deep thoughts

Seth Smith’s start for the Oakland A’s has not been what the former Ole Miss standout would have hoped for. He is batting just .244 with three homers, including the one he smacked on Sunday against Detroit’s Justin Verlander in a 3-1 loss. Some drop-off in Smith’s production might have been expected, since he moved from a great hitter’s park in Colorado to a lousy one in Oakland. But here’s an oddity: Smith is hitting .298 with two homers and six RBIs at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, .179 with one and three on the road. … Southern Miss alum Brian Dozier’s first career homer helped Minnesota win on Sunday and finally reach the 10-win plateau. … Former Mississippi Braves star Jeff Francoeur, now with Kansas City, hit his first home run, surprisingly late in the season for a player with his punch. He told the media it feels like “a great weight has been lifted from my shoulders.” … Ex-Mississippi State standout Jonathan Papelbon is now 10-for-10 in save opportunities for Philadelphia; he has been a bright spot in a rough start for the Phillies. … Drew Pomeranz, sent down last week by Colorado to work on his mechanics, threw six shutout innings on Sunday in his first start for Triple-A Colorado Springs. Ole Miss product Pomeranz was 0-2 with a 4.70 ERA in the big leagues this season.