keeping track

Mississippi College's dormant offense awoke on Tuesday, putting up 15 hits and a season-high 16 runs in a wild win over Millsaps. The Choctaws' 16-10 victory squared the Maloney Trophy Series; all three schools (Belhaven included) are now 1-1. Every MC starter had at least one hit and six had two. Spencer Brunson belted his second homer of the year, and Jeremy Simmons drove in three runs. ... Hinds Community College's Beau Wallace, a sophomore from Vicksburg, had a six-hit day on Monday as the Eagles swept a pair of games from Panola (Texas) CC in Ruston, La. The 8-2 Eagles will play Northeast, which swept second-ranked Jones County last weekend, on Thursday. ... The Mid-Mississippi Baseball Classic, featuring 18 top high school teams from the Magnolia State and Alabama, is slated to begin Thursday and run through Saturday. Five sites in the Jackson metro area are being used: Northwest Rankin, Brandon, Pearl, Madison Central and Jackson Academy. In addition to those schools, Terry, Clinton, Warren Central, Vicksburg, Brookhaven, Pascagoula and North Pike are participating. A full schedule can be found at www.northwestrankinbaseball.com.

now playing third ...

Joe Terdoslavich, a strong candidate to make the Mississippi Braves' roster this spring, is working out at third base as a non-roster invitee in Atlanta's camp. The switch-hitting slugger, rated the top power hitter in the Braves' minor league system by Baseball America, apparently will move from first base to third this season. "It's not tough," he told mlb.com. "I've played it my whole life. Third base is like hitting. It's a reaction position." Terdoslavich played third in high school and again at Long Beach State before Atlanta drafted him in the sixth round in 2010. He played primarly outfield during a season at Miami (Fla.) in 2008 and was a first baseman last season at Class A Lynchburg. Terdoslavich batted .286 with 20 homers and a Carolina League-record 52 doubles in his first full pro season. He isn't rated among the Braves' Top 10 prospects but certainly will be a player to watch this season in Pearl.

quick pitches

Just some eye-opening numbers from the college season: Mississippi State, off to a 6-1 start (every game in Starkville), has a staff ERA of 1.88. ... Southern Miss, 4-3 after taking two of three from Troy this weekend, has a staff ERA of 1.65. ... Golden Eagles freshman Mason Robbins, Mr. Baseball last season at George County, is hitting .417. ... Alex Yarbrough is off to a .385 start for Ole Miss, 5-1 after a weekend sweep of UNC-Wilmington. ... Delta State is 8-1 (the only defeat coming at the hands of NCAA Division II No. 1 Tampa on Saturday) and is averaging 11.3 runs per game. ... Anthony Doss is hitting .413 with 19 runs and 15 RBIs for 14-5 Belhaven, which won two of three at Truett-McConnell in Southern States Athletic Conference play this weekend. ... Slow-starting Mississippi College won two of three from Hardin-Simmons to reach 4-6; the Choctaws' top four pitchers have ERAs under 2.50. ... Will Edwards, an East Mississippi Community College transfer, is 2-1 with a 1.56 ERA for Millsaps, which is 8-2. ... William Carey (7-7) has gotten 15 RBIs from Mitch Bohon, a junior from West Point. ... Charles Epperson was 4-for-14 with six RBIs for Jackson State (3-4) in a four-game series at Morehead State; five of his RBIs came in the only game JSU won, a 16-0 romp on Saturday. ... Jones County Junior College, ranked No. 2 in the NJCAA preseason poll, was swept in a doubleheader at home by Northeast CC on Saturday. The Bobcats are 6-4.

