Tag Archives: Twins

12 Aug

whatever happened to …

Stewart Cliburn, the former Delta State standout and ex-big league reliever, is now in his 13th season — sixth straight — as the pitching coach at New Britain, Minnesota’s Double-A affiliate. He also did a stint in Triple-A. Cliburn, drafted in the fourth round in 1977 by Pittsburgh, toiled in the minors for seven years before getting to the majors with the California Angels in 1984. In ’85, he had a truly great year: 9-3, six saves and a 2.09 ERA in 44 games (99 innings), all out of the bullpen. Arm problems derailed his career thereafter, and he was done as a player by 1990. For his MLB career, Jackson native and Forest Hill High alum Cliburn posted a 3.11 ERA in 85 games. Twin brother Stan, a catcher, also played in the big leagues and was in the Angels’ system for a time. But the two never realized their childhood dream of being battery mates in The Show. P.S. Among his other talents, McComb native Jarrod Dyson (see previous post) also does a pretty nice backflip. Check the highlights of Kansas City’s win on Monday. … Ole Miss product Alex Presley, on the disabled list (oblique) since July 8, is slated to start a rehab assignment today and could be back with Houston soon. Presley, in his first season with the Astros, is batting .252 with five homers and 13 RBIs.

07 Aug

number crunching

18 — Stolen bases by Brian Dozier. The Southern Miss product got No. 18 on Wednesday against San Diego and, with 19 home runs, is fast approaching a 20-20 season.
12 — Home runs for Seth Smith. The ex-Ole Miss star belted his 12th, a 10th-inning game-winner for San Diego, against Minnesota.
12 — Number of Mississippi-connected players currently in the big leagues. A total of 24 have appeared in MLB games this season; four are on the disabled list, one (Joey Butler) is in Japan and the others are in the minors.
10 — Starts for T.J. House. The rookie left-hander out of Picayune High will make No. 11 today for Cleveland against Cincinnati. He has a respectable 4.09 ERA but just a 1-2 record.
4 — Hits by Corey Dickerson. The Meridian Community College alumnus, now batting .320, came up a home run shy of the cycle for Colorado against the Chicago Cubs.
3 — Hits by Chris Coghlan. The former Ole Miss standout, now batting .302, also came up a homer shy of the cycle for the Chicago Cubs against Colorado.
3 — Home runs for Zack Cozart. The UM product hit his third for Cincinnati against Cleveland. He hit 12 homers in 2013.
1 — Errors by Seth Smith. The Jackson native, who flips between left and right field for San Diego, committed his first of the year against Minnesota.

24 Jul

whatever happened to …

Matt Tolbert, three years removed from his last big league appearance, is toiling in Double-A in the Philadelphia system. The former Ole Miss star from McComb (and Centreville Academy) has battled injuries for a couple of years. He spent some time in Triple-A this season but is currently with Reading and hitting .172 in 21 games. A switch-hitting infielder, Tolbert, 32, was drafted by Minnesota in the 16th round in 2004 and once looked to have a bright future. He played in the 2007 All-Star Futures Game and made his MLB debut in ’08, batting .283 in 41 games for the Twins. But he just couldn’t hit enough to stick. He played parts of the next three years in the majors, never getting into more than 87 games. His career average is .230. Tolbert’s chances of getting back to The Show don’t look good, even if the Phillies gut their roster before 2014 is over. P.S. Jonathan Papelbon blew a save on Tuesday when he allowed a home run for the first time this year. On Wednesday, the ex-Mississippi State star melted down, rankled by a controversial ball call, and suffered a loss. So what’d he do today? The enigmatic Phillies closer worked a perfect ninth for his 24th save. Papelbon, who wants off of Philadelphia’s sinking ship, has only three blown saves to go with a 1.91 ERA. But reports say he is generating little trade interest.

