the o's buck up

Without a doubt, the series to watch this weekend is Baltimore-New York at Yankee Stadium. It’s a tremendous opportunity for the Orioles, who are just 3 games behind the Yankees in the American League East, and it’s a showcase for manager Buck Showalter, the former Mississippi State All-American (1977) who has worked some real magic with the perennially awful O’s. No one expected anything from Baltimore this season, the well-traveled Showalter’s third with the club. Baltimore won 69 games in 2011. Sports Illustrated predicted the Orioles would win 63 this year. They’ve already won 72. They’ve got their first postseason appearance since 1997 clearly in sight. Much of the credit has to go to Showalter. Yes, his managerial career has been somewhat mercurial. He has a .512 career winning percentage but has never managed to stay in one place more than four seasons. He was the AL manager of the year in 1994 with the Yankees but was gone after the ’95 season. He lasted just three years in Arizona with a club he built from scratch, a club that would win the World Series the year after he departed. He was AL manager of the year in 2004 with Texas but was gone after the ’06 season. If the once-proud O’s make the postseason this year, it’d be shocking to see Showalter leave anytime soon. Heck, they might erect a statue of him at Camden Yards. P.S. Former Ole Miss standout Alex Presley has been recalled from Triple-A by Pittsburgh, which is still in the NL playoff hunt despite its recent struggles. The lefty-hitting outfielder was at .234 with eight homers when he was sent down.

out at home

We’ve seen the last of the Mississippi Braves for 2012 — unless you’re planning a trip to Mobile for the team’s final series. Attendance — an announced average of 2,904 — was up at Trustmark Park for the second straight year, but the team’s performance was pretty much a downer. Yes, there were shining moments from certain individuals. Andrelton Simmons jumped to the big leagues. Christian Bethancourt was invited to the All-Star Futures Game. Seven M-Braves went to the Southern League All-Star Game. Todd Cunningham may yet win the league batting title. Three different pitchers won league player of the week honors. But the team will miss the league playoffs for the fourth straight year. A big reason: The M-Braves were just 32-37 at home. To win a division title, you’ve got to clean up at your home park. The M-Braves’ pitching wasn’t a problem at the TeePee, which favors the guys on the mound. The staff ERA there was an excellent 3.12. But the hitting just never came around. The club, which finished with 13 home runs in those 69 home games, struggled much of the year to produce runs. The M-Braves averaged 3.75 per home game. Maybe that’s just a number, but this much is obvious: It was not enough. See ya next April. P.S. Ole Miss product Lance Lynn delivered a solid outing on Monday in his first relief appearance since being yanked from the St. Louis Cardinals’ rotation. Lynn pitched 1 1/3 innings, allowing just an unearned run and earning a hold, as the Cardinals beat Pittsburgh 4-3 in a key National League Central series. Lynn, an All-Star this year, was winless in five straight starts before the demotion.

up and at 'em

If it was a reward for his hot hitting, Mitch Moreland did not rest on his laurels. The former Mississippi State standout, who typically hits at the bottom of the stacked Texas order, found himself in the No. 2 spot on Sunday against Minnesota. He responded by banging out two hits, extending his hitting streak to nine games, though the Rangers fell 6-5. “I just thought that was kind of funny,” Moreland told reporters about seeing his name in the 2-hole. He certainly has been enjoying himself of late, batting .394 with 11 RBIs and his first career grand slam during the current streak, which has boosted his average to .297. The Rangers have their fingers crossed that Moreland can stay healthy. … Another thing different about Texas’ Sunday lineup: Former Mississippi Braves infielder Luis Hernandez started at shortstop. He was making a brief return to the big leagues as a roster fill-in but hopes to get called again in September. P.S. Kudos to Meridian Community College alumnus Cliff Lee, who went seven innings to beat Washington and drove in a run with a double in Philadelphia’s 4-1 victory. Lee is 3-7 now with a 3.67 ERA and is batting .200.

the gang's all there

They played a wild one at Fenway Park in Boston on Saturday night, and a host of former Mississippi Braves contributed to the craziness of Kansas City’s 10-9, 12-inning victory. Mauro Gomez, filling in at first base for the traded Adrian Gonzalez, belted his first career home run, helping the Red Sox overcome a 3-0 deficit en route to a 9-3 lead. Gomez went 4-for-6 with three RBIs all told, and Jarrod Saltalamacchia had two hits and an RBI for the Red Sox. But KC rallied. Its bullpen, including Tim Collins and Francisley Bueno, held Boston scoreless over the last eight innings of play. Jeff Francoeur scored the game-winning run in the 12th. Bueno, who worked 1 2/3 innings, notched his first career win.

worth remembering?

