17 Dec

trade talk

Published reports say San Diego and Tampa Bay are talking about a trade that would send outfielder Wil Myers to the Padres. Such a move would give San Diego, which already has added Matt Kemp, a glut of outfielders and would likely mean yet another trade. Former Ole Miss star Seth Smith of Jackson would probably be “the most attractive and affordable ($6.5 million) piece for most clubs,” according to mlb.com. Smith, in his first year with the Padres after coming over from Oakland, batted .266 with 12 home runs, 48 RBIs and 31 doubles in 2014. The lefty hitter played mostly left field and mostly against right-handed pitching (.240, zero homers in 50 at-bats vs. lefties). Smith is a career .265 hitter with 85 homers in the big leagues since making his debut with Colorado as a September call-up in 2007. P.S. Aaron Holbert will join Phillip Wellman as a four-term manager of the Mississippi Braves when the Double-A club hits the field in 2015. Brian Snitker, Jeff Blauser and Rocket Wheeler all served just one season. … Former M-Braves on the move in recent days include Zeke Spruill (traded by Arizona to Boston), J.R. Graham (a Rule 5 pick by Minnesota), Sean Gilmartin (Rule 5 pick by the New York Mets) and Antoan Richardson (minor league deal with Texas). Graham, who spent the last two (injury-dampened) seasons in Mississippi, will have a solid shot at making the Twins’ roster in the spring.

28 Jul

hot and cold

No hitter in the majors has been hotter in July than Seth Smith. But the Hillcrest Christian and Ole Miss alumnus took a chilly 0-for-4 today as San Diego fell to Atlanta 2-0 at Turner Field. Smith is batting .385 this month. He hit .203 in June, .354 in May and .246 in April. That is the definition of mercurial. For the year, the left-handed hitting outfielder is at .295 with 11 home runs, 31 RBIs and 42 runs, numbers that have to thrill the punch-less Padres. He batted just .240 and .253 in Oakland the previous two years. Smith went 3-for-8 in the Atlanta series, with all three hits coming in Friday’s opener, the only one of the four games the Padres won. He struck out three times today, twice against Ervin Santana, then again against Craig Kimbrel in the ninth. … Former Mississippi Braves star Evan Gattis belted his 17th homer for the Braves today; it was his first since June 18. He spent a spell on the disabled list during that time.

11 May

have a day

Seth Smith went 3-for-4, drove in four runs, scored two and came up a single shy of the first cycle in San Diego Padres history. But the Ole Miss product’s big day wasn’t the best by a Mississippian in the majors on Saturday. No, that honor would have to go to Corey Dickerson, the ex-Meridian Community College star from McComb, who went 4-for-5, hit two homers, drove in four runs and scored three in Colorado’s 11-2 win at Cincinnati. Dickerson, in his second MLB campaign, is batting .385 with four homers and 11 RBIs as a platooning outfielder for the rolling Rockies, second in the National League West. Jackson native Smith, playing more regularly for the Padres, has been on a roll of his own with 15 hits in his last 27 at-bats. He is batting .327 with three homers and 13 RBIs. P.S. Vicksburg native Ellis Burks, who had some monster years with Colorado during his playing days, is working as a part-time instructor with Rockies hitters this season.

27 Apr

kings of swing

Nomination for Understatement of the Year, College Edition: “We swung the bats well today.” Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco made that comment today moments after the No. 12 Rebels produced 17 hits and beat nationally ranked Kentucky 18-5 in Lexington. Yes, 17 hits and 18 runs qualifies as swinging the bats well. Auston Bousfield, having an amazing season, went 5-for-6 with a home run, six RBIs and three runs. For the year, the junior from Florida is at .363 with five homers, 34 RBIs and 38 runs. The Rebels got three more homers in today’s win, from Will Allen, J.B. Woodman and Sikes Orvis. Orvis homered for the second straight day and now has 11 bombs for the year. Yes, the Rebels also swung the bats well on Friday, getting 15 hits in a 12-4 victory. They are 32-12, 12-8 SEC, heading into Sunday’s series finale. Chances are they’ll swing the bats well again. P.S. Former Ole Miss star Seth Smith, now with the San Diego Padres, missed a second straight game today because of a groin injury. Smith has been swinging the bat well, so to speak, hitting .313 over his last 10 games before the injury. He’s at .277 for the year. Smith homered in his first at-bat as a Padre back on March 31 but has hit just one since.

