Tag Archives: Southern League

26 Sep

a crowning achievement

Enjoying an eventful third pro season, Matthew Etzel drove in three runs in the first two innings Thursday to propel Jacksonville to the championship of the Triple-A International League. Miami’s top affiliate beat Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 7-4 in Game 3 of the title series. Etzel, 2-for-4 with a double on Thursday, hit .385 in the series with four RBIs. “He’s such a professional hitter,” Jumbo Shrimp manager David Carpenter told milb.com. “He was a huge part of us getting here.” Etzel, 23, Miami’s No. 29 prospect, batted .275 with two homers, 13 RBIs, 13 runs and nine steals in 31 games with Jacksonville. The Marlins got him in a July trade with Tampa Bay for ex-Ole Miss star Nick Fortes. Overall this season — which included two stints on the injured list — Etzel hit .248 with seven homers and 27 steals, playing at three different levels. He was originally drafted by Baltimore in 2023 and traded in July of ’24 to Tampa Bay. Ole Miss alum Kemp Alderman — the Marlins’ minor league player of the year — also got to celebrate with the Jumbo Shrimp, who’ll play Pacific Coast League champ Las Vegas on Saturday for the Triple-A National Championship. … Calvin Harris, another UM product, celebrated a Southern League title on Thursday after helping Birmingham (Chicago White Sox) win that Double-A crown 6-3 against Montgomery. Harris caught all three games of the series. P.S. J.T. Ginn, ex-Mississippi State star from Brandon, bore the brunt of the damage as Houston ended the frustration of a five-game losing streak with an 11-5 blowout of the A’s on Thursday. The Astros stayed in the chase for an American League wild card berth. Ginn, who had pitched well in his three previous September starts, was roughed up for five runs in the first two innings and seven all told in 3 2/3. Now 4-7 with a 5.08 ERA, Ginn yielded six hits, three walks and an HBP against the charged-up Astros. … Detroit and Toronto, two other AL teams needing a big win, also got one Thursday. The Tigers snapped an eight-game losing streak by beating Cleveland 4-2, tying the Guardians atop the AL Central. Houston is a game back of both, sitting at fourth in the wild card standings. Toronto beat Boston 6-1 and stayed even with the New York Yankees atop the AL East. The Red Sox, second in the wild card standings with a one-game cushion, managed just four hits on Thursday, MSU product Nathaniel Lowe going 1-for-3. Much remains unsettled — in both leagues — heading into the final weekend of the regular season. It’s gonna be fun.

25 Sep

playing pepper

Concerns about Garrett Crochet’s durability seem kinda silly now. The ex-Ocean Springs High star delivered one of his best performances of the season Wednesday night: eight innings, three hits, no walks, no runs, six strikeouts in Boston’s impactful 7-1 win at Toronto. The left-hander’s last pitch — No. 100 — hit 97 mph, a called third strike. “At this point of the year, it’s unbelievable,” Red Sox catcher Carlos Narvaez said in an mlb.com story. “He’s still throwing gas, everything has shape.” Crochet (18-5) reached 205 1/3 innings for the season, just his second since converting from reliever. He threw 146 innings for the Chicago White Sox last year, working very conservatively down the stretch of that team’s woeful season. Wednesday’s win reduced the Red Sox’s magic number to one for clinching an American League playoff berth. The proud franchise hasn’t been to the postseason since 2021. The bold off-season trade for Crochet has gotten them over that hump. … Following Toronto’s loss, the New York Yankees beat the White Sox 8-1 and moved into a tie with the Blue Jays atop the AL East. Former Mississippi Braves star Max Fried, in his first year in pinstripes, won his 19th game, boosted by Aaron Judge’s 50th and 51st home runs. … Former Mississippi College standout Blaine Crim hit his fifth homer in 11 games with Colorado — but who noticed? Seattle, powered by Cal Raleigh’s 59th and 60th homers, beat the visiting Rockies 9-2 to clinch the AL West crown. … Mississippi State product Brent Rooker drove in two runs — he has 89 RBIs on the year — and M-Braves alum Shea Langeliers homered in a four-hit game to power the A’s past Houston 6-0. Stumbling toward the finish line with five straight losses, the Astros are a game behind Detroit for the final AL wild card spot. Houston will face ex-MSU standout J.T. Ginn (4-6, 4.57 ERA) today in West Sacramento, Calif. … The fading Tigers, meanwhile, lost their eighth straight, 5-1 to Cleveland, which moved into first place alone in the AL Central. (Colt Keith, the ex-Biloxi High star, has been on the injured list since Sept. 19; he is typically Detroit’s leadoff batter.) … On a night when Cincinnati honored the late Dave Parker — the recently inducted Hall of Famer from Mississippi — the Reds fell to Pittsburgh 4-3 in 11 innings. The Reds remain tied with Arizona, a game back of the Mets for the final National League wild card berth. All three lost on a wild Wednesday. P.S. In the minors, both ex-Ole Miss star Kemp Alderman and ex-Southern Miss standout Matthew Etzel hit home runs to help Jacksonville beat Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 6-4 in Game 2 of the Triple-A International League Championship Series. The deciding game is tonight.