It might be a trivia question at some ballpark somewhere someday. Who was the first batter Roger Clemens faced in his curious “comeback” in the independent Atlantic League at age 50? The answer: Hattiesburg native and ex-big leaguer Joey Gathright. Gathright, leading off for Bridgeport tonight, had a seven-pitch at-bat, striking out on a breaking ball out of the zone. The sullied Clemens, who last appeared in a major league game in 2007, pitched 3 1/3 innings for Sugar Land, leaving — perhaps forever — with a 1-0 lead. Despite what a blubbering Curt Schilling was saying during ESPN Classic’s broadcast, Clemens did not appear particularly sharp. His fastball looked very average and he bounced numerous breaking balls.

scatter shots

Did anyone really think Matt Harrison would be this good? The former Mississippi Braves standout flirted with a no-hitter (into the seventh) on Friday night while notching his 15th win for Texas. With a 3.04 ERA, the left-hander has emerged as the Rangers’ ace. … Mississippi State product Mitch Moreland went 2-for-4 in the Rangers’ 8-0 win over Minnesota on Friday and is up to .294 for the year. He’s a Cool Papa Bell Award contender, for sure. … Former M-Braves pitcher Scott Diamond, now with Minnesota, was slapped with a 6-game suspension plus a fine for throwing at Texas’ Josh Hamilton on Thursday. Diamond is appealing. Twins manager Ron Gardenhire, the ex-Jackson Mets infielder, also was ejected from Thursday’s game. The fireworks began when Weir’s Roy Oswalt plunked the Twins’ Joe Mauer with a 3-0 pitch earlier in that game. … Saw this note in ESPN the Magazine: Oswalt has a .761 winning percentage and a 2.70 ERA in September/October regular season games. He has made two decent spot starts since his demotion to the Texas bullpen; maybe he’ll be a factor down the stretch. … Lance Lynn’s woes continued Friday when the former Ole Miss ace was KO’d by Cincinnati in the third inning. St. Louis did win the game, but Lynn has now had five straight sub-par outings. He is 13-5 but winless since July 27. … Cincinnati general manager Walt Jocketty, interviewed on MLB Network during Friday’s Reds-Cards game, didn’t sound very committed to calling up stolen base king Billy Hamilton of Taylorsville in September. Hamilton, now in Double-A, isn’t yet on the 40-man roster. … Brandon’s Tyler Moore hit his first career pinch homer on Friday in Washington’s loss to Philadelphia. The rookie from Mississippi State has seven bombs for the year. … Former MSU star Jonathan Papelbon notched the save — No. 28 — for the Phillies in that 4-2 win against the Nationals. … Ole Miss product Drew Pomeranz pitched well for Colorado on Friday (two hits, two runs in five innings vs. Chicago) but still doesn’t have a W in his last eight appearances. … Former JaxMets skipper Clint Hurdle’s Pittsburgh Pirates are walking the plank — again. They’ve lost five of six and 11 of 15. They’re not scoring (3.6 runs per game the last 15) or pitching (5.01 ERA the last 15) very well. … Wonder if Bill Hall might get a September call-up from Baltimore? The Nettleton native has 14 homers at Triple-A Norfolk; he could be weapon off the bench for MSU alum Buck Showalter’s Orioles, who are hanging around in the postseason race. … Lance Berkman is rehabbing his latest injury at Triple-A Memphis and hopes to be back with St. Louis by Sept. 1. The former Jackson Generals star, whose season has been wrecked by injuries, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he is pondering retirement after this season. He is 36.

it's a title fight

Taylorsville’s Billy Hamilton already has blown past the stolen base record, but some drama may yet unfold at Trustmark Park during the Pensacola-Mississippi series. The M-Braves’ Todd Cunningham and the Blue Wahoos’ Josh Fellhauer are battling for the Southern League batting title. Fellhauer, a left-handed hitting outfielder, goes into tonight’s game — the opener of a five-game set — with a league-best .313 mark, having gone 6-for-9 the last three days. Cunningham, who has more at-bats (442 to 310) and hits (138 to 97) than Fellhauer, is at .312. Cunningham, a switch-hitting outfielder, has had an eye-opening season: He’s scored 73 runs, driven in 49 and added six triples, three homers and 23 steals. A batting title would be a nice topper, as well as a first for the M-Braves since they arrived in Pearl. The Greenville Braves’ Napoleon Calzado led the SL in hitting (.359) in 2004, the franchise’s last season in South Carolina. P.S. Former M-Braves star Matt Young, recently signed by St. Louis, is hitting .391 through seven games at Triple-A Memphis. He was released by Detroit with a .212 average at Triple-A Toledo.