totally random, vol. 2.9

Today's subject: Bob Didier. The Hattiesburg native reached the major leagues in 1969 at the age of 20, helping the Atlanta Braves win the National League West as their regular catcher. Didier, a switch-hitter who was drafted in the fourth round by the Braves in 1967, batted .256, drove in 32 runs and scored 30 in 114 games as a rookie. But whatever he had that year, he quickly lost. He batted just .149 in 1970 and .219 in 1971 as first Hal King and then Earl Williams displaced him behind the plate. Didier wound up moving to Detroit in 1973 and then finishing his career with Boston in '74. Final batting average: .229. He never homered in the majors. He spent many years as a manager in the minor leagues.
P.S. Tyler Pastornicky was the 58th Mississippi Braves alumnus to rise to the major leagues, though he did not play a game in Atlanta last season. He figures to be the starting shortstop on opening day, however. Who'll be the next M-Braves alum to make The Show? Watch out for Gorkys Hernandez and Paul Clemens. Hernandez, who played a splendid center field and hit .310 for the 2009 M-Braves, is on Pittsburgh's 40-man roster and will vie for a job this spring. Clemens, among the plethora of strong arms that passed through Pearl last summer, is on Houston's 40-man. The rebuilding Astros might have a spot for him very soon. ... Two of Ole Miss' prep recruits for 2013 made Baseball America's preseason All-America first team: catcher Stryker Trahan from Lafayette, La., and infielder Gavin Cecchini from Lake Charles, La. A third Rebels recruit, right-hander Ty Hensley of Edmond, Okla., was a second-team pick. The only Mississippian on the chart is Petal outfielder Anthony Alford, a Southern Miss signee who made the BA third team.

choctaws on spot

The season is so young and, yet, there is an important series this weekend in Clinton. Mississippi College, off to a sluggish start, faces Hardin-Simmons in a three-game set (twinbill today, single game Saturday) at Frierson Field. The Choctaws are 2-5. They're hitting .235 with no home runs. The staff ERA is 4.78. They've made 16 errors, eight by third baseman Spencer Brunson, one of the team's best players. "Weird" is how Brian Owens describes it. "We've been totally different in games than in practices." There are a lot of new faces on this club, with very few remaining from the one that won a school-record 39 games in 2010. MC was nationally ranked in NCAA Division III in preseason in 2011 but started slow and wound up 24-18. Owens thinks this team can improve on that win total. He has a lot of experienced pitchers on hand, which could be key. "One or two games can get it turned around," Owens said. Maybe it'll happen this weekend.

the list

Here is the list of Mississippians (natives or college alums) in major league camps — officially — this spring.

40-man roster members
Position players
Julio Borbon (Starkville), Texas; Chris Coghlan (Ole Miss), Miami; Zack Cozart (Ole Miss), Cincinnati; Jarrod Dyson (Southwest CC), Kansas City; Desmond Jennings (Itawamba CC), Tampa Bay; Tyler Moore (Mississippi State), Washington; Mitch Moreland (MSU), Texas; Alex Presley (Ole Miss), Pittsburgh; Seth Smith (Ole Miss), Oakland; Craig Tatum (MSU), Arizona; Eli Whiteside (Delta State), San Francisco
Pitchers
Robert Carson (Hattiesburg), New York Mets; Louis Coleman (Schlater/Pillow Academy), Kansas City; Tim Dillard (Itawamba CC), Milwaukee; Cliff Lee (Meridian CC), Philadelphia; Lance Lynn (Ole Miss), St. Louis; Paul Maholm (MSU), Chicago Cubs; Matt Maloney (Ole Miss), Minnesota; Jonathan Papelbon (MSU), Philadelphia; Drew Pomeranz (Ole Miss), Colorado; Tony Sipp (Gulf Coast CC), Cleveland; Donnie Veal (Jackson), Chicago White Sox

Non-roster invitees
Position players
Brian Dozier (USM), Minnesota; Ed Easley (MSU), Arizona; Bill Hall (Nettleton), New York Yankees; Jarrett Hoffpauir (Southern Miss), Washington; Fred Lewis (Gulf Coast CC), Cleveland; Edwin Maysonet (DSU), Milwaukee; Paul Phillips (Meridian CC), Milwaukee; Matt Tolbert (Ole Miss), Chicago Cubs
Pitcher
Dusty Hughes (DSU), Atlanta

