Tag Archives: Ole Miss

06 Jan

head east

Seth Smith will wear another hat in 2017. If you’re counting, that’ll be his fifth in 11 years in the big leagues. The Ole Miss alum and Jackson native has been traded from Seattle to Baltimore for pitcher Yovani Gallardo. Smith, a lefty-hitting corner outfielder, is 34 and in the last year of a three-year contract. He batted .249 with 16 homers and 63 RBIs for the Mariners in 2016, his second year with that club. He has previously played for Colorado, Oakland and San Diego. Smith has been a serviceable player in his MLB career, with 113 homers and a .261 average, though he is limited because he doesn’t hit lefties. His bat should benefit from playing in Camden Yards and those other American League East parks. Plus, he gets to play for Buck Showalter.

06 Jan

hard at work

The postseason is on the boil in the Mexican Pacific League, and former Ole Miss standout David Goforth is rising to the occasion for Culiacan. Goforth, a Milwaukee farmhand, worked two scoreless innings on Thursday and got the win as the Tomateros beat Hermosillo 8-7 to go up 2-1 in the first-round series. (Joey Meneses, who played for the 2016 Mississippi Braves, had two hits and an RBI for Culiacan.) Goforth pitched 1 2/3 clean innings on Tuesday. He also got some work this off-season in the Venezuelan Winter League, producing a 4.70 ERA in nine games for Lara. After posting a 10.97 ERA in 10 big league games and a 4.91 in Triple-A in 2016, Goforth was designated for assignment by the Brewers in November. The 28-year-old right-hander from Meridian cleared waivers and was outrighted to the AAA Colorado Springs roster. He’ll likely begin his seventh pro season there.

02 Jan

poll positions

The best performance by a state college in 2016 was delivered by Jones County Junior College, which won its first national championship. Do the Bobcats have an encore in them? The editors of Collegiate Baseball magazine apparently think so. CB’s comprehensive 2017 preseason issue is out, and it’s got JCJC ranked No. 1 in NJCAA Division II. Chris Kirtland’s Bobcats lost a few key players from last season (most notably Mason Irby, now at Southern Miss) but return a strong core from a 54-win squad. Mason Strickland, Ben Stiglets and Logan Robbins were a combined 28-0 on the bump. Erick Hoard batted .409 with 19 homers, Tanner Huddleston .392 with 12 homers and Fred Franklin .378 with 22 steals. The Bobcats may be challenged for state supremacy by Meridian CC, ranked 18th in CB’s poll. … Ole Miss is ranked No. 22 in the NCAA Division I poll. The Rebels, 43-19 and a regional host in 2016, return the likes of Tate Blackman, Colby Bortles and Will Stokes, and Mike Bianco reeled in what CB ranked as the No. 2 recruiting class in the country. Mississippi State, which won the SEC regular season title and hosted a regional and Super Regional last year, is picked fifth in the SEC West. New coach Andy Cannizaro has some rebuilding to do, as does Southern Miss’ Scott Berry. USM, which won the Conference USA Tournament in 2016, is pegged for a third-place finish in the league. … In the SWAC, Jackson State is picked second, Alcorn State third and Mississippi Valley fifth in the five-team East Division. JSU’s Cornelius Copeland emerged last year as one of the league’s best players. … In NAIA, William Carey checks in at No. 23. The Crusaders won 40 games last year, made the postseason and welcome back top hitters Tyler Odom and Adrian Brown, slugger James Land and pitcher Devin Smith. Believe it or not, Carey opens Feb. 3.

29 Dec

making his case

There are five outfielders scattered through mlb.com’s chart of the top 30 prospects in the Texas system. LeDarious Clark is not one of them, but the former East Mississippi Community College star from Meridian is building his resume in the Australian Baseball League. Clark, drafted by the Rangers in the 12th round in 2015, went 2-for-5 with a homer and four RBIs today in Adelaide’s 8-3 win against Brisbane. Clark is batting .357 over his last 10 games and is at .277 with two homers, 17 RBIs and 13 stolen bases in 20 games for the season. In his two minor league campaigns, the 5-foot-10, 185-pound Clark has hit .256 with 21 homers and 55 steals. The onetime football standout presents an intriguing power-speed combination. P.S. Back in the States, it’s been a slow go for free agent Mississippians. There has been no hard news since Dec. 19, when Ole Miss alum Alex Presley signed as a minor league free agent with Detroit, one of the two MLB clubs he played for in 2016. The lefty-hitting outfielder, 31, is a .253 career hitter with 26 homers and 25 steals over parts of seven big league campaigns. Mitch Moreland (Boston), Jacob Lindgren (Atlanta), Tyler Moore (Miami), T.J. House (Toronto) and Scott Copeland (Miami) also have signed, the latter three on minor league contracts. Still out there are Chris Coghlan, Louis Coleman, Desmond Jennings, Joey Butler, Aaron Barrett, Jonathan Papelbon and Julio Borbon.