a slam dunk

Mitch Moreland picked a bad day to hit his first grand slam. The Mississippi State product’s first career grannie came Wednesday in the same game in which Texas teammate Adrian Beltre hit three homers, two in one inning. But give Moreland his props: He was due a slam. He hit one last year that was wiped out by a rainout. Wednesday’s at-bat was his 26th with the bases loaded, and he cashed in with a big fly off Baltimore’s Tommy Hunter in a nine-run fourth inning. The Rangers, still in first place in the American League West, won the game 12-3. Moreland matched a career-high with five RBIs, and he now has 38 to go with his 13 homers and a .289 average.

first impressions

Zack Cozart and Jonathan Papelbon will remember their first on-field meeting, though Papelbon might rather forget it. Cozart, the former Ole Miss standout, hit the first pitch he saw from Mississippi State alumnus Papelbon — a 94 mph fastball — out of Citizens Bank Park in the ninth inning on Tuesday night. Cozart’s 14th home run of the year broke a tie and propelled his Cincinnati Reds to a 5-4 win over Papelbon’s Philadelphia Phillies. Their college careers did not coincide, so this was their first encounter. Cozart had a plan against the veteran pitcher. “Any guy that has a fastball like that, you don’t want to fall behind,” Cozart told mlb.com. Papelbon, who has not fared well in non-save opportunities, took the loss to fall to 3-5. It was the fifth homer he has allowed this season. He is 27-for-30 in save chances but that’s small consolation in the Phillies’ disappointing year. Coazrt’s Reds, on the other hand, have opened up a 7 1/2-game lead in the National League Central. P.S. Former UM star Seth Smith returned to the Oakland lineup and went 2-for-2 with two walks and two runs as the A’s, chasing Texas in the American League West, beat Minnesota 4-1.

circle the date

The Atlanta Braves are coming. Local Braves fans have been waiting for this for eight years. The Mississippi Braves announced today that the major league Braves will play a team of its minor league stars in an exhibition game at Trustmark Park in Pearl on March 30, 2013. Tickets will go on sale after the first of the year. Word to the wise: Get ’em early. There will be great demand. The New York Mets and Houston Astros both played exhibitions at Smith-Wills Stadium during Jackson’s Texas League days, and both games drew sellout crowds. The Mets played the JaxMets in 1986, the Astros took on the Generals in 1997. And if you believe in karma, there’s this: Both those teams were championship clubs. The Mets, of course, won the World Series in 1986. The Astros won the National League Central title in 1997, then lost in the NLDS to … the Braves. Atlanta has made the postseason only twice since the M-Braves took up residence at the TeePee in 2005, and the 2010 team got in as a wild card. A side trip to Pearl next spring might be a good thing.

dozier's detour

The road back to The Show may not be easy for Brian Dozier. The Southern Miss product, sent down to Triple-A Rochester by Minnesota early last week, slipped while making a play on Saturday night and left the game limping. He is 2-for-15 in his four games with the Red Wings. Dozier’s promotion to the Twins earlier this season generated a lot of excitement in the Twin Cities, but the highly rated shortstop prospect had begun to falter in recent weeks. When he was sent down, he was batting .234 with six home runs and 33 RBIs in 84 games. The bigger concern, however, seemed to be his defense. He had made 15 errors and many mental mistakes, as well. “(H)e needs to go relax a little bit and get his swing back to where it was,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “He was frustrated with it at times, carrying that swing out there to defense.” Dozier could be recalled when rosters expand in September, but there is no guarantee. P.S. Former Hillcrest Christian and Ole Miss standout Seth Smith is likely to return to the Oakland roster early this week. Smith was batting .237 with 11 homers when he went down with a hamstring injury about two weeks ago. … Taylorsville product Billy Hamilton swiped his 143rd base for Double-A Pensacola on Saturday night, leaving him two shy of tying Vince Coleman’s pro record of 145. The Blue Wahoos come to Trustmark Park in Pearl on Friday.

