Tag Archives: Ole Miss

29 May

star quality

Don’t look now, but Jordan Westburg is putting up numbers worthy of All-Star consideration. After a 2-for-3, two-RBI performance for Baltimore on Tuesday, the Mississippi State product is batting .291 with 34 RBIs, ranking second among American League third baseman in both categories. (Westburg also has played second base and shortstop, but his primary spot has been the hot corner.) Over 51 games, the second-year big leaguer is tied for third among AL third baseman with 28 runs and is fourth in homers (eight), on-base percentage (.351) and OPS (.859). Westburg, named AL player of the week in mid-April, currently has a five-game hit streak with eight hits during that span. It doesn’t hurt his cause that the Orioles are 34-19, second in the AL East to New York. Westburg, 25, was a first-round pick out of MSU in 2020 and debuted with the O’s last summer, batting .260 with three homers in 68 games. P.S. Ex-Ole Miss standout Gunnar Hoglund improved to 6-2 after throwing 5 1/3 shutout innings Tuesday for Double-A Midland against Corpus Christi. Hoglund leads the Texas League in wins and has a 3.76 ERA over 10 appearances (nine starts) for the Oakland affiliate. The 6-foot-4 right-hander was a first-round pick by Toronto in 2021 — after going 10-5, 3.68, in three seasons in Oxford — and was acquired from Oakland in 2022 in the Matt Chapman trade.

25 May

more to come

The wait is over for Colt Keith. After 141 big league at-bats, the ex-Biloxi High standout connected Friday night on his first home run, a 400-foot drive to right-center at Comerica Park that helped Detroit beat Toronto 6-2. “I feel like I’ve been dreaming of that for a while,” Keith told The Associated Press. “It was kind of a blur when it happened.” The Tigers’ patience with the left-handed hitting second baseman has begun to pay off. He was batting .152 as recently as May 5 but has raked at a .404 clip over his last 15 games, boosting his average to .236. He has 16 RBIs. The power was bound to come. Keith, a 2020 fifth-round pick, hit 38 homers in 126 minor league games, including 27 last year between Double-A and Triple-A. Before he ever played an MLB game, Detroit signed him to a six-year, $28.6 million contract, which, with options and bonuses, could be worth some $80M. He looks like a foundation piece for the Tigers, who have pooled some young talent on their roster. P.S. Today in Cooperstown, N.Y., MLB will hold the Hall of Fame East-West Classic: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues All-Star Game as part of a weekend celebration. Among the ex-big leaguers scheduled to play in the exhibition game are Pascagoula native Tony Sipp, former Jackson Generals standout Melvin Mora and Jerry and Scott Hairston, whose grandfather Sam was a Crawford native and Negro Leagues star in the late 1940s. A bunch of Mississippians played in the old East-West Game (1933-53), including Hall of Famers Cool Papa Bell and Bill Foster as well as Luke Easter, Howard Easterling, Sam Jethroe, Bob Boyd, Rufus Lewis and Buddy Armour. … Former Ole Miss star Drew Pomeranz, released from the minors by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday, signed with San Francisco and was in uniform for the Giants on Friday. The big left-hander last pitched in a big league game in 2021. … Mississippi State bowed out of the SEC Tournament in an emotionally charged 6-5 loss to Tennessee. Jaw-dropping stat for the Bulldogs: Dakota Jordan and Hunter Hines were a combined 1-for-34 in four games. … Kudos to George County High, which claimed the MHSAA Class 6A state title Friday with a win over Warren Central.

