Monthly Archives: June 2017

10 Jun

present arms

On paper, the glaring difference – and it is very glaring – between Super Regional foes Mississippi State and LSU is pitching. The Tigers have a 3.54 ERA, second-best in the SEC. For State, its staff worn thin by injuries, the number is 4.82, 12th among the 14 league teams. When these two teams met on the field, in Starkville in late May, LSU’s pitching prevailed. The Tigers won all three games, allowing 12 earned runs to 24 by State hurlers. Even though the Bulldogs scored some runs, they didn’t score nearly enough. With Alex Lange, Jared Pouche’ and Eric Walker, a formidable trio, lined up in LSU’s rotation, the Bulldogs aren’t likely to score a ton in the best-of-3 Super Regional at crazy Alex Box Stadium. That puts the onus on the State pitchers. And while they may appear overmatched, consider what this bunch did under dire straits in the Hattiesburg Regional. State won four games over two days after losing its opener (and catching a break when Day 2 was postponed by rain). Bulldogs head coach Andy Cannizaro and pitching coach Gary Henderson did a masterful job of piecing together the innings after having to use five arms in the Friday loss to South Alabama. Spencer Price and Riley Self worked on both Sunday and Monday, closing out the drama-filled 8-6 clincher against Southern Miss. Denver McQuary and Peyton Plumlee provided a clutch tag-team effort to beat South Alabama on Sunday, and Jacob Billingsley delivered a huge complete game in the Monday opener against USM. Against LSU, more of those kind of efforts will be needed. Maybe that’s a lot to ask. But, hey, that’s why they play the games.

10 Jun

more for moore

Known for his right-handed power, Tyler Moore is capitalizing on an opportunity to show it off for Miami. The Northwest Rankin High, Meridian Community College and Mississippi State alum hit two home runs for the Marlins on Friday, helping to fuel a 12-7 win over Pittsburgh. Moore, 3-for-4 with four RBIs, told the Miami Herald it was “an awesome night. … You don’t hit two very often.” He’s done it once before, in 2012, with Washington. An injury to Justin Bour has enabled Moore to get regular duty at first base this week, and in six starts he is 8-for-22 with three homers and nine RBIs. For the season, in 52 at-bats, the 30-year-old Moore is hitting .269 with four homers and 14 RBIs. He signed with the Marlins as a minor league free agent in the off-season and has had two stints with the big club. P.S. Mitch Moreland, another State product, went 3-for-4 with his eighth homer in Boston’s 5-3 win against Detroit, and Corey Dickerson, another Meridian CC alum, hit his 14th homer in Tampa Bay’s 13-4 romp past Oakland. … Props to a couple of ex-Mississippi Braves stars: Rio Ruiz had a walk-off pinch hit for Atlanta (scoring Dansby Swanson) and Mallex Smith, taking over in center field for injured Kevin Kiermaier in Tampa, went 2-for-3 with a homer, three RBIs, three runs and three steals.

09 Jun

they did what?

When the St. Louis Cardinals come to bat tonight at Busch Stadium, the familiar figure of Chris Maloney will be missing from the third-base coaching box. As part of a series of personnel moves today, the reeling Cardinals announced that the Jackson native and Mississippi State alum has been reassigned within the organization. How that will help a 26-32 team that is coming off an 0-7 road trip remains to be seen. Maloney has been on the Cardinals’ big league staff since 2012, starting out as the first-base coach. He was a minor league manager for 18 years, 15 of those in the St. Louis system.

09 Jun

spinning wheels

Five years ago this month, as the MLB draft loomed, the most highly touted Mississippi-connected player was Chris Stratton, the reigning SEC pitcher of the year from Mississippi State. He went in the first round, 20th overall to San Francisco. But he wasn’t the first Mississippian picked. Toronto pulled a bit of a surprise by taking D.J. Davis out of Stone County High with the 17th pick and signing him for $1.7 million. Five years later, Davis is still in A-ball and seems to be spinning his wheels. Once a top 10 prospect in the Blue Jays’ system, the lefty-hitting outfielder is hitting .234 with five extra-base hits, 10 RBIs and 14 steals in 45 games for high-A Dunedin the Florida State League. He hit .197 during an injury-interrupted season at Dunedin last year and struggled in winter ball in Australia also. His career average is .238. He’s about to turn 23, and he may be running out of time on the developmental track. Davis’ struggles are indicative of why MLB teams are reluctant to use high draft picks on Mississippi prep players. The track record isn’t good. P.S. Former Mississippi State teammates Jacob Robson and Nathaniel Lowe will be reunited as teammates in the Midwest League All-Star Game on June 20 in Midland, Mich. Both 2016 draftees, they are on the East roster. Robson is in the midst of a big year at West Michigan, Detroit’s low Class A affiliate. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound outfielder is batting .332 with 25 RBIs and 38 runs in 56 games. An eighth-round pick last June, Robson hit .294 at two rookie levels in 2016. Lowe, a 6-4, 225 first baseman, is hitting .289 with three homers and 27 RBIs in 50 games for Bowling Green in the Tampa Bay system.