eye on the bump

Roy Oswalt apparently had no trouble finding his passport. Now if he can just locate the stuff that has won 163 games in the big leagues, it’ll be all good. The former Holmes Community College standout will make a spot start today for Texas at Toronto because, according to reports, Ryan Dempster, the Rangers’ scheduled starter, can’t find or doesn’t have his passport. Oswalt was pulled from the Rangers’ rotation at the end of July and grudgingly moved to the bullpen. His last appearance, on Aug. 8, was a rocky one. Maybe the rest and the opportunity to start again will be rejuvenating. Oswalt has a 6.53 ERA. … Also on the bump today is Lance Lynn, the Ole Miss product who is seeking to get back on track with St. Louis. He is 13-5 with a 3.65 ERA, but his last couple of starts haven’t been so sharp. The Cardinals play host to Pittsburgh in Game 2 of a huge series. … Former Mississippi Braves star Todd Redmond will at long last make his major league debut for first-place Cincinnati in the second game of a twinbill against the Chicago Cubs. Twice this season Redmond was called up from the minors but sent down before making an appearance. … M-Braves alumnus Scott Diamond, who is 10-5 with a 2.97 ERA for a scuffling Minnesota club, is on the mound today, as is Atlanta’s Ben Sheets (4-2, 2.13), whose career revival began with the M-Braves earlier this summer.

disappointing news

A disappointing season turned even more so today for former Terry High star Deshun Dixon. The 20-year-old outfielder was suspended 50 games, effectively ending his season, for a second violation under Major League Baseball’s drug policy. The announcement from the commissioner’s office did not specify the banned substance but called it a “drug of abuse.” Dixon was a 10th-round pick by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2010 and was batting .193 at short-season Class A Hudson Valley this season. The suspension will carry over to 2013.

seems so familiar

Kris Medlen turned in his first shutout for Atlanta on Thursday night, blanking San Diego in a 6-0 win. He is 3-0 and has allowed just three earned runs in 25 2/3 innings over four starts since moving from the bullpen to the rotation. This is remarkable. It’s also familiar. Mississippi Braves fans might recall the 2008 season, when Medlen moved from the bullpen to the rotation in early June. He was brilliant in that role, helping the M-Braves win the second half championship in the Southern League South and roll on to the league pennant. He went 6-5 as a starter, winning the second-half clincher. He had a 3.52 ERA, so with a little luck his record could’ve been much better. In the postseason, Medlen beat Birmingham with a dominating five-hit shutout in the division series clincher. M-Braves manager Phillip Wellman and pitching coach Derek Botelho said it was as good a performance as they’d seen all season. Medlen left the do-or-die Game 4 of the league championship series after seven innings with a lead, which the M-Braves blew before rallying to win 6-5 and square the series at 2-all. They won their only league title the next day. P.S. Cliff Lee took another hard-luck no decision on Thursday, giving the former Meridian Community College star a major league-leading 12. The Philadelphia left-hander hasn’t always been sharp this season, but his 2-7 record doesn’t seem to fit with his 3.83 ERA.

art of the steal

Minor leaguer Billy Hamilton’s run for the stolen base record — the Taylorsville product has 139, six shy of the pro mark — may have kindled some curiosity about Mississippi’s best bag burglars. Hall of Famer Cool Papa Bell, allegedly one of the fastest men ever to play the game, was a legendary base stealer in the Negro Leagues. But the Starkville-born Bell, unfortunately, never got a shot at the major leagues, where he might have set all kinds of records. Perhaps the fastest Mississippian to appear in the majors was Belzoni native Herb Washington, whose brief career is largely a curiosity. Washington was a world champion sprinter recruited by Charlie Finley as a pinch runner for the Oakland A’s of the mid-’70s. Lacking most baseball skills, Washington lasted just a season and a half, stealing a grand total of 31 bases. He never batted, never played a position. The career steals leader among Mississippians in the majors is Gerald “Gee” Walker, who debuted in the 1930s and wound up with 223 bags. He is followed by Ellis Burks (181), Frank White (178), Matt Lawton (165), Buddy Myer (156) Dave Parker (154), Don Blasingame (105), Hughie Critz (97), Larry Herndon (92) and Joey Gathright (81). Gathright is still active but playing in the minors. Jarrod Dyson, currently with Kansas City, has 41 and has the speed to move quickly up the chart if he gets more playing time. It’s worth noting that Marcus Lawton — Matt’s older brother — had a 100-plus stolen base season in the minors but didn’t hit enough to stick in the big leagues for long. It takes more than speed, as Hamilton, now in Double-A, will learn.