08 Dec

winding road

Stuart Turner’s path to the big leagues may have been altered. The ex-Ole Miss star was picked by Cincinnati out of the Minnesota system in the major league phase of the Rule 5 draft. Turner, a catcher, will go to spring training with the Reds with a chance to earn a roster spot. If he doesn’t make the big league club, the Reds have to offer him back to the Twins for half the Rule 5 purchase price of $100,000. Turner was a second-round pick by Minnesota in 2013 and batted .239 with six homers at Double-A Chattanooga in 2016. He is regarded as a strong defender. Two other Mississippians were selected in the Rule 5 draft, both in the minor league phase. Former Murrah High standout Zack Bird was picked by Texas out of Atlanta’s system, and Ole Miss alum Alex Yarbrough was taken by Miami from the Los Angeles Angels. Bird, originally drafted by the Dodgers, has had some injury issues of late and posted an 8.87 ERA in A-ball this summer. But, the right-hander has stuff, having averaged 8.5 strikeouts per nine innings in his minor league career. Yarbrough, after strong seasons in 2013 and ’14, scuffled in 2015 and fell off the prospect charts. The switch-hitting second baseman spent most of 2016 in Double-A and hit .267 with four homers, 52 RBIs and 11 steals. A change of scenery could be a boost for him. P.S. From the rumor mill: Jarrod Dyson, the ex-Southwest Mississippi Community College star, has been mentioned as a trade candidate now that Kansas City has added Jorge Soler to its outfield mix.

07 Dec

’tis the season

The Winter Meetings are generating almost as much excitement as the World Series, with the names of quite a few Mississippians churning through the rumor mill these days. Mitch Moreland, the ex-Mississippi State star from Amory, reportedly has signed a 1-year, $5.5 million deal with Boston, where he’ll likely platoon with Hanley Ramirez at first base. The Red Sox, having acquired Chris Sale, may look to trade away a starter, possibly Ole Miss alum Drew Pomeranz. Former UM star Seth Smith apparently is being shopped by Seattle, which is said to be looking for starting pitching. Southern Miss product Brian Dozier has been linked to the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers but says he wants to remain with Minnesota. There were rumblings that Texas was interested in Taylorsville’s Billy Hamilton to play center field before the club re-signed Carlos Gomez. P.S. Catching up: Ex-Ole Miss standout David Goforth accepted an assignment to Triple-A Colorado Springs in Milwaukee’s system. … Scott Copeland, the former Southern Miss ace, signed a minor league deal with Miami. … Greenwood native and Pillow Academy product Louis Coleman, non-tendered by the Dodgers, is on the free agent market, as is Alcorn State alum Earl Burl III, who was recently released by Toronto after two sub-par minor league seasons.

02 Dec

winds of change

So, former Ole Miss standout Chris Ellis is off to a third organization in three years, traded on Thursday by Atlanta to St. Louis in the Jaime Garcia deal. Ellis, who starred for the Mississippi Braves in 2016, his only year in the Braves system, started his pro career with the Los Angeles Angels. A bunch of other Mississippians could be changing teams this off-season. The current list of free agents (at both the major and minor league levels) includes position players Joey Butler, Chris Coghlan, Desmond Jennings, Tyler Moore, Mitch Moreland and Alex Presley and pitchers Aaron Barrett, Scott Copeland, David Goforth (designated for assignment by Milwaukee on Nov. 23), T.J. House and Jonathan Papelbon. D.J. Davis and Zack Bird have been mentioned as possible Rule 5 draft picks, and there are trade rumors swirling around Zack Cozart. P.S. Among the players feeling a little more secure is Ole Miss product Bobby Wahl, recently added to Oakland’s 40-man roster. Wahl is on a list – longer than you might think – of pitchers who hit 100 mph or better in the minors this past season, when he notched 14 saves between Double-A and Triple-A. Over his four pro years, the right-hander has a 3.90 ERA and 191 strikeouts in 161 2/3 innings. He is viewed as a potential big league closer.