23 May

early returns

Two games in, it appears that Jacob Gonzalez was ready for the challenge of Double-A baseball. The former Ole Miss standout is off to a 6-for-10 start for Birmingham. On Wednesday at Biloxi, the lefty-hitting shortstop doubled, homered, drove in two runs and scored twice in the Barons’ 8-4 win at MGM Park. Gonzalez’s homer came as part of a five-run 10th inning in which his former Rebels teammate Tim Elko also went yard, his fourth of the season. Gonzalez was the 15th overall pick by the Chicago White Sox in 2023 following a decorated career in Oxford, where he won a national title. He hit just .211 with four extra-base hits in rookie ball and Low-Class A last season, but that surely was an anomaly for the ChiSox’s No. 7 prospect. The California native, who goes 6 feet 2, 200 pounds, was batting .273 with three homers and 15 RBIs at High-A Winston-Salem this year before his promotion. P.S. Spencer Schwellenbach delivered another sparkling performance for the Mississippi Braves on Wednesday, throwing seven shutout innings to beat host Chattanooga. In two Double-A outings, the 23-year-old right-hander has yet to allow a run over 13 innings, yielding five hits, two walks and striking out 17. He is Atlanta’s No. 3 prospect. … Ole Miss alum Ryan Rolison — the 22nd overall pick by Colorado in 2018 — made a rehab appearance in rookie ball on Tuesday, throwing a scoreless inning. The oft-injured left-hander, once a highly rated prospect on the cusp of making the majors, made just four appearances in 2023 and none in 2022. He is currently on the Triple-Albuquerque roster. … Demarcus Evans, the onetime big leaguer from Petal, was released by Charleston of the independent Atlantic League after four appearances (12.46 ERA). He had signed with a Mexican League club in February but never pitched there. The big right-hander, 27, didn’t pitch at all in 2023 while in the New York Yankees’ organization. He has a 2.76 career ERA in the minors, a 4.75 in the majors.

22 May

instant classic

Two names will endure in the lore of the Mississippi State-Ole Miss rivalry after the instant classic the teams staged late Tuesday in the SEC Tournament. Hujsak and Auger. Connor Hujsak won it for the Bulldogs 2-1 with a two-out, ninth-inning, two-run walk-off missile over the left-field fence at a packed Hoover Met, salvaging a brilliant pitching performance by the unsung Brooks Auger, who threw eight innings, yielded one run and punched out 13 batters. MSU, virtually assured of hosting an NCAA regional, advances to a showdown today with Texas A&M in the next phase of the tournament. “It’s huge,” State coach Chris Lemonis said in a postgame presser. “It’s huge for (our) resume, but it’s huge for us. We need to play postseason baseball. These guys haven’t played in the postseason. For us to be in this environment and play in what feels like a regional, our guys need to enjoy it and be a part of it.” For Ole Miss, a wonky season ended with a gut punch from its rival. Riley Maddox, former Jackson Prep star, worked seven-plus shutout innings for the Rebels, who got their lone run on a fifth-inning homer by Will Furniss that bounced out of the glove of Hujsak and over the center-field wall. It went to the ninth. Liam Doyle, after retiring Dakota Jordan (strikeout) and Hunter Hines (great play by Furniss at first base) with the tying run on base, was one out away from saving it for the Rebels. Then Hujsak — making his return to the lineup after a lingering back injury — stepped up and made a name for himself. P.S. Southern Miss begins defense of its Sun Belt Conference Tournament title today against Coastal Carolina at Montgomery, Ala. … In Atlanta, Jackson State opens SWAC Tournament play today against Texas Southern. … East Central Community College received one of the two at-large bids to the NJCAA Division II World Series in Enid, Okla., and is seeded third in the event that starts Saturday. ECCC, ranked No. 1 in the latest poll, lost in the Region 23 Tournament won by LSU-Eunice, the top seed in the World Series. ECCC is in the World Series for the second straight year.

