Tag Archives: allmississippibaseball

24 Jul

hot topics

Landon Harmon, the touted right-hander from East Union High, has signed with the Washington Nationals for $2.5 million, according to several reports. He was taken in the third round, 80th overall; the slot value for that pick was $1.01M, per mlb.com. His pitch repertoire will need some polish, according to Baseball America’s pre-draft scouting report: “While Harmon’s fastball is one the better pitches in this class, his secondaries need more refinement.” Harmon was a Mississippi State signee and is the second high-profile MSU recruit to sign with an MLB club, joining eighth overall pick JoJo Parker from Purvis. Parker’s twin brother Jacob also was drafted (19th round) but has chosen to attend MSU. All told, five prep players from the state were drafted this year. Talon Haley (12th round), a pitcher from Lewisburg, signed with the Los Angeles Angels, and Jay McQueen (20th round), an outfielder from Brandon, reportedly has inked with Texas, though that has not been confirmed on mlb.com. … Konnor Griffin, the No. 9 overall pick in 2024 out of Jackson Prep, is rated the No. 1 overall prospect in the minors in MLB Pipeline’s updated Top 100 rankings. He entered his first pro season ranked No. 43; he is batting .324 with 13 homers and 42 steals at two levels of A-ball in Pittsburgh’s organization. Braden Montgomery (Madison Central alum) is No. 27, Cooper Pratt (Magnolia Heights) No. 38 and Jurrangelo Cijntje (MSU) No. 71. … MSU is ranked No. 4 in Baseball America’s first 2026 college poll. The magazine’s story hails the arrival of new coach Brian O’Connor and several portal additions plus the return of Ace Reese, SEC newcomer of the year in 2025. Ole Miss is No. 24, thanks in part to the return of Judd Utermark, Austin Fawley and Hunter Elliott.

24 Jul

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.

23 Jul

where ya been?

Back in the big leagues for the first time in two years, Konnor Pilkington threw two perfect innings in relief for Washington and got a win, his first since 2022. The Pascagoula native and ex-Mississippi State standout, called up from Triple-A Rochester on Tuesday, worked the fifth and sixth innings of the Nationals’ 6-1 win against Cincinnati. “It’s special,” Pilkington told mlb.com. “I was very excited, to say the least.” Mixing a mid-90s fastball with a slider and changeup, the East Central High grad struck out the side in the sixth. “That’s Konnor with a K, boys and girls,” said a Nats broadcaster. “What a Nationals debut for this lefty.” He became the 28th Mississippian (native or school alum) to play in a big league game in 2025. Pilkington was a third-round draft pick back in 2018 by the Chicago White Sox, who traded him to Cleveland at the deadline in 2021. He went 1-2 with a 3.88 ERA in 15 games for the Guardians in 2022, made just one MLB appearance in ’23 and spent all of last season in the minors. He became a minor league free agent last fall and signed with Washington. He had a 2.59 ERA, four wins, two saves and eight holds in 36 games for Triple-A Rochester. Pilkington was an ace starter at State, going 14-12, 3.47, with 260 strikeouts over three seasons. P.S. Brandon native J.T. Ginn, another MSU product, made his first start since late May for the A’s and, opposing Texas and Jacob deGrom, threw five innings of one-run ball. He has a 4.50 ERA over 12 games. … Austin Riley, the former DeSoto Central High star, apparently won’t be activated by Atlanta until later in the week. The veteran third baseman was eligible to come off the injured list on Tuesday. … The Chicago Cubs assigned Spencer Turnbull, ex-Madison Central standout, to Triple-A Iowa. A recent free agent signee, he pitched in rookie ball on Saturday. … Righty Mason Morris, third-round pick out of Ole Miss, has signed with Cincinnati for $897,500, per mlb.com.

