has a skill set that you won’t find anywhere else,” Brewers GM David Stearns told mlb.com. As a pitcher, Dillard also has some ability. He has logged 527 games in pro ball, including 73 appearances in MLB, in a career that dates back to 2003. His minor league ledger shows a 79-54 record and 3.85 ERA. A graduate of Saltillo High, Dillard is the son of former Ole Miss and big league star Steve Dillard.

22 Sep

numbers of interest

Hunter Renfroe’s debut with San Diego on Wednesday night – the former Mississippi State star drew an intentional walk in his only at-bat – runs the number of Mississippians (natives or college alums) who have debuted in MLB in 2016 to nine. The others: Chad Girodo, Chris Stratton, Tim Anderson, Cody Reed, Adam Frazier, Mike Mayers, JaCoby Jones and Jonathan Holder. … The number of Mississippians to play in the big leagues this year hit 27 with Renfroe’s arrival. Three other 40-man roster members have been on the disabled list most of the season. … The Magnolia State group has hit a collective 147 home runs, including ex-Meridian Community College star Corey Dickerson’s 22nd on Wednesday. Southern Miss alum Brian Dozier leads the way with 41, and former State standout Mitch Moreland also has 22. The 147 includes the one hit by pitcher Drew Pomeranz, the Ole Miss product, who went deep while with San Diego; he is now in Boston. … Kudos: Former Mississippi Braves star Evan Gattis hit his 100th career homer on Wednesday. He has hit 57 of those with Houston the last two years; the first 43 came in an Atlanta uniform.

21 Sep

he’s got name

There is something about the name that gets your attention: Delvin Zinn. Some clever headlines in that name. Of course, he’s got game, too. The Chicago Cubs certainly seem to think so, having drafted Pontotoc native Zinn twice. The 5-foot-10, 170-pound shortstop, who made his pro debut on July 28 for the Arizona League Cubs, is still in Arizona for the Instructional League season. His numbers in the AZL weren’t much to shout about. In just 11 games, he batted .182 with one extra-base hit. Zinn was chosen in the 23rd round in June out of Itawamba Community College, where he batted .411 as a freshman this past season with 34 RBIs, 41 runs and seven steals. Scouting reports rave about his defense. Drafted by the Cubs in the 28th round in 2015 out of Pontotoc High, Zinn opted to go to Mississippi State, where he took part in fall ball before transferring to ICC, where he was eligible to be drafted again after his freshman season. Zinn, just 19, isn’t yet among the Cubs’ rated prospects, but he is one to watch in an organization that appears to be set up for long-term success. … Also on the Cubs’ IL roster are left-handers Wyatt Short, drafted out of Ole Miss this year, and Justin Steele, a 2014 fifth-rounder from George County. Southaven native Short (see previous post) had a very good debut in the Northwest League. Steele, the highest-drafted prep pitcher from Mississippi since Matt Butler in 1999, went 5-7 with a 5.00 ERA in the Class A Midwest League this season. Scouting reports say the Cubs’ No. 23 prospect is still harnessing command of his three pitches. P.S. Former DeSoto Central All-Stater Austin Riley is on Atlanta’s IL roster; the third baseman is coming off a 20-homer year at low Class A Rome. Outfield prospect Braxton Davidson, who could be with the Mississippi Braves in 2017, also is in Florida, along with pitchers Carlos Salazar and Chad Sobotka, two other likely candidates for Pearl next year.

21 Sep

in focus

Adam Frazier was a catalyst for Pittsburgh in a 6-3 win at Milwaukee on Tuesday night that kept the Pirates’ faint playoff hopes alive. The Mississippi State alum, batting leadoff and playing left field, went 3-for-5 and scored twice. He led off the game with a single off Matt Garza and scored the first run as the Pirates took a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Frazier doubled and scored in the fifth, when Pittsburgh again scored twice to go up 5-2. Frazier, a versatile rookie who doesn’t play regularly, is batting .351 with two homers, nine RBIs and 17 runs in 55 games. Pittsburgh, managed by former Jackson Mets skipper Clint Hurdle, is 75-75, 4.5 games out in the National League wild card chase with four teams ahead of it. P.S. Ex-State star Hunter Renfroe, the Pacific Coast League MVP, reportedly has been called up by the San Diego Padres and could make his MLB debut tonight against Arizona at Petco Park. … T.J. House, the Picayune High product, has been designated for assignment by Cleveland, which needed to clear a roster spot for prospect Adam Plutko. Left-hander House spent most of 2016 in Triple-A, appearing in just four big league games. House, who’ll be 27 later this month, was 5-3 with a 3.98 ERA for Columbus and pitched even better after he moved to the bullpen in July. He is 5-7, 4.44 over parts of three MLB seasons. He’ll pitch again, somewhere.

