Tag Archives: Mississippi Braves

03 Jun

rising to occasion

If there was doubt that Jake Mangum could handle the jump to Double-A, the ex-Mississippi State star has dismissed it. Mangum was hitting .206 at High-A Brooklyn when the New York Mets, forced by injuries to make some moves with their outfielders, promoted Mangum to Binghamton. In nine games, the 25-year-old switch-hitter is batting .368. He enjoyed his best night with the Rumble Ponies on Wednesday, going 3-for-5 with two doubles, a triple, three runs and two RBIs. He led off the 10th inning with a run-scoring three-bagger and scored what proved to be the deciding run in an 8-7 game on a sac fly. A fourth-round pick as a senior at State in 2019, Mangum didn’t hit much for power before arriving in Binghamton, where he has six extra-base knocks and is slugging .605. He has struck out just six times in 38 at-bats. True, nine games is a small sample size. And he’ll run into some outstanding pitchers in the Double-A East. But Mangum knows a little about hitting; he is the SEC’s all-time hits leader, after all. … Down in the Double-A South on Wednesday, Mississippi Braves catcher – and No. 3 Atlanta prospect – Shea Langeliers belted three homers at Pensacola and now leads the league with seven. After a sluggish start in his first Double-A campaign, the 23-year-old former Baylor star is hitting .284 with 13 RBIs. That’s nice, he says, but … . “The biggest role I have on this team is as a catcher,” he told milb.com. “Catching comes first, hitting comes second.” His arm – rated a 70 on the scouts’ 20-80 scale — is already big league-caliber. The bat is coming along.

28 May

ode to nevers and ball

It’s Jackson Generals Throwback Night at Trustmark Park in Pearl, a salute to the former Texas League team that occupied Smith-Wills Stadium from 1991-99. There might actually be a few cranks in the park tonight who attended Gens games back in the day, even some who might have been there on Sept. 3, 1994, when one of Smith-Wills’ most memorable events occurred. The Generals were facing archrival Shreveport in the TL East title series. The Gens were down 1-0 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth of the decisive Game 5. They had managed just two hits all night. Two lousy singles. Then lightning struck. Twice. In the same place. The Generals got back-to-back home runs from Tom Nevers and Jeff Ball to stun the Captains 2-1. The dugout went crazy. The crowd of 1,400 at cozy Smith-Wills went crazy. Up in the booth, radio play-by-play man Bill Walberg did, too. He called it “the miracle on dirt.” It felt like one. Jackson manager Sal Butera, the ex-big league catcher who had been on seven championship clubs as a player, said he had never witnessed anything more dramatic. Nevers, a Minnesota high school star in baseball and hockey, was a first-round pick by the Houston Astros who hit .267 with eight homers for the Gens in 1994. He played until 2002 but never made the majors. Californian Ball, a San Jose State product, hit .316 with 13 homers that season; he ultimately made the big leagues in 1998 with San Francisco but got just four at-bats. He played in independent ball until 2003. Alas, the ’94 Gens went on to lose to El Paso in four straight in the TL Championship Series. But that shouldn’t diminish the memory of “the miracle on dirt.” P.S. The first time the Mississippi Braves held a Generals tribute, in 2019, Ian Anderson and Jeremy Walker threw a combo no-hitter. … On Thursday night, Shea Langeliers, one of Atlanta’s top prospects, hit a grand slam to help the M-Braves top Montgomery 7-6 in the third game of the six-game Double-A South series. The M-Braves are 9-12.

