Tag Archives: Reds

02 Oct

crash landings

For the second straight year, ex-Ole Miss standout Zack Cozart saw a strong season curtailed by physical woes. Cozart, Cincinnati’s shortstop, missed the last 3 1/2 months of 2015 after a knee injury that required surgery, then went down again this year in early September because of recurring pain in that knee. Cozart, who last played on Sept. 10, hit .252 with 16 home runs and 50 RBIs in 120 games. He played only 53 games last year, batting .258 with nine homers. He looked better than ever this April, hitting .361 at month’s end, and was at .303 on June 8 before starting to fade. He had 15 homers on July 18, one thereafter. Cozart, eligible for arbitration again this year, was the subject of trade rumors before and during the season. He might have played his final game for the Reds. … Aaron Barrett, another Ole Miss product, also had a rough year. Barrett, a Washington Nationals reliever, had Tommy John surgery last September and was making progress toward a possible return in late July when he suffered a fractured elbow. “It was traumatizing. It was like someone hit me in the gut, like, a million times,” Barrett told mlb.com in August. “But … I have a bionic arm now, and I’m literally going to come back stronger than ever.” … Former Itawamba Community College star Desmond Jennings battled injuries – again – in 2016 with Tampa Bay and wound up being released on Aug. 26. The toolsy Jennings was batting .200 with seven homers. A Tampa Tribune writer called Jennings’ potential “fool’s gold.” He remains unsigned, as does Jonathan Papelbon, who was released, per mutual agreement, by Washington on Aug. 13. Mississippi State product Papelbon had a 4.37 ERA at the time and had lost his closer’s job after a series of shaky outings. P.S. Jackson’s Seth Smith went 0-for-2 with a run in a wild and crazy game in Seattle on Saturday that the Mariners lost to Oakland 9-8 in 10 innings. The defeat eliminated Seattle from postseason contention, extending their drought to 15 years.

29 Sep

missing pieces

After stumbling on Wednesday night against lowly Cincinnati, the St. Louis Cardinals need a bounce-back game tonight against the Reds at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals (82-76) are third in the National League wild card standings, trailing second-place San Francisco by a game with four to play. St. Louis is trying to keep its streak of five straight postseason appearances alive. From a Mississippi perspective, this game is significant for the people who aren’t playing. The Reds, winding down a tough season, are without Billy Hamilton, Zack Cozart and Cody Reed – all on the disabled list. Jeff Brantley is healthy, but the ex-Mississippi State star – who pitched for both the Reds and Cards in his MLB career – will be in the Cincinnati broadcast booth. Chris Maloney, another MSU alum, will suit up for St. Louis – but he’ll be in the third-base coach’s box. The Cardinals don’t have ex-Ole Miss standout Lance Lynn, who had been a horse in their rotation for the last several years before Tommy John surgery put him out for 2016. The Cardinals do have another UM product, Mike Mayers, but the rookie reliever hasn’t been very effective in his four appearances (27.00 ERA). Perhaps he’s due for a shining moment.

25 Sep

highs and lows

It was a day of firsts for Hunter Renfroe. The former Mississippi State standout, batting cleanup for San Diego for the first time on Saturday, hit his first MLB home run and his first double. Renfroe’s memorable homer, in his fourth game, came against San Francisco ace Madison Bumgarner, no less, a solo shot off a 93-mph fastball on a 1-2 pitch. Renfroe, playing right field, also committed his first error, though it was inconsequential in the Padres’ loss. … Billy Hamilton has been knocked from his perch atop the MLB stolen base leaders. While the Taylorsville High product has been idled by injury, Milwaukee’s Jonathan Villar has caught and passed him. Villar got his 59th bag on Saturday. Hamilton, out for the season (oblique injury) in Cincinnati, will finish with 58, a career-high. He got 57 last year and 56 in 2014. … Meridian Community College alum Corey Dickerson continues to rake for Tampa Bay, the one American League East team with no postseason shot. Dickerson, in his first year with the Rays, is batting .386 over his last 15 games with five homers, 10 RBIs and seven runs. With 23 homers on the season, he is one shy of his career-best, set two years ago in Colorado. His 36 doubles are already a best.