23 Jul

passion for the game

It’s not always about numbers in Major League Baseball. The MLB Players Alumni Association announced its annual Heart & Hustle Award winners on Tuesday, and Mississippi natives Brian Dozier and Corey Dickerson and ex-Mississippi Braves star Jason Heyward were among the 30 honorees (one for each club). The award recognizes players “who demonstrate a passion for the game of baseball and best embody the values, spirit and tradition of the game.” An overall winner will be announced on Nov. 18. Each of the honored Mississippi three went out Tuesday night and, as if to celebrate, put up some numbers. Tupelo native and former Southern Miss star Dozier went 3-for-5 and belted his 19th home run — topping his career-high 18 of 2013 — for Minnesota. Dickerson, from McComb and Meridian Community College, went 2-for-5 and hit homer No. 12 for Colorado. And Heyward, M-Braves Class of 2009, went 2-for-3 with three RBIs for Atlanta. Unfortunately for all three, they wound up on the losing end of their games.

13 Jul

three stars

Former Mississippi State star Paul Maholm, in his first start in almost two months, pitched into the seventh inning, allowing two hits and no runs, for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night. The Dodgers, now in first place alone in the National League West, beat San Diego 1-0 on a sac fly in the ninth. … Ole Miss product Chris Coghlan went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles and three RBIs but couldn’t power the Chicago Cubs past homer-happy Atlanta, which won 11-6 at Wrigley Field. The hot-hitting Coghlan is up to .269. … Ex-Southern Miss star Brian Dozier went 1-for-4 with a run and an RBI and threw out a runner at the plate to help Minnesota beat Colorado 9-3. P.S. MSU alum Hunter Renfroe and Mississippi Braves second baseman Jose Peraza are on the rosters for today’s All-Star Futures Game (4 p.m., MLB Network) in Minneapolis. Crystal Springs native Renfroe, who’ll play for the U.S. team, is batting .283 with 19 homers this year at two levels in the San Diego system. Venezuela native Peraza, with the International squad, is hitting .365 in 19 games with the M-Braves and .347 overall with 39 stolen bases in 2014.

12 Jul

watch for it

The TV ratings in and around Fulton ought to be pretty good for Monday night’s MLB Home Run Derby. Itawamba Agricultural High School alum Brian Dozier, now with the Minnesota Twins, will be participating at Target Field, and he’ll be taking his hacks at pitches thrown by his brother Clay, another Itawamba AHS grad who also played at Itawamba Community College. Both the high school and the juco are located in Fulton, population about 4,000. Brian Dozier, who has 16 home runs for the Twins, is one of 10 players in the derby – and possibly the least heralded of the lot (see previous posts). He was a star shortstop at Southern Miss, while Clay, a left-handed pitcher and outfielder, spent two years at ICC and then went on to Delta State. … In the big leagues tonight, Paul Maholm, the former Mississippi State standout from Greenwood, will make his first start since May 14 when his Los Angeles Dodgers host San Diego. Maholm, in his first season in LA, was 1-4 with a 5.50 ERA in seven starts before being bumped to the bullpen. An injury to Josh Beckett has opened a spot. Maholm’s overall ERA this year is 5.18; his career number is 4.31, with the great majority of his work coming as a starter. He told mlb.com he still feels like starting is more in “my comfort zone.” Maholm, a left-hander, might not get to face ex-Ole Miss star and Jackson native Seth Smith, who is batting .281 with 10 homers for the Padres. Smith, a lefty hitter, doesn’t often face lefties and doesn’t hit them much when he does (4-for-24, no homers in 2014).

09 Jul

back, back, back …?

Even with a home-field advantage, the odds of Brian Dozier winning the MLB Home Run Derby would have to be pretty long. Of the eight players we know will be participating in the annual slugfest, former Southern Miss star Dozier has to be the biggest surprise. Yes, he’s got 16 home runs — but that ranks only 12th in the American League. Dozier is a 5-foot-11 second baseman who often bats leadoff for the Minnesota Twins. He has only hit 40 home runs in three big league seasons. Not exactly a basher. The bashers, for whatever reason, don’t seem to want to play anymore. Yes, Dozier’s selection does give Twins fans something to root for. And, yes, nine of his 16 homers this season have come at Target Field, so he knows what it takes to yank one out there. Heck, it could be great exposure for the unheralded Dozier, who has had an outstanding season (see previous posts). But one has to wonder if the derby, even in its reconfigured form, is losing its clout as an All-Star Game attraction.