As yet unsigned
Pitcher
Roy Oswalt (Holmes CC)

totally random, vol. 2.8

Today's subject: Kevin Rogers. The left-hander from Cleveland and Mississippi Delta Community College posted a 3.17 career ERA in the majors. Unfortunately, his career lasted just 79 games over three seasons. He was a ninth-round pick by the San Francisco Giants out of MDCC in 1988, passed through Jackson and Smith-Wills Stadium as a Shreveport Captain in 1991 and made his major league debut in 1992. Rogers was undone in 1994 by a blod clot in his arm; he had rung up a 2.63 ERA in 64 games for San Francisco in 1993 and looked to be a fixture in the big leagues. But he missed most of the '94 and '95 seasons, and his attempted comebacks finally ended in 1998. What a shame.
P.S. Don't be surprised if Blue Mountain, in its second season, improves on the 16-35 (4-20 TranSouth Conference) record it finished with in 2011. Coach Curt Fowler has the Toppers on the right path. With Seth Kennedy (.353 last season) and Gardner Richey (a transfer from Division I Samford) in the lineup, BMC will hit. ... Noticed that former Jackson Generals ace Scott Elarton is in Philadelphia's camp as a non-roster invitee. He is one of a handful of ex-Gens still playing: Lance Berkman, Bobby Abreu, Freddy Garcia, Carlos Guillen, Julio Lugo and Raul Chavez are the others. Ramon Castro played in 2011 but is unsigned. Melvin Mora retired during last season.

it's a spring thing

Players are flocking to major league camps in Florida and Arizona, and the first spring training games are just around the corner. Baseball is blooming again.
It’s an exhilarating time for many Mississippians in the game. Take Tyler Moore, for instance. The former Northwest Rankin High, Meridian Community College and Mississippi State star is in big league camp officially for the first time, having made the Washington Nationals’ 40-man roster in the off-season.
“It’s a blessing,” Moore said in a recent interview. “I’m really excited about it.”
Moore played at the Double-A level in 2011. He enhanced his stock with the organization by blasting 62 homers over the past two seasons — but he’s a longshot to make the Nationals’ 25-man roster this spring. He’s just happy to be there. His time will come.
Jonathan Papelbon (another MSU product), Paul Maholm (MSU) and Seth Smith (Ole Miss) are in new places where they’ll be key figures this season. Papelbon, the former Boston closer, signed with Philadelphia and Maholm, a starting pitcher, with the Chicago Cubs as free agents. Smith, an outfielder, moved to Oakland in a trade.
Itawamba Community College product Desmond Jennings, who had big league trials the past two seasons, is likely to break camp with Tampa Bay as a starting outfielder for the first time. Lance Lynn, an Ole Miss alumnus, won a ring with St. Louis last year and is expected to have a role in the Cardinals’ bullpen again.
Zach Cozart, another ex-Rebels star, will be given every opportunity to claim the starting shortstop job with Cincinnati after an injury-curtailed 2011 debut. Southern Miss alumnus Brian Dozier, a top prospect for Minnesota, will be in camp as a non-roster invitee and will battle for a job in the Twins’ infield. He’s another whose time will come.
For quite a few other Mississippians, there is some anxiety this spring. Delta State product Eli Whiteside faces a fight for the backup catcher job in San Francisco, as does ex-MSU standout Craig Tatum with Arizona. Neither is assured of a big league roster spot when camp breaks.
Southwest Mississippi CC’s Jarrod Dyson (Kansas City), Starkville native Julio Borbon (Texas), Ole Miss’ Alex Presley (Pittsburgh) and UM’s Chris Coghlan (Miami) are all young outfielders on 40-man rosters who could wind up back in the minors if they don’t have a strong spring.
Former Rebels hurler Matt Maloney, a waiver claim by Minnesota from Cincinnati last October, faces a similar fate in Twins camp.
Even more stressful is the situation confronting the likes of Delta State’s Dusty Hughes (Atlanta), Mississippi Gulf Coast CC’s Fred Lewis (Cleveland), Nettleton native Bill Hall (New York Yankees), Ole Miss’ Matt Tolbert (Chicago Cubs) and USM’s Jarrett Hoffpauir (Washington).
All are going to big league camps on minor league contracts. They face high hurdles in making the 25-man opening day roster and could even be released if things don’t go well.