15 Sep

better late …

The Corey Dickerson the Tampa Bay Rays thought they were getting in an off-season trade has emerged the last few weeks. The former Meridian Community College star from McComb has 15 hits in his last 27 at-bats and is batting .315 with five home runs and 19 RBIs over his last 30 games. Dickerson went 3-for-4 with his 20th homer of the year on Wednesday as the Rays – long ago reduced to the role of spoiler in the American League East – beat Toronto 8-1. Dickerson, a lefty-hitting outfielder acquired from Colorado in the Jake McGee trade, batted .299 in three seasons with the Rockies, playing half his games at hitter-friendly Coors Field. His recent hot streak has lifted his 2016 average to .247. On June 20, he was at .198. Tampa Bay, which has had myriad problems, was expected to be much better than its 62-83 record — and maybe there is hope for 2017. Dickerson’s homer on Wednesday was the 200th for the team, a single-season club record. “It’s something we can build off of,” Dickerson told mlb.com. P.S. Southern Miss alum Brian Dozier hit his 41st homer on Wednesday (for a Minnesota team that has 54 wins), moving a bit closer to the long-standing MLB record for homers by a player who was primarily a second baseman. Davey Johnson – the old Jackson Mets manager – hit 43 bombs in 1973 for Atlanta. With 81 extra-base hits, Dozier needs three more to match Tony Oliva’s Twins record, set in 1964. … A rough season in Cincinnati has been made even more frustrating of late for Mississippians Billy Hamilton, Zack Cozart and Cody Reed, all forced to sit because of injuries. Taylorsville’s Hamilton has an oblique, Ole Miss product Cozart a knee and ex-Northwest Mississippi CC star Reed a back problem.

24 Aug

stuff

Even on an 0-for-3 night, Billy Hamilton hijacked the highlight show in the big leagues Tuesday with a catch that must be seen. The Taylorsville Tornado covered 123 feet and reached 22 mph, according to Statcast figures, and laid out to snag a ball in left-center field during Cincinnati’s 3-0 win against Texas. He leads National League center fielders in Defensive Runs Saved with 12. The best part of the whole thing might have been Hamilton’s post-catch reaction: a wide smile and a shrug. … Southern Miss alum Brian Dozier set a career-high with his 29th homer for Minnesota in a loss to Detroit. He has 75 RBIs, two shy of his career-best set in 2015, and is hitting .268, which would also be a career-best. … Tim Anderson, the Chicago White Sox rookie out of East Central Community College, went 2-for-4 with two RBIs in a win over Philadelphia. He is at .280 with 20 RBIs. … Mississippi Gulf Coast CC product Tony Sipp allowed another home run – that’s 11 in 34 2/3 innings – in Houston’s loss to Pittsburgh. Sipp’s ERA swelled to 5.45. … Ole Miss alum Zack Cozart, out since Aug. 17 with knee and heel soreness, isn’t expected to play again for Cincinnati until Friday. Coming back from 2015 knee surgery, Cozart is batting .263 with 15 homers. … When San Francisco put former Mississippi Braves center fielder Gregor Blanco on the disabled list, it opened the door for another ex-M-Braves center fielder, Gorkys Hernandez, to return to The Show. … Orlando Arcia, the former Biloxi Shuckers star and top Milwaukee prospect, is batting .155 in 20 games since his call-up. … Down on the farm, ex-Harrison Central High star Bobby Bradley blasted two homers for Class A Lynchburg (Cleveland) and now has 29 bombs and 100 RBIs for the season. … Former UM standout Lance Lynn, on the mend from Tommy John surgery, is slated to make a rehab start tonight for St. Louis’ Class AA Springfield club. He has made two starts in A-ball. … The run-starved M-Braves, who’ve lost five of six as they battle for a Southern League South title, face Biloxi ace and former Mississippi State star Brandon Woodruff tonight at MGM Park. Woodruff, despite back-to-back rough outings, is 7-8 with a 3.63 ERA.