30 Mar

big sunday

The state’s Big 3 Division I schools find themselves in very different positions heading into series finales today. Ole Miss seeks to avoid a sweep at Alabama; Mississippi State will play a rubber game against Arkansas at Dudy Noble Field; and Southern Miss goes for the sweep at Florida Atlantic. Worth noting, too, is a doubleheader in Lorman, where Jackson State will try to rebound from a 4-3 loss to struggling Alcorn State in Saturday’s SWAC series opener. Ole Miss, coming off a thumping by USM at Trustmark Park in Pearl last Tuesday, saw ace Chris Ellis (0.67 ERA) get KO’d early by Alabama in a 7-6 loss on Friday, then fell 6-5 in 10 innings on Saturday. The Rebels, ranked ninth, are now 21-7, 4-4 SEC. State, ranked 13th, moved to 5-3 in the league and 19-10 overall by beating Arkansas 5-1 in Game 2 on Saturday after dropping Game 1 of the twinbill 4-0. USM clinched its third straight Conference USA series win with a 5-2 over Florida Atlantic on Saturday. The Golden Eagles won the opener 2-0 on Friday. USM has won four straight games overall to reach 15-12 and 6-2 C-USA. P.S. Jackson native and Ole Miss alum Seth Smith hit his first homer of the spring in San Diego’s last exhibition game on Saturday. The left-handed hitting Smith, batting .325 with seven RBIs in his first camp with the Padres, should see plenty of playing time early on, though he may sit in tonight’s opener against Los Angeles Dodger lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu. The Padres put Carlos Quentin on the disabled list — where he joins Cameron Maybin — and sent Kyle Blanks to Triple-A, reducing the crowd in their outfield. Smith is one of five on the opening day roster.

04 Mar

taking a position

Cameron Maybin’s arm injury may mean more playing time for Seth Smith in San Diego’s outfield. Maybin, the Padres’ erstwhile center fielder, reportedly could be out until June. If Will Venable shifts from right to center, which seems likely, former Ole Miss star Smith and Chris Denorfia could form a nice lefty-righty platoon in right field. San Diego has Carlos Quentin slotted for left field, with Kyle Blanks and utilityman Alexi Amarista also vying for playing time somewhere in the outfield. Smith, acquired from Oakland in an off-season trade, batted .253 with eight homers in 2013. P.S. If a hot start in the spring is a good omen, then these guys should be smiling: Southern Miss product Brian Dozier (5-for-7 for Minnesota); Taylorsville’s Billy Hamilton (3-for-9 with two steals for Cincinnati); Southwest Mississippi Community College alum Jarrod Dyson (3-for-5 with three walks for Kansas City); Ole Miss product Zack Cozart (5-for-9 for the Reds); ex-Meridian CC star Corey Dickerson (5-for-10 for Colorado); former Jackson Generals right-hander Freddy Garcia (five scoreless innings in two starts for Atlanta); future Mississippi Braves outfielder Matt Lipka (4-for-12 with four RBIs for the big Braves); and ex-M-Braves star Jeff Francoeur (2-for-3 today with two RBIs for Cleveland).

04 Dec

new digs for mr. smith

Seth Smith is on the move again, this time via trade from Oakland to San Diego, where there is the promise of more at-bats than the ex-Ole Miss star got in 2013. The Padres, who have an abundance of outfielders, were seeking another left-handed hitter. Smith, a corner outfielder who got most of his 368 ABs last year against right-handers, batted .253 with eight homers and 40 RBIs, a rather lackluster stat line. He hit 14 homers for the A’s in 2012 and has 73 for his career, with a high of 17 in 2010. That was in Colorado, home to the best hitter’s park in MLB. Oakland’s O.Co Coliseum is a pitcher’s park, and San Diego’s Petco Park is even more pitcher-friendly. Bottom line: The 2014 season could be challenging for Smith, who may be battling for playing time with Carlos Quentin, Cameron Maybin, Will Venable and Chris Denorfia. Venable is the only other lefty swinger in that mix.