hot starts

There were quite a few strong opening acts by individuals on Friday, when the state's NCAA Division I schools opened play. Top of the list: Alcorn State's Joshua Powell went 4-for-4 with three RBIs as the Braves rallied from a 5-0 deficit to beat Air Force 7-5 in LSU's tournament. ... Jackson State's Charles Epperson had four hits, two runs and two RBIs in the Tigers' 15-6 win over Florida A&M, then scored another run in a 2-1 victory against Eastern Illinois. ... Ole Miss' Alex Yarbrough, a .350 hitter in 2011, went 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs to help the Rebels repel TCU 7-4. ... Chris Stratton, a weekend starter for Mississippi State last season, pitched a near-perfect four innings out of the bullpen as the Bulldogs topped Washington State 6-2. Darryl Norris had three hits in State's 11-hit attack. ... Highly touted freshman Connor Barron, batting leadoff for Southern Miss, went 2-for-5 with an RBI and freshman pitcher Cody Livingston worked 4 1/3 sparkling innings (one run) in relief in the Golden Eagles' 5-4 loss to Nicholls State.
P.S. Belhaven's Anthony Doss is as hot as anyone going right now. The former Southern Miss player, who had an injury plagued season with the Blazers in 2011, was at .404 with 11 runs, 11 RBIs, a homer, two steals and a .462 on-base percentage through 12 games. ... Hinds Community College is off to a 4-0 start and has scored 42 runs in the process.

starting nine

As the state's NCAA Division I schools begin play, here's nine things to ponder about the 2012 season:

1) Will Bobby Wahl's move from the bullpen to the front of the Ole Miss rotation work out?
2) What impact will the Rebels' new hitting coach, Cliff Godwin, and the new volunteer, ex-Rebels star Stephen Head, have on the UM attack?
3) Is UM freshman outfielder Senquez Golson as good as the Boston Red Sox thought when they offered him all that money to sign last summer?
4) Will Mississippi State's pitching, which made great strides in 2011 (4.39 ERA), be good enough to carry a questionable offense?
5) Will MSU's Hunter Renfroe, who blasted an MAIS record 20 homers as a senior at Copiah Academy in 2010, break out this season?
6) What kind of impact will freshmen Mason Robbins (the state's Mr. Baseball in 2011) and Connor Barron (a third-round draft pick) have at Southern Miss?
7) Can sophomore right-hander Boomer Scarborough, another former state prep legend, be a force for a wiped-out USM pitching staff?
8) Is Alcorn State, which won the SWAC title for the first time in 2011 and returns stalwarts Steve Easter and Eduardo Gonzalez, for reals?
9) What will Jackson State's diminutive Bahaman, Desmond Russell, do for a sophomore encore after batting .310 with 49 RBIs and posting a 4-6, 4.54 ledger on the mound?

All six D-I's are in action today: Ole Miss is at TCU, State is home against Washington State, USM hosts Nicholls State, Alcorn plays Air Force in a tournament at LSU and Jackson State and Mississippi Valley State are in the JSU tournament.

totally random, vol. 2.7

Today's subject; Pat McGehee. The Meadville native played a hundred years ago. Literally. A right-handed pitcher, McGehee debuted for the Detroit Tigers on Aug. 23, 1912. That was his only appearance. Ever. He faced two batters, allowing a hit and a walk. Then he was pulled, perhaps with an injury but that's not known. Neither of the runners scored, so his ERA is not infinity. It's just non-existent. The '12 Tigers, a team that included Ty Cobb and Sam Crawford, were not very good. They went 69-84 and finished sixth in the eight-team American League. They couldn't blame McGehee for their troubles.
P.S. On another historical note, as major league teams begin reporting for spring training, it is worth mentioning that Mississippi was once a spring destination. The Cubs trained in Vicksburg in 1908; the Cardinals in Jackson in 1912; the Tigers in Gulfport from 1913-15; the Senators (the ones that moved to Minnesota) in Biloxi from 1930-35; and the Phillies in Biloxi in 1938. This was reported in Spring Training magazine in 2001.

