| 1996 | Oct | Nov | Dec | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Jan | Feb | March | April | May | June | July | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 1998 | Jan | Feb | March | April | May | June | July | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 1999 | Jan | Feb | March | April | May |
Polls:
Baseball America Top 25 -- Collegiate Baseball Top 25 -- USA Today/ESPN Top 25 -- The Sporting News Top 25
06/19/99 Go here to view pictures of the Dudy Noble / Polk-DeMent Stadium expansion.06/30/99 - In the Cape Cod League a couple of Diamond Dawgs had good days Monday. Ty Martin, of the Hyannis Mets, hit his 2nd home run of the season, while Jamie Rock had a couple of hits for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox. For complete game details, click here.
06/30/99 - Here are the latest Diamond Dawg summer stats:
| Player | Class | Team | League (Wood or Aluminum) | BA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB-SBA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jon Knott | JR | Danville | Central Illinois Collegiate League (W) | .228 | 57 | 11 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 6 | 10 | 0-0 |
| Enrico Jones | SO | Newark Raptors | Northeastern Collegiate Baseball League (W) | .242 | 33 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | -- | -- | --- |
| Phil Willingham | JR | Anchorage Glacier Pilots | Alaskan League (W) | .172 | 29 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 6 | --- |
| Player | Class | Team | League (Wood or Aluminum) | ERA | W-L | G | IP | H | SO | BB | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Freed | JR | Danville | Central Illinois Collegiate League (W) | 4.58 | 1-1 | 4 | 17.2 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 0 |
| Adam Larson | SO | Danville | Central Illinois Collegiate League (W) | 4.91 | 1-0 | 2 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 0 |
| Justin Estel | JR | Anchorage Glacier Pilots (W) | Alaskan League (W) | 7.33 | 1-0 | 5 | 7.1 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 1 |
| Ryan Carroll | SO | Newark Raptors | Northeastern Collegiate Baseball League (W) | 9.90 | 0-2 | --- | 10.0 | 19 | 5 | 4 | 0 |
06/30/99 - Just received this from MSU's Joe Dier, Mississippi State University, Office of Athletic Media Relations:
STARKVILLE, Miss. --- Pitcher Hank Thoms signed a professional baseball Tuesday with the St. Paul Saints, becoming the sixth player from Mississippi State's 1999 team to join the ranks of pro baseball this year.
The righthander from Newton, Miss., in his first season as a starting rotation pitcher at Mississippi State, compiled a 7-6 record with a career-best and Southeastern Conference-leading 2.66 earned run average. Thoms paced the Bulldogs with 121 strikeouts in 1999 and concluded his three-year MSU career with a 17-8 record, a 3.19 ERA, and eight career saves, ninth-most in school history.
Thoms struck out a career-high 16 in a career-first complete-game 9-2 win at Tennessee April 17 and backed that showing with a 14-strikeout, eight-inning effort in his next outing, a 7-1 win over LSU.
Thoms was a ninth round pick of the Boston Red Sox in this month's Major League Baseball draft, but opted to sign with the St. Paul (Minn.) Saints of the independent Northern League. He has reported to Minnesota where it is expected he will begin his professional career later this week with the league-leading Saints.
Pitcher Matt Ginter (1st round, Chicago White Sox), catcher Chris Curry (9th round, Chicago Cubs), second baseman Chris Lotterhos (25th round, Cleveland Indians), first baseman Cliff Wren (33rd round, Los Angeles Dodgers) and pitcher Scott Polk (free agent, New York Mets) have already signed professional baseball contracts, while outfielder Brian Wiese (10th round, Boston Red Sox), is continuing negotiations with Boston.
Mississippi State posted a 42-21 record in 1999, advancing to its fourth consecutive NCAA regional tournament and its eighth in the 1990s.
06/29/99 - Here are the latest stats for some of the Diamond Dawgs .
06/28/99 - Our very own Ty Martin won another game for the Hyannis Mets with a big two-run triple in the eight. Ty had two hits and two RBIs on the day as the Hyannis Mets defeated Chatham 10-4. Click here to read the entire article.
I apologize for not providing stats on our summer league Diamond Dawgs. Due to several things that have taken quite a bit of my time the past two weeks, I have had to put that off for a while.