27 May

just stuff

Oak Grove visits Northwest Rankin tonight to decide the MHSAA Class 6A South State title and berth in next week’s finals against Madison Central. All of the other state championship pairings are set for the big event that starts Tuesday at Trustmark Park in Pearl. In 5A, it’s Saltillo-Pascagoula, 4A West Lauderdale-Sumrall, 3A Booneville-Magee, 2A East Union-Taylorsville and 1A Tupelo Christian-Resurrection Catholic (Pascagoula). Madison Central is top-ranked in the state by MaxPreps and is No. 6 in the country. NWR is fifth in the state, Oak Grove 12th. Sumrall is No. 4, and Booneville is eight. … Southern Miss beat Western Kentucky in its C-USA Tournament opener, finishing off the 11-1 win at 2:59 a.m. today in Ruston, La. The Golden Eagles play again tonight, throwing C-USA pitcher of the year Walker Powell at Lousiana Tech. Ole Miss and Mississippi State both lost in SEC tourney play on Wednesday and face elimination games today in Hoover, Ala. Delta State starts play in the NCAA Division II South Region today vs. Tampa at Pensacola, Fla. … Braden Shewmake, the Mississippi Braves shortstop and Atlanta’s No. 4 prospect, is in the throes of a woeful slump. After an 0-for-4 on Wednesday against Montgomery at the TeePee, Shewmake is batting .086. He has five hits, one homer. He hit .300 over two levels in 2019. … Jacob Robson, the former Mississippi State standout, is hitting the pause button on his torrid start in the minors this season. But for good reason. Robson, a native of London, Ont., is off to play for Team Canada in the Olympics qualifying event in Florida next week. Robson, 26, a lefty-hitting outfielder, is batting .424 with two homers and 10 RBIs for Double-A Erie in Detroit’s system. He played in Triple-A in 2019, hitting .267, and has a .295 career average. He was an eighth-round pick out of Starkville in 2016. He’s not on the Tigers’ top 30 prospect list but has been in their big league spring camp the last couple of years. … Magnolia State products Hunter Renfroe and Austin Riley played a little tit-for-tat in Wednesday’s MLB game between Boston and Atlanta. Renfroe, from Crystal Springs, hit a 377-foot homer for the Red Sox in the second inning. Riley, from Southaven, retaliated with a 390-foot shot, also over Fenway Park’s Green Monster, three innings later. Boston ultimately won the game. … MLB placed Los Angeles Angels pitching coach Mickey Callaway, a former Ole Miss pitcher, on the ineligible list through 2022, the culmination of investigation into numerous sexual harassment allegations. The Angels promptly fired Callaway, who hadn’t been with the team at all this season. … Ex-Ole Miss star Drew Pomeranz, now with San Diego, reportedly has suffered a setback in his recovery from a left shoulder impingement and could be out an extended time. He has been on the IL since May 13.

21 May

setting the table

The Mississippi Braves have scratched out a 6-9 record despite being last in the Double-A South in runs, batting and on-base percentage. As fans of “Bull Durham” might ask, How’d they ever win six? One reason would be the play of Justin Dean, the diminutive leadoff batter. Dean has reached base in each of the 14 games he has played; his OBP of .426 ranks fifth in the league. He is batting .262 and has scored nine runs, driven in four and stolen five bases. Speed is the prime tool for the 24-year-old center fielder, who goes 5 feet 6, 185 pounds. He swiped 47 bases (with nine triples) at Class A Rome in 2019 and earned league All-Star honors and a trip to the Arizona Fall League. A 17th-round pick out of NCAA Division II Lenoir-Rhyne in 2018, he is batting .283 over his three pro seasons. MLB Pipeline ranks Dean 26th among Atlanta’s prospects, noting that “he has the chance to be a table-setter type, perhaps with a career as a fourth outfielder the most likely.” Dean will look to set the table tonight when the M-Braves play Chattanooga in the fourth game of a six-game set at Trustmark Park. P.S. On Chattanooga’s roster is a pair of former Southern Miss stars: Pitcher J.C. Keys, drafted by Cincinnati in 2019, and Chuckie Robinson, a catcher who was plucked by the Reds from Houston in the Rule 5 draft in December. Keys took the loss in relief on Wednesday but has a 1.69 ERA in four games. Robinson is 4-for-16 in five games this season and is a .249 career hitter over five pro seasons. Notably, he has caught two of Nick Lodolo’s starts and Hunter Greene’s last one, a 10-strikeout gem. Those are two top prospects in Cincy’s system. … There are several other Mississippi products scattered around the Double-A South. Ex-Columbia High standout Ti’Quan Forbes and Mississippi State alum Konnor Pilkington are with Birmingham, former State star Ethan Small is at Biloxi, ex-Ole Miss standout Wyatt Short is with Tennessee, UM product Nick Fortes plays for Pensacola and former Delta State star Dalton Moats is at Montgomery.