18 Nov

searching …

Way out in Australia, D.J. Davis is searching for his game. The Wiggins native, a first-round draft pick by Toronto in 2012, endured a lost season in 2016, batting just .197 with 13 extra base hits in 83 games at the high-A level. He is wintering in the Australian Baseball League, where he is 1-for-8 with a stolen base in two games for Canberra. Scouting reports indicate that Davis, 22, remains a raw talent even in his fifth pro year. A lefty-hitting outfielder, he showed promise in low-A ball in 2015, hitting .282 with seven homers, seven triples, 59 RBIs and 21 steals. But 2016, which included a month-long stint on the disabled list, was a big step back. Once a top 10 prospect in the Blue Jays’ system, Davis is getting a chance to reestablish himself in the ABL. Stay tuned. P.S. The Arizona Fall League season ended for the Mississippi contingent on Thursday. Ole Miss alum Chris Ellis, an Atlanta prospect, threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings in Salt River’s finale; he finished 1-1 with a 5.03 ERA. Future Mississippi Braves infielder Travis Demeritte went 2-for-4 with a homer, his fourth, in that game. Richton’s JaCoby Jones (Detroit) finished at .329 with a homer and 13 RBIs; 2016 M-Braves star Dustin Peterson (Atlanta) batted .324; and Southwest Mississippi Community College product Kade Scivicque (Atlanta) hit .378. Ex-Petal High standout Anthony Alford (Toronto) didn’t play Thursday for Mesa and ended his AFL tour at .253 with three homers and 15 RBIs. He is expected to be added to the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster today. Mississippi State alum Chris Stratton (San Francisco) threw five shutout innings for Scottsdale, finishing 2-2, 3.12.

08 Nov

on the ballot

It’s not the ballot people are talking about today, but, hey: Mississippi State alum Buck Showalter is a candidate for Manager of the Year in the American League. He is a finalist, along with Terry Francona and Jeff Banister, for the award given by the baseball writers. The winner will be announced next Tuesday. Showalter, who has won the award three times (including 2014), steered Baltimore to a wild card berth out of the hyper-competitive AL East, exceeding the expectations of virtually every preseason prediction. Showalter has been with Baltimore for seven seasons, longer than he stayed at any of his previous three managerial stops. With 547 wins, he trails only the legendary Earl Weaver on the Orioles’ list of winningest managers. Showalter hasn’t had a lot of playoff success, but in the current state of MLB, just getting in is a big deal. P.S. Former Southwest Mississippi Community College star Kade Scivicque is batting .346 (9-for-26) with three RBIs in the Arizona Fall League. Scivicque, acquired by Atlanta from Detroit late last season, finished 2016 with the Mississippi Braves and could be back with the Double-A club next spring. The 6-foot, 225-pound catcher batted .282 with six homers in high-A for the Tigers. … David Goforth, the Ole Miss alum from Meridian, is pitching for Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League. Goforth, who has made 30 MLB appearances with Milwaukee the past two years, had a 4.91 ERA in Triple-A in 2016.

05 Nov

for pondering

As major league baseball slips into its “off-season,” here are a few Mississippi-related things to ponder over the coming weeks:
1. Where will Mitch Moreland land? The former Mississippi State standout, who has been with Texas his entire career, is a free agent. A good-fielding first baseman with left-handed power (110 career home runs), he should have plenty of suitors, including the Rangers.
2. Will Jonathan Papelbon find a new team? The ex-State star, released in August by Washington, remains a free agent. His numbers from 2016 (19 saves, 4.37 ERA) weren’t bad, but he is about to turn 36 with a lot of miles on his arm. And there’s that other stuff.
3. How will Lance Lynn’s comeback go? The Ole Miss product, who had Tommy John surgery last November, pitched a handful of innings in the minors in 2016 but was never activated by St. Louis. The Cardinals need a good year from the 29-year-old Lynn, who has a 61-39 career record.
4. Is Hunter Renfroe ready for duty? The former State star looked great during his late call-up with San Diego, batting .371 with four homers and winning a National League player of the week award. The expectations will surely ramp up heading into next season for a Padres organization that hasn’t been in the playoffs since 2006.
5. Can Brian Snitker keep Atlanta on the right track? The former Mississippi Braves manager, a really good guy who has been in the Braves’ organization since 1977, steered the team to a 37-35 record after the All-Star break. “Snitker is baseball’s version of the guy who started in the mail room and became chairman of the board,” wrote Baseball America’s Tracy Ringolsby. It feels like Atlanta made a good choice for 2017.
P.S. Mississippians Chris Stratton (Mississippi State) and Anthony Alford (Petal High) are slated to play in tonight’s Arizona Fall League Fall Stars Game, which will be televised by MLB Network at 7 p.m.