24 Sep

are you not entertained?

On a sensational Tuesday night when the New York Yankees and Seattle clinched playoff berths; Cleveland caught collapsing Detroit; the desperate Mets rallied past the Chicago Cubs; Houston lost its fourth straight; and the Los Angeles Dodgers blew a win for Shohei Ohtani against plucky Arizona, several Mississippians in pro ball deserved attention:
Nathaniel Lowe: The ex-Mississippi State star produced two hits, two walks, two RBIs and a run in Boston’s 4-1 win at Toronto. The Red Sox kept their grip on the second American League wild card and remained in the hunt for the AL East title. Lowe is batting .286 with two homers, 15 RBIs and 14 runs in 29 games since the Red Sox signed him as a free agent following his release by Washington.
Garrett Crochet: The Ocean Springs native gets the ball for Boston tonight against future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer and the AL East-leading Blue Jays. Crochet, a strong Cy Young Award candidate, is 17-5 with a 2.69 ERA in his first season with the Red Sox, who gave the big left-hander a bunch of money to do what he’s doing.
Hurston Waldrep: The Southern Miss alum improved to 6-1 in 10 appearances for Atlanta, which won for the 10th straight time by beating Washington 3-2. Rookie Waldrep pitched around nine baserunners, allowing just one run in six innings and trimming his ERA to 2.88. (Former Mississippi Braves Ronald Acuna and Michael Harris homered for Atlanta, Harris hitting two, one off ex-MSU star Konnor Pilkington.)
Calvin Harris: The former Ole Miss catcher went 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs to help Birmingham beat Montgomery 7-3 and force a decisive Game 3 in the Double-A Southern League Championship Series. Harris hit .266 with three homers and 38 RBIs in his third year in the Chicago White Sox’s organization. (MSU alum Colton Ledbetter went 0-for-5 for Montgomery, a Tampa Bay affiliate.)
Kemp Alderman: The ex-Ole Miss slugger and 2023 Ferriss Trophy winner was named to the Southern League postseason All-Star team by MLB Pipeline. The Decatur native batted .282 with 15 homers and 53 RBIs for Miami’s Pensacola club and finished the season in Triple-A, where he belted seven more homers. (Incidentally, he went 0-for-5 with five strikeouts in Jacksonville’s 5-4 loss to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in the opener of the International League Championship Series.)

