Tag Archives: Southern Miss

23 Mar

fish tales

Good day for Tyler Moore, who is trying to earn a roster spot with the Miami Marlins. Not so good for Scott Copeland, who is trying to do the same thing. Mississippi State product Moore hit two home runs in his two at-bats on Wednesday, giving him five for the spring. Southern Miss product Copeland got the start against the New York Mets at Port St. Lucie, Fla., and faced 15 batters. Nine of them reached base and six scored. Moore, 30, is an MLB-seasoned right-handed hitting first baseman/outfielder who spent last year in the minors with Atlanta. He signed a minor league deal with Miami in the off-season and is batting .282 this spring. Copeland, 29, who has limited big league experience and also spent 2016 in the minors (and Korea), would appear to face longer odds of sticking than Moore. The right-hander has made six appearances in the Grapefruit League and, despite a 2-0 record, has a 9.00 ERA.

22 Mar

names to know

Taylor Braley: The former Oak Grove High star pitched seven innings and doubled in the game’s first run to boost Southern Miss past Mississippi State 7-5 on Tuesday before a crowd of 5,198 at Trustmark Park in Pearl.
Kenny Wright: The junior out of Winston Academy threw a four-hitter for Millsaps in a 10-0 win against Belhaven that clinched the Maloney Trophy Series at Smith-Wills Stadium.
Blake Key: The Meridian native went 5-for-6, including Blue Mountain’s first-ever cycle in Game 2, drove in seven runs and scored six as the Toppers swept visiting Rust 17-7 and 19-1.
Cornelius Copeland: Drove in four runs and scored four more to spark Jackson State to a 17-2 win over LeMoyne-Owen, completing a doubleheader sweep at Braddy Field.
Zach Osbon: Held Henderson State to one run over the last three innings as Delta State rallied from a nine-run deficit to beat the Reddies 15-13 at Ferriss Field.
Colby Bortles: Knocked in Ole Miss’ lone run – in the ninth inning – in a 2-1 loss in 11 innings against Memphis at AutoZone Park.
Adam Frazier: The former Mississippi State standout, batting .442 this spring, scored the first and last runs of the game as Pittsburgh walked off with a 5-4 win against Tampa Bay in Grapefruit League action.
Fred Franklin and Logan Robbins: The reigning MACJC hitter and pitcher of the week will lead NJCAA Division II No. 1 Jones County Junior College (20-0) against 19th-ranked Hinds CC in a doubleheader today in Raymond.

21 Mar

hits keep comin’

He hit in high school. He hit in college. He has hit in pro ball, including an RBI knock in his first major league spring training at-bat on Saturday. Mason Robbins keeps passing the tests. The next one he faces will be the biggest yet. The former George County High and Southern Miss standout should play at the Double-A level in the Chicago White Sox’s system this season, which would put him in Birmingham of the Southern League. Robbins, a 25th-round pick in 2014, has batted .292 over his three seasons in the minors, including a .314 season at high-A Winston-Salem in 2016, when he was a postseason Carolina League All-Star. He was Mr. Baseball and a prep All-American as a senior at George County and a freshman All-America pick at USM, where he was a three-year starter. The lefty-hitting outfielder rarely walks but doesn’t strike out much either. He flashed some power at Winston-Salem with 33 doubles, seven triples and five home runs. Robbins hasn’t yet cracked the White Sox’s top 30 prospect rankings listed on mlb.com, but if he hits in Double-A – as he has everywhere else – getting attention won’t be an issue. P.S. Former East Central Community College star Tim Anderson reportedly has agreed to a 6-year, $25 million contract with the White Sox. He hit .283 in 99 games as a rookie shortstop in 2016.

21 Mar

game on

Even if you’re not partial to maroon or gold, there are compelling reasons to check out tonight’s Mississippi State-Southern Miss game at Trustmark Park in Pearl. USM (16-4) is on a seven-game winning streak that has propelled the Golden Eagles into a couple of the national polls. State (12-9) was swept three straight at Arkansas over the weekend but features the SEC’s batting average leader, Brent Rooker, a .446 hitter who also tops the league in slugging, RBIs and steals. His six homers lead the team. Jackson Prep product Jake Mangum (.378) and Ryan Gridley (.354) also have played well for the Bulldogs. The Eagles’ starting pitcher will be ex-Oak Grove High star Taylor Braley, who is also their best hitter. He has a 3.38 ERA in three starts and a .366 batting average with six homers and 22 RBIs. Meridian native Mason Irby, a juco All-America pick at Jones County Junior College in 2016, is the reigning C-USA hitter of the week. In addition to Braley, USM trots out three other sluggers with four or more homers: Dylan Burdeaux, Casey Maack and Matt Wallner, who might also make a mound appearance. State won last year’s game 13-5 and leads the series at the TeePee 5-3. … Meanwhile, at Smith-Wills Stadium in Jackson tonight, NCAA Division III rivals Belhaven and Millsaps will hook up in the decisive third game of the Maloney Trophy Series. The host Blazers are 12-8 and feature a trio of impressive hitters: Daniel Ammirati (.406), Terrell Hodges (.347, five homers, 22 RBIs) and Stephen Sexton (.338, six, 20). Andy Page leads the Majors (9-12) with a .341 average, and Lee Ogletree is batting .288 with three homers and 20 RBIs.