hot, hot, hot

The hottest team in the big leagues right now is Tampa Bay, which won its seventh game in a row on Monday. Yes, the streak coincides with Evan Longoria’s return from the disabled list, and, yes, the Rays’ pitching has been great of late. But Desmond Jennings, the former Itawamba Community College two-sport star, is also heating up and doing the things a leadoff man should do. Jennings is batting .359 over his last 10 games, with two homers, four RBIs and 12 runs. He has scored 10 runs in his last six games, all Tampa Bay wins. For the year, he’s at .249 with nine homers, 34 RBIs and 55 runs in 91 games. Don’t be surprised if Tampa Bay runs down the New York Yankees in the American League East. P.S. Brent Lillibridge, the former Mississippi Braves shortstop, is getting regular time with Cleveland — his third team in 2012 — and is taking advantage. He homered Monday and now has two, his first two of the year, in his last three games. He is batting .313 in his last 10 games, raising his average to .205. Lillibridge can run and play virtually anywhere in the field. When he hits, he’s a valuable asset.

it happened in '33

The Washington Nationals might just be a team of destiny. Davey Johnson, who steered the Jackson Mets to a Texas League pennant back in 1981, is almost certainly the National League manager of the year. The Nationals have the best record (71-44) in baseball. Atlanta has been feverishly chasing them since the All-Star break but still stands 4 1/2 games behind in the NL East as of today. The Nats had an eight-game win streak snapped on Sunday; the Braves also lost, in heart-breaking fashion to the New York Mets. That’s how it’s gone for Washington, whose fans are long overdue for some October baseball. The Nationals, who moved from Montreal in 2005, haven’t contended before this year. The Senators of 1961-71, who moved to Texas, had one winning season and never sniffed the postseason. The last Washington team to do so was the 1933 Senators, who lost the World Series in five games to the New York Giants. (That Senators franchise moved to Minnesota in 1961.) Buddy Myer, an Ellisville native who batted. .303 in his brilliant big league career, was the Senators’ second baseman in ’33. He was also on their pennant-winning team in 1925. Of course, the current Washington club also suits up a Mississippi native — Tyler Moore, the Northwest Rankin, Meridian Community College and Mississippi State product who is having a great rookie season (.295, six homers) as a part-time player.

braves stuff

Paul Maholm, who says he was a big fan of Tom Glavine as a kid in Greenwood, did the old left-hander proud on Friday, throwing a masterful shutout for Atlanta against the New York Mets. Maholm, a ground ball-inducing machine, yielded just three hits. He walked none. The complete game was exactly what the Braves and their stretched bullpen needed. The Mississippi State product is 10-7 overall and 1-1 with the Braves, and his ERA is down to 3.50. Not to be overlooked in the 4-0 win is Jason Heyward’s home run. It was his 19th of the season, a career high for the ex-Mississippi Braves star. He hit 18 in 2010, when he took the league by storm as a rookie. Then came last year’s crash, which left many wondering which was the real Jason Heyward. Well, he seems to have answered that question. His average (.269) could be better, perhaps if he struck out (111 K’s) a bit less, but he has become a scary hitter again. Plus, he’s got 15 stolen bases and is playing very well in right field. So … when will Andrelton Simmons return to the lineup? It might be September, according to reports. The former M-Braves shortstop, who was playing so well for the big league club, has been out since early July with a broken bone in his right hand. The Braves reportedly are targeting the end of August for a rehab assignment. P.S. Itawamba Community College product Desmond Jennings went 3-for-4 and scored three runs for Tampa Bay, which won its fourth in a row on Friday. Good sign? Jennings, often the Rays’ leadoff man, has 51 runs in 88 games. They need more from him as they battle for the playoffs. He’s got eight homers and 19 steals, but his batting average is just .243, on-base percentage .309.