19 Sep

tapping into power

Brent Rooker hit his 30th homer of the season on Thursday, a first-inning two-run shot that helped the A’s deal playoff-chasing Boston a hard loss at Fenway Park. Rooker, the former All-America from Mississippi State, now has 99 homers in three years with the A’s. It’s weird to think that in his first three MLB campaigns (2020-22) he hit a grand total of 10 homers while barely playing with three other clubs. The A’s got the former 35th overall pick as a waiver claim from Kansas City in November 2022. Of note: Fellow MSU product J.T. Ginn pitched six effective innings Thursday to get the win; the second-year right-hander is 4-6 with a 4.57 ERA in 22 appearances this year. With the defeat, Boston fell to third in the American League wild card standings. … Former Mississippi College star Blaine Crim belted two 400-foot homers for Colorado and now has three in seven games with the Rockies. Crim, getting his first real opportunity in the big leagues in his sixth pro season, has 124 minor league homers on his ledger. … Down in the minors, Kemp Alderman, third-year pro from Ole Miss, slugged his seventh homer in 17 games since being promoted to Triple-A Jacksonville in the Miami chain. Alderman hit 15 bombs in Double-A this season. P.S. Biloxi was eliminated by Montgomery in the Southern League division playoffs. Ex-Magnolia Heights star Cooper Pratt, Milwaukee’s No. 3 prospect, hit .237 with eight homers, 62 RBIs, 71 runs and 31 steals in his first Double-A season.

01 Jul

clearing the bases

Ex-Mississippi State standout Colton Ledbetter was named the Southern League’s player of the week on Monday and was also honored as a member of MLB Pipeline’s Prospect Team of the Week. He went 12-for-23 last week with a homer, four RBIs and eight runs for Montgomery, Tampa Bay’s Double-A club. He is batting .280 on the year. … Mississippi Mud Monsters right-hander Brian Williams was named the Frontier League pitcher of the week. He threw seven shutout innings (two hits, no walks, seven strikeouts) vs. Down East last week at Trustmark Park. A former Texas Southern star, Williams is 3-2 with a 2.49 ERA this season for the independent club. … MSU’s Ace Reese went 2-for-6 with two walks, an RBI and three runs in the Collegiate National Team’s Stars v. Stripes doubleheader on Monday at Cary, N.C. Reese played for the Stars, who won Game 1 18-4. MSU’s Ryan McPherson threw a scoreless inning for the Stripes in that game. … Ole Miss’ Patrick Galle and Taylorsville native Aiden Moffett participated in Monday’s Cape Cod League vs. MLB Draft League All-Star Game at CitiField in New York. Galle, with Wareham in the Cape, allowed a run in 2/3 innings of work, while Moffett, who pitched at Texas this past season, struck out the only batter he faced. Galle is 1-1, two saves, 1.93 ERA, in the Cape. Moffett is 1-1, one save, 4.26, in the Draft League, a prospect showcase. … Houston Green, an Itawamba Community College alum, is batting .423 with nine RBIs and 10 runs for the Tallahatchie Rascals, who lead the Cotton States League with a 9-1-1 record. The top pitcher in the New Albany-based summer circuit is Delta State’s Eli Akins, 3-0 with a 1.66 for North Delta, which is 5-5. … Andrew Gipson, the former Belhaven University coach recently hired at New Orleans, was named a regional coach of the year in NCAA Division III by ABCA/ATEC. Gipson took the Blazers to the Super Regional round in the NCAAs. East Central Community College’s Neal Holliman and Pearl River CC’s Michael Avalon shared the NJCAA D-II regional award, and Mississippi native Butch Thompson of Auburn won an NCAA D-I regional award. … Incidentally, Gipson will be UNO’s third coach in three seasons. His replacement at BU, ex-Madison Central coach Patrick Robey, will be the Blazers’ third coach in four years. … Bidding for another MLB All-Star Game invite, Ocean Springs native Garrett Crochet struck out nine batters in six innings for Boston on Monday night, running his MLB-leading K total to 144. After beating Cincinnati, Crochet is 8-4 with a 2.26 ERA. … Former MSU star J.T. Ginn, coming off a couple of wobbly outings, retired all 11 batters he faced for the A’s against Tampa Bay. Ginn entered in the fourth inning and shut down a Rays rally, struck out the side in the fifth and retired former Bulldogs teammate Jake Mangum on a grounder in the sixth. The A’s won the game late, 6-4. … The Los Angeles Angels are 5-4 under interim manager Ray Montgomery, the former Jackson Generals star who will be filling in for Ron Washington, sidelined with a medical issue, the rest of the season. The Angels are in Atlanta today to start a three-game set.

