Tag Archives: Southern Miss

30 Sep

just rewards

Konnor Griffin reeled in another player of the year honor on Monday, earning the Minor League Baseball Hitting Prospect of the Year Award from mlb.com. Former Jackson Prep star Griffin, the overall No. 1-ranked prospect, also won Baseball America’s POY award. (And, of course, he was the Gatorade state and national player of the year in high school in 2024.) In his first season in the Pittsburgh system, Griffin batted .333 with 21 homers, 65 steals and a .941 OPS across three levels, reaching Double-A. MLB Pipeline called his performance “the most impressive professional debut in recent memory.” He also was named the shortstop on the Prospect Team of the Year. Former Mississippi Braves reliever Hayden Harris, who reached the majors with Atlanta, was a pegged as a first-team pitcher on that squad, and Jesus Made, who played for Biloxi this season, was the second-team shortstop. … Griffin is an obvious choice for the all-Mississippi minor league All-Star team for 2025. Here’s the rest (with their organization):
Catcher: Chuckie Robinson* (Southern Miss), Los Angeles Angels/Dodgers/Atlanta
First base: Tim Elko* (Ole Miss), Chicago White Sox
Second base: Justin Foscue* (Mississippi State), Texas
Shortstop: Griffin
Third base: Blaze Jordan (DeSoto Central HS), Boston/St. Louis
Outfield:
Kemp Alderman (UM), Miami
Matthew Etzel (USM) Tampa Bay/Miami
Braden Montgomery (Madison Central HS), White Sox
DH: Blaine Crim* (Mississippi College), Texas/Colorado
Starting pitchers:
Khal Stephen (MSU), Toronto/Cleveland
Hurston Waldrep* (USM), Atlanta
Jurrangelo Cijntje (MSU), Seattle
K.C. Hunt (MSU), Milwaukee
Relievers:
Landon Sims (MSU), Arizona
Landon Tompkins (Hinds Community College), Pittsburgh
Justin Storm (USM), Miami
*Played in the big leagues
P.S. Marcus Thames, the Louisville native and ex-big leaguer, won’t be retained as hitting coach by the Chicago White Sox. The veteran coach had been in that post for two years, both of which saw the ChiSox lose 100 games. … Eric Booth Jr. of Oak Grove High and Kevin Roberts Jr. of Jackson Prep are ranked No. 7 and No. 12 on MLB Pipeline’s new list of the top 20 prep players in the 2026 MLB draft. Outfielder Booth, son of the former Southern Miss football star, is a Vanderbilt commit. Roberts, a 6-foot-5, 217-pound right-hander/outfielder, is committed to Florida.

28 Sep

wait ’til next year

Bad day for Houston, which was eliminated from playoff contention before it took the field, but there was some consolation for Astros pitcher J.P. France. The Mississippi State alum, on the mend from shoulder surgery, got his first win since 2023, working three innings Saturday in the Astros’ 6-1 victory against the Los Angeles Angels at Anaheim. France, 30, won 11 games for the Astros in 2023 but went on the injured list after five starts last season. After nine rehab appearances this summer, he was recalled to the majors on Sept. 9 and made his first appearance in 509 days on Sept. 14, throwing a scoreless inning against Atlanta. That outing, France said, “was huge for me, mainly mentally.” He backed that up with his strong showing Saturday, yielding one run on two hits with five strikeouts. His next outing will come next year, presumably with Houston, which endured an injury-plagued season and missed the postseason for the first time since 2016. Wins by Detroit and Cleveland on Saturday KO’d the Astros. Heading into the final day of the regular season, the American League Central and East Division titles have not been settled, nor has the final National League wild card berth. … Charlie Morton, 41, who pitched for the 2007 Mississippi Braves, will get the start for Atlanta today in what is expected to be his final MLB appearance. The Braves, Morton’s original club, recently claimed him on waivers from Detroit.
A total of 32 players with Mississippi ties (natives or school alums) appeared in MLB games this season:
Hitters
Tim Anderson (East Central CC), Los Angeles Angels; Blaine Crim (Mississippi College), Texas/Colorado; Tim Elko (Ole Miss), Chicago White Sox; Nick Fortes (UM), Miami/Tampa Bay; Justin Foscue (Mississippi State), Texas; Adam Frazier (MSU), Pittsburgh/Kansas City; Colt Keith (Biloxi HS), Detroit; Nathaniel Lowe (MSU), Washington/Boston; Jake Mangum (MSU), Tampa Bay; Hunter Renfroe (MSU), Kansas City; Austin Riley (DeSoto Central HS), Atlanta; Chuckie Robinson (Southern Miss), L.A. Dodgers; Brent Rooker (MSU), A’s; Matt Wallner (USM), Minnesota; Jordan Westburg (MSU), Baltimore
Pitchers
Garrett Crochet (Ocean Springs), Boston; J.P. France (MSU), Houston; J.T. Ginn (MSU), A’s; Kendall Graveman (MSU), Arizona; Gunnar Hoglund (UM), A’s; Trevor McDonald (George County HS), San Francisco; Doug Nikhazy (UM), Cleveland; Konnor Pilkington (MSU), Washington; Drew Pomeranz (UM), Chicago Cubs; Ryan Rolison (UM), Colorado; Nick Sandlin (USM), Toronto; Justin Steele (Lucedale/George County HS), Cubs; Chris Stratton (MSU), Kansas City/L.A. Dodgers; Spencer Turnbull (Madison Central HS), Toronto; Hurston Waldrep (USM), Atlanta; Will Warren (Jackson Prep), New York Yankees; Brandon Woodruff (MSU), Milwaukee.
Note: Houston Roth (UM), Baltimore, was recalled but did not appear; James McArthur (UM), Kansas City, has been on the injured list all season.