21 May

touching the bases

The decision by the Chicago White Sox to move Garrett Crochet from the bullpen to the rotation this season is beginning to look like a stroke of brilliance. The 6-foot-6 left-hander from Ocean Springs, who’ll face Toronto today, has allowed one earned in 17 innings with 23 strikeouts in three May starts. For the year, he is 4-4 with a 4.18 ERA, 70 punchouts, a 1.01 WHIP and a .207 batting average against. And he is pitching for a team that is 14-34. Crochet was the 11th overall pick out of Tennessee in 2020 and made the big leagues that season, throwing 100 mph gas. Arm surgery shelved him in 2022 and limited him to 13 games last season. Moved to the rotation this spring, he seems to have found his calling. Writes the Chicago Sun-Times: “Great fastball, four-pitch mix, plenty of moxie and the intangibles all baked into a prototypical staff ace.” … The jury is out on Philadelphia’s decision to move former Madison Central High standout Spencer Turnbull from the rotation to the bullpen. Turnbull, in his first season with the Phillies, was 2-0, 1.67, in six starts this season. As a reliever — a new role for the veteran right-hander — he has a 6.43 in four appearances. … Colt Keith, Biloxi High alum, is heating up for Detroit in his rookie campaign. The 22-year-old Keith is 9-for-22 over his last seven games and 14-for-44 the last 15, boosting his average to .214. He has yet to homer. … Austin Riley, the ex-DeSoto Central star, hasn’t played for Atlanta since May 12 (side inflammation) but remains on the active roster. It’s unclear when he might return to the lineup. Her is batting a sub-par .245 with three homers. … Former big leaguer Anthony Alford, the Petal High product, is playing in the Mexican League for Campeche after being released by Cincinnati. He was hitting .222 at Double-A Chattanooga. … The New York Yankees DFA’d Colby White, the former Mississippi State pitcher they claimed off waivers from Tampa Bay earlier this month. The injury-plagued White, yet to appear in the majors, presumably will stay in the Yankees’ system. … Ex-Ole Miss star Jacob Gonzalez has been promoted to Double-A Birmingham, where he’ll join former Rebels teammate Tim Elko on the Barons’ roster. Gonzalez, a first-round pick last summer by the White Sox, was hitting .273 with three homers, 15 RBIs and seven steals at the High-Class A level. Birmingham starts a series at Biloxi today. … Dalton Moats, former Delta State left-hander, recently signed with the Chicago Cubs and threw three innings for Double-A Tennessee on Sunday. The minor league vet pitched in independent ball in 2023.

20 May

honor society

Dakota Jordan, who has had a bunch of good days swinging the bat for Mississippi State this season, had a good day Monday without ever touching one. The former Jackson Academy star from Canton won the state’s Ferriss Trophy, was named one of the 25 semifinalists for the national Golden Spikes Award and also earned second-team All-SEC recognition. Jordan is batting .363 with 17 home runs, 63 RBIs and 51 runs through 55 games for the nationally ranked Bulldogs, who play Ole Miss in the SEC Tournament at Hoover, Ala., on Tuesday night. … MSU shortstop David Mershon and pitcher Khal Stephen made first-team All-SEC, and Ole Miss outfielder Andrew Fischer was a second-team pick. … Former Madison Central High standout Braden Montgomery, now at Texas A&M, was named first-team All-SEC and also a Golden Spikes semifinalist. … Southern Miss pitcher Billy Oldham and DH Slade Wilks earned first-team All-Sun Belt honors, and pitcher Niko Mazza, shortstop Ozzie Pratt and outfielder Dalton McIntyre — a Ferriss finalist — were pegged on the second team. Banks Tolley, an Ole Miss transfer from Madison, was named the Sun Belt’s newcomer of the year and ex-Pearl River Community College star Luke Lyon, now at Troy, was a second-team All-SBC pick. … Pearl River CC’s Michael Avalon was named the MACCC coach of the year and the Wildcats’ Hollis Porter, an MSU transfer, earned player of the year honors. PRCC won the regular season title in the conference. … In the MHSAA State Championships that begin Tuesday at Pearl’s Trustmark Park, two of the seven classification Mr. Baseball winners will take part: Ty Long of Class 4A Ripley and Landon Harmon of 2A East Union. Long is a USM signee, Harmon an MSU commit. Tupelo’s Lake Reed was the 7A winner, West Jones’ Camden Clark in 6A, South Jones’ Cole Richardson in 5A, Mooreville’s Mason McMillin in 3A and Pine Grove’s Gehrig Shinall in 1A.

