Monthly Archives: June 2012

Roy Oswalt reportedly touched 94 mph with his fastball and threw some of his famous loopy curveballs for strikes in a two-inning minor league outing on Saturday. The Weir resident and former Holmes Community College standout, signed by Texas last week, threw 34 pitches (20 for strikes), allowed three hits but yielded no runs for Triple-A Round Rock. Oswalt is expected to make three more minor league starts. Exactly when he might join the Rangers’ rotation is still up in the air, but he appears to be in good form. “I feel as healthy as ever,” Oswalt told the Austin American-Statesman. Oswalt had injury issues last season with Philadelphia, fueling speculation at one point that he might be done. … Also on the Round Rock roster but currently on the disabled list is Starkville native Julio Borbon. The outfielder has put up good numbers (.284, seven home runs, 40 steals) when given big-league opportunities, but Texas doesn’t seem to have room for him. Wouldn’t be surprising to see Borbon changing organizations in the near future.

Six outs from elimination today in the NCAA Division II College World Series, Delta State was right where it wanted to be. Or so it seems. The Statesmen, who won five straight elimination games just to get to the CWS, rallied from a 5-0 deficit in the eighth inning to beat Minnesota State-Mankato 6-5 and earn a berth in the national championship game. DSU (49-14) will play West Chester at 6 p.m. on Saturday in Cary, N.C., in a one-game showdown for the crown. It would be the second national title for DSU and coach Mike Kinnison, who also won it all in 2004. Michael Vinson got the game-winning hit in the bottom of the ninth, breaking a 5-5 tie. “I never give up on this team and they haven’t given up on me this entire season,” Kinnison said in a school release.

Don’t look now, but Jarrod Saltalamacchia might be headed to Kansas City as an American League All-Star. The Mississippi Braves alumnus (2006-07) hit his fifth home run in his last 11 games on Thursday night as Boston fell to Detroit. Saltalamacchia, 27, a switch-hitting catcher, is batting .281 with 10 homers and 24 RBIs for the year. While bouncing from Atlanta to Texas to Boston, “Salty” has been slow to develop. He entered this season penciled in as the Red Sox’s No. 1 catcher but with things to prove. He batted just .235 in 2011 (to go with 16 homers and 56 RBIs). His defense is solid enough, but that’s not why he’s in the lineup. Saltalamacchia needs to hit and hit with power. This season, with what he has said is a more focused approach at the plate, he’s doing that. Kansas City, here he comes? P.S. Former M-Braves shortstop Andrelton Simmons is expected to make his big league debut for Atlanta tonight in Washington. … Ex-Itawamba Community College star Desmond Jennings started a rehab assignment Thursday night in A-ball and should return soon to Tampa Bay, which appears to need him. … Weir’s Roy Oswalt will launch his “comeback” with Texas’ Triple-A Round Rock club on Saturday. … If the New York Mets decide they need outfield help — and they just might — former Mississippi Gulf Coast CC standout Fred Lewis is batting .289 with 11 extra-base hits at Triple-A Buffalo.