15 Aug

dispatches

First, the good stuff. Brian Dozier hit career homer No. 100 on Saturday, then started on his second hundred Sunday. The former Southern Miss star hit his 26th of the year for Minnesota in a loss against Kansas City. Mississippi State product Adam Frazier went 4-for-5 with a couple of runs for Pittsburgh in a win over the Los Angeles Dodgers; the rookie is batting .348. Billy Hamilton, the ex-Taylorsville High standout, went 3-for-4 in Cincinnati’s loss to Milwaukee, lifting his average to .264 and his on-base percentage to .318. Meridian Community College alum Corey Dickerson snapped an 0-for-17 funk with his 16th homer of the year for Tampa Bay in a win against the New York Yankees; it was his first bomb since July 29. And ex-East Central CC star Tim Anderson went deep for the sixth time in the Chicago White Sox’s loss to Miami. Now, the bad stuff. Cody Reed, the Northwest Mississippi CC alum from Horn Lake, was KO’d in the second inning of the Reds’ loss. He allowed five hits — including a 12th homer in his 10 starts — walked three, hit a batter and left trailing 6-0. He is 0-7 with a 7.36 ERA. He may well be headed back to the minors to regain some confidence in his stuff.

09 Aug

cruel world

Mississippi State product Mitch Moreland had a game-winning hit, and fellow ex-Bulldogs star Kendall Graveman threw seven strong innings to notch his eighth victory. But the big story – the best story – involving a Mississippian in the majors on Monday night was Cody Reed earning his long-awaited first … uh, well, no, it didn’t happen. Should have, but didn’t. The Northwest Mississippi Community College alum from Horn Lake, who entered Monday’s game at St. Louis with an 0-6 record (7.30 ERA) in eight starts, pitched six shutout innings, his first scoreless outing in the bigs. Thanks in large part to a triple by former Ole Miss star Zack Cozart, Cincinnati took a 4-0 lead into the ninth. Then, disaster. The Cardinals scored five times against the Reds’ bullpen, the game-winner crossing courtesy of a hit batsman with the bases loaded. Reed, a highly rated prospect, was 6-3 with a 3.20 ERA in Triple-A this year. He was 6-2, 2.17 for Pensacola in the Double-A Southern League in 2015. He was sharp on Monday night: four hits, one walk, four strikeouts. He should have been celebrating that first win, but nothing comes easy in the big leagues. The tall left-hander tried to put a good spin on it post-game. “It helps the confidence going into the next one,” he told The Associated Press. Does it?

08 Aug

big league chew

Three hits, a walk, three runs, four steals and a great catch in center field. That’s the kind of production the Cincinnati Reds would like to see from Billy Hamilton on a more regular basis. “It’s a completely different dynamic,” Reds manager Bryan Price told mlb.com after Sunday’s 7-3 win against Pittsburgh. “He just has a special talent … .” The Taylorsville High alum is batting .255 (.305 on-base percentage) with 52 runs and an MLB-leading 43 stolen bases in 95 games. He is a .245 career hitter (.292 OBP) since his 2013 debut with the Reds. … Former Southern Miss star Brian Dozier rapped out two hits Sunday to extend his streak to 16 games. He is batting .366 during that stretch and is up to .264 for the season for Minnesota. … Cameras caught Mississippi State alum Jonathan Papelbon kicked back and catching some rays (possibly napping) in the Washington Nationals’ bullpen on Sunday – during the eighth inning of a 1-0 game against San Francisco. The displaced closer watched in the ninth as Mark Melancon nailed down his first save for the Nats. Papelbon has made just two appearances since July 28, allowing a run (on a home run) in 2 1/3 innings. … Ole Miss product David Goforth allowed five runs in three innings in three appearances during his week back up with Milwaukee. His ERA ballooned to 10.97, and he was optioned out to Triple-A Colorado Springs today. … Madison Younginer, who had 14 saves with the Mississippi Braves this season, made his MLB debut with Atlanta on Sunday, allowing two runs in 2/3 of an inning against St. Louis.