06/25/99 - The Winchester Sun's Sports Editor Jeff Kerr will have an article about Matt Ginter signing a pro contract with the Chicago White Sox in today's paper. Click here to go to today's edition.
06/25/99 - Diamond Dawg Ty Martin hit a 3-run homer in the bottom of the 8th inning with the score tied 5-5 to win the game for the Hyannis Mets of the Cape Cod summer league. Ty had a total of 2 hits and 4 RBIs for the game. You can read the game story by clicking here.
06/24/99 - MSU finished 24th in the final USA Today/ESPN poll and 30th in Baseball America.
06/24/99 - MSU softball players Keri McCallum and Kellie Wilkerson have made the USA Women's Softball Team (McCallum) and the USA Junior National Team (Wilkerson). Kellie is presently leading her team in batting average. Source: The Clarion-Ledger.
06/22/99 - According to a pro source of mine, the list below includes some of the top senior-to-be Mississippi HS baseball players for next season. As the summer progresses, other players will prove worthy of being added to this list. If you knows how these youngsters are doing this summer let me know.
06/21/99 - MSU signee Collins Hughes pitched a complete-game three-hitter against Oak Hill's American Legion team yesterday. Collins struck out 12.
06/19/99 - Check out the latest Dudy Noble / Polk-DeMent Stadium expansion pics. Click here.
06/19/99 - If you have a team (Summer League, American Legion, etc.) that would like to play on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, Friday and Saturday, June 25, 26, in a tournament, contact David Lyle, of Gulfport, MS., at his email address, which is DLL021@aol.com
06/18/99 - ESPN has a great article about former Diamond Dawg Adam Piatt. Click here to check it out.
06/18/99 - CBS Sportsline has a very good article about our very own Rafael Palmeiro. Click here to read it.
06/18/99 - Thanks to one of you for taking the time to email me after going to see one of our Diamond Dawgs, Jim Abraham, play a few nights ago. According to the email, Jim, who plays for the Arlington Senators, came into the game in the 5th inning with one out and one on. With a runner on first, the batter attempted to lay down a sacrifice bunt but popped the ball up. Jim running off the mound, dove for the ball, caught it and threw to first base doubling off the runner. In the bottom of the fifth, the Senators scored 5 or 6 runs. A new pitcher was brought in in the 6th inning.
06/18/99 - Just thought you guys would like to know that Matt Ginter was given the honor of throwing out the first pitch of the Winchester (KY) Little League Championship Game last Monday night. Matt pitched in three Little League City Championship games, winning as a 10-year old. He also holds the Winchester Little League season record for home runs with 12. Matt was kind enough to stay for autographs. Thanks to Jeff Kerr Sports Editor of The Winchester Sun for this info. If you would like to visit their site go to http://www.winchestersun.com/
BTW (BTW means By The Way for those of you who asked), Jeff plans on doing a story about Matt's college career in a few days.
06/18/99 - Advertisement: BulldogCountry wants to hear from you. Check them out if you are a REAL Bulldog Country fan.
06/17/99 - Here is additional Robert Brown info from one of you.
Robert is coming to MSU and is planning on walking on the baseball team. He bleeds maroon and white and will be a great asset to the team. He comes from a long line of Bulldogs. MSU is really getting lucky because everyone backed off when Robert hurt his knee. He is a great athlete who can dunk a basketball and averaged over 20 points a game before he hurt his leg. He also batted over .600 last year in summer ball. Robert is 6'1", 185 and throws in the mid to upper 80's and also plays third and shortstop. Robert can play anywhere on the field and can also hit. Robert is an extremely nice guy who would give anything to play ball in Starkville.
06/17/99 - The word is Northeast MS CC baseball player Blake Holly is going to walk-on at Ole Miss. Blake originally signed with MSU out of high school but transferred to Northeast Mississippi Community College after attending MSU for a semester.
06/16/99 - Here's the latest update on where our Diamond Dawgs are playing this summer. I will add their stats later this week.
Updated List:
06/16/99 - According to a source of mine, Robert Brown, who plays for the Corinth American Legion team, hopes to walk-on MSU's baseball team this fall. Robert, who missed the entire baseball season because he partially tore his ACL in January, was recruited by MSU, Ole Miss and Arkansas-Little Rock (ALR). Even after the tear, ALR offered him a large scholarship. However, as you see, his desire is to be an MSU Diamond Dawg.