the billy club

Billy Hamilton fever is spreading. He got a mention on ESPN’s Pardon The Interruption the other day. Baseball America and milb.com have “Race for the Record” factoids on the front page of their web sites, tracking the Taylorsville native’s stolen bases. He has 131 at the moment. Vince Coleman’s pro record is 145. Hamilton’s team, the Double-A Pensacola Blue Wahoos, has 24 games left. They have 14 scheduled before they arrive at Trustmark Park for an Aug. 24-28 series. Hamilton is averaging a stolen base a game (27 in 27) for Pensacola, so he could already have tied — or even broken — the record by then. But with a rest day here or a rainout there … it could be close. Noteworthy, also, is the fact that Hamilton is hitting a respectable .263 in Double-A, with a homer (inside the park) and 18 runs. P.S. Mississippi State alum and 2012 Ferriss Trophy winner Chris Stratton has a 5.40 ERA in limited (8 1/3) innings in rookie ball with San Francisco.

as the bullpen turns

Roy Oswalt answered the call for the Texas Rangers today. He was rudely disconnected by the Boston Red Sox in the seventh inning. Oswalt, the ex-Holmes Community College star, made his first appearance since he embroiled himself in controversy on Sunday by declining to pitch a third inning in relief (see previous post). Today, he retired the only batter he faced in the fifth inning (a run scored on a passed ball), then got three straight in the sixth. He came out for the seventh but was shelled for four runs, including a game-tying three run bomb by Will Middlebrooks. Texas, which hit four homers (Amory’s Mitch Moreland blasted his 12th), recovered to win 10-9. But the Oswalt situation just gets more complicated. He faltered as a starter but has made it clear that he isn’t happy pitching in relief. And maybe he’s not fit for that role, as today’s outing would seem to indicate. His ERA is 6.53. Now what?

the hot corner

There’s always something to watch at the ballpark, even if the local nine isn’t doing so hot. The Mississippi Braves, who return to Trustmark Park tonight to begin a five-game homestand, are still languishing near the bottom of the Southern League South. But Joe Leonard, the big third baseman, returns on a bit of a roll. He hit three home runs and drove in nine runs on the 10-game trip. Chipper Jones will retire at the end of this season — or so they say — which means Atlanta will need a third baseman in 2013. Leonard, who turns 24 on Aug. 26, could be in the mix come spring. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound right-handed hitter is batting .267 with 20 doubles, nine homers, 56 RBIs and 52 runs in his first Double-A season. Atlanta took him in the third round in the 2010 draft out of Pitt, where he was the Big East Conference player of the year. You want power in a third baseman, and Leonard is starting to show some. He hit four homers in 148 at-bats in his first pro season, then belted eight in 110 games at high-A Lynchburg last season. Leonard didn’t hit his first M-Braves homer until mid-May. He has now hit seven since June 12. His defense (10 errors) has been solid; he doubled as a closer at Pitt and has a strong arm. Leonard is definitely one to keep an eye on over what remains of this season.

a mess in texas?

This latest Roy Oswalt thing is turning messy. The Weir High and Holmes Community College product allegedly is not happy that he has been sent to the bullpen by the Texas Rangers. He has pitched well in two relief stints, but he declined to throw a third inning in his most recent outing, a stance many see as selfish. He allegedly wants to be traded from the team — this first-place, World Series-caliber team — that handed him a midseason opportunity, plus some big bucks, to be a starter. His ERA in that role is well over 6.00. His last start was awful. So now Ryan Dempster has taken his spot in the rotation. According to reports, the Rangers aren’t going to release Oswalt, nor will they trade him for nothing. Wonder if the second-winningest Mississippi-born pitcher in history will just stomp his foot and walk away?

whatever happened to ...

After missing most of July with a knee injury, Van Pope is back in the lineup for the independent Amarillo Sox. Pope, a former Terry High and Meridian Community College standout who also played for the Mississippi Braves, is in his second tour with the Sox, of the American Association. Pope, a third baseman, is batting .295 with two homers and 21 RBIs in 40 games this season after hitting .299 with 10 and 61 in 2011. Pope was a fifth-round draft pick by Atlanta and was a top 10 prospect at one time. But he struggled in Double-A, hitting just 10 homers in 222 games in 2007 and ’08. His defense was good — his arm amazing — but Atlanta wanted to see more power, among other things. He got a trial at Triple-A Gwinnett (.202, four homers in 2009) and later a look as a pitcher in A-ball. He was released in 2010. Returning to affiliated ball would seem like a longshot. P.S. Former Jackson Generals right-hander Freddy Garcia got his 150th career win on Sunday, pitching for the New York Yankees. He got win No. 1 in 1999 with Seattle. Garcia has had a nice career, going 150-100 with a 4.12 ERA. … Former M-Braves star Jeff Francoeur hit his 10th homer for Kansas City on Sunday. He’s hitting just .238 but still plays a mean right field. He might get interest from a contender down the stretch.

