in memoriam

Seven years have passed since Tommy Hanson pitched at Trustmark Park in Pearl. He is one of literally a hundred Mississippi Braves who have advanced to the big leagues – and one that ardent M-Braves fans surely remember. He arrived early in the 2008 season with a lot of hoopla, a big (6 feet 6, 220 pounds), hard-throwing right-hander on a fast track to the big leagues. And Hanson delivered on his promise. He went 8-4 with a 3.58 ERA, throwing a 14-strikeout no-hitter on June 25 at the TeePee against Birmingham and helping the M-Braves win their only Southern League pennant later that summer. He was an approachable, soft-spoken guy with bright red hair, originally from Oklahoma, drafted by Atlanta out of a California junior college. He went on to win 49 games in the big leagues, most of those in four seasons with the Braves. Injury issues curtailed his MLB career, but he was still pitching this past season in the San Francisco system. Hanson, just 29, died in Atlanta on Monday of what is described as “catastrophic organ failure.” It was shocking news. He is remembered here fondly.