royal pain management

O.K., so Kansas City manager Ned Yost, the former Jackson Mets catcher, got a contract extension through 2013. That's not the big news as the Royals head to spring training. This is: Dayton Moore, the onetime Atlanta Braves farm director, has put together a club that looks ready to contend for a playoff berth. After years and years of irrelevancy, KC is a team to watch in 2012. And there are a number of players with Mississippi ties who figure prominently in the Royals' plans. Reliever Louis Coleman, the pride of Pillow Academy, had a solid debut in 2011: 2.87 ERA in 48 games. Lefty Tim Collins, a former Mississippi Brave, put up a 3.63 in 68 games out of the pen. Ex-M-Braves right fielder Jeff Francoeur enjoyed a resurgence in 2011, batting .285 with 20 homers and 87 RBIs. Jarrod Dyson, a Southwest Mississippi Community College product, stole 11 bases in limited opportunities last season and will vie for the center field job. Onetime M-Braves starting pitcher Zach Miner, on the mend from Tommy John surgery, could make the Royals' staff with a good spring. Kansas City was just 71-91 last year under Yost but has a core group of young talent that could improve significantly on that mark this season. Long-suffering Royals fans certainly hope so.

quest for the trophy

Mississippi College plays Belhaven today at Smith-Wills Stadium in the second game of the Maloney Trophy Series, which is back to a nine-game round robin this season. Each team plays the other three times. Belhaven has claimed the trophy the last two years and, as a nationally ranked NAIA school, looms as the favorite again this season over its two NCAA Division III rivals. However, Millsaps did beat the Blazers in the Maloney opener, and the Majors get four home games this time around.
Here's the rest of the Maloney schedule:
Feb. 28 — MC at Millsaps; March 20 — Belhaven at MC; March 27 — MC at Millsaps; April 4 — Belhaven at Millsaps; April 10 — Millsaps at MC; April 17 — Millsaps at Belhaven; and April 23 — MC at Belhaven.

eye on ...

If Jones County Junior College is feeling any burden from being ranked No. 2 in the nation, it did not show in the Bobcats' season-opening doubleheader on Saturday. Jones, the only Mississippi school in the NJCAA Division II preseason Top 20, beat Mississippi Delta 6-4 and 8-0 in Ellisville. Jones went 46-17 in 2011, won the Region 23 championship and made a serious run at the national title. This is definitely a team to watch in 2012. Zac Fowler and Zane Walley — the Killer Z's? — homered in the Bobcats' first game and Cody Minter had two hits and two RBIs to back a five-man combo two-hitter in Game 2. The player in the spotlight at JCJC might be 6-foot-4 Vito Perna, who went 11-1 with a 2.20 ERA as a starting pitcher and batted .344 with seven homers and 56 RBIs as a DH. He got the win in this year's opener. Also returning from a dominant 2011 pitching staff is Logan Riddell, who posted a 10-4 mark.
P.S. Hinds CC is scheduled to open its season today at East Mississippi. The Eagles return 11 lettermen from a 23-18 club. The stalwarts include 2011 MVP Tyler Akins, a Belhaven signee who went 6-4, 3.57 and batted .333 with five homers; lefty Alex Gunn (7-1, 2.62); Mississippi State signee Pierson Waring (.363); and fellow infielder Daniel Gilbert (.380), who is Belhaven-bound.

rocketball

Delta State's performance with the bats in its weekend series at Montevallo was nothing short of amazing. The Statesmen racked up 24, 17 and 20 runs in the three-game sweep — scores the football team would have been proud of. They totaled 61 hits. They had an 11-run ninth inning that fueled their Game 2 victory. Michael Vinson, a lefty-hitting first baseman from Southaven, was 9-for-17 with 12 RBIs in the series. Ben Kingsley, a Meridian Community College transfer, and Josh Crowdus had four-RBI games on Sunday. Vinson knocked in six on Saturday. Jon Carnahan picked up six RBIs on Friday, and Kris Koerper had a four-RBI effort in that one. Can't wait to see what the NCAA Division II green machine does its next time out, which is Wednesday at Arkansas-Monticello. The home opener is Saturday.

