Monthly Archives: May 2012

The MACJC championship will be settled today in Fulton by a pair of teams who are a long way from home. Hinds Community College and Mississippi Gulf Coast CC survived the first two days of the state tournament at Itawamba’s Roy Cresap Field. Hinds (33-16) bashed ICC 16-7 on Friday to remain unbeaten, while Gulf Coast (29-18) came out of the loser’s bracket with wins over Jones County and ICC. Gulf Coast must beat Hinds twice to win the state crown. Both teams, along with ICC, will advance to the NJCAA Division II Region 23 Tournament next week at LSU-Eunice, which is ranked No. 1 in the nation with a 48-4 record.

The odds are with Itawamba Community College. The Indians are hosting the MACJC Tournament, which starts today at Roy Cresap Field in Fulton. ICC has the best record in the state at 37-19 and is ranked No. 7 in NJCAA Division II. But … stuff happens in baseball. The other three participants in the double-elimination affair got there, as did ICC, with two-game sweeps in the best-of-3 round. No slouches here. Jones County JC is 31-17, Hinds 31-16 and resurgent Mississippi Gulf Coast 27-17. JCJC, the defending state champion, is currently ranked 20th, and Hinds was ranked 17th last week. Here’s a number to chew on: Hinds scored 25 runs to get past Northwest on the road last weekend. ICC plays Gulf Coast and JCJC meets Hinds in today’s opening round. … Meanwhile, at Scaggs Field in Meridian, Meridian Community College will host the NJCAA Division I Region 23 Tournament starting Friday. MCC (33-20) won the Miss-Lou Conference regular season title to earn the host role in the three-team event. The Eagles play Delgado (La.) on Friday at 12:30 and meet Baton Rouge that night at 7:30. The tourney concludes on Sunday. Here’s a number to chew on: MCC’s Wade Wass, an Alabama signee, has 21 home runs. P.S. Just for the record, there are six Mississippi juco products currently in the majors: Jarrod Dyson, Desmond Jennings, Tyler Moore, Tim Dillard, Cliff Lee and Tony Sipp. And free agent Roy Oswalt could be back in The Show any day now.

Josh Hamilton’s monster night for Texas on Tuesday — an MLB record-tying four home runs and an American League record 18 total bases — brings to mind the jaw-dropping performance of Jackson Senators star Tommy Bost. On May 16, 2004, Meridian native Bost belted two grand slams and a three-run homer in a 22-2 win over Amarillo at Smith-Wills Stadium. Bost tied the independent Central Baseball League mark for homers in a game and set a record with his 11 RBIs. It was the greatest hitting performance by a professional player in Smith-Wills’ long history. P.S. Delta State emphatically ended its three-year NCAA Tournament drought with a Gulf South Conference Tournament championship, which carries an automatic bid. The Statesmen (40-12) won three straight elimination games, two on Tuesday behind the pitching of Josh Branstetter (a four-hit shutout vs. North Alabama) and the hitting of Sam Kidd (four hits, three RBIs vs. Alabama-Huntsville). DSU, which also won the GSC regular season title, was No. 2 in the most recent NCAA Division II South Region rankings and may be in line to host a regional. The NCAA field will be announced Sunday.

There were some notable firsts involving Mississippians in the big leagues on Monday. Southern Miss alumnus Brian Dozier got his first hit in his first game for Minnesota. Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College product Tony Sipp got his first save of the season (and second career) for Cleveland. Former Mississippi State star Jonathan Papelbon suffered his first loss as Philadelphia’s closer, giving up a three-run homer in the ninth inning. But ex-Ole Miss standout Drew Pomeranz took the cake. Sort of. The Colorado pitcher hit his first major league home run. Alas, he was also hit in the right leg by a line drive (he’s reportedly OK), lasted just three innings and took the loss to fall to 0-2, 4.70 for the season. P.S. UM product Lance Lynn moved to 6-0 for St. Louis, and fellow ex-Rebel Zack Cozart, now batting leadoff for Cincinnati, homered for the second time in four games.