22 Jul

names to know

Brandon Woodruff: The Mississippi State product from Wheeler threw six commanding innings for Milwaukee on Monday, driving the Brewers to a 6-0 win at Seattle. Milwaukee has won 11 straight, taken over first place in the National League Central and claimed the best record in the majors (60-40). In his third start since coming off the injured list, Woodruff (2-0) limited the Mariners to two hits, walked none and struck out five. He has a 1.65 ERA on the season with 23 K’s and no walks in 16 1/3 innings.
Reed Trimble: The ex-Southern Miss star from Tupelo takes a 20-game on-base streak into Double-A Chesapeake’s contest tonight at Altoona. He was batting .119 when his streak began; he is hitting .283 in July and .211 with seven homers and 10 steals overall for the Baysox, a Baltimore affiliate. The 65th overall pick in the 2021 draft, the 25-year-old outfielder has battled injuries ever since.
J.B. Middleton: The 2025 draftee out of USM reportedly has signed with Colorado for $2.07 million. A first-team All-America selection and the state’s Ferriss Trophy winner, he was the 45th overall pick, the highest any Golden Eagles pitcher has ever been picked. Middleton is the third player drafted on Day 1 this year from a Mississippi school confirmed to have signed, joining JoJo Parker and Jake Cook.
Banks Tolley: The former St. Andrew’s standout from Madison is one of the leading hitters for Schaumburg, which hosts the Mississippi Mud Monsters tonight to start a Frontier League series. Tolley is hitting .318 with eight homers and 36 RBIs in 44 games for the independent club. He led St. Andrews to a state title in 2018, starred at Meridian Community College for two years, played a reserve role on Ole Miss’ 2022 national title team and got All-America recognition at Appalachian State in 2024.

21 Jul

news flashes

Good news for Atlanta fans (who can use some): Austin Riley, the ex-DeSoto Central High standout, is expected to be activated Tuesday from the injured list. He has been out since July 12 because of an abdominal injury that proved to be minor. The third baseman is batting .274 with 14 homers and 48 RBIs. … Good news for Houston fans (whose team is in first place): Mississippi State alum J.P. France, out since early 2024 with a shoulder injury/surgery, made a rehab appearance in the Florida Complex League on Monday; he pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings. The right-hander went 11-6 for the Astros in 2023 and was 0-3 in five starts last year. … Good news for Mississippi State fans: Duke Stone, a rising sophomore in Starkville, was named the Cape Cod League’s pitcher of the week for July 12-18. He threw 11 scoreless innings in two starts, both wins, and fanned 13. His 0.62 WHIP leads the CCBL. … Bad news for Justin Foscue: The former MSU star was sent back to Triple-A by Texas on Monday; he made just one appearance in his four-day MLB stint, going 0-for-3 on Sunday. … Break up the Rascals: The Tallahatchie team is 13-2-1, comfortably in first place in the Cotton States League, and tops the summer loop in batting, runs, homers, steals and ERA. The Rascals’ Houston Green, from Itawamba Community College, is batting .441 and leads the New Albany-based league in homers, RBIs and runs.

21 Jul

fit to be tied

The Cubs went down in Chicago, Milwaukee rose up in Los Angeles and suddenly there’s a tie at the top of the National League Central. Not long after former Ocean Springs High star Garrett Crochet and the Boston Red Sox beat the Cubs 6-1 Sunday at Wrigley Field, ex-Biloxi Shuckers standout Isaac Collins knocked in the go-ahead runs for the Brewers in a 6-5 win at Dodger Stadium. With its 10th straight win, Milwaukee (59-40) has caught the Cubs, who have gone 6-4 during the Brewers’ impressive run. The pitching-rich Brewers will send former Wheeler High and Mississippi State star Brandon Woodruff to the bump today at Seattle. In two games since his return from shoulder surgery — and a season-plus on the shelf — Woodruff is 1-0 with a 2.61 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings. He’s 47-26, 3.09, for his MLB career, all with the Brewers. In Sunday’s win, the Brewers overcame an early 3-0 deficit against Clayton Kershaw and ultimately took the lead in a three-run sixth, fueled by a two-out knock by Collins, who’s among a bundle of former Shuckers on the Brewers’ roster. The rookie outfielder, who played in Biloxi in 2023, is batting .268 with six homers and 26 RBIs. Earlier Sunday, Red Sox ace Crochet threw six innings of one-run ball against the Cubs and got the win — he is 11-4, 2.19 — as Boston scored a combined six times in the seventh and eighth. Ole Miss product Drew Pomeranz, who has been so good for the Cubs, surrendered a three-run bomb to Alex Bregman in the Red Sox’s pivotal four-run eighth. P.S. Matt Wallner, Southern Miss alum, crushed his 40th career homer — 11th of 2025 — for Minnesota in a win on Sunday. Wallner is batting just .205 but slugging .454 (with nine doubles and two triples). … Ex-USM standout Chuckie Robinson doesn’t always play for Triple-A Oklahoma City, but when he does … . The veteran catcher and ex-big leaguer is 5-for-8 with four RBIs in the last two games, both wins for the Dodgers affiliate. Robinson, a waiver claim from the Angels back in May, is hitting .251 with three homers and 33 RBIs on the year. He has played in just 22 games for the Comets, 59-37 overall in 2025.

