seeing stars

Three hits, four runs and an RBI. Nice Triple-A debut for Nathaniel Lowe, the Mississippi State alum who is racing up the ladder in Tampa Bay’s organization. The 23-year-old first baseman, a 13th-round pick in 2016, started this season in A-ball, moved to Double-A Montgomery in early June, played in the All-Star Futures Game in July and was promoted to Durham on Wednesday. “It was really fun, getting to go out there against a higher level of competition,” Lowe said in an milb.com story. On the year, he is batting .352 with 23 homers and 87 RBIs. … If you were picking an all-star team of Mississippians in the minors, Lowe would have to be the first baseman (though there is much competition at that spot) and the 3-hole hitter. The rest of the team? Here goes: Pitcher: Ole Miss product David Parkinson, now in high-A in Philadelphia’s system. He was 8-1, 1.51 ERA in low-A and threw seven shutout innings in his high-A debut on Saturday. (MSU alum Dakota Hudson would have been the choice here, but he is now in the big leagues with St. Louis.) Catcher: Jack Kruger (Double-A, Los Angeles Angels). The ex-State star is hitting .323 with four homers and 24 RBIs at Mobile and .306 with seven homers on the season. Second base: Trent Giambroni (Double-A, Chicago Cubs). The Delta State alum is hitting .257 with 16 homers at Tennessee. Third base: Austin Riley (Triple-A, Atlanta). The former DeSoto Central High standout is at .274 with four homers and 29 RBIs for Gwinnett. He started 2018 in Mississippi and is batting .293 with 11 bombs overall. Shortstop: Errol Robinson (Double-A, Los Angeles Dodgers). The ex-Ole Miss standout is batting .247 with eight homers and 47 RBIs at Tulsa. Left field: Will Golsan (rookie ball, Colorado). The 2018 draftee out of UM is hitting .333 with 37 runs in 40 games at Grand Junction. Center field: Davis Bradshaw (rookie, Miami). The Meridian Community College product, a 2018 draftee, is at .329 with 13 runs and eight steals in 22 games in the Gulf Coast League. Right field: Jacob Robson (Triple-A, Detroit). The former MSU star is batting .310 at Toledo and is at .294 with 10 homers, 43 RBIs and 14 steals at two levels this year. DH: Brent Rooker (Double-A, Minnesota). The 2017 SEC Triple Crown winner out of State is hitting .276 with 21 homers and 71 RBIs for Chattanooga. Closer: Reid Humphreys (Double-A, Colorado). The State product, now with Hartford, has 24 saves and a 2.13 ERA at two levels in 2018.