Batting second and playing shortstop … Brian Dozier. The former Southern Miss standout is, in fact, in the Minnesota lineup for tonight’s game, set to make his major league debut against Los Angels right-hander Jered Weaver at Target Field. Dozier is displacing veteran Jamey Carroll. “Hopefully, he can handle it, but there is pressure on him, just like any kid that comes up,” Twins acting manager Scott Ullger told mlb.com. He’s passed every test he’s faced so far. Dozier left USM as one of the school’s best-ever players, batting .355 for his career. Drafted in the eighth round by Minnesota in 2009, he has hit .300 for his minor league career. He showed some pop, too, in 2011 when he hit seven homers at Double-A New Britain. He played well in the Arizona Fall League and in big league camp this spring. A recent Baseball America scouting report said Dozier “does a lot of things well.” The Twins (7-20, worst record in MLB) need a lot of help, and maybe Dozier can provide some. It’ll be fun to see.

Among the state’s Big 3 Division I schools, the weekend pretty much belonged to Mississippi State. Or, more specifically, to Bulldogs junior right-hander Chris Stratton. Southern Miss got swept in a C-USA series at Tulane. Ole Miss, despite huge crowds at Oxford-University Stadium, lost two of three to highly ranked LSU in what was deemed a key series for the Rebels’ postseason hopes. State took two of three at Alabama, fueled by the Friday night performance of Stratton. The Tupelo native tossed seven shutout innings, fanning six and walking none, to improve to 9-0. For an SEC Friday starter, that’s big time. Stratton has a 2.19 ERA (second in the league to the 2.14 of Ole Miss’ Bobby Wahl, who has fewer innings), 101 strikeouts and just 17 walks in 82 1/3 innings and a .207 batting average against. He is a serious Ferriss Trophy candidate. P.S. Delta State plays West Florida today in a Gulf South Conference Tournament elimination game in Rome, Ga. The winner gets Alabama-Huntsville in the championship round on Tuesday. UAH knocked regular season champ DSU into the loser’s bracket with a 8-4 win on Sunday. … Seedings are set for the SWAC Tournament, which begins May 16 in Baton Rouge. Jackson State (21-3 in the league) long ago locked up the No. 1 seed in the East; Alcorn State is No. 2 in the division and Mississippi Valley No. 4. … Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College completed a sweep of Northeast on Sunday to reach the MACJC Tournament, which starts Thursday in Fulton. Itawamba, Jones County and Hinds are also in.

A trip to the disabled list for Milwaukee shortstop Alex Gonzalez means a trip to the big leagues for Delta State product Edwin Maysonet. Maysonet, who last played in the majors with Houston in 2009, had a good spring with the Brewers but was hitting just .214 at Triple-A Nashville. Still, Maysonet’s defense likely will be the key to how much he plays while Gonzalez is out. … Also, former Southern Miss standout Brian Dozier is getting his first call to the big leagues by Minnesota to fill the roster spot of injured Justin Morneau. Dozier was hitting .276 at Triple-A Rochester. The Twins are also recalling ex-Mississippi Braves left-hander Scott Diamond. … Former Meridian Community College ace Cliff Lee is expected to be activated for a Wednesday start with Philadelphia, according to MLB Network. … And former Jackson Generals star Lance Berkman reportedly is very close to getting back in the St. Louis lineup. The ageless Berkman, out since April 19 with a calf injury, is hitting .348 in 23 at-bats.