05 Jul

fireworks

Mississippians do love fireworks. And Mississippians in the majors did their part to contribute to the noise on the Fourth of July, cracking out eight hits on the day, two of them bombs, and getting some sizzle from the mound, as well. Eight Magnolia State-connected position players got into games on Friday and collectively went 8-for-26 (.308) with the two home runs, three RBIs and nine runs. A pretty good day to be sure, and consider that the state’s best hitter, Meridian Community College alum Corey Dickerson (.337), did not play for Colorado, the left-handed slugger sitting against Los Angeles Dodgers lefty Clayton Kershaw. Itawamba CC’s Desmond Jennings sparkled with a three-hit game, and he also scored three times for Tampa Bay. Ole Miss product Chris Coghlan scored three for the Chicago Cubs and went 2-for-4, raising his average to .219. Ex-Southern Miss star Brian Dozier smoked a home run (No. 16) for Minnesota, and Taylorsville High product Billy Hamilton lit off one (No. 5) for Cincinnati. Former Ole Miss standout Seth Smith went 1-for-3 with a run for San Diego. UM alum Zack Cozart of the Reds had the only real dud of a day, going 0-for-4 — though his team did win its game. Former Rebels star Alex Presley was 0-for-1 as a pinch hitter for Houston, and Southwest Mississippi CC product Jarrod Dyson got in late for Kansas City, as he often does, as a defensive replacement. Ex-Ole Miss ace Lance Lynn provided the pitching sparks, throwing 6 2/3 shutout innings for St. Louis in a victory over Miami. Lynn has nine W’s on the year. For the day, this Mississippi nine helped their clubs go 6-2. Now that’s a blast.

25 Jun

under the radar

In a recent article posted on SI.com, Brian Dozier was tagged as “the most underrated and underappreciated player in baseball.” There is evidence to support that assertion in the voting at second base for the American League All-Star team. Dozier, the former Southern Miss standout from Tupelo, is a distant fifth in the latest numbers. Robinson Cano is the runaway winner, with over 2 million votes, but one would have thought Dozier would generate more than the 800,000 or so he has received. After all, the game will be played in his home ballpark — Target Field. And he is having a pretty terrific season for Minnesota. A recent hot streak — nine hits in his last five games — has boosted his average to a modest .252, but his other numbers are very impressive and speak to his versatility: .366 on-base percentage, 15 home runs, 38 RBIs, 59 runs and 15 steals in 74 games. He is a good glove man, and he has an excellent WAR rating, for whatever that’s worth. To the voting public, it must not be worth much. Dozier will have to find an alternate route to the All-Star Game, but he certainly deserves to be there.

21 Jun

eye on …

Chris Coghlan has been playing more regularly for the Chicago Cubs of late, and his bat is waking from its slumber. Coghlan, the former Ole Miss standout, tripled and homered for the Cubs on Friday in a 6-3 win over Pittsburgh. The left-handed hitting outfielder boosted his average to .219, which might not sound so hot until you consider that he was at .125 on May 21. Brought up from Triple-A Iowa in early May, Coghlan has been in 35 games (73 at-bats) and produced two homers, four RBIs and seven runs all told. He is batting .282 in June. Coghlan, who just turned 29, is a career .267 hitter and hit .321 back in 2009 when he won National League rookie of the year honors with the Florida (now Miami) Marlins. P.S. Southern Miss product Brian Dozier delivered his second career walk-off hit for Minnesota, which beat the Chicago White Sox 5-4 on Friday. … Ex-Ole Miss star Seth Smith belted two monster homers — and just missed a third — for San Diego, ending a 20-game long ball drought. He has eight on the year. The Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-5. … Meridian Community College alumnus Corey Dickerson went 4-for-5 with his ninth homer but Colorado fell to Milwaukee 13-10 in a Coors Field slugfest. … Ryan Buchter and Juan Jaime joined the list of former Mississippi Braves to play in the big leagues when they pitched for Atlanta against Washington. That brings the number to 87. Buchter, who was up at the start of the season but didn’t play, got the win as the Braves won 6-4 in 13 innings.