20 May

trophy time

The Ferriss Trophy has been around since 2004, and it’s become kind of a big deal to be named the best college player in a state where baseball is quite a big deal. The list of winners is impressive. Nine of them are still active in the pro game, four of them currently playing in the big leagues, two of them owning World Series rings. The 2024 award — honoring former Delta State coach Boo Ferriss and presented by the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum — will be given out today at a ceremony at the Pearl River Resort in Philadelphia. The finalists are Brett Sanchez (Belhaven), Dakota Jordan (Mississippi State), Ethan Lege (Ole Miss), Dalton McIntyre (Southern Miss) and R.J. Stinson (William Carey). The oldest active winner is Drew Pomeranz, the 2010 recipient from Ole Miss. Currently pitching in Triple-A with the Los Angeles Dodgers, the big left-hander was the fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft and has made 289 MLB appearances, winning a World Series with Boston in 2018. Nick Sandlin (Cleveland), Brent Rooker (Oakland), Hunter Renfroe (Kansas City) and Chris Stratton (KC) are in The Show. Stratton won a ring with Texas last year; Rooker was an All-Star in 2023; Renfroe has 180 career home runs; and Sandlin has a career ERA of 2.99 over four seasons. Two-time Ferriss winner Jake Mangum, the former MSU star, probably should have been in the big leagues by now; he is batting .329 in Triple-A for Tampa Bay and has a .290 career average. Last year’s winner, Kemp Alderman of Ole Miss, a second-round draft pick last July, is currently on the injured list in A-ball in Miami’s system. Tanner Hall, the 2022 winner from USM, has spent most of this season on the shelf, having made just three appearances in Minnesota’s system. Tanner Allen, the 2021 winner at MSU, is in Double-A in Miami’s chain and batting .250 as a regular outfielder. Among the 2024 finalists, Jordan is the highest rated MLB draft prospect, checking in at No. 24 on the latest mlb.com list. Each of the five is well-credentialed.

18 May

out of the blue

Former Ole Miss catcher Nick Fortes hangs his hat on his work behind home plate. A game like he had at the plate on Friday night for the Miami Marlins was an unexpected but welcome bonus. Fortes went 3-for-3 with a walk, a home run and three RBIs as the Marlins routed the New York Mets 8-0 at loanDepot Park. The fourth-year big leaguer, who shares catching duties with Christian Bethancourt, entered the game with just 10 hits and one homer all season. Miami, the worst team in the National League at 14-32, has won three in a row, all by shutout, all with Fortes behind the plate. “Definitely most proud of the shutouts,” he told mlb.com. “(It’s) the No. 1 priority of my job.” Fortes was a .319 hitter — and a Johnny Bench Award semifinalist — at Ole Miss in 2018, when Miami drafted him in the fourth round. He reached the big leagues in 2021, singled in his first at-bat and homered in his second. He has hit just .212 since, but his defense has kept him in The Show. … Colt Keith’s first trip as a big leaguer to his old stomping grounds seemed to do something to perk up his bat. The former Biloxi High star, who lived in Arizona for several years as a kid, went 4-for-5 with two RBIs and three runs as Detroit whipped Arizona 13-0 at Chase Field. A large group of family and friends reportedly were there to see it. Keith, who signed a huge contract in the off-season before playing a single MLB game, entered Friday’s contest batting .171 with just 20 hits but playing regularly at second base. The Mississippi Gatorade player of the year in 2019, Keith was drafted in the fifth round by the Tigers in 2020. He hit .306 with 27 homers as one of their top prospects in 2023. … Ian Mejia is not among the highly rated pitching prospects on the Mississippi Braves’ staff, but the right-hander is certainly gaining his share of attention. He threw the fifth no-hitter in Trustmark Park history on Friday night, beating Biloxi 2-0 in a seven-inning nightcap to a doubleheader. Mejia, 24, was drafted out of New Mexico State in 2022 and is in his first Double-A campaign. After Friday’s gem, which included 11 strikeouts, he is 4-0 with 1.69 ERA and 54 punchouts, leading the Southern League in the latter two categories. His no-no was the first solo job for the M-Braves since Tommy Hanson’s in 2008.

