Holmes Community College Archives - Page 2 of 2

02 Jan

almost famous

Roy Oswalt, recently elected to the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame, is arguably the best major league pitcher the Magnolia State has ever produced. The right-hander from Weir won 163 games, posted two 20-win seasons, won an ERA title, made three All-Star teams, won an LCS MVP award and pitched in the World Series. His career ERA was 3.36, and he had over 1,800 strikeouts. For what it’s worth, his career WAR is 50.1, which is higher than that of Jack Morris, who went into the National Baseball Hall of Fame last summer. Oswalt was on the ballot for the first time for the 2019 class. As good as he was – and his stuff was unhittable at times — his Hall chances probably aren’t so good. The numbers just don’t rise to that level. Consider this: Guy Bush, the Mississippi Mudcat from Aberdeen, won 176 games – most by a Mississippi native — from 1923-38 and added another 34 saves. Four times he won 18 or more games. His ERA was 3.86, and he played in a hitters’ era. He pitched in two World Series, including 1929, the year he won 18 games and saved eight for the Chicago Cubs. Bush was on the HOF ballot one year and got 1 percent of the vote from the writers. Tough crowd, those writers. There are no Mississippi-born major league players in the National Baseball Hall of Fame – Cool Papa Bell and William Foster were Negro Leagues stars – and while Oswalt will get some voter support, that’s likely to remain the case in 2019. … The HOF ballots were due Dec. 31, and the announcement of new electees will be made on Jan. 22. P.S. Former Jackson Generals Lance Berkman and Freddy Garcia were first-timers on the ballot for 2019 and ex-Gens star Billy Wagner was a notable returnee. A case can be made for both Wagner and Berkman making the grade at some point. No ex-Gens (or Jackson Mets, for that matter) are enshrined in Cooperstown.

05 Oct

squirrel!

The final career postseason appearance for Roy Oswalt came on this date in 2011 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. Ah, but the game is better remembered as the one in which a squirrel — later anointed as the “rally squirrel” — darted across home plate while the Holmes Community College product – and 2019 Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame inductee — was throwing a pitch. It was Game 4 of the National League Division Series between Oswalt’s Philadelphia Phillies and the Cardinals. Oswalt didn’t pitch particularly well, allowing five runs in six innings. He took the loss in a 5-3 defeat that evened the 5-game series at 2-all. The squirrel incident occurred in the fifth inning, with the Cardinals already ahead 3-2. No rally actually took place, but Oswalt and Phils manager Charlie Manuel were upset that the pitch was called a ball and not waved off. As the story goes, back in Philadelphia for Game 5, a Phillies fan threw a stuffed squirrel into the St. Louis bullpen, and after the Cardinals took the series, they adopted the “rally squirrel” as a mascot of sorts. They went on to win the World Series. Only in baseball.

16 Feb

spring flings

Mississippi State product Chad Girodo was outrighted off Toronto’s 40-man roster on Wednesday but reportedly will remain in spring camp as a non-roster invitee. The Blue Jays were clearing roster space for veteran relievers J.P. Howell and Joe Smith. Lefty Girodo made his big league debut in 2016 and worked in 14 games with a 4.35 ERA. He put up a 3.79 at Triple-A Buffalo, where he’ll likely begin this season. … Former Holmes Community College star Roy Oswalt, who led Houston to the 2005 World Series, will serve as a guest instructor in the Astros’ camp. “The ability to match quantity and quality during his time as an Astro was incredible,” Houston manager A.J. Hinch told mlb.com. Oswalt won 163 games in the big leagues. … Former Mississippi Braves catcher Christian Bethancourt is going to get work as a pitcher while continuing to catch in San Diego’s camp. Bethancourt, known for his strong arm, made a couple of mop-up appearances for the Padres last season and then pitched seven relief innings in the Panamanian Winter League. … Atlanta has endured three straight losing seasons, but ex-M-Braves star Freddie Freeman offered some encouraging words for fans as camp began for the Braves, telling mlb.com, “A lot of people aren’t picking us, but I think we’ll be right there in September, playing meaningful baseball.” Braves manager Brian Snitker, the former M-Braves skipper, called the optimism “legit.”

07 Aug

out wichita way

The Kansas Stars and the NJCAA National Team, both with Mississippi natives on the roster, were impressive in their National Baseball Congress World Series openers on Saturday. Former Brandon High standout Barry Wesson, on a Stars team filled with ex-major leaguers, contributed a hit in an 8-0 victory at Wichita, Kan. Wesson, 39, played in 25 MLB games and spent 14 years all told in the minors and independent ball, last playing in 2011. Roy Oswalt, the former Weir High and Holmes Community College star, is also on the Stars roster, which includes the likes of Roger Clemens, Tim Hudson, Adam LaRoche, Dan Uggla, J.D. Drew and Josh Beckett. The NJCAA team, a collection of 2016 juco stars that includes Mason Irby, opened with a 12-4 win. Irby, an All-America honoree at Jones County JC and a Southern Miss signee, went 0-for-1 as a pinch hitter. The Stars and the NJCAA team are slated to meet on Wednesday in the pool portion of the tournament; Clemens has been announced as the Stars starter. … The semi-pro Laurel Black Cats were eliminated from the NBC event with an 0-3 record in pool play last week.

