04 Jan

the road ahead

In the 2014 MLB draft, major league clubs plucked the likes of Jacob Lindgren, Chris Ellis, Bobby Bradley, Justin Steele, Auston Bousfield and Jonathan Holder out of the Magnolia State. Lindgren has already made it to The Show, and the others have shown nice progress. Blake Anderson, drafted ahead of all of them at 36th overall by Miami out of West Lauderdale High, has lagged. Anderson, a 6-foot-3, 180-pound catcher, spent his second pro summer in short-season A-ball and batted .220 with two homers and 16 RBIs in 31 games. The Marlins are very high on Anderson’s defense, especially his arm, and he is rated their No. 23 prospect by mlb.com. But he still has some things to figure out at the plate. To wit: He struck out 42 times and drew three walks in 118 at-bats. “Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations.” Anderson tweeted that last summer. He turns 20 in January, still very young, but the 2016 season could be a pivotal one for him. P.S. Wonder how the New York Yankees’ acquisition of Aroldis Chapman will impact Lindgren’s future with the club. Lindgren, a lefty reliever out of Mississippi State, had a 5.14 ERA in seven games for the Yanks last year before having elbow surgery in June. He is healthy now, but there may not be a spot for him in a stacked bullpen. … Donnie Veal, the well-traveled Jackson native and big league veteran, has signed a minor league deal with Texas. Lefty Veal pitched for Atlanta briefly in 2015 and has been wintering in the Dominican Winter League (1.69 ERA in 17 appearances).

26 Jun

getting lucky

Jarrod Dyson is on the board. In the fifth inning on Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium, Dyson went yard for the Kansas City Royals. “I get lucky every 1,000 at-bats,” the McComb native and ex-Southwest Mississippi Community College star told mlb.com. Actually, the 5-foot-10, 160-pound Dyson has hit four homers in 715 career ABs. Point is, he doesn’t get many. The one he hit Wednesday off Dan Haren of the Los Angeles Dodgers was his first in just over a year. Dyson has been hot of late, batting .343 over his last 10 games; he’s at .303 for the year and has 12 stolen bases. But his team has gone cold. A 10-game win streak had propelled Ned Yost’s Royals into first place in the American League Central. But the former Jackson Mets catcher has seen his club drop six of seven since and fall 4 games back of Detroit. P.S. Ti’Quan Forbes, the state’s Mr. Baseball from Columbia High, is off to a hot start in his pro career. Forbes, a second-round pick by Texas, is 8-for-24 for the rookie-level Arizona League Rangers. He has a double, a triple, two RBIs, six runs and a steal in five games. Blake Anderson from West Lauderdale, the first Mississippian drafted (by Miami), is 0-for-8 in two games for the Gulf Coast League Marlins.

07 Jun

head of the class

There are always surprises in the MLB draft. Blake Anderson qualifies as one. The catcher from West Lauderdale High was rated No. 216 on Baseball America’s last pre-draft prospect chart. He went 36th overall, taken by Miami in the competitive balance round. As the first Mississippian picked, Anderson joins a list that includes Hunter Renfroe (2013), D.J. Davis (2012), Connor Barron (2011), Drew Pomeranz (2010) and Billy Hamilton (2009). Anderson has a chance to join another short list – the one of Mississippi-born catchers who have had success in the big leagues. The state has produced Jake Gibbs, Barry Lyons, Jerry Moses, Eli Whiteside … and, well, there aren’t many. The Marlins obviously like something about Anderson, who goes 6 feet 3, 180 pounds. Defense is said to be his forte, but he did hit .438 with eight homers this year for a perennially strong prep program that won another state title. He is a Southern Miss signee. P.S. Four Magnolia State natives were picked in the first two rounds, which is impressive. Mississippi State left-hander Jacob Lindgren, from Bay St. Louis and St. Stanislaus High, was taken 55th by the New York Yankees, who reportedly think he can rise quickly. Columbia High shortstop Ti’Quan Forbes (an Ole Miss signee) went 59th overall to Texas, and former Madison Central star Spencer Turnbull, a right-hander at Alabama, was No. 63 by Detroit. … Only one Mississippi juco player was picked in the first two days: Left-hander Lane Ratliff of Jones County JC went to Seattle in the sixth round.