20 Jul

‘be that guy’

The Boston Red Sox had won 10 straight heading into the All-Star break, clawing back into the American League East race. Since play resumed, they’ve lost two straight to the surging Chicago Cubs. In need of a hero today, the Red Sox will send Garrett Crochet — the pride of Ocean Springs — to the mound at Wrigley Field. As the old saw goes: This is why they pay you the big bucks. Acquired from the White Sox for a boatload of prospects in the off-season and then given a 6-year, $170 million contract extension, Crochet has not disappointed. The 6-foot-6 left-hander is 10-4 with a 2.23 ERA and 160 strikeouts. He leads the majors in strikeouts and is tied for first in ERA and tied for third in wins. He is what the Red Sox needed. “You have to be that guy,” Boston manager Alex Cora said in a recent mlb.com story. “(N)ow that he’s the ace of the Red Sox, he’s doing an amazing job.” Crochet was converted from reliever to starter just last season — his third in pro ball — and went 6-12, 3.58 ERA, over 146 innings for the lowly White Sox. He is at 129 1/3 innings this season but shows no signs of wearing down. He is 6-0 in his last eight starts, with wins over the New York Yankees, Seattle and Tampa Bay. Today, with his team trying to get back on the winning track, Crochet faces the Cubs, who have the best record in MLB. The stage is his. The spotlight is bright. Time to be that guy. P.S. Former Jackson Prep standout Will Warren and Mississippi Braves alum Joey Wentz put on a good show — for a short time — Saturday at Atlanta’s Truist Park. Brandon native Warren, pitching for the Yankees against the team he grew up rooting for, allowed one run through his first 3 2/3 innings. Things then went sideways for the rookie right-hander. Atlanta scored four times and chased him from the game. Wentz, a 2016 Braves draftee in just his second game back with Atlanta, threw four scoreless innings, then was pulled. Disaster followed. The Braves’ wonky bullpen coughed up 12 runs in the final five innings, and the Yankees took a 12-9 victory. … Ex-Madison Central star Spencer Turnbull, recently signed by the Cubs, threw four innings in a rookie ball game on Saturday as he tunes up for a potential return to the majors. … Lewisburg High alum Talon Haley, a 12th-round draft pick by the Los Angeles Angels, reportedly has agreed to sign for $897,500.

19 Jul

quick pitches

Friday’s best: Former Mississippi Braves star Ronald Acuna’s throw. From the right field corner to third base — on the fly — to complete an Atlanta double play. ‘Nuff said. … JoJo Parker, the ex-Purvis High star, reportedly has agreed with Toronto on a $6.2 million bonus as the eighth overall draft pick. … Former Mississippi State standout Brent Rooker hit his 100th career MLB homer for the A’s. … MSU product Adam Frazier hit a two-run pinch double in his first at-bat for his new team, Kansas City. … Veteran right-hander Spencer Turnbull, Madison Central High alum, signed a major league contract with the Chicago Cubs as a free agent. … Khal Stephen, 2024 draftee out of MSU, was promoted to Double-A New Hampshire by Toronto after going 9-1, 1.75 ERA, in A-ball. … Dakota Jordan, another 2024 draftee out of MSU, was placed on the 7-day injured list at Low-Class A San Jose (San Francisco), where he is batting .302 with 10 homers and 27 steals. … Former Jackson Prep star Konnor Griffin, hit in the right hand by a pitch in the All-Star Futures Game last Saturday, did not play Friday for High-A Greensboro (Pittsburgh). … Batesville native Emaarion Boyd stole his 32nd base and scored the game’s lone run in a win for High-A Beloit (Miami). … Davis Bradshaw, McLaurin High and Meridian Community College product, came off the IL and went 2-for-2 in his first game since May 31 for the independent Mississippi Mud Monsters. … Bradley Pelle, the SAA player of the year at Millsaps, has signed with Ogden of the indy Pioneer League and went 1-for-4 in his pro debut. … Ex-Southern Miss slugger Christopher Sargent is hitting .383 with 17 homers and 76 RBIs for Ogden.