13 Jun

aw shuckers

Fans of the Biloxi Shuckers enjoyed some vicarious thrills on Thursday. The big league debut of Jacob Misiorowski was the main attraction, and Milwaukee’s top pitching prospect did not disappoint at American Family Field. “The walk in from the bullpen was like, ‘Holy cow, this is it, we’re actually doing this.’ … It’s cool. It’s really cool,” he said postgame. The 6-foot-7 right-hander threw five hitless innings at the St. Louis Cardinals, touching 102 mph on the gun while striking out five batters and walking four. Misiorowski, who pitched for the Double-A Shuckers in 2023 and ’24, left the game in the sixth inning after experiencing leg cramps. He threw 14 pitches at 100-plus. Former Shuckers stars Jackson Chourio (12th home run), Sal Frelick (3-for-4, two RBIs) and Brice Turang (2-for-4 with an RBI) also contributed in the Brewers’ 6-0 win, which moved the team ahead of St. Louis into second place in the National League Central. At Houston, ex-Shuckers ace Josh Hader notched his 18th save — 217th career — for the first-place Astros, who put down the Chicago White Sox 4-3. At Kansas City, Shuckers alum Devin Williams, now back in the closer role, nailed down his ninth save with a clean ninth for the New York Yankees in a 1-0 win. He has four saves and a 1.93 ERA this month after some early season struggles. At Colorado, the Rockies got a walk-off hit from Orlando Arcia — a star on the original Shuckers team in 2015 — in an 8-7 victory against San Francisco. Arcia is batting .200 with a homer and four RBIs in nine games for the Rockies since Atlanta cut him loose. And in Chattanooga, the current Shuckers beat the Lookouts 6-5 in 10 innings, with former Magnolia Heights standout Cooper Pratt scoring the game-deciding run. The Shuckers, at 36-24, have the best record in the Southern League.

09 Jun

in local news

At Pearl, the Mississippi Mud Monsters wrapped up a 4-1 homestand with a twinbill split Sunday against Florence (Ky.) at Trustmark Park. In the 11-2 win in Game 2, Kyle Booker homered and drove in three runs to back the strong start of Rodney Theopile. Nick Hassan went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run for the independent Mud Monsters. Booker, a former DeSoto Central High star who spent three years at Tennessee, is batting .327 with three homers and 18 RBIs on the year. He had two of the Mud-sters’ three hits in a 4-0 loss in Sunday’s opener. Mississippi is 13-14 in its inaugural Frontier League season. After a 12-game road trip, the next homestand starts June 24.
At Biloxi, the Double-A Shuckers whipped Montgomery 6-4 at Keesler Federal Park to win the Southern League series 5 games to 1. The first-place Shuckers are 35-22. Brock Wilken, a highly rated Milwaukee prospect, hit a grand slam, and former Magnolia Heights standout Cooper Pratt, another top prospect, went 3-for-4 with an RBI, a run and two steals. Wilken leads the SL with 15 homers and 35 RBIs. The Shuckers are celebrating their 10th anniversary season as an SL club.
At New Albany, the college boys of the Cotton States League played a pair of doubleheaders in BNA Bank Park with league-leader Tallahatchie going 1-0-1 vs. Tippah County and North Delta taking two from Hill Country. Houston Green, an Itawamba Community College alum, drove in two runs for Tallahatchie to back the three-hit pitching of Jake Thomas and Sam Brumbaugh in their 5-1 win. The Rascals are 4-0-1. Green is 6-for-12 on the young season, and Thomas is 2-0 with a 1.12 ERA. For North Delta, Eli Akins, a Delta State alum, threw a one-hitter in a 2-0 win against Hill Country after Connor Edge (ICC) tossed a three-hitter and Hayden Short knocked in three runs in the Dealers’ 10-1 victory in the opener.
P.S. Madison Central High product Spencer Turnbull has been added to Toronto’s active roster. The veteran right-hander, a recent free agent signee, had a 2.65 ERA in 17 games for Philadelphia before a lat injury in June ended his 2024 season. He has a 4.26 career ERA over 78 games. … Braden Montgomery, another Madison Central alum, had a four-hit game Sunday for High-Class A Winston-Salem and boosted his average there to .263. Montgomery is a highly rated prospect in the Chicago White Sox’s chain.