off the road

Cody Satterwhite's anticipated path to the big leagues will take a detour — at the very least. The big right-hander, a former Hillcrest Christian and Ole Miss standout, was recently released by the Detroit Tigers. Satterwhite, a second-round pick in 2008, missed all of the 2010 season after shoulder surgery and pitched in just eight games, all in the rookie Gulf Coast League, in 2011. He reportedly has lost velocity on what was once a wicked mid-90s fastball. In 2009, Satterwhite posted a 3.47 ERA and 12 saves at the Double-A level and was regarded as a top prospect in the Tigers' system. He appeared to be on his way to The Show. But arm problems have shot down many a promising career. It remains to be seen if Satterwhite will get another shot.
P.S. The Houston Astros will celebrate the 50th anniversary of their first major league season in 2012. They debuted as the Colt .45s in 1962 — with Ellisville native Harry Craft as their manager. This will also be Houston's last season in the National League; the Astros move to the American League West in 2013. The Astros' Double-A club operated in Jackson from 1991-99 as the Generals, winning Texas League pennants in 1993 and '96.

totally random, vol. 2.6

Today's subject: Barry Lyons. Lyons, a catcher who played parts of seven years in the major leagues, touched all the bases of Mississippi connections. He was born in Biloxi, where he was a standout talent at an early age, went on to star at Delta State for Boo Ferriss and then played for the 1985 Texas League champion Jackson Mets. He famously hit a game-winning homer in the JaxMets' home opener in '85. Lyons put up MVP-quality numbers in the Double-A loop in '85 and made the New York Mets club the next season. He hung around the majors until 1995, though his career never really took off. His best year was probably 1989, when he played in 79 games for the Mets and batted .247 with three homers and 27 RBIs. He also threw out 27 percent of runners trying to steal, though he did commit 10 errors. He played for three more major league teams (battling back problems along the way) and finished with a career .239 average, 15 homers and 89 RBIs. It could be argued that he is the best big league catcher Mississippi has produced.
P.S. Delta State, which is ranked as high as No. 8 in one NCAA Division II poll, opened its season Friday with a 24-3 win at Montevallo. Jon Carnahan homered and drove in six runs; Michael Vinson and Kris Koerper had four hits and four RBIs each; and Aaron Newcomb yielded one run over five innings for the W. DSU has 17 lettermen back from a 30-19 team that missed the D-II regionals for a third straight year. The Statesmen should be very, very motivated in 2012.

instant classic

Couldn't ask for much more from the first game of the Maloney Trophy Series. Millsaps, playing its season opener, got a two-out, two-run single from Andrew Evans in the bottom of the ninth inning to top Belhaven 8-7 today at Twenty Field. Evans, a senior from Ocean Springs who had six RBIs in all of 2011, got four today, including the game-winner off Blazers closer Josh Clarke. BU, now 5-2, had taken a 7-4 lead in the top of the ninth on a three-run homer by Anthony Doss. What a start for the compelling small college round robin that includes Millsaps, Belhaven and Mississippi College.
P.S. Bill Hall will go to spring training with the New York Yankees on a minor league contract. The Nettleton product excitedly broke the news himself today on Twitter, saying he wants a ring. Of course, making the Yanks won't be easy. Hall, 32, hit .211 with two homers in 185 at-bats in the majors last season. And offense is his game. ... And this just in: Roy Oswalt, the pride of Weir, is still unsigned. Cincinnati has joined the list of teams that may or may not be interested.

batters up

Millsaps will make its 2012 debut today when it hosts Belhaven in a Maloney Trophy Series contest. The Majors are coming off a 24-18 campaign and for the first time in four years don't have slugger Will Hawkins on their roster. Hawkins hit .368 with eight homers and 49 RBIs last season. Belhaven, ranked 15th in NAIA, is 5-1 and coming off a doubleheader split at LSU-Alexandria. ... Meanwhile, in Hattiesburg, William Carey will be eager to get back on the field today for its doubleheader against Tougaloo. The Crusaders are 0-3, having lost a weekend series at NAIA fifth-ranked LSU-Shreveport 7-1, 11-1 and 9-2. Always undermanned Tougaloo, which lost its opener last week to Belhaven 11-1, could be in for a long day.