08 Jun

long distance relationship

It’s not often you run across the name of Hughie Critz in a story these days. The Starkville native last played a big league game in 1935. But ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick, in a piece about Taylorsville’s Billy Hamilton, notes a link between Critz and the current Cincinnati star. Hamilton, with 40 runs in 54 games, is on pace to score 109. His on-base percentage is .305. Since 1920, Crasnick writes, only two players — Tony Armas in 1984 and Critz in 1930 — have scored 105 runs or more in a season in which they had an OBP of .305 or lower. Critz, who started that 1930 season with the Reds and finished it with the New York Giants, scored 108 runs with an OBP of .292. The diminutive infielder had 172 hits and 30 walks, and he stole only eight bases. (Hamilton, probably the fastest player in the game today, has an MLB-best 28.) Not to diminish Critz’s accomplishment, but it should be noted that the 1930 season came at the height of a “lively ball” era that saw huge offensive numbers posted across the board. Critz spent most of that year with the Giants, who had three players you might have heard of – Bill Terry, Mel Ott and Fred Lindstrom – who drove in over 100 runs each and also scored 100-plus. Critz, a Mississippi A&M (State) alum, batted .268 with a .303 OBP over an outstanding 12-year career in which he scored 90 or more runs five times.

08 Jun

rise and shine

The stars came out – a couple of them, at least – in the Mississippi Braves’ 5-4, 12-inning win against Biloxi on Wednesday night at Trustmark Park. Two of the M-Braves’ seven Southern League All-Star selections – announced on Wednesday — played key roles in the victory, which moved the team to 30-29. The M-Braves are 3 games back of first-place Pensacola in the SL South with 11 games left in the first half. The amazing Ronald Acuna went 2-for-5 with two RBIs and fellow All-Star Joey Meneses put up a 2-for-4, including a single to open the 12th and start the winning rally. Acuna, 19, is batting .367 with four homers, 20 RBIs and 14 steals in 28 Double-A games. Of the other star picks, Travis Demeritte – the team’s home run leader — had an off-night (0-for-6), and Luis Valenzuela, who’s been sidelined for several days, walked as a pinch hitter. Catcher Kade Scivicque, the Southwest Mississippi Community College product, got a night off, and 19-year-old aces Kolby Allard and Mike Soroka had already worked in the series. After tonight’s game against the Shuckers, the M-Braves travel to Pensacola for five. … Atlanta had 19 players picked for minor league All-Star Games, including DeSoto Central High product Austin Riley in the Florida State League. The third baseman is batting .248 with eight homers and 35 RBIs for the Florida Fire Frogs.

07 Jun

numbers game

The number of the day on Tuesday was four, as in the MLB record-matching four home runs hit by that noted slugger (and former Huntsville Star) Scooter Gennett of the Cincinnati Reds. But here’s some more numbers, from Mississippi connections, worth noting:
13 – Home runs by Hunter Renfroe, the former Mississippi State standout who belted two in San Diego’s 10-2 loss to Arizona.
123 – Pitches, a career-high, by Ole Miss product Drew Pomeranz over five innings in Boston’s 5-4 win against the New York Yankees.
7 – Home runs by State alum Mitch Moreland, who hit a go-ahead two-run bomb for the Red Sox in the fourth inning.
5 – Strikeouts by Craig Kimbrel, the ex-Mississippi Braves star, in nailing down his 17th save for the Red Sox; he fanned Aaron Judge on a 99-mph fastball for the final out.
6 – Home runs by Seth Smith, the former Ole Miss standout whose leadoff blast was one of four by Baltimore in a 6-5 win over Pittsburgh.
9 – Home runs by Southern Miss product Brian Dozier, who went deep in Minnesota’s 12-3 loss to Seattle; it was his third homer in his last 10 games.
.353 – Batting average, second-best in the big leagues, for UM alum Zack Cozart, who went 2-for-3 in Cincinnati’s Gennett-fueled 13-1 victory against St. Louis.
.137 – Batting average for former Richton High star JaCoby Jones, sent back to the minors by Detroit.