If anyone has additional info about Robert, please email it to me.
06/12/99 - The word is MSU baseball signee Mark Obradovich has the potential to be big-time player with power at the plate and a very strong arm. With the loss of Chris Curry, I expect he will have a chance to play at the catcher position next season.
06/11/99 - Here's the latest update on where our Diamond Dawgs are playing this summer. I will continue looking for our other players and next week will begin providing stats.
Updated List:
06/11/99 - Just thought you guys would like to know Ty Martin is back to full strength after suffering from mononucleosis for the better part of four months.
06/11/99 - Not only is future Diamond Dawg Josh Wooten's siblings MSU graduates or attending MSU, but his dad is a 1968 EE graduate of MSU. A true Bulldog family if I have ever seen one. Welcome aboard, Josh.
06/10/99 - I received an email from former Diamond Dawg Jeremy Jackson yesterday. He wanted everyone to know he is doing fine. He started the season off slow but has begun to pitch much better. He is playing on the Charleston WV, team which plays in the Class A South Atlantic League. Former Diamond Dawgs Damian Scioneaux and Chris Reinike also play in this same league. If you have the opportunity, go and see him play. And let him know you are a Bulldog fan. I'm sure he will be happy to see a fellow MSU Bulldog. BTW, congrats are in order for Jeremy and his bride-to-be Sha Boatner, who are to be married December 4th.
06/10/99 - Add three and delete one from the list of Diamond Dawgs who will be participating in the summer college baseball leagues. Tanner Brock, due to arm soreness, is not pitching this summer. MSU signee Jeff Hunter is playing in the Cape Cod League while Justin Estel and Phillip Willingham are playing at Anchorage in the Alaska Baseball League.
Updated List:
06/09/99 - OK MSU baseball fans here is what I have come up with so far in regard to where some of our baseball players are playing this summer. I continue to need your help in locating where the other players are playing.
06/09/99 - According to someone who talked to Meridian CC pitcher Josh Wooten, Josh said he will be walking on at State next fall. Josh throws a submarine fastball (mid-80's), change-up and a huge, sweeping curveball that is nearly unhittable, according to my source. BTW, Josh comes from a family with strong MSU ties. His siblings either have or are attending MSU. Click here to go to his Meridian CC's player info link. It has his 1998 stats listed but not his 1999 stats.
06/07/99 - This info comes from someone who played baseball with Meridian CC pitcher Josh Wooten, a player rumored to be transferring to MSU next season. I still have not confirmed if he will be a Bulldog but, just in case, here is a little info about him.
"He comes from a very Christian home. In fact, his farther is a preacher. He graduated number one in his class his senior year and had a 26 on the ACT. He is a great person and will be a great pick-up. He throws submarine style much like former Bulldog Van Johnson. His fastball velocity is in the mid 80's and he has a very good curveball."
06/07/99 - Thanks to Dave Magee for compiling this info.
MSU shortstop Travis Chapman hit .404 this year, joining some elite company:
1. Nat Showalter 1977 (.459)
2. Will Clark 1985 (.420)
3. Jackie Parker 1954 (.418)
4. Rafael Palmerio 1984 (.415)
5. Brian Wiese 1998 (.412)
6. Mark Gillaspie 1981 (.411)
7. Rafael Palmerio 1983 (.406)
8. Travis Chapman 1999 (.404)
9. Mike Kelley 1979 (.400)
Travis fell one hit short of 100 on the season, and is 4th on the single-season hits chart:
1. Brian Wiese 1998 103
2. Tommy Raffo 1989 102
3. Richard Lee 1997 100
4. Travis Chapman 1999 99
5. Rafael Palmerio 1984 98
Finally, and most importantly, Travis Chapman set a single-season MSU record for fielding at SS - .956, eclipsing the old record of .955 set by Jocko Potts in 1967.
06/06/99 - Does anyone know anything about a Meridian CC pitcher by the name of Josh Wooten? There is a rumor going around about him transferring to MSU next season. BTW, Josh is originally from Star, MS.
06/05/99 - I know there are a lot of relatives and friends of our baseball players who check out my page. Each summer, I try to keep MSU fans who check out my page up to date on how our Diamond Dawgs are doing in the summer leagues they are playing in. If you have the info available, please email me with the name of the team and league your Diamond Dawg relative or friend is playing for.