04 Aug

random numbers

37 – Stolen bases for Taylorsville’s Billy Hamilton, who got one as a pinch runner on Wednesday in Cincinnati’s 5-4 loss to St. Louis. Hamilton’s total ranks second in MLB, three behind Jonathan Villar. Hamilton, who set the all-time minor league record with 155 steals in 2012, swiped 57 bases for the Reds in 2015 and 56 in 2014.
11 – Home runs allowed in eight starts by Northwest Mississippi Community College alum Cody Reed, the rookie left-hander who gave up another in Cincinnati’s loss to St. Louis. Reed, one of the Reds’ top-rated prospects, fell to 0-6 with a 7.30 ERA.
6 – RBIs by former Southern Miss star Brian Dozier in the last three games, all wins for Minnesota against Cleveland. Dozier, who has a 12-game hit streak, is 5-for-16 with two homers and four runs scored in the series, helping the Twins score 35 times against the Indians’ vaunted pitching staff.
14 – Number of players the Los Angeles Dodgers currently have on the disabled list, which now includes Greenwood native and ex-Pillow Academy star Louis Coleman. Coleman, out with right shoulder fatigue, has appeared in a career-high 50 games in his first season with the Dodgers after five in Kansas City. He has a 3.70 ERA.
2 – Number of former Mississippi Braves to make their MLB debut on Wednesday. Rob Whalen started and got the win for Atlanta against Pittsburgh, and James Hoyt worked a scoreless inning in relief for Houston. By one count, that makes 111 M-Braves alums who have advanced to The Show since the Double-A club arrived in Pearl in 2005.
6 – Runs, matching a season-high, yielded by Mississippi State product Kendall Graveman, who lasted just four innings in Oakland’s 8-6 loss to the L.A. Angels. Graveman, who had won four straight starts in July, now has a loss and a no-decision in his last two. He is 7-7, 4.46.
9 – Hits in his last four games for Petal High alum Anthony Alford, who has boosted his average to .232 at Class A Dunedin in Toronto’s system. The Blue Jays’ No. 1 prospect (by Baseball America) entering this season, Alford has been sidetracked by injuries. The 22-year-old outfielder has five homers, 30 RBIs and 14 steals in 68 games.

03 Aug

alumni news

Though is his team is stuck in last place, Southern Miss product Brian Dozier is on a roll. Dozier hit his 20th home run of the year on Tuesday and extended his hitting to streak to 11 games as Minnesota beat American League Central leader Cleveland 10-6. The second baseman also had eight assists and two putouts. Dozier is batting .259, having lifted his average 26 points during the streak, and has 57 RBIs. He has reached the 20-homer plateau for the third straight year. … He is called “that little scamp” in one Pittsburgh Pirates-devoted blog. It’s a compliment, actually, and it rather fits Adam Frazier. The former Mississippi State standout, who goes 5 feet 10, 175 pounds, pestered the Atlanta Braves all night on Tuesday, helping the Pirates to a 5-3 victory at Turner Field. The Athens, Ga., native went 2-for-4, drove in two runs and stole a base. He got the Pirates’ first hit in a 13-pitch at-bat in the fifth inning against Mike Foltynewicz and added a two-run single in a pivotal four-run sixth inning. For the season, the versatile rookie is batting .367 with a homer, six RBIs, seven runs and four steals in 24 games. … Not only did Zack Cozart not get traded, he received one of the prime lockers in the Cincinnati clubhouse. The ex-Ole Miss star, rumored to be headed to Seattle on Monday, is staying put – for now – and was moved into the double-wide locker formerly occupied by the traded Jay Bruce. “I’ve got some big shoes to fill. That’s for sure,” Cozart told the Dayton Daily News. The highly respected Cozart, who missed Tuesday’s game with a minor injury, is batting .266 with 15 homers as one of the Reds’ steadiest performers in a rough season. P.S. Prepare to add Rob Whalen to the list – now well over 100 — of Mississippi Braves alums to make the majors. The right-hander, who went 7-5 with a 2.49 ERA for the M-Braves before moving to Triple-A Gwinnett, is slated to start for Atlanta tonight against Pittsburgh.