06 Jun

star gazing

Don’t look now, but ex-Ole Miss star Zack Cozart has climbed into the top two at shortstop in the National League All-Star voting. Cozart, batting .348 with nine home runs and 33 RBIs for Cincinnati, trails the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Corey Seager and is just ahead of the Chicago Cubs’ Addison Russell. Cozart, in his seventh big league season, has never made the All-Star Game. He said it was “a little shocking” to pass Russell, who is buoyed by Cubs fever. Cozart leads NL shortstops in most offensive categories and is also tops in Defensive Runs Saved. He went 2-for-4 on Monday night against St. Louis – extending his on-base streak to 27 games – and was in the middle of a game-winning four-run rally in the seventh inning. The Reds (26-30) are battling to stay afloat in the NL Central. P.S. Former Biloxi Shuckers standout Brett Phillips was 1-for-3 with an outfield assist (and an error) in his MLB debut for Milwaukee. Phillips is the 12th Shuckers alum to make the majors, a list that includes Orlando Arcia, Jacob Barnes and Yadiel Rivera.

05 Jun

draft news

Three more Mississippians have popped into Baseball America’s latest rating of the Top 500 draft prospects: Add Kirk McCarty, Cordell “C.J.” Dunn and Tyreque Reed to the list that again includes Brent Rooker and Jake Mangum. Rooker, SEC player of the year at Mississippi State, is up to No. 46 overall, while Mangum, a draft-eligible sophomore at State, dipped slightly to 170. McCarty, Southern Miss’ ace left-hander, checks in at No. 220. Dunn, a catcher at Center Hill High and a Texas Tech signee, is listed at 416, while Reed, a slugging infielder/outfielder at Itawamba Community College and a State commit, is No. 472. Dunn batted .382 with 22 RBIs in 28 games for the Mustangs. The 260-pound Reed hit .504 with 15 homers for ICC in 2017. Many more from the state could and probably will be drafted next week. Twenty-nine players from state schools were picked in 2016.

05 Jun

whatever happened to …

Cody Satterwhite, the former Ole Miss star out of Hillcrest Christian, is pitching for Triple-A Syracuse in the Washington system. He is 0-2 with a 5.79 ERA in eight appearances. Satterwhite has been in pro ball since 2008, battling through injuries and still chasing the big league dream. The 30-year-old right-hander spent part of last season in Japan, signed with Baltimore in the off-season, was released at the end of spring training and caught on with the Nationals. … Also on the Syracuse roster are Pascagoula’s Joey Butler (.275 in 15 games) and UM product Aaron Barrett (on the disabled list). Butler last appeared in the majors in 2015 with Tampa Bay; he spent 2016 in the Cleveland system. Barrett, who had earned a role in the Nats’ pen in 2014-15, missed all of 2016 with an injury, became a free agent and re-signed with Washington this year. … Ex-Itawamba Community College star and veteran big leaguer Desmond Jennings is hitting .237 with six home runs and 19 RBIs at Triple-A Las Vegas in the New York Mets’ system. Released by Tampa Bay last summer, Jennings signed with Cincinnati, got released again in spring and landed with the Mets. … Murrah High alum and onetime Mississippi Braves pitcher Zack Bird is now in the Texas organization but on the disabled list at Class A Down East. Bird, who made three appearances for the M-Braves in 2015, posted an 8.87 ERA in 28 games in A-ball for the Braves in 2016. The Rangers claimed the big right-hander on waivers. … Tanner Cable, the Belhaven University alum from Southaven, signed with the Gateway Grizzlies of the independent Frontier League shortly after the Blazers’ season ended and has a 3.64 ERA over six games. Cable, who also pitched at Northwest CC and Delta State, was 9-2, 2.29 ERA in two seasons at Belhaven.