big stuff

Great pitching matchup today at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, where former Mississippi Braves ace Tommy Hanson goes for Atlanta against Ole Miss product Lance Lynn. Hanson has been solid for Atlanta, with a 3-3 record and a 3.63 ERA. Lynn, however, has been spectacular for the Cardinals — 6-0, 1.40. Game time is 1 p.m. Tune in. … Can’t help but be impressed with ex-M-Braves star Brandon Beachy, who beat St. Louis on Saturday to run his record to 4-1. He not only has good stuff, he has such great poise on the mound. Hard to believe Beachy was signed as an undrafted free agent. He blossomed with the M-Braves in 2010. … Two other former M-Braves were on the bump Saturday: Charlie Morton won for Pittsburgh, but Matt Harrison took an L for Texas (despite another Josh Hamilton bomb). Yet another M-Braves alum, Scott Diamond, starts today for Minnesota after throwing seven shutout innings in his 2012 debut. … On the subject of debuts, Nettleton’s Bill Hall made his first appearance for the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday and hit a home run. Hall floundered in tours last season with Houston and San Francisco and was cut by the New York Yankees this spring. But he has power potential and some defensive versatility, which MLB clubs seem to like. … Jarrod Dyson, the former 50th round pick out of Southwest Mississippi Community College, had two more hits for Kansas City to lift his average to .311. With Lorenzo Cain out for an extended time with an injury, Dyson, a center fielder and leadoff man, is getting a chance to show what he can do with regular playing time. What he does best of all is run — 38 steals in Triple-A and 11 more with the Royals last season. … Former Itawamba CC standout Desmond Jennings has missed five straight starts for Tampa Bay because of what was said to be only a minor knee injury. He has been available for pinch-hit duty. P.S. Congratulations to Hinds Community College on its MACJC championship. Now, to get to the NJCAA Tournament, Sam Temple's Eagles will have to get past No. 1 LSU-Eunice (plus Itawamba and Mississippi Gulf Coast) in the Division II Region 23 Tournament at Eunice this week. … Meridian CC resumes its quest for a D-I Region 23 title today at Scaggs Field. The Eagles, 2-0 in the event, trailed Delgado (La.) 11-0 in the sixth inning on Saturday when rain halted play. They’ll resume today. A Delgado win would force a decisive second game. The winner moves on to the South Central District Tournament.