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.

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.)

22 Sep

big league chew

There was good news for Milwaukee on Sunday. A 1-0 loss by the Chicago Cubs at Cincinnati handed the Brewers the National League Central title, their third straight. But there was also bad news, a double dose: The team lost to St. Louis 5-1 and announced the loss of Brandon Woodruff, the Mississippi State product, to the injured list. Right-hander Woodruff has what has been described as a moderate lat strain that reportedly could keep him out into the postseason. Returning from shoulder surgery that cost him all of the 2024 season, Woodruff went 7-2 with a 3.32 ERA in 12 starts. “The longer you keep going, things like this can happen,” he told The Associated Press. Woodruff joins a crowd of Mississippians with season-ending injuries that includes Justin Steele, Gunnar Hoglund, Nick Sandlin, Austin Riley, Colt Keith and Matt Wallner. … The surging Reds completed a four-game sweep of the Cubs and have tied the floundering New York Mets for third place in the NL wild card standings, both at 80-76. The Reds own the tiebreaker. … Toronto also clinched a playoff berth on Sunday with an 8-5 win against Kansas City. The Blue Jays, at 90-66, lead the AL East by 2 games over the New York Yankees. Of note: A key move by Toronto at the trade deadline was acquiring Shane Bieber from Cleveland straight up for minor league prospect Khal Stephen, the former Mississippi State star who pitched in Double-A this season. Bieber is 3-2 with a 3.57 in six starts for the Jays. … Ex-Mississippi College star Blaine Crim homered Sunday for the fourth time in 31 at-bats for Colorado since he was recalled from the minors. … Atlanta, which seems to make a waiver claim every day, picked up Chuckie Robinson, the ex-Southern Miss catcher, from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Robinson, a .131 hitter in his brief MLB time, was batting .254 with four homers and 30 RBIs in Triple-A for the Dodgers, who claimed him from the Angels earlier this season. The Braves optioned Robinson to Triple-A Gwinnett. … Charlie Morton, the all-time winningest pitcher among former Mississippi Braves in MLB, was designated for assignment by scuffling Detroit. He had two wins and a 7.09 ERA in nine starts for the Tigers. He is 147-134, 4.13, lifetime. P.S. Schaumburg, with three Ole Miss alums on its roster, came up short in Sunday’s decisive Game 5 of the Frontier League Championship Series. Quebec City won the title 6-5. Former Rebels star Anthony Calarco — the independent league’s MVP — drove in 16 runs in the postseason for Schaumburg, and Banks Tolley, a St. Andrew’s and UM alum who homered on Sunday, knocked in 12. Calarco hit .347 with 24 homers and 116 RBIs on the season as the Boomers won the Midwest West Division that included the expansion Mississippi Mud Monsters. Tolley hit .313 with 12 homers, and Dallas Woolfolk, another UM product, posted a 6.00 ERA over 15 relief appearances.