20 Mar

taking it all in

Ole Miss took two of three from Vanderbilt. Jackson State took two of three from Alcorn State. Delta State and William Carey scored sweeps, and Mississippi Valley State, Mississippi College and Belhaven all won conference series on the road. Oh yeah, and Jones County Junior College remained unbeaten. But as the dust settles on an eventful weekend in college baseball, Southern Miss emerges as the team of the moment. The Golden Eagles swept Louisiana Tech at Ruston, La., in their C-USA opening series. Tech, loaded with former Hinds Community College stars, was 15-2 entering the weekend and ranked in some polls. Each game was a battle: 5-2, 13-9, 8-5. The Eagles got clutch pitching from Kirk McCarty and Matt Wallner in Game 1 and from Nick Sandlin in Game 3. They blasted seven homers all told – two by Taylor Braley – in Games 2 and 3. USM is now 16-4 and will take a seven-game win streak into Tuesday’s game against Mississippi State at Trustmark Park in Pearl. MSU (12-9) was one of the few state teams to suffer a bad weekend, scoring just six runs while dropping three straight at Arkansas to start SEC play. … Ole Miss, 14-6 and up to No. 11 in Baseball America’s new poll, won a wild rubber match with Vandy 10-8 on Sunday in Oxford as Dallas Woolfolk tossed two scoreless innings late and Chase Cockrell delivered a go-ahead double in the eighth. C.J. Newsome drove in four runs and Jose Tirado pitched a sterling 4 1/3 innings of relief as JSU (12-9, 6-3 SWAC) beat Alcorn 11-6 in Sunday’s series clincher at Braddy Field. Zack Shannon, batting .440 with five homers and 33 RBIs, knocked in eight runs as DSU (18-7, 10-5 Gulf South) rolled past Alabama-Huntsville. William Carey, 22-5 and ranked 12th in NAIA, scored 49 runs in a sweep of outmanned Brewton-Parker. MC (6-18, 4-10) won its second straight GSC series, taking the rubber match from Christian Brothers 6-5 on Sunday as Will Elliott and Hunter Austin drove in two runs apiece. Landon Boyd worked seven shutout innings in relief on Saturday to lift Belhaven past McMurry and give the Blazers an American Southwest Conference series win. BU (12-8) will play Millsaps on Tuesday at Smith-Wills Stadium for the Maloney Trophy. The Majors are 9-12 and coming off a Southern Athletic Association series loss at Rhodes. Finally, Jones County JC beat East Mississippi 8-5 and 3-1 on Saturday in Scooba to improve to 20-0, 2-0 MACJC. The Bobcats are ranked No. 1 in NJCAA Division II.

16 Mar

hitters, ye be warned

It should be posted in the dugouts at Oxford-University Stadium this weekend as a warning to hitters: “Danger: High Voltage.” Ole Miss and Vanderbilt pitchers have been dealing electric stuff. Their staffs rank 2-3 in the SEC in ERA, first and fourth in batting average against and second and fifth in strikeouts. Ole Miss pitchers have thrown five shutouts in the team’s last six games. Rebels starters have worked 43 2/3 scoreless innings over those six games, one of which Ole Miss (12-5) actually lost. Regardless of the competition, that’s strong. The UM staff ERA has shrunk to 2.40. Opposing batters are hitting .185. Eight pitchers with at least 11 innings of work have ERAs under 4.00. Five are under 2.00, including Andy Pagnozzi (0.82) and Will Ethridge (1.15). David Parkinson (3-1, 2.52) is the reigning SEC pitcher of the week after tossing eight scoreless innings against Furman last Friday. Vanderbilt (12-6), which has a reputation for trotting out quality arms, has a 2.58 ERA, led by freshman starter Drake Fellows, who is 3-0 with a 1.00. Neither team has been a behemoth with the bats, but Ole Miss has been particularly puny. The Rebels have scored only 79 runs and rank 13th in the league in batting and last in slugging. So, if you like good pitching, this series should be crackling with excitement. P.S. Mississippi State (12-6) visits Arkansas to open SEC play in a series that matches the top two home run-hitting teams in the league. The Razorbacks have 25, the Bulldogs 19. Arkansas’ Dominic Smith and Grant Koch are tied with State’s Brent Rooker for second in the individual ranking with five homers apiece. … Southern Miss (13-4) is at Louisiana Tech to start C-USA play. Tech’s first year coach, Lane Burroughs, is a Mississippi College alum and former Southern Miss assistant. He also played at Meridian Community College when current USM coach Scott Berry was an assistant there.