Former Mississippi State standout Mitch Moreland continues to rake for Texas, which leads the American League West. After a dismal start, Moreland is hitting .406 with two homers over his last 10 games, including a 3-for-4 performance on Saturday in a 5-2 win over Cleveland. He has watched his average rise from .139 to .277. … Some contend that AL East leader Tampa Bay, now 19-9 after a tough loss to Oakland, is the best team in baseball. A key figure for the Rays has been new leadoff batter Desmond Jennings, the former Itawamba Community College star. Jennings is batting .273 with three homers, 11 RBIs, seven steals and 19 runs. … MSU product Paul Maholm, after a weak start for the Chicago Cubs, is 3-0 with a 1.47 ERA in his last three starts. That’s for a 10-16 club. … Ex-Ole Miss star Lance Lynn is 5-0 with a 1.60 for National League Central leader St. Louis. ’Nuff said. … Former Mississippi Braves outfielder Jordan Schafer, battling some back problems, has managed to maintain a 25-game on-base streak for Houston. Schafer is hitting .261 with two homers and 11 stolen bases as the Astros’ leadoff man. … Former M-Braves star Tyler Pastornicky has held his own at the plate for Atlanta, batting .273, better than many of the club’s veterans. He has also been solid at shortstop. … Meanwhile, back in Double-A, Andrelton Simmons, who made a run for the big-league shortstop job in spring training, has stepped up with a .323 average, 13 RBIs and six steals for the Mississippi Braves. Yes, he can hit. … Recent arrival Evan Gattis is batting .381 with three homers and eight RBIs in five games with the M-Braves. He gets his first shot in spacious Trustmark Park today (5 p.m., vs. Pensacola). … Former Taylorsville High star Billy Hamilton made Baseball America’s High-A All-Star team for April. He hit .398 with 29 steals for the month with Cincinnati’s Bakersfield team in the California League. P.S. The field is almost set for the MACJC Tournament, which starts later this week. Itawamba Community College (which will host the double-elimination affair in Fulton), Hinds and Jones County swept their best-of-3 series. Mississippi Gulf Coast beat Northeast 7-5 late Saturday in a rain-delayed opener that was moved to Biloxi. They’ll play Game 2 (and maybe 3) there today.

Home-field advantage held up in two of the three MACJC postseason series that started on Friday. Jones County Junior College beat visiting Mississippi Delta CC 6-1 in Ellisville and Itawamba held off East Central 8-7 in Fulton. Hinds, which struggled down the stretch, went to Senatobia and, showing off its considerable prowess with the bats, pounded Northwest 14-5. Those best-of-3 series will conclude today. Mississippi Gulf Coast will host Northeast today and Sunday in Perkinston. MGCCC (29-17), coached by former Mississippi State star Gary Rath, surged at season’s end and won the No. 2 seed (and home-field rights) in the South on a coin flip. This is a good club, led by slugging Ben Slaton (12 homers) and starting pitchers Jarred Gates and Tyler Bray. The four series winners will meet for the state championship next weekend in a double-elimination event to be hosted by the highest remaining North seed. Jones is the defending state champ, as well as reigning Division II Region 23 champ. That tournament is two weekends away.

For a veteran big leaguer, playing in Triple-A must feel a little like a long layover in the airport. Well, with one key difference. He can’t be sure he’ll ever hear the call to board for a trip back to The Show. There is a large contingent of Mississippians with big league time who are currently hanging out in Triple-A, and a few of them have even made productive use of their time. Ole Miss product Matt Tolbert (Chicago Cubs) is batting .324 in 19 games, and Delta State alumnus Dusty Hughes (Atlanta) has a 0.71 ERA and three saves in 10 games. Nettleton’s Bill Hall (Baltimore) is at .294 with two homers in eight games. Jackson native Donnie Veal (Chicago White Sox) has a 2.25 ERA in eight appearances. Then there’s former Southern Miss star Jarrett Hoffpauir (Washington), who is hitting .278 with seven RBIs in 18 games. It hasn’t gone as well for Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College product Fred Lewis (New York Mets), who has played in just three games since signing on April 25 and put up a .250 average. Starkville native Julio Borbon (Texas) is batting .224, ex-DSU standout Edwin Maysonet (Milwaukee) .217, former Statesman Eli Whiteside (San Francisco) .208 and Mississippi State product Craig Tatum (New York Yankees) .179. P.S. Good to see that Bobby Abreu, the former Jackson Generals star, was picked up by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Abreu, now 38, was batting just .208 for the L.A. Angels when he was released, but the lefty hitter’s career mark of .293 is still attractive.