Tag Archives: 2024 World Series

31 Oct

a memory evoked

Los Angeles rallied from a five-run deficit Wednesday night to win Game 5 — and the World Series — evoking a painful memory for Atlanta fans but no doubt a thrilling one for Hattiesburg native Charlie Hayes. According to baseballreference.com, the only other time a team has squandered a lead of five runs or more after five innings and lost a Series game was in Game 4 in 1996. The Braves, up 2-1 in the Series, led 6-0 after five innings but fell to the New York Yankees 8-6 in 10 at old Fulton County Stadium. Hayes played a role in the rally. He had an RBI hit in the three-run sixth and another knock in the eighth, when Jim Leyritz’s three-run homer off Mark Wohlers crushed the soul of Braves fans and tied the score 6-6. Hayes also reached on an error that scored the final run in New York’s two-run 10th. The former Forrest County AHS star went 3-for-5 in Game 4 — his only hits in the six-game Series — and three days later at Yankee Stadium caught the foul pop that closed out the Yankees’ championship. A midseason pick-up by the Yankees in ’96, Hayes played 14 years all told in the big leagues (1998-2001), batting .262 with 144 homers and winning the one ring. P.S. Dodgers first baseman and Mississippi Braves alum Freddie Freeman, 6-for-20 with four homers and 12 RBIs against the Yankees, was named the MVP of the 2024 Fall Classic, becoming the first Mississippi-connected player to win that award. No native or college alum has done so. … In the Arizona Fall League on Wednesday, Ole Miss product Tim Elko went 3-for-5 with a double, a homer (his fourth), four RBIs and three runs for Glendale. The Chicago White Sox prospect is hitting .267 in the AFL.

29 Oct

riding the wave

David Mershon was the 532nd pick in the MLB draft back in July. So far, that looks like a steal for the Los Angeles Angels. Mershon, an All-SEC shortstop at Mississippi State this year, is excelling in the Arizona Fall League after a productive start to his pro career this summer at the Double-A level. The 5-foot-7, 175-pound Mershon went 2-for-3 with two walks, a triple, an RBI and two runs for Mesa on Monday. The 21-year-old South Carolina native is batting .250 with a .451 on-base percentage, ranking second in walks (13) in the star-studded AFL. He has two triples, seven RBIs, 10 runs and four stolen bases in 13 games as one of just two 2024 draftees originally assigned to the AFL. Mershon hit .347 at State this season with six homers and 27 steals. The Angels nabbed him as a sophomore-eligible and promptly sent him to Double-A Rocket City, where he answered the challenge with a hit in his first pro game. He batted .254 (.326 OBP) with five bags in 29 games overall in the Southern League. … Ex-Ole Miss star Kemp Alderman (a Miami prospect) is batting .306 with six homers in nine games for Peoria in the AFL, and UM alum Tim Elko (Chicago White Sox) has three homers and a .225 average in 10 games for Glendale. P.S. Postseason flashback: Former Mississippi State standout Hunter Renfroe’s 94.9 mph outfield assist in Game 4 of the 2020 World Series remains the hardest throw for an outfield assist in the Fall Classic since such stat-tracking began in 2015. Los Angeles’ Teoscar Hernandez made a 93.9 mph throw — third on the list — to nab New York’s Giancarlo Stanton at the plate on Monday night. Renfroe, playing for Tampa Bay in 2020, registered two assists in Game 4 of the 2020 Series against the Dodgers, cutting down runners at second and third base. He also homered in that game, which the Rays won before ultimately dropping the series.

26 Oct

celebrate, celebrate …

There were two wild celebrations in baseball on Friday, the one at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles and another at Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taiwan, where Kirk McCarty and his CTBC Brothers teammates celebrated a Chinese Professional Baseball League title. McCarty, the former Southern Miss standout from Hattiesburg, won Game 3 for the Brothers, working 5 1/3 shutout innings in a 10-0 win over Uni-President that put the club up 2-1 in the best-of-7 Taiwan Series. CTBC won the clincher 12-6 on Friday for the franchise’s 10th CPBL crown. McCarty went 5-3 with a 2.76 ERA for CTBC in his first season in Taiwan after a year in the Korean Baseball Organization, where the little lefty won nine games in 2023. Drafted by Cleveland out of USM in 2017, McCarty made the big leagues in 2022 and posted a 4-3, 4.54, ledger for the Guardians. He won two C-USA titles with the Golden Eagles. P.S. Former Mississippi Braves pitcher Evan Phillips was a late scratch from Los Angeles’ World Series roster, reportedly because of minor arm soreness. The Dodgers added pitchers Alex Vesia and Brusdar Graterol to the 26-man squad, and both worked effectively in the 6-3 win capped by M-Braves alum Freddie Freeman’s walk-off grand slam in the 10th inning. … Brennon McNair, Magee High product, had a disappointing fourth year in pro ball, batting .193 for Low-Class A Columbia in the Kansas City system. The 22-year-old outfielder, who can also play third base and shortstop, will get a chance to redeem himself in the Australian Baseball League, where he’ll play for Brisbane starting next month. McNair did have some highlights in 2024, hitting eight homers, 15 doubles and two triples and swiping nine bases in 87 games. His career average is .207 with 18 bombs.