03 Jun

something to celebrate

There is no joy in Hattiesburg or Oxford today, but, hey, there should be a festive mood in Biloxi at Keesler Federal Park. The Double-A Shuckers, celebrating their 10th anniversary season, are in first place with the best record in the Southern League as they open a six-game homestand against Montgomery. The 10th anniversary of the franchise’s first home game is Friday. The Shuckers are 30-21, 2 games ahead of Montgomery in the SL South, and lead the league in scoring. Four of Milwaukee’s Top 30 prospects (per MLB Pipeline) are on the Biloxi roster, led by Cooper Pratt, the former Gatorade player of the year from Magnolia Heights. In his first Double-A season, shortstop Pratt is batting .229 with four homers, 27 RBIs and 28 runs. Ex-Mississippi State standout K.C. Hunt, the system’s No. 24 prospect, is in the Shuckers’ rotation and is 3-4 with a 4.61 ERA. No. 8 prospect Luke Adams leads the team with 34 runs, and No. 12 Brock Wilken has 12 homers and 27 RBIs. Zavier Warren has seven homers, 29 RBIs and 25 runs. On the mound, Nate Peterson is 5-4, 3.06; Tate Kuehner 4-4, 2.77; and Justin Yeager has eight saves. The Shuckers — formerly the Huntsville Stars — played their inaugural home game at what was then called MGM Park on June 6, 2015, winning 4-3 against Mobile. That Shuckers team, featuring Orlando Arcia and Tyrone Taylor among others, won a first-half championship despite playing the bulk of its games on the road. They actually clinched the title in mid-June vs. the Mississippi Braves at Trustmark Park in Pearl. … Montgomery, a Tampa Bay affiliate, comes to Biloxi with a crew of Mississippi products in tow: Ex-MSU stars Colton Ledbetter, Kamren James and Hunter Stovall and Southern Miss alum Matthew Etzel. Ledbetter and Etzel are ranked prospects for the Rays. P.S. In MLB moves, the (Sacramento) A’s have placed Gunnar Hoglund, the rookie righty out of Ole Miss, on the injured list (hip injury), and the Los Angeles Dodgers have DFA’d former MSU star Chris Stratton, who made two appearances for them.