20 Sep

watch for it

A sliver of the baseball spotlight will be trained tonight on Memphis’ AutoZone Park, where Hunter Renfroe will lead El Paso against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in a one-game showdown for the Triple-A championship. Renfroe, the ex-Mississippi State star from Crystal Springs, hit .306 with 30 home runs and 105 RBIs and won Pacific Coast League MVP honors with the Chihuahuas, a San Diego affiliate. International League champ SWB, a New York Yankees affiliate, is managed by former Jackson Mets star Al Pedrique. Both clubs feature several top prospects. Jonathan Holder, another MSU product, spent part of this season with SWB but is now in the big leagues. Renfroe, rated the Padres’ No. 3 prospect by mlb.com, may be in line for a call-up to The Show, but he says all he is focused on at the moment is his current team and tonight’s game. “San Diego will always be there, and when the time comes for them to make a decision, I’ll be here,” he told The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal. The NBC Sports Network will televise the 7:05 game. P.S. For the first time in his seven seasons in the majors, Mitch Moreland was ejected from a game. Former State standout Moreland got tossed in the fourth inning Monday by home-plate umpire Kerwin Danley after “disputing,” while walking away, a called third strike during Texas’ game against the Los Angeles Angels. “It was obviously a pitch I didn’t agree with,” Moreland said in an mlb.com article. The Rangers won 3-2 in walk-off fashion, reducing their magic number for clinching the American League West to 3.

19 Sep

junk and stuff

Joe Gray, the highly touted junior at Hattiesburg High, is featured in a story currently posted on Baseball America’s website. Gray is playing on an elite travel team, the EvoShield Canes, with a group of seniors. Gray, a 6-foot-2, 194-pound outfielder, hit .474 with seven homers, 45 RBIs, 11 steals and 12 assists as a sophomore last year for Hattiesburg, helping the Tigers reach the Class 5A finals. He hit .380 as a freshman. Gray, who has not committed to a college, figures to be a high MLB draft pick in 2018. … Fall ball is in the air in Oxford, where the Rebels scrimmaged last Friday. Ole Miss, 43-19 and an NCAA Regional participant in 2016, returns infielders Tate Blackman, Colby Bortles and Will Golsan and reliever Will Stokes. Among the newcomers are freshmen Grae Kessinger, Jason Barber, Thomas Dillard and Houston Roth from powerhouse Oxford High. … Wyatt Short and Trent Giambrone – 2016 draftees out of Mississippi colleges by the Chicago Cubs – helped short-season Class A Eugene win the Northwest League pennant. Left-hander Short, a 13th-round pick from Ole Miss, where he was a standout closer, had a 0.00 ERA and seven saves in 15 games; he got the save in the final game of the title series. Second baseman Giambrone, a 25th-rounder out of Delta State, batted .292 with four homers and 22 RBIs for the Emeralds. … Blake Anderson, a supplemental first-round pick in 2014 out of West Lauderdale High, is on Miami’s Instructional League roster as a rehabbing player. The catcher played only one game this season, going on the disabled list with a shoulder injury on July 7. He has played only 58 games over three seasons. … Bryant Nelson, at age 42, is having a nice season in the independent Atlantic League. The switch-hitting second baseman/outfielder is batting .279 with 49 RBIs and 13 stolen bases for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. For fans of the old Jackson Generals — the ones who played at Smith-Wills Stadium from 1991-99 — the name might ring a bell. Nelson is the last link to a bygone era — the only former General still playing. (Freddy Garcia pitched briefly for Monterrey in the Mexican League this season but is not currently on the roster.) Nelson’s pro baseball odyssey began when Houston drafted him in the 44th round in 1993. He made the Generals’ roster in the 1996 postseason as an injury replacement and helped the Gens win the Texas League championship. Nelson has played in 2,463 pro games, according to baseball-reference.com, and gotten 2,632 hits. He has played in Mexico, Japan and Italy and even made it to the big leagues for 25 games with Boston in 2002.