25 Oct

names to know

There are no Magnolia State natives or school alums on the active rosters for this year’s World Series, though there are some significant state connections. Former Mississippi Braves star Freddie Freeman plays first base and Evan Phillips, another M-Braves alum, pitches for Los Angeles. Trent Grisham, who played for the Biloxi Shuckers, is a reserve outfielder for New York. Ex-Mississippi State star Travis Chapman also suits up for the Yankees and enjoys the privilege of slapping hands with Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, et al., as they start their home run trek. Chapman, the Yankees’ first-base coach, was an outstanding third baseman who played on two College World Series teams at State before enjoying a nice pro career (.286 average) that included one at-bat in The Show in 2003. He played his last game in 2006 and then became a manager and coach in the Yankees’ minor league chain. He joined the big club in 2022. Grisham belted 20 homers in 79 games for Biloxi in 2017-18 and hit nine this year for the Yankees, but the lefty hitter has yet to appear in this postseason. Freeman, who has pronounced himself a “100 percent go” for tonight’s Game 1 despite an ankle injury, played for the M-Braves in 2009; he hit .248 with two homers and 24 RBIs in 41 games. He made the big leagues in 2010 and is an eight-time All-Star and former MVP. Phillips did two stints in Pearl (2016 and ’17), appearing in 37 games as a reliever. He reached Atlanta in 2018 and was traded to Baltimore during that season. The right-hander has yet to allow a run in 12 postseason appearances over four years with the Dodgers. … Andy Fletcher, an Ole Miss alum and Olive Branch resident, is on the umpiring crew for the Series and will be behind home plate for Game 2 at Dodger Stadium. A 25-year vet in MLB, Fletcher was behind the plate in Korea for Game 2 of the 2024 season when the Dodgers played San Diego. … Brent Rooker, MSU alum now with Oakland, will serve as a correspondent for MLB Network in Game 3 of the Series at Yankee Stadium, doing pre- and postgame interviews. P.S. In the previous 11 World Series matchups featuring the Dodgers and Yankees, the only one in which a Mississippian played any type of role was the 1941 meeting. Morton native Atley Donald, nicknamed Swampy, started Game 4 for the Yankees and stood to get the loss before Mickey Owen’s infamous ninth-inning passed ball allowed the Yankees to mount a winning rally en route to taking the Series 4-1. Right-hander Donald pitched eight years with the Yankees from 1938-45 and compiled a 65-33 record with a 3.52 ERA. He was a three-time world champion with the Bronx Bombers.

24 Oct

classic anniversaries

Looking back while we count down to the first pitch of the 2024 World Series: Forty years ago this month, a pair of Mississippi natives stood tall on the game’s biggest stage. Jackson native Chet Lemon and Sunflower’s Larry Herndon, playing center and left field, respectively, helped Detroit beat San Diego in five games to win the 1984 World Series. Lemon batted .299 and Herndon .335 with a homer for the Tigers, who have not won the Fall Classic since. … Drift back to 1934: Adopted Mississippian Dizzy Dean won Games 1 and 7 for St. Louis — the Gas House Gang — in a classic Series against Detroit. Gulfport native Gerald “Gee” Walker, 1-for-3 in the Series for Detroit, delivered a game-tying pinch single in the ninth inning of Game 2 and the Tigers went on to win in 12. … Fifty years ago, Belzoni’s Herb Washington — the so-called designated runner who stole 29 bases in 1974 — made three Series appearances for Oakland, getting no bags and scoring no runs against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was picked off in the ninth inning of Game 2, the only game the Dodgers won. He was released in 1975. … Twenty-five years ago, there was the curious case of Howard Battle, the Ocean Springs product who surprisingly made Atlanta’s postseason roster after playing very little in the regular season. In Game 1 against the New York Yankees — who swept the Braves in four — Battle was announced as a pinch hitter, then replaced when the Yankees changed pitchers. It was his last appearance in an MLB box score. … In 2004, Boston famously ended the Curse of the Bambino by sweeping St. Louis. There were no Mississippians on the Red Sox’s postseason roster, but two played for them that season and got rings: Vicksburg native Ellis Burks and Meridian’s Jamie Brown. The 40-year-old Burks, drafted by Boston in 1983, got the honor of carrying the championship trophy off the plane when the team arrived back in Boston after clinching the Series in St. Louis. … Ten years ago, San Francisco beat Kansas City — and McComb native Jarrod Dyson — in a dramatic 7-game Series. Dyson was a quiet 2-for-10 with no runs or RBIs. The next year, he got a second chance at a ring — and got a key steal in Game 5 as the Royals eliminated the New York Mets. P.S. In the 1944 Negro League World Series, Starkville’s Cool Papa Bell, at age 41, and Greenwood’s Dave Hoskins — who pitched and played the outfield that season — helped the Homestead Grays win the title in five games over Birmingham. Hoskins, who would go on to play in MLB, went 6-for-22 with a homer, five RBIs and three runs. Bell was 6-for-24 with a triple, three RBIs, a run and two steals.