19 Apr

weird, wild stuff

Have a double-duty day, Hunter Stovall. The 28-year-old former Mississippi State standout banged out three hits, scored a run, drove in a run and pitched a clean inning for the win as Montgomery beat visiting Rocket City 13-12 in 11 innings Friday night in the Double-A Southern League. It was the first pitching appearance in seven minor league seasons — 549 games — for Stovall, a .278 career hitter recently sent down from Triple-A by the parent Tampa Bay Rays. Four Magnolia State college alums took part in the Biscuits’ walk-off win at Riverwalk Stadium. Stovall started at shortstop before moving to the mound in the 11th. Matthew Etzel, ex-Southern Miss star, started at DH before moving to first base and went 0-for-3 with two walks and a run. MSU product Colton Ledbetter started in right field and went 0-for-5 with a game-tying sac fly in the 10th. Fellow Bulldogs alum Kamren James, an infielder by trade, pitched the ninth — his first mound appearance in four pro seasons — and blew a save, then walked (batting in Etzel’s spot) in the 10th and finished the game at third base. (Former Mississippi Braves broadcasters Chris Harris, now doing Rocket City games, and Jack Sadighian, the Biscuits’ play-by-play man, must have enjoyed calling that one.) … In the Low-Class A Carolina League, Columbia beat Kannapolis 8-7 in a game that featured six errors, four wild pitches, four hit batsmen and a whopping 13 stolen bases, one each by Mississippi prep products Braden Montgomery and Brennon McNair. Columbia, a Kansas City farm club, stole eight bases against the host Cannon Ballers, who had former Ole Miss standout Calvin Harris behind the plate. Harris did manage to throw out two would-be thieves and also went 2-for-5 with three RBIs for the Chicago White Sox affiliate. Montgomery, ex-Madison Central High star and a pro rookie, went 1-for-3 with two walks, two runs and his fifth steal for Kannapolis. For Columbia, McNair, out of Magee High, had a big two-run double in the seventh inning in addition to swiping his fourth bag. … Less wild but no less weird was a Carolina League game between Hickory and Charleston. The host RiverDogs won 1-0 despite getting no-hit by three Crawdads pitchers. Yes, there was a state connection in this one, too: Connor Hujsak, a 2024 draftee out of MSU by Tampa Bay, went 0-for-3 for the RiverDogs, whose run was unearned in the eighth inning. P.S. Kudos to M-Braves alum Drake Baldwin for his first game-winning hit, a two-run pinch knock in the eighth inning that propelled Atlanta to a 6-4 win over visiting Minnesota. Ozzie Albies and Michael Harris II, also former M-Braves stars, also had key hits as the Braves rallied from the dead for five runs in the eighth. … The Mississippi Mud Monsters have added two players to their preliminary roster: second baseman Lizandro Rodriguez and outfielder/first baseman Karell Paz. Rodriguez, from the Dominican Republic, played four years in the Kansas City system, and Paz, from Cuba, spent three seasons in the New York Mets’ system. The independent Mud Monsters will begin their inaugural season on May 8 at Pearl’s Trustmark Park.

29 Oct

riding the wave

David Mershon was the 532nd pick in the MLB draft back in July. So far, that looks like a steal for the Los Angeles Angels. Mershon, an All-SEC shortstop at Mississippi State this year, is excelling in the Arizona Fall League after a productive start to his pro career this summer at the Double-A level. The 5-foot-7, 175-pound Mershon went 2-for-3 with two walks, a triple, an RBI and two runs for Mesa on Monday. The 21-year-old South Carolina native is batting .250 with a .451 on-base percentage, ranking second in walks (13) in the star-studded AFL. He has two triples, seven RBIs, 10 runs and four stolen bases in 13 games as one of just two 2024 draftees originally assigned to the AFL. Mershon hit .347 at State this season with six homers and 27 steals. The Angels nabbed him as a sophomore-eligible and promptly sent him to Double-A Rocket City, where he answered the challenge with a hit in his first pro game. He batted .254 (.326 OBP) with five bags in 29 games overall in the Southern League. … Ex-Ole Miss star Kemp Alderman (a Miami prospect) is batting .306 with six homers in nine games for Peoria in the AFL, and UM alum Tim Elko (Chicago White Sox) has three homers and a .225 average in 10 games for Glendale. P.S. Postseason flashback: Former Mississippi State standout Hunter Renfroe’s 94.9 mph outfield assist in Game 4 of the 2020 World Series remains the hardest throw for an outfield assist in the Fall Classic since such stat-tracking began in 2015. Los Angeles’ Teoscar Hernandez made a 93.9 mph throw — third on the list — to nab New York’s Giancarlo Stanton at the plate on Monday night. Renfroe, playing for Tampa Bay in 2020, registered two assists in Game 4 of the 2020 Series against the Dodgers, cutting down runners at second and third base. He also homered in that game, which the Rays won before ultimately dropping the series.