29 Jul

busy schedule

Roy Oswalt, who won 163 games in the big leagues, second-most by a Mississippi native, is being inducted into the Round Rock Express Hall of Fame on Saturday in Texas. Next week, the 38-year-old former Weir High and Holmes Community College star is going to play again. Oswalt, who last pitched competitively in 2013, was recruited to play for the Kansas Stars, a collection of ex-big leaguers, in the National Baseball Congress World Series in Wichita, Kan. Others on the squad include 53-year-old Roger Clemens, Tim Hudson, Josh Beckett, Adam LaRoche, J.D. Drew and Dan Uggla. The field for the NBC is made up mostly of semi-pro teams and college summer league squads. “If you took 10 years off our ages, I guarantee we’d be pretty hard to beat,” Oswalt told the Austin American-Statesman. There is a distinct Mississippi flavor in the NBC event. The semi-pro Laurel Black Cats, champions of the Magnolia State Tournament, are slated to start play tonight. Mason Irby, former Jones County Junior College star who’ll suit up for Southern Miss in 2017, is on the roster of the NJCAA National Team, which opens next week. Oswalt, drafted by Houston out of Holmes CC in 1996, spent the 2000 season in Round Rock. That was the new home of the Texas League franchise that had been in Jackson from 1975-99. Oswalt went 11-4 with a 1.94 ERA for the Express, helping the team win the TL championship. Five years later, he helped the Astros reach the World Series.

02 Oct

a shining moment

While the Houston Astros are keenly focused on the present, and their pursuit of a playoff berth, the rest of us can sneak a peek back at a big day in the club’s history. On Oct. 2, 2005, the last day of the regular season, Weir’s Roy Oswalt outpitched Greg Maddux as the Astros beat the Chicago Cubs 6-4 and claimed the National League wild card. Philadelphia, which also won that day, finished a game back. The win was the 20th of the year for Oswalt, the Holmes Community College alum who won 163 over his 13-year career. The ’05 Astros, with a few former Jackson Generals still around (Lance Berkman, Raul Chavez, pitching coach Jim Hickey, bullpen coach Mark Bailey), went on to beat Atlanta in the division series and St. Louis in the NLCS – Oswalt was the MVP – to reach the franchise’s first and only World Series. They lost to the Chicago White Sox in four (with ex-Generals ace Freddy Garcia winning the clincher, oddly enough). P.S. Though he hasn’t officially retired, Cliff Lee doesn’t have a team for 2016 after the Phillies declined to pick up an option on the ex-Meridian CC star’s contract. Lee, 37, didn’t pitch at all this year because of an elbow problem. His career numbers: 143-91, 3.52 ERA in the regular season and 7-3, 2.52 postseason.

16 Aug

celebrate, celebrate …

The party was at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. Before a packed house and a national TV audience on Saturday, the first-place Royals celebrated win No. 70 on the season, win No. 900 of Ned Yost’s managerial career and birthday No. 31 for Jarrod Dyson. Dyson, the McComb native and ex-Southwest Mississippi Community College star, partied hard during the game, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs, two runs, two steals and an outfield assist to fuel the Royals’ 9-4 victory against the Los Angeles Angels. KC broke the game open with a six-run second inning during which Dyson slapped a two-run single and scored a run. “Any time you get the win, that’s a great day for us,” Dyson, who usually offers something much more colorful, told the Kansas City Star after the game. It was also a great day for Yost, the former Jackson Mets catcher who hushed a lot of doubters by steering this club to the World Series last year. The current Royals have won seven of nine and are running away with the American League Central. P.S. The Houston Astros celebrated their 2005 World Series team on Saturday at Minute Maid Park. Among the stars of that club were Holmes Community College product Roy Oswalt, a 20-game winner, and Jackson Generals alum Lance Berkman, who hit .293 with 24 home runs.

12 Feb

wizard of os

Roy Oswalt, the pride of Weir and Holmes Community College, retired today with 163 career wins and a 3.36 ERA. Forget his struggles the last two seasons. Remember that he made three All-Star Games, twice won 20 games in a year and claimed the National League ERA crown in 2006. Oswalt was drafted by the Houston Astros in 1996 (23rd round), when the team still had its Double-A club in Jackson. Alas, when he reached that level, in 2000, the franchise was in its first year in Round Rock, Texas. Oswalt spent 10 years with the Astros and might’ve enjoyed his finest moments in 2005, when he led the club to its only World Series appearance. Oswalt won three games in four starts in the ’05 postseason. He made one start in the Series and got a no-decision against the Chicago White Sox, who won in four. Oswalt’s MLB win total ranks second among Mississippi-born pitchers, behind only Aberdeen’s Guy Bush, who won 176. Simply put, Oswalt is one the state’s all-time best.