totally random, vol. 2.5

Today's subject: Rufus Lewis. Lewis, a high school baseball and football star in Hattiesburg and an Army veteran, pitched in the Negro Leagues after Jackie Robinson broke the "organized baseball" color line. Lewis, a right-hander, posted an 18-3 record for the 1946 Newark Eagles and also won Game 7 of the Negro Leagues World Series that year. In 1948, he started in the East-West All-Star Game, quite a notable honor. He never got a shot at the major leagues but did pitch in the minors in 1952, at age 33, in the Arizona-Texas League. That was his final season in pro ball.
P.S. There were reports last week that Nettleton native Bill Hall was talking with the New York Yankees about a minor league deal, but there has been no word of an agreement. Hall hit .211 without much of his trademark power during brief stints with Houston and San Francisco last year.

the short list

Much of the focus will be on the starting pitchers returning from injury when the Atlanta Braves launch spring training later this month. But the situation at shortstop is equally compelling. Raw rookie Tyler Pastornicky, who spent much of the 2010 and '11 seasons with the Mississippi Braves, is going to get first crack at the job. "I'm definitely ready," he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently. "I've still got a lot of hard work to do. ... I think I'm ready to do this." He looked ready last year with the M-Braves, batting .299 with six home runs, 36 RBIs, five triples and 20 stolen bases. Then he hit .365 in 104 at-bats at Triple-A Gwinnett. Atlanta called him up at season's end — he is No. 58 on the M-Braves-to-the-majors list — but he didn't get into that painful final game. He's not an imposing figure, and he may not blow you away with his talent. But Pastornicky has all the tools. Plus, his father played in the majors. That never hurts. One Braves official said Pastornicky plays "with a little bit of urgency." That doesn't hurt, either. Braves fans will like him. The fall-back plan apparently is veteran Jack Wilson, but still around is Brandon Hicks, another ex-M-Braves standout. Hicks hit 18 homers at Gwinnett last year and is good with the glove. He might yet figure into the shortstop battle.
P.S. There are 21 ex-M-Braves on Atlanta's current 40-man roster. ... Pitcher Zeke Spruill, shortstop Andrelton Simmons, catcher Christian Bethancourt, first baseman Joe Terdoslavich and outfielder Todd Cunningham — likely 2012 M-Braves — are going to big league camp as non-roster invitees. So is first baseman Ernesto Mejia, who hit 26 homers and drove in 99 runs for the M-Braves in 2011, and lefty reliever Dusty Hughes, the former Delta State star who signed as a free agent in the off-season.

on tap ...

Mississippi College and William Carey are scheduled to open their 2012 seasons today, though the weather may not cooperate. MC, coming off a rather disappointing 24-18 campaign, travels to Montgomery, Ala., to face Huntingdon. The NCAA Division III Choctaws' top returning player is third baseman Spencer Brunson, a senior from Starkville who hit .417 with 10 homers a year ago. (He should be a Ferriss Trophy candidate this spring.) Carey is slated to start at longtime rival LSU-Shreveport. The Crusaders are coming off a 30-24 season that saw them finish second (to Belhaven) in the Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament and make the NAIA national tourney field. Carey's top hitter is catcher Quin Stokes, a senior from Walnut Grove who blasted 11 homers in 2011.

inquiring minds

Speculation about Roy Oswalt's next home is still a hot topic in the blogosphere. The right-hander from Weir is keeping us waiting. The latest is, the Boston Red Sox are out of the running. Well, maybe. Texas has met with him. This is fact. We think. St. Louis, which had a deal with him last week according to one (erroneous) report, is still interested. We assume. The Cardinals were trying to make a trade to clear a spot. Reportedly. Heck, it wouldn't be all that surprising if Oswalt just decided to hang them up. He hinted that he was about ready to do that last season when his back problems were flaring up. He's already had a great career, one of the best all-time by a Mississippi pitcher; anything else really is just gravy.
P.S. Carlos Guillen, the onetime Jackson Generals standout, will get a chance to finish his big league career where it began. He has signed with Seattle, but he's not guaranteed a job. Guillen, an infielder/outfielder who turns 37 this year, is breaking down at the end of a long career. He played for the Gens as a Houston prospect back in 1997, went to the Mariners in the Randy Johnson trade in 1998 and debuted with Seattle that year. He's a .285 career hitter, but does he have enough left for another big league tour? ... Right-hander Tim Corcoran, a Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College alumnus who last played in the majors in 2007, recently re-signed as a minor leaguer with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He missed all of 2011 with an injury.