putting down roots
Between April and November of 2022, Brent Rooker was a baseball vagabond. The Mississippi State alum — a first-round draft pick in 2017 — bounced from Minnesota to San Diego to Kansas City, getting into only 16 big league games during the ’22 season. He was designated for assignment by the Royals after the season and claimed on waivers by Oakland, where he has not just found a home but thrived. Rooker hit his 30th home run of 2024 on Saturday, giving home 30 bombs in back-to-back years. The right-handed slugger became the 10th Oakland batter to accomplish that feat, a list that includes Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Reggie Jackson and Jason Giambi. “It’s pretty special. He’s going to continue to impress. What’s so great about Rook is he’s so humble, too, for the success he’s having,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said in an mlb.com story. Rooker was an All-Star in 2023 and has been ever better this season, despite not making the Midsummer Classic roster. After Saturday’s 3-for-4 effort, he is batting .289 with 22 doubles, 87 RBIs and 62 runs. He ranks fifth in the American League in slugging, sixth in homers and seventh in OPS. The 402-foot homer Rooker hit at Oakland Coliseum on Saturday was the 70th of his career; the first came on Sept. 8, 2020, with Minnesota. P.S. Two other Mississippi products homered in MLB on Saturday: Biloxi High alum Colt Keith hit his 12th for Detroit and ex-Southern Miss standout Matt Wallner his ninth for the Twins. Austin Riley (DeSoto Central) is second to Rooker on the all-Mississippi homer list with 19, and Jordan Westburg (MSU) has 18. Both are out with injuries that may be season-ending. Hunter Renfroe (MSU) has 12 and Nathaniel Lowe (MSU) 10. … Cal Conley, once a rated prospect in Atlanta’s system, hasn’t hit much for the Mississippi Braves (.227 in two Double-A seasons), but he can pick it at shortstop. In Saturday night’s game at Trustmark Park (a 3-0 loss to Chattanooga), the ex-Texas Tech star made four dazzling defensive plays. He had a hand in three double plays, one unassisted.