striking it rich
The Pioneer League appears to be a great place to go searching for hits. That’s certainly been the case for a trio of Mississippians who have found their way to the independent league in the Great Northwest. Christopher Sargent, former Southern Miss slugger who went undrafted in 2024, is batting .395 for the Ogden Raptors with 21 homers and 56 RBIs in 54 games. His batting average ranks just seventh in a league that features five .400 hitters, including a .484 at the top. Spence Coffman, 21, former Tishomingo County star who was released by San Diego in April, is hitting .394 for the Grand Junction Jackalopes; he has six homers and 51 RBIs in 38 games. Kellum Clark, 24, the ex-Mississippi State standout from Brandon released by the New York Mets last fall, has been with the Rocky Mountain Vibes for 22 games and is raking at a .424 clip. He has seven homers and 34 RBIs. Bradley Pelle, undrafted out of NCAA Division III Millsaps this year after winning SAA player of the year honors, is 1-for-5 in two games for Ogden. Give him time. Sargent surely must be on the radar of some MLB clubs. The 5-foot-11, 185-pound first baseman hit 51 homers in three seasons at USM, though he batted just .249. With Ogden in 2024, he belted 19 bombs, drove in 95 runs and batted .316. Clark, a .270 hitter in three years at MSU, batted just .213 in two years in the low minors with the Mets. Coffman hit .260 over three years, playing mostly in rookie ball, in the Padres’ chain. P.S. The Greensboro Grasshoppers, Pittsburgh’s High-Class A club, have one of the best overall records (64-27) in the minors as well as one of the best players, former Jackson Prep standout Konnor Griffin, their shortstop/center fielder. Another Mississippi product also has played a key role for Greensboro: reliever Landon Tompkins, a Hinds Community College and Northwest Rankin alum in his third pro season. Tomkins, who has been with the Grasshoppers all season, is 5-2 with a 1.99 ERA, nine holds and six saves. He threw two scoreless innings for the W in a 3-1 victory vs. Brooklyn on Wednesday night. … Aiden Moffett, former Taylorsville High standout who pitched at LSU and Texas, has signed as an undrafted free agent with the Chicago Cubs. The 6-3 right-hander, lightly used at his college stops, pitched in the MLB Draft League earlier this summer and put up a 2.61 ERA in eight appearances. … Kevin Graham, a member of Ole Miss’ national title team, has been released by Arizona; he was a .221 hitter in four minor league campaigns.