13 Mar

pitching in

Four wins in five games, including a weekend sweep against Furman, propelled Ole Miss to the No. 18 spot in Baseball America’s new Top 25. The Rebels (11-5) aren’t hitting (.246 as a team) – the cause of much hand-wringing in Rebel Nation — but when your pitching staff allows just two runs over five games, you can still win. The Rebels make a rare road trip on Tuesday to play Nicholls State at MGM Park in Biloxi. … Mississippi State got a brilliant pitching performance from Konnor Pilkington on Friday to beat South Alabama 2-0. The sophomore left-hander struck out 13 in 7 2/3 innings. Clutch hits on Sunday by Brant Blaylock (a walk-off knock vs. Columbia) and Brent Rooker (a tie-breaking home run vs. South Alabama) gave the Bulldogs (10-6) a spotless record for the weather-interrupted weekend event heading into a matchup today against Columbia. … Southern Miss yielded two runs in three games against Xavier (Ohio) over the weekend but won only two of the three games. Hayden Roberts and J.C. Keys put up zeroes in their Saturday starts as USM swept the doubleheader without allowing a run. Kirk McCarty pitched well enough to win on Friday, but the Golden Eagles were shut out. USM’s staff ERA is now 3.36. The Eagles take an 11-4 mark into a two-game set with Columbia on Tuesday and Wednesday. … Jackson State’s Miguel Yrigoyen threw a five-hitter with eight strikeouts in a 4-1 win against Alabama State on Sunday. Yrigoyen’s gem prevented the Hornets from sweeping JSU (10-6) in the SWAC series at Braddy Field. … Corey Beard notched his third win and Zach Osbon his third save as Delta State beat West Georgia 5-2 in the first of two games on Sunday in Cleveland. DSU, 14-6 and ranked 18th in NCAA Division II, lost the second contest 8-4; the rubber game in the Gulf South Conference series is today. P.S. Thirty high school teams, including a couple from Alabama, will assemble on the Coast this week for the inaugural Battle at the Beach tournament. Games start today and will be played at several Coast schools as well as MGM Park.

10 Mar

leading men

The state’s college teams have played enough games to where the stats are starting to be meaningful. Mississippi State’s Jake Mangum, the 2016 SEC batting champ and Ferriss Trophy winner, isn’t experiencing any apparent symptoms of a sophomore slump. The Jackson Prep product currently leads the SEC in hits with 26; he’s second in runs (20) and fifth in hitting (.456). Brent Rooker sits third in the league with 18 RBIs. … Ole Miss pitcher Will Ethridge ranks second in the league in batting average against (.082) and fourth in strikeouts (26), while teammates Dallas Woolfolk and Will Stokes are tied for second with two saves apiece. … Southern Miss’ Taylor Braley is second in C-USA in on-base percentage (.542) and first in walks (12), while Mason Irby leads the loop in sacrifices with five. Hayden Roberts’ 25 strikeouts ranks second among C-USA pitchers. … Lamar Briggs is crushing it for Jackson State, leading the SWAC in batting (.429) and slugging (.571). The Tigers’ C.J. Newsome ranks first in runs (15), Jonathan Aponte first in wins (three) and Jose Tirado t-first in saves (two). … Alcorn State’s Jason Sanez is No. 2 in SWAC hitting at .375, and Mississippi Valley State’s Jackson Webb is second in slugging (.563). Webb and teammate Arrington Smith have two homers each, ranking second in the SWAC. … Delta State, 12-4 and ranked as high 18th in NCAA Division II, is led by Zack Shannon, whose 20 RBIs rank fifth in the Gulf South Conference; his .403 average is ninth. With four homers, Clay Casey is tied for fifth. Tre Hobbs’ 29 strikeouts is sixth-best in the league. … Mississippi College’s Casey Echols (son of former State star Tracy Echols) is seventh in the GSC with a .404 average while leading the Choctaws in hits and runs. … William Carey’s Tyler Graves tops SSAC hitters with a .443 average and is No. 2 in RBIs with 32. Adrian Brown is first in runs (28), Tyler James in stolen bases (19) and Lane Fazende in ERA (0.81). James Land’s four homers rank fourth. … Blue Mountain’s Miciah Heard is third in the SSAC with 17 steals, while teammate Caleb Leach, having a big year, is eighth in batting at .368. … Millsaps’ Jacob Mardick, a junior left-hander, leads the Southern Athletic Association with 31 K’s and is third in ERA at 2.28. He is 3-0 for an 8-8 team. … Belhaven’s Terrell Hodges is third in the American Southwest Conference with a .735 slugging average, and Daniel Ammirati is tied for second with seven doubles.