12 May

in other news …

It wasn’t the debut everyone was talking about on Saturday, but it was significant just the same. J.T. Ginn, the former Mississippi State standout from Brandon, struck out 10 batters and allowed one run in six innings in his first start for Triple-A Las Vegas in the Oakland system. The 24-year-old right-hander, in his fourth pro season, threw 99 pitches, allowed just four hits and two walks and finished his outing with a punchout. The lone run scored with two outs in the sixth, when former Mississippi College star Blaine Crim delivered an RBI knock for Round Rock, which went on to win the game 4-3. Ginn was 4-1 with a 4.15 ERA in six Double-A starts this season. Drafted by the New York Mets in the second round in 2020 (and later traded to Oakland), Ginn has been limited by injuries to 45 pro games. It appears he has regained the form that made him such a prized amateur prospect. (BTW: Ginn’s alma mater, Brandon High, knocked out Northwest Rankin on Saturday and advanced to the MHSAA Class 7A championship series.) P.S. Kudos to the state’s Big 4 Division I schools: Southern Miss walloped Arkansas State 19-3 as Slade Wilks hit two big homers; Mississippi State whipped third-ranked Arkansas (and ex-Lewisburg High star Brady Tygart) 8-5 with Dakota Jordan homering again; Ole Miss crushed No. 2 Texas A&M 10-2 behind the arms of Liam Doyle and Josh Mallitz; and Jackson State knocked off Bethune-Cookman 5-0 as Erick Gonzalez and two relievers combined on a five-hitter. … Belhaven University bowed out of the CCS Tournament in Tennessee with a pair of losses on Saturday. The Blazers, who finished second in the league in the regular season, are 25-17. The NCAA Division III Tournament selections will be made on Monday.

11 May

friday snapshots

Ole Miss upended second-ranked Texas A&M 4-3 in Oxford as Jackson Ross delivered a game-tying double in the eighth inning and scored the go-ahead run on an Ethan Groff sac fly. Wes Mendes and Connor Spencer shut the Aggies out on one hit over the last three innings. … Carson Paetow capped a pivotal three-run eighth with a two-run homer and Billy Oldham threw seven strong innings as Southern Miss beat Arkansas State 5-2 on the road. … Brett Sanchez threw a three-hitter and Belhaven batters, led by Owen Abney and Hunter Harrell, pounded out 14 hits in an 11-2 win over LaGrange (Ga.) in the CCS Tournament. The Blazers get top-seeded Maryville (Ky.) today in a winners bracket game. … On the high school front, Jackson Prep whipped visiting MRA 11-1 to advance to the MAIS 6A finals and, down the road on Lakeland Drive, Brandon beat host Northwest Rankin 6-3 in Game 1 of the MHSAA Class 7A South State series. … In the minors, Ian Mejia tossed 5 2/3 shutout innings with nine strikeouts to pace the Double-A Mississippi Braves to an 8-0 win at Rocket City. Mejia is 3-0 with a 2.02 ERA. … In MLB, ex-Mississippi State star Adam Frazier’s first homer of the year, a two-run shot in the ninth inning, lifted Kansas City to a 2-1 win against the Los Angeles Angels. … Ocean Springs native Garrett Crochet worked six shutout innings and fanned a career-high 11 with no walks as the Chicago White Sox beat Cleveland 6-3. … MSU product Jordan Westburg drove in the first run of the game with a double and Baltimore went on to beat Arizona 4-2.