20 May

down on the farm

As the Atlanta Braves struggle to hit with any consistency, Drew Waters, playing center field for Triple-A Gwinnett, is on a tear. Waters, Southern League MVP and batting champ for the Mississippi Braves in 2019, had a four-hit game Wednesday night that included his third home run in the last two nights. With nine hits in his last four games, Waters has raised his average to .326 with three homers, seven RBIs, nine runs and five steals. He hit .319 with five homers and 13 steals for the M-Braves two years ago. A five-tool player and switch-hitter, Waters, 22, is rated Atlanta’s No. 2 prospect (behind Cristian Pache) by MLB Pipeline. Waters is not on the 40-man roster, but maybe it’s time to make room. … Also swinging a hot bat at Gwinnett is Orlando Arcia, the former Biloxi Shuckers star and Milwaukee shortstop acquired by the Braves in an April trade. Arcia, who is on the 40-man, is batting .361 with seven homers, 12 RBIs and 17 runs for the Stripers. P.S. Tyreque Reed, the Itawamba Community College product from Houlka, belted his fifth homer Wednesday for High-A Greenville in Boston’s system. Reed, 23, a first baseman/DH, is batting .250 with 11 RBIs in 10 games. He was acquired by the Red Sox from the Texas system in the Rule 5 draft.

20 May

on the docket

Delta State plays West Florida in a winner-take-all game tonight for the Gulf South Conference Tournament championship at Pensacola, Fla. The Statesmen (28-17) lost Game 2 5-2 on Wednesday.
William Carey needs two wins today against Central Methodist to win the O’Fallon Opening Round (regional) and advance to the NAIA World Series. The Crusaders (36-11) lost to host Central Methodist on Wednesday before beating McPherson in an elimination game.
Jackson State (32-8), which won its opener in the SWAC Tournament, takes on Grambling State today in Madison, Ala., in a winners’ bracket game. Alcorn State lost its first-round game and plays an elimination game today vs. Alabama State.
Pearl River Community College and Meridian CC meet today for the right to play unbeaten LSU-Eunice in the NJCAA Division II Region 23 tourney at Poplarville. East Central and Hinds play in another elimination game.
The Mississippi Braves host a Double-A South doubleheader tonight against Chattanooga at Trustmark Park in Pearl. The M-Braves are 5-8 on the season after winning the six-game series opener on Wednesday night.

16 May

movin’ on up

Freddie Freeman became just the sixth player to hit 250 homers with the Atlanta franchise when he went deep against Milwaukee on Saturday night. The former Mississippi Braves star joins a list that also includes legends Hank Aaron, Chipper Jones and Dale Murphy. Freeman is, at the moment, No. 234 on the all-time home run list. But where does he rank on the chart of former Jackson area Double-A players? He is fifth. Ex-Jackson Generals standout Lance Berkman leads that group with 366, followed by Jackson Mets icon Darryl Strawberry at 335, Gens alum Bobby Abreu at 288 and Brian McCann, the first M-Brave to make The Show, at 282. Freeman, 31, is a virtual lock to pass McCann, who hit 188 of his homers while with Atlanta. P.S. Props to Mississippi State product Ethan Small, who worked the first five innings of a four-man no-hitter for Biloxi against the visiting M-Braves on Saturday night. Small, a 2019 first-round pick and one of Milwaukee’s top prospects, notched his first Double-A win in his second start.