21 Sep

signature game

Rookie Nacho Alvarez Jr. had big shoes to fill as Atlanta’s replacement at third base for two-time All-Star Austin Riley, the DeSoto Central alum who was lost for the season on Aug. 4. On Saturday, former Mississippi Braves star Alvarez had his signature game, helping the red-hot Braves deal Detroit a devastating defeat. Alvarez hit the first two homers of his brief MLB career and added a game-tying, two-out, two-strike single in the top of the ninth as Atlanta rallied for a 6-5 win at Comerica Park. Jurickson Profar added the go-ahead knock. The Braves have won seven straight. Detroit has lost five straight and seen its lead in the American League Central dwindle to 1 game over Cleveland, which has won 10 in a row. A top prospect, Alvarez hit .265 — with no homers — in 48 games as the M-Braves’ shortstop in 2024 before being promoted to Triple-A Gwinnett. He got a brief look in Atlanta last season (at second base) but did not play well. Injured at the outset of the 2025 season, Alvarez was recalled to Atlanta briefly when Riley was injured in mid-July and then again when Riley went down for good on Aug. 4. In 52 games all told, the California native has batted .249 with 14 RBIs and played solid defense. “He’s done something with his opportunities,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said in an mlb.com piece. … The scuffling Tigers have watched as Cleveland, which was 15.5 games behind them two months ago, has surged into contention for a division title that once appeared wrapped up. “Difficult to accept, difficult to explain,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told mlb.com. “It’s hard trying to put into words what is going on.” Detroit has lost infielder Colt Keith, the ex-Biloxi High star, to a rib cage injury, likely for the rest of the regular season. He was hitting .256 with 13 homers, 45 RBIs and 65 runs as the primary leadoff batter vs. right-handers. P.S. Matt Wallner, former Southern Miss slugger, is out for season with Minnesota because of an oblique injury. It was a very uneven campaign for the fourth-year big leaguer. He hit 22 homers but batted just .202 with 40 RBIs and struck out 114 times with 46 walks over 336 at-bats.

20 Sep

it’s that time

Fall baseball — the college variety — is in the air. Mississippi State, now in the Brian O’Connor era, played the first of its 11 intrasquad scrimmages Friday at Dudy Noble Field. The Bulldogs’ first exhibition game is Oct. 18 against Florida State in Pensacola, Fla., and they’ll host a second fall game on Nov. 1 vs. Louisiana Tech. Southern Miss, which recently extended the contract of coach Christian Ostrander, started practice Friday and will conclude its fall season with a best-of-5 intrasquad series in early November. Ole Miss, under 25-year coach Mike Bianco, will play two exhibitions, both at Swayze Field: Oct. 4 against Arkansas-Little Rock and Oct. 18 vs. Tulane. This is a particularly significant fall season for NCAA Division I schools and players: The new 34-man roster limit goes into effect on Dec. 1. … MSU was ranked No. 4 in Baseball America’s way-too-early 2026 poll. The magazine hails the arrival from Virginia of the veteran O’Connor — who faces “perhaps the highest expectations in the country” — and several portal additions. State also welcomes highly touted freshman Jacob Parker from Purvis and returns Ace Reese, SEC newcomer of the year in 2025. Ole Miss, with Judd Utermark, Austin Fawley and Hunter Elliott back in the fold, was ranked No. 24 by BA. The ’26 season starts Feb. 13. Of note: Ole Miss is slated to play in Astros Foundation College Classic in Houston from Feb. 27-March 1. Also in the field: Ohio State, Coastal Carolina and Baylor. USM will play in the Round Rock Classic in Texas from Feb. 20-22. Purdue, Oregon State and Baylor are also in that field.

17 Sep

just stuff

Dakota Jordan, the ex-Mississippi State star from Canton, and Niko Mazza, a Southern Miss and MRA alum, celebrated a California League championship on Tuesday night. The San Francisco Giants’ Low-Class A San Jose club won the pennant with a 4-2 victory over Inland Empire. Jordan, a Cal League postseason All-Star, has been on the injured list since mid-August; he hit .311 with 14 homers and 82 RBIs. Mazza, 4-3 with a 2.22 ERA this season, did not pitch in the clincher. … Former William Carey University standout Patrick Lee won a ring with Detroit’s High-A West Michigan team, which completed a dominant season with a Midwest League championship. … Ex-DeSoto Central High slugger Blaze Jordan belted his 12th homer for Triple-A Memphis – a two-run shot off MSU product Christian MacLeod – as the Redbirds (a St. Louis affiliate) beat St. Paul 7-6. Jordan has 18 homers and 94 RBIs all told this season, his fifth in the minors. … After a month-long stay on the IL, Jordan Westburg returned to Baltimore’s lineup and went 0-for-3 with two walks and a run in the Orioles’ win against the Chicago White Sox. The MSU alum is the Orioles’ Roberto Clemente Award nominee for 2025. … Ex-USM standout Chuckie Robinson – 0-for-1 with a run and a sac in his one appearance for the Los Angeles Dodgers – was sent down (again) to the minors. … After his sizzling start for Boston, former MSU star Nathaniel Lowe is now in a 2-for-20 skid; he went 0-for-1 as a pinch hitter in the Red Sox’s 2-1 loss to the A’s. … Current MSU standout Ace Reese – the SEC newcomer of the year last season – was ranked the No. 8 draft prospect among college players for 2026 by MLB Pipeline. Reese hit .352 with 21 bombs in 2025.

