around the horn

Big hits have been scarce for Tim Anderson this season. He got one Saturday that would qualify. The ex-East Central Community College standout belted a 444-foot home run in the ninth inning – he put one on the board, yes — that broke a tie and lifted the Chicago White Sox to a 5-4 win at Colorado. Anderson’s ninth homer of the season – and second in as many games – came against Rockies closer Greg Holland, who tried to throw a 1-2 fastball past him. “I was onto the heater,” Anderson told The Associated Press. Anderson hit .283 with nine homers in 99 games as a rookie in 2016 and was rewarded with a big contract. He has struggled much of this year, batting .243 (.266 on-base percentage). With 19 errors in 77 games, his defense at shortstop is also a work in progress. … Former Taylorsville High star Billy Hamilton retook the MLB stolen base lead by swiping three bags – that’s 37 on the year — in Cincinnati’s 7-0 win at Arizona. It was the kind of game the Reds would love to seem more of from Hamilton: two hits, two walks, a run and an RBI. … Southwest Mississippi CC alum Jarrod Dyson hit his fifth homer of the year for Seattle in a loss at Oakland; he had seven in seven years with Kansas City. … Mississippi Braves products Julio Teheran and Akeel Morris helped Atlanta shut out Washington for the first time this season. Teheran (7-6) went seven innings and Morris, making his Atlanta debut, worked the ninth in the Braves’ 13-0 win. Morris made one appearance with the New York Mets in 2015. … Down in the minors, ex-Mississippi State star Brent Rooker mashed his fifth homer in 14 pro games at rookie-level Elizabethton in Minnesota’s system. Rooker, who hit 23 homers in 67 games at State this year, is batting .291 with nine RBIs for the E-Twins.