05 Mar

all about runs

1 – Runs scored by Ole Miss in two losses (vs. Baylor and Texas Tech) in the Shriners tournament in Houston this weekend. The 7-3 Rebels play top-ranked TCU today.
5 – Runs scored by Southern Miss (7-3) in dropping the first two of three at nationally ranked Louisiana-Lafayette.
5 – Runs scored by Mississippi State (7-4), which is 1-1 on its road trip to chilly Oregon.
17 – Runs scored by Millsaps, which homered three times on Saturday in a 17-4 blowout of Emory at Twenty Field.
39 – Runs scored by William Carey, which ran its win streak to 11 with a three-game sweep of an SSAC series against Loyola-New Orleans at Wheeler Field.
18 – Runs allowed by Delta State in a Gulf South Conference doubleheader split against Union at Ferriss Field on Saturday; the Statesmen won the opener 10-8 on a Zack Shannon walk-off bomb in the 10th inning.
21 – Runs allowed by Mississippi College in losing a pair of GSC games against Shorter at Frierson Field on Saturday; the hapless Choctaws (2-16, 0-8) scored 16 runs.
27 – Runs allowed by Belhaven in losing three straight road games to Division III nationally ranked Texas-Tyler.

02 Mar

road trip

Mississippi’s Big 3 Division I schools, who have a 20-5 combined record, have played one road game between them this season. It’s time to buckle up. All three are scheduled for a significant road test this weekend. Southern Miss (7-1), which lost to Alabama in its only game away from Taylor Park, is at nationally ranked Louisiana-Lafayette for a Friday-Sunday series. USM is averaging 10 runs a game, led by Hunter Slater (.467), Taylor Braley (.464) and Dylan Burdeaux (.333, four homers, 13 RBIs), among others. With the exception of Kirk McCarty (2-0, 1.46 ERA), USM’s starting pitching has been erratic. The Ragin’ Cajuns (4-3) have a 2.25 staff ERA, though they have been somewhat challenged with the bats (21 runs total). A winning series might get the Golden Eagles some attention in the polls. Mississippi State (6-3), which makes the long trip to Eugene, Ore., this weekend, has been hitting a ton at Dudy Noble Field, having scored 76 runs. Familiar names like Jake Mangum (.474), Ryan Gridley (.447) and Brent Rooker (.394, three homers, 17 RBIs) are off to hot starts. The Bulldogs’ pitching hasn’t been as sharp with a 5.31 ERA, though sophomore Peyton Plumlee is 2-0, 0.64. Oregon (4-3) is not a traditional powerhouse but has put up seven straight winning seasons. The 2017 Ducks have been hampered by an anemic offense (.240 average, only two .300 hitters). Ole Miss, 7-1 and ranked in various national polls, heads off to Houston for the loaded Shriners Hospital for Children Classic. The Rebels will face three good Big 12 teams: Baylor, Texas Tech and TCU, the latter ranked No. 1 in some polls. UM has hit (.319) and pitched (3.50 ERA) well at Oxford-University Stadium, a sloppy 9-6 loss to Memphis on Tuesday notwithstanding. Freshmen Thomas Dillard (9-for-18) and Cole Zabowski (.417) and veteran Will Golsan (.355, seven RBIs, nine runs, eight-game hit streak) have shined at the plate, David Parkinson (2-0, 2.77) and Dallas Woolfolk (three saves) on the bump. The Rebels should get a good read on their club in this event. P.S. Jackson State makes the trip up to Itta Bena this weekend for a SWAC series against Mississippi Valley State at Magnolia Field. The Tigers are 4-4, coming off a home loss to Louisiana-Monroe on Tuesday. Lamar Briggs (.433), the reigning SWAC player of the week, and C.J. Newsome (.370) have paced the JSU attack. Valley is 1-4, its last two games cancelled because of weather, including a contest against Delta State on Wednesday.