15 Sep

hot starts

On this date in 2002, Cliff Lee threw the first pitch of his major league career. Perhaps foreshadowing what was to come, the ex-Meridian Community College standout went 5 1/3 innings, allowing a lone run, but took a loss for Cleveland in a 5-0 defeat against visiting Minnesota. A 6-foot-3 left-hander, Lee would finish his 13-year MLB career with a 143-91 record, a 3.52 ERA, a Cy Young Award, an ERA title and four All-Star Game appearances. He never won a World Series ring but was 7-3, 2.52, in the postseason. In sum, he was really good. Born in Arkansas, he spent two years at MCC (under Scott Berry) and was drafted by Baltimore in 1998. He didn’t sign and went on to Arkansas, where he was a fourth-round pick by Montreal in 2000. He was traded to Cleveland in the summer of 2002 along with Brandon Phillips and Grady Sizemore in a blockbuster deal for Bartolo Colon and Lee Stevens. Lee would win 90 games for the Indians, 22 in 2008 when he earned the Cy Young. He won 58 games in parts of five seasons with Philadelphia and went 2-0 in the 2009 World Series. … Also on this date, in 1984, Natchez native Freddie Toliver made his MLB debut, tossing a scoreless inning for Cincinnati against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Drafted out of a California high school in 1979, Toliver went 10-16, 4.73, in 78 MLB games; he was 7-6, 4.24, for a 91-win Minnesota club in 1988. … And on this date in 1993, Keith Kessinger, an Ole Miss alum, went 1-for-2 for Cincinnati against Atlanta, getting his knock off Kent Mercker in his first at-bat. Kessinger, son of former big league star Don Kessinger, hit .259 in 11 games in ’93, his only year in The Show. P.S. Crochet v. Warren Act II went a lot like the original. Crochet, the former Ocean Springs High standout now with the Boston Red Sox, threw six effective innings Sunday night, allowing three runs and fanning 12, in Boston’s 6-4 victory over the New York Yankees at Fenway Park. Warren, the Jackson Prep product, gave up all six runs in the first inning – two on a hit by Mississippi State alum Nathaniel Lowe – and took the loss. Crochet (16-5, 2.63 ERA in 30 starts) beat Warren and Yanks on Aug. 23, punching out 11 in seven innings in a 12-1 win. Warren (now 8-7, 4.44) got roughed up in that game, too. He has a 9.42 ERA in three career starts against Boston. Of note: Crochet has fanned Aaron Judge 11 times in 15 at-bats; Judge has hit two homers off the lefty, including one Sunday. The season series between the two American League East rivals has ended. The Red Sox, who won the series, trail the second-place Yankees by 1.5 games. … Former Southern Miss standout Chuckie Robinson has been recalled again (see previous posts) by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

12 Sep

golden touch

Several Southern Miss alumni enjoyed attention-grabbing performances in the minor leagues on Thursday night. Matthew Etzel, at Triple-A Jacksonville in the Miami system, went 3-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs in the Jumbo Shrimp’s 4-3 win over Memphis. Etzel, who has played in 84 games for four teams at three levels in 2025, is batting .256 with seven homers, 47 RBIs and 26 stolen bases. He is in his third pro season. Reed Trimble, who has also bounced around quite a bit, went 2-for-5 with an RBI, a run, a bag and an outfield assist for Triple-A Norfolk (Baltimore) in a 7-4 win vs. Durham. The injury-plagued Trimble, who started 2025 on the injured list, is batting .255 with 14 homers, 45 RBIs and 19 steals on the season. The Tupelo native was the 65th overall pick in 2021. Landon Harper, pitching at Double-A Columbus in Atlanta’s chain, worked 6 1/3 innings in relief (two runs) and notched the win against Pensacola. Meridian native Harper, in his fourth pro season, is 5-8 with a 3.59 ERA and two saves for the Clingstones (the former Mississippi Braves), working as both starter and reliever. Hunter Stanley, a 2021 draftee by Cleveland, made his 2025 debut at Double-A Akron and threw a scoreless inning against Harrisburg. Stanley had been on the IL since early August 2024. He has a 4.84 career ERA in 46 games. All the moments weren’t golden for former Golden Eagles on Thursday: In the independent American Association playoffs, J.C. Keys was charged with three runs in 1/3 of an inning and took the loss for Chicago against Kane County. The Hattiesburg native, in pro ball since 2019, had a 3.19 ERA and three saves in 38 games this season for the Dogs, whose pitching coach is ex-Delta State and MLB star Stewart Cliburn. P.S. On Wednesday, USM alum Walker Powell threw five shutout innings for Double-A Knoxville in the Chicago Cubs’ organization; the 6-foot-8 righty, who started the season on the IL, is 1-2 with a 3.45 ERA over 11 starts at three levels in his fifth pro season. … And today, MLB rookie Hurston Waldrep — who started his college career at USM — will start for Atlanta against a Houston team that has been caught by Seattle atop the American League West. Waldrep is 4-0, 1.33, in seven games for the Braves.