18 Jul

back to work

Nathaniel Lowe went into the MLB All-Star break on a 4-for-28 skid, down to .227 on the season for a scuffling Washington club. But the Mississippi State alum should enter today’s game vs. San Diego with a little confidence. He is 5-for-11 with two home runs career against Padres starter Dylan Cease, per The Baseball Buffet. Lowe, in his first season with the Nats, has 14 homers, second on the team to All-Star James Wood. … Adam Frazier starts the “second half” with a new team, having moved from Pittsburgh to Kansas City. The MSU product figures to be in the lineup today at Miami. He is 8-for-17 with two homers and a double career against the Marlins’ Sandy Alcantara. Frazier was hitting .255 with three homers for Pittsburgh. … Brent Rooker of the A’s entered the All-Star break on a tear (.360 with two homers over his last seven games), then went nuts during the All-Star festivities, hitting 17 homers in the Home Run Derby, another in the All-Star Game itself and then two more in the tiebreaking swing-off. The ex-MSU slugger faces Cleveland’s Slade Cecconi today. … Former Biloxi High standout Colt Keith, now with Detroit, was on an 18-for-51 (.353) heater entering the break. The Tigers, with the best record in MLB at 59-38, face Texas and lefty Patrick Corbin today. … Jordan Westburg, another ex-Bulldogs star, entered the break on an 11-for-31 roll with three homers for Baltimore. He’ll try to keep it going today against Tampa Bay and Taj Bradley. P.S. Texas recalled MSU alum Justin Foscue from Triple-A, with Jake Burger going back on the injured list. Foscue is 1-for-6 for the Rangers this year and 3-for-48 career. … That was quick: Drafted on Sunday, with the eighth overall pick, JoJo Parker already is rated the top prospect in the Toronto farm system by Bleacher Report. The state’s Gatorade player of the year out of Purvis High, Parker tops a system that is ranked 25th overall by BR in its post-draft evaluation. (Note that Parker hasn’t yet signed.) The 6-foot-2, 195-pound shortstop is “one of the best pure hitters in the (2025 draft) class, with real power to go with his polished hit tool,” per Baseball America’s scouting report. Still, he has yet to play a pro game. Landon Harmon, the 6-foot-5 right-hander out of East Union picked in the third round by Washington, is slotted in as the Nationals’ No. 9 prospect by Bleacher Report. (He also has yet to sign.) Baseball America calls Harmon a “high-upside, projectable right-hander” with “tremendous arm speed and a fastball that explodes.” It’s interesting to note that each of Bleacher Report’s top 3 farm systems features a Mississippi product in its top 10. Pittsburgh, ranked No. 3, has Konnor Griffin at No. 2; Milwaukee, ranked second, has Cooper Pratt at No. 5; and Seattle, the top-rated system, has Jurrangelo Cijntje at No. 9. … Kevin Roberts Jr., a rising senior at Jackson Prep, was listed as the 15th overall pick in a “way-too-early” 2026 mock draft by mlb.com. Roberts, currently competing for a spot on the Under-18 Team USA, is a 6-foot-5 outfielder with a power bat and arm.

17 Jul

meanwhile …

While the major and minor leagues were on hiatus for the All-Star break, there were pro games on Wednesday night in the MLB Partner leagues, aka independent ball. A host of Mississippians took the field in American Association games, with former Ole Miss catcher Hayden Dunhurst enjoying the brightest moment. He went 3-for-4 with a double and a run in Lake Country’s 8-0 win against Gary SouthShore. He also called pitches for Luke Hansel’s five-hitter. (Former big leaguer Cody Reed of Horn Lake pitches out of the bullpen for Gary SouthShore but didn’t work on Wednesday.) Ole Miss product Taylor Broadway, who has a 4.45 ERA in 21 games as a reliever for Cleburne, was in the lineup Wednesday as the DH — for the first time — and went 1-for-5 in the Railroaders’ 13-4 win over Kane County. Former Hattiesburg High star Joe Gray Jr. had a hit for Milwaukee — which only had five — in an 11-1 loss to Chicago; Gray is hitting .238 with three homers and 15 RBIs since the Milkmen picked him up on waivers in late May. (Southern Miss alum J.C. Keys pitches for Chicago but didn’t get in Wednesday’s game.) Ex-Mississippi State standout and onetime big leaguer Jacob Robson was 1-for-4 for Winnipeg in a 3-2 loss to Sioux Falls; he has hit seven homers for the Goldeyes. West Point native Steffon Moore threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts in his second appearance for Kansas City, which lost to Fargo-Moorhead 4-2. Jackson State alum Jaylyn Williams, a .298 hitter for the Monarchs, was 0-for-4 on Wednesday. (Ex-Itawamba Community College star Kyle Crigger, 5-4 with 3.05 ERA for F-M, did not pitch.) … In the Frontier League All-Star Game, the Atlantic team beat the Midwest 5-4. Travis Holt of the Mississippi Mud Monsters had a hit for the Midwest. P.S. Three Mississippi high school players are among the 88 invited by USA Baseball to the Under-18 National Team Training Camp in Cary, N.C: Oak Grove outfielder Eric Booth, Magnolia Heights infielder Cole Prosek and Jackson Prep outfielder Kevin Roberts Jr. Phase 1 of the camp starts Friday. Forty players will advance to Phase 2.