11 May

party of one

A Mississippi product took the field in each of the five big league games played on Monday night. Only one enjoyed a postgame celebration. Mike Mayers, the former Ole Miss standout, worked a clean eighth inning and earned his sixth hold in the Los Angeles Angels’ gritty 5-4 win against Houston. Pitching for the third straight day and 18th time this season, Mayers trimmed his ERA to 4.58. Three Mississippi State alumni were on the losing side: Adam Frazier went 1-for-3 in Pittsburgh’s 14-1 loss to Cincinnati, Hunter Renfroe went 1-for-3 in Boston’s 4-1 loss to Baltimore and Nate Lowe put up a 1-for-3 in Texas’ 3-1 defeat against San Francisco. And ex-Meridian Community College star Corey Dickerson had a 1-for-4 in Miami’s 5-2 loss to Arizona. … Dickerson’s average slipped to .316, but he still leads all Mississippians in the majors in batting; Frazier is at .308. P.S. In the Double-A South, the Mississippi Braves and Biloxi Shuckers begin a six-game series at MGM Park tonight. It’s the Shuckers’ home opener. Lefty Hayden Deal (0-1, 1.80), the M-Braves’ opening day starter, is expected to get the nod in Game 1. Former State star Ethan Small is likely to start in the series. The 2019 first-round pick made his Double-A debut on May 7, allowing four runs in three innings in a loss at Birmingham.

09 May

one crazy day

Why do we love this game? Crazy days like Saturday. Where to begin? In Hattiesburg, Walker Powell throws a no-hitter and Ben Ethridge follows with a three-hit shutout as Southern Miss sweeps Middle Tennessee State. In Columbia, S.C., Tanner Allen goes 4-for-5 with three RBIs to spark Mississippi State past South Carolina and clinch the big SEC series. In College Station, Texas, Tim Elko, in his third plate appearance since tearing an ACL in early April, hits a three-run homer to help Ole Miss beat Texas A&M and secure Mike Bianco’s 800th win in Oxford. In Jackson, Jackson State scores 19 runs in the third inning en route to beating hapless Mississippi Valley State 19-5, improving to 23-0 in SWAC play. In Oxford, Ala., Blayke Dendy hits a grand slam and Christian Day throws a complete game to pace Delta State to an upset of top-seeded Lee University in the GSC Tournament. In Mobile, Ala., Jorge Ramos tosses a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts to lead William Carey past top-seeded Loyola (New Orleans) and into the championship game of the SSAC Tournament. In Pearl, Atlanta prospect Shea Langeliers homers twice as the Double-A Mississippi Braves win their first game of the season by knocking off Pensacola. In Atlanta, former M-Braves star William Contreras belts a game-tying three-run double and then scores the winning run in the 12th inning as the Braves rally past Philadelphia. In Miami, former Biloxi Shuckers standout Adrian Houser goes six strong innings and hits a homer to drive Milwaukee past the Marlins. In Kansas City, East Central Community College product Tim Anderson singles twice and scores twice in an eight-run first inning that propels the Chicago White Sox past the Royals. Can’t wait to see what today brings.

08 May

swing and a miss

Granted, the Mississippi Braves have run into some stout pitching in their season-opening series against Pensacola. But surely there is more pop in the bats than what they’ve shown so far at Trustmark Park in Pearl. The M-Braves are 0-4 and have scored just five runs. More troubling: They’ve struck out 46 times, 16 in one seven-inning game on Thursday. There are prospects aplenty at the top of the Double-A club’s lineup, but they’re not hitting their weight. Braden Shewmake, Atlanta’s No. 4 prospect, doesn’t yet have a hit. No. 3 prospect Shea Langeliers has one. Leadoff batter Justin Dean is at .167, 3-hole hitter Trey Harris .154, C.J. Alexander .143 and Greyson Jenista .200. The pitching has been OK, keeping the team in games for the most part. Victor Vodnik, the top-rated pitching prospect on the staff (No. 15), goes tonight against the Blue Wahoos’ Jeff Lindgren. Will the bats break out?