take notice
Pegged by MLB Pipeline as one of the sleepers to watch in the Arizona Fall League, former Southern Miss standout Landon Harper registered an eye-opening performance on Friday. Pitching for Peoria, Harper tossed three scoreless innings in middle relief, allowing three hits and a walk with six strikeouts in his first AFL appearance. Harper isn’t on Atlanta’s list of Top 30 prospects, but the Meridian native’s showing for the Double-A Mississippi Braves this summer was impressive enough to earn a coveted fall league assignment. He posted a 1.41 ERA in 22 games, including five starts, and had a stretch of 14 straight appearances without allowing an earned run shortly after his late May promotion from A-ball. MLB Pipeline notes that command (of several pitches) is his best tool. He had 40 strikeouts and nine walks in 51 innings for the M-Braves and has walked just 27 batters in 161 1/3 pro innings. Harper is a Northeast Lauderdale High and Pearl River Community College alum who posted 12 saves for a 47-win USM team in 2022. The 6-foot-1 right-hander was drafted by Atlanta in the 14th round in ’22. … Other AFL “sleepers” with Mississippi ties include Ole Miss product Dylan DeLucia (Cleveland); ex-Mississippi State standout Jackson Fristoe (New York Yankees); and 2024 MSU alum David Mershon (Los Angeles Angels). P.S. Postseason flashback: On this date in 1980, ex-State star Del Unser scored the game-winning run in the 10th inning as Philadelphia beat Houston 8-7 in the deciding fifth game of a wild National League Championship Series that featured four extra-inning games. The Phillies would go on to win their first World Series against Kansas City.