heading for home

The GB column in the standings should be printed in bold these days. It’s that time of year when Games Behind becomes a focal point. The chase for division championships is on. Nobody wants to be thrown into the wild card playoff this year. It’s a sprint to the finish now, no longer a marathon. The two biggest series of this weekend are Pittsburgh-Cincinnati and Baltimore-Tampa Bay, and Mississippians are front and center in both. Ole Miss product Zack Cozart, who is on a 7-for-17 roll, went 1-for-3 Saturday as the red-hot Reds beat Pittsburgh 5-4 and dropped the Pirates 5½ GB in the National League Central. UM alum Alex Presley, batting leadoff for the Bucs, was 2-for-4 in a losing cause. His manager, former Jackson Mets skipper Clint Hurdle, wasn’t around for the end, having been ejected early for arguing about an HBP warning. Today’s game will be intense. Meanwhile, at Tampa Bay, former Mississippi State standout Buck Showalter’s Orioles shut down the Rays 4-0 to even that series at a game apiece and level the teams' records at 56-51. They’re tied for second in the American League East, 6½ GB the New York Yankees. Itawamba Community College alum Desmond Jennings went 0-for-4 for the Rays on Saturday; he had a home run in Friday’s 2-0 win. The Rays, whose pitching (under the tutelage of ex-Jackson Generals pitching coach Jim Hickey) has been brilliant, will throw 14-game winner David Price today. … In other Saturday games of note: Ex-MSU star Tyler Moore (.295 as a rookie) had a game-tying pinch hit in a six-run eighth inning that propelled Washington past Miami 10-7. That win, coupled with Atlanta’s 3-2 loss to lowly Houston, moved the first-place Nationals, managed so adroitly by former JaxMets skipper Davey Johnson, 3 games up on the Braves in the NL East. Greenwood native and former MSU star Paul Maholm had a decent debut for the Braves, yielding three runs (all on Justin Maxwell homers) in seven innings with eight strikeouts. … Oakland, which may miss UM product Seth Smith’s left-handed power over the next couple of weeks, fell 5½ GB first-place Texas in the AL West with a 3-1 loss to Toronto. Texas beat Kansas City 4-2 for its fourth straight W. Ex-MSU star Mitch Moreland has returned from the DL with a vengeance (7-for-16 with a homer) for the suddenly resurgent Rangers, who also got a win last week from Holmes CC’s Roy Oswalt in his first relief appearance. … Philadelphia, out of it in the NL East, knocked NL West contender Arizona 2 1/2 GB division leader San Francisco with a 3-0 win. Meridian CC’s Cliff Lee — still a Phillie! — is expected to start today’s game, looking for a second straight win in what’s been an unexpectedly rough year (2-6, 3.73). P.S. Southwest Miss CC product Jarrod Dyson is climbing in the AL stolen base race; he got No. 21 on Saturday for Kansas City. And he’s hitting .271. … First Bobby Abreu gets DFA’d by the L.A. Dodgers, then Lance Berkman goes back on the DL with St. Louis. Sadly, this could be a race to retirement for the two former Jackson Generals stars (see previous post).

not so fast there ...

Some set the bar really high for Drew Pomeranz this season. Two USA Today reporters predicted the former Ole Miss star would win National League rookie of the year honors. That’s not going to happen. The left-hander might burst into an MLB star someday, but his 2012 season with Colorado is fizzling. Pomeranz endured a fourth straight poor outing on Wednesday night, allowing five hits, a walk and three runs in four innings of a 9-6 loss to St. Louis. He is 1-6 with a 5.13 ERA in 11 starts; he spent a big chunk of the season in the minors. Cleveland drafted Pomeranz in the first round in 2010, and Colorado thought enough of him to swap Ubaldo Jimenez last summer. So, there’s something there, Pomeranz just needs to find it. Maybe he can shoot for comeback player of the year in 2013. P.S. Is it over for Bobby Abreu? The former Jackson Generals standout was designated for assignment Wednesday by the Los Angeles Dodgers, even though he’s played fairly well. Will another team claim him? Would he accept an assignment to Triple-A? Stay tuned.