Mississippi may never have been considered a motherlode of baseball talent, but pro scouts have been mining for nuggets here since the first MLB draft. Joe DeFabio of Delta State was the 20th overall pick in 1965, and players from the state have been drafted in the first round virtually every year since. Four with state ties are projected in various mock drafts to go in Sunday’s Round 1, which, counting supplemental picks, goes 39 deep. Jackson Prep’s Konnor Griffin and former Madison Central High star Braden Montgomery, who played at Texas A&M this season, are generally regarded as top 10 prospects. Mississippi State’s Dakota Jordan and Jurrangelo Cijnjte are also expected to go in Round 1. … The highest any player from the state has been chosen is No. 2, Will Clark taken out of MSU by San Francisco in 1985. The state also has produced two No. 3’s (Ted Nicholson of Oak Park in Laurel by the Chicago White Sox in 1969 and B.J. Wallace of State by Montreal in 1992), a No. 5 (Drew Pomeranz of Ole Miss by Cleveland in 2010) and three No. 8’s (Donny Castle of Coldwater High by Washington in 1968, Kirk Presley of Tupelo High by the New York Mets in 1993 and Paul Maholm of State by Pittsburgh in 2003). Dave Clark of Jackson State was No. 11 by Cleveland in 1983. … Last year, 14 players were drafted out of Mississippi, including No. 15 Jacob Gonzalez from Ole Miss by the White Sox. In 2022, 23 players from Mississippi schools were selected over the 20 rounds of the draft, Landon Sims of MSU going 34th overall. … Back in 2018, Baseball America conducted a survey of which state produced the most pro talent per capita and Mississippi ranked fourth, with 149 high school alums appearing on affiliated rosters from 2011-17. … In Baseball America’s 2024 Draft Preview skill rankings, Griffin — the No. 1 high school athlete — is No. 2 in power, No. 2 in defense (outfield) and No. 4 in speed among all draft-eligible prep players. Montgomery — a touted prep draft prospect when he was at Madison Central — ranks No. 3 in power and as the No. 5 athlete among the college class. Jordan is No. 5 in power. … In Lindy’s 2024 Baseball preview magazine, Lewisburg High’s Samuel Richardson, a third baseman, was rated the No. 35 draft prospect, but he appears to have slipped off the radar over the course of the season. … Quite a few of the state’s best all-around athletes have chosen football over baseball: See Senquez Golson, A.J. Brown, Jerrion Ealy, Anthony Alford (who later returned to baseball and spent some time in the big leagues). Also on that list is Steve McNair, a relative unknown baseball talent when a Seattle scout first saw him in 1991. Dan Jennings, a former William Carey player, happened upon a game at Mount Olive and was mesmerized by the home team’s shortstop. “This is my day. The baseball gods are smiling on me,” he told espn.com in a story a few years ago. The Mariners drafted McNair in the 35th round and offered $15,000 plus college tuition. He chose to play football at Alcorn State — and, yes, the rest is history. … Charlie Condon, the Golden Spikes Award winner from Georgia, is a possible No. 1 overall pick (Cleveland has the choice) — and, yes, there is a Mississippi connection. Georgia’s hitting coach, who has helped Condon blossom from an unrecruited prep player to a college star, is Will Coggin, a former Mississippi State player and assistant coach. Coggin coached Brent Rooker and Jake Mangum, among other draftees, in Starkville. … A name to watch for in the later rounds of the draft, according to an MLB Pipeline article, is Landon Hairston, an Arizona high school outfielder. He is the son of ex-big leaguer Scott Hairston, who is the son of ex-big leaguer Jerry Hairston Sr., who is the son of ex-big leaguer Sam Hairston, a Crawford native who starred in the Negro Leagues in the 1940s.