06/05/99 - Ben Johnson,, the Germantown (TN) centerfielder who set Shelby (County) Metro season and career home run marks this year, was drafted in the 4th round (127th overall) on Wednesday by the St. Louis Cardinals. With the Cardinal AAA franchise located in Memphis, Thursday's Commercial Appeal played up the story big time.
The story indicated that Johnson now had to "mull over signing with the Cards or going to college". Johnson said his school choices were Mississippi State for Division 1, or a junior college, since it would allow him to re-enter the draft earlier.
Since the Commercial Appeal story, Ben, according to a source of mine from the Memphis area who talked to a good friend of Ben's, has signed for a bonus of approximately $300,000.
06/04/99 - I received an email last night from former Diamond Dawg (1979-1982) Bruce Castoria in regard to the Ron Polk / Georgia baseball coach situation. He said it was OK to share it with all of you.
This is Bruce Castoria and I played for Coach Polk from 79-82. We went to Hawaii, the western deserts and 2 CWS during my time at MSU.
I first want to express my surprise at this event, then I want to wish him all the luck in the world.
The people who are upset about this are wrong! The man gave his all to MSU Baseball and the university. He deserves all the accolades he has received. I have not always agreed with his methods, but they always proved to be successful.
My biggest concern is that I don't want this event to change the connections to the past. Just as all of us players have had to move on, it was time for coach Polk to do that. (I never thought he could let it go for long.) So let's not let the present cloud the past and hurt all the great accomplishments he guided many MSU teams to.
I hope he continues to think of us as his extended family. I sure hope I continue to receive a birthday and Christmas card from him. I believe I will. So let's cut out the sniping, it is unbecoming of the class MSU fans I have always admired.
Bruce Castoria
06/04/99 - Here is a MLB draft article about MSU signee Brennan King.
You can also find an excellent list, from Prairie Dawg's website, which has a list of all the players from SEC schools who were drafted during the recently completed Major League Baseball Draft.
SEC Draftees
06/03/99 - Coach Ron Polk will officially be announced as the new head baseball coach at Georgia today either at noon or 1 p.m.
Coach Polk, according to my source, is expected to coach at Georgia for up to four years, then plans on coming back to Starkville to retire.
According to my source, Coach Polk missed coaching baseball, which has always been his true love. This chance came along and he has decided to take it.
Good luck, Coach Polk. We will miss you but we look forward to your return to what will always be your true home, MSU and Starkville, Mississippi. I want to thank you personally for providing me with some of the greatest MSU sports memories in my life.
06/03/99 - Just thought you guys would like to know that the cowbell that was taken away from a MSU fan by the female COBRA security officer the Friday night of the Ole Miss/MSU baseball series in Oxford was given her cowbell back. An Ole Miss fan got the cowbell back and gave it back to Adam Larson's family. Yes, it is that Adam Larson, the MSU baseball pitcher. The word is the Ole Miss fan was so disgusted with the actions of the COBRA officer after she took the cowbell away, that he made a point of getting the cowbell back to it's owner.
06/02/99 - Baseball America had their Major League Baseball Draft Preview in their latest issue. Of the projected Top 100 Draft Prospects, MSU had the following players listed.
Player's Name - Ranking:
Other SEC players of note and where they are projected to be drafted:
06/02/99 - Advertisment: If you are looking for insurance and you live in Jackson, Mississippi or the surrounding area, check out C. Mark Doiron's Allstate Insurance website at this location.
06/01/99 - Click here to see the most up-to-date pictures of the Dudy Noble / Polk-DeMent Stadium expansion project. I took the pictures Sunday.
06/01/99 - As you already know if you have been reading my page, MSU signee Brennan King, a shortstop from Tennessee, was recently selected the Tennessee Gatorade Player of the Year. Now, MSU signee Matt Butler, a right-handed pitcher from Hattiesburg HS (MS), has been selected The Clarion-Ledger Player of the Year. Plus, MSU signee Matthew Maniscalco, a 5-10, 180-lb middle infielder from Oxford, AL., was selcted Alabama's Mr. Baseball by the Alabama Sports Writers' Association. All three of these young men will most likely be selected in Wednesday's Major League Draft.