19 Sep

setting a course

At 33, Seth Smith is not quite an ancient Mariner. But he is a veteran on the Seattle team, with over 1,000 games in the big leagues and four postseason voyages. The former Hillcrest Christian and Ole Miss star is helping steer the Mariners toward their first postseason trip in 15 years. Smith hit two home runs on Sunday as the M’s beat visiting Houston 7-3 in one of several big showdowns between playoff contenders. Seattle is 79-70, just 2 games behind Toronto, which occupies the second wild card seat in the American League, with a huge series looming against the Blue Jays, also at Safeco Field. Smith, a big leaguer since 2007, has 16 homers, one shy of his career-best, and 60 RBIs, which is a career-high. He has hit 12 of his homers at Safeco. A recent hot streak (.342 over his last 15 games) has lifted his average to .264. The lefty-hitting Smith figures to start at least two of the three games against the Blue Jays, including tonight’s contest against Marco Estrada. P.S. Ex-Southern Miss standout Brian Dozier extended his hitting streak to 22 games for Minnesota on Sunday. “I couldn’t care less, to be honest with you,” he told mlb.com about the streak, which he kept alive with one hit in a 3-2 loss to the New York Mets, the Twins’ 95th L of the year.

18 Sep

worth noting

Props to Ned Yost, the onetime Jackson Mets star, for notching his 1,000th win as a big league manager. Kansas City snapped a five-game losing skid on Saturday with a 3-2 win over the Chicago White Sox. The defending world champs remain in the picture in the American League wild card race. Former Southwest Mississippi Community College standout Jarrod Dyson went 2-for-4 with a run for the Royals. … Ex-JaxMets manager Clint Hurdle saw his Pittsburgh Pirates get back to .500 (74-74) with a doubleheader sweep of Cincinnati. The Pirates can’t be counted out in the National League wild card race just yet. … Can’t help but notice what former Mississippi Braves star Jose Peraza has done with the Reds: .326 with two homers, 19 RBIs, 17 runs and 16 steals in 59 games. Injuries to Mississippians Billy Hamilton and Zack Cozart have opened the door for more playing time for Peraza. … Craig Kimbrel, another former M-Braves star playing somewhere other than Atlanta, struck out all four batters he faced on Saturday as Boston beat the New York Yankees for the third straight day at Fenway Park. Kimbrel has 27 saves for the AL East leaders. … Ole Miss alum Drew Pomeranz gets the start tonight for Boston against the Yankees’ CC Sabathia in the ESPN game. Pomeranz is 2-5 with a 4.60 ERA for the Sox; he was 8-7, 2.47 with San Diego. … Atlanta has called up 2015 M-Braves third baseman Rio Ruiz, who becomes the 16th M-Braves alum to make an MLB roster this season. … Ole Miss product Chris Coghlan, trying to secure a spot on the Chicago Cubs’ postseason roster, hit his first homer for the NL Central champs on Saturday – he had five in Oakland – after going 3-for-4 with an RBI on Friday. The lefty-hitting Coghlan played first base on Friday and left field on Saturday; he can also play second and third base. … Former UM standout Seth Smith picked up his 56th RBI – three short of his career-high – in Seattle’s 2-1 loss to Houston in an AL wild card battle. … Hunter Renfroe, the ex-Mississippi State star, drove in two runs to help El Paso beat Oklahoma City 4-3 in 11 innings and claim the Pacific Coast League championship. UM product Auston Bousfield also played for the Chihuahuas. El Paso moves on to the Triple-A championship game.

16 Sep

in other news

There was a celebration at Trustmark Park on Thursday night, but it was the “bad guys” who threw down. The Jackson (Tenn.) Generals claimed the Southern League pennant with an 11-3 win against the Mississippi Braves that completed a 3-0 sweep. So … enough about that. In the Class A South Atlantic League, former DeSoto Central High star Austin Riley hit a home run – his 22nd of the year – to help the Rome Braves move to within a victory of the championship in the low-A loop. Rome beat Lakewood 2-0 on Thursday to take a 2-1 series lead with Game 4 set for tonight in New Jersey. “We’re ready to get after it,” Riley told milb.com. Riley’s star is rising. At age 19, in his first full pro season, he hit .271 with 20 homers and 80 RBIs for Rome, making Baseball America’s All-Low Class A team at third base. The 41st overall pick in 2015, he is currently rated Atlanta’s No. 6 prospect by BA and No. 13 by mlb.com with an ETA in the big leagues of 2019. “Riley has the makings of an impact run-producing hitter,” writes MLBPipeline. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound right-handed hitter could be in Mississippi sometime next summer. That should give M-Braves fans a little lift.