Big League Bulldogs (entering 9/9): Brent Rooker bashes first MLB homer
Brent Rooker was known for his big blasts in his time as a Mississippi State Bulldog. Well now, the Minnesota Twins outfielder has hit a long ball in the big leagues.
Rooker smashed a two-run home run on Tuesday to account for his first Major League homer since making his debut last week.
Rooker finished the game 1-for-3. He now has a hit in five straight contests. The Twins actually ended up losing the game in which Rooker homered, but Minnesota split their doubleheader with the St. Louis Cardinals.
Elsewhere on Tuesday, Adam Frazier extended his hitting streak to 11 games in a row as he went 1-for-4 with a single for the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox.
While the hitting streak is impressive, Frazier's best highlight of the day came with his glove as he made a diving grab in left field.
Also, in the same game, former MSU pitcher Chris Stratton hurled a couple of solid innings of relief for Pittsburgh. He allowed just one unearned run, two hits and struck out two.
In other action, Mitch Moreland had a 2-for-5 day for San Diego as the Padres blew out the Colorado Rockies 14-5. Moreland contributed a single, a double and scored a run.
The only other former MSU star to play on Tuesday was Nate Lowe. He flied out in a pinch-hit appearance for Tampa Bay in a 5-3 Rays loss to the Washington Nationals.
Here are all the details from Tuesday, as well as season stats for all former MSU players that have seen playing time in Major League Baseball this year:
TUESDAY'S RESULTS / SEASON STATS
LF Adam Frazier (Pirates) - Won 5-4 over White Sox
- On Tuesday: 1-for-4 with a single
- Season stats: .234 BA, .302 OBP, .640 OPS, 4 HR, 15 RBI, 13 R
PH Nate Lowe (Rays) - Lost 5-3 to Nationals
- On Tuesday: 0-for-1 (pinch-hit in 9th inning)
- Season stats: .077 BA, .250 OBP, .404 OPS, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 R
1B Mitch Moreland (Padres) - Won 14-5 over Rockies
- On Tuesday: 2-for-5 with a single, double and a run scored
- Season stats: .286 BA, .375 OBP, .979 OPS, 8 HR, 21 RBI, 15 R
RF Brent Rooker (Twins) - Won 7-3 over Cardinals (Game 1), Lost 6-4 to Cardinals (Game 2)*
- On Tuesday (*Rooker played in Game 2): 1-for-3 with a 2-run homer
- Season stats: .278 BA, .316 OBP, .816 OPS, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 3 R
RP Chris Stratton (Pirates) - Won 5-4 over White Sox
- On Tuesday: (No decision) 2.0 innings pitched, 2 hits allowed, 1 run allowed (0 earned runs allowed), 1 walk allowed, 2 strikeouts
- Season stats: 2-0 record, 3.43 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 25 K, 21.0 IP
DID NOT PLAY TUESDAY / SEASON STATS
RP Kendall Graveman (Mariners) - Lost 6-5 to Giants
- Season stats: 0-2 record, 6.75 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 11 K, 10.2 IP
RP Jonathan Holder (Yankees) - Lost 2-1 to Blue Jays
- Season stats: 2-0 record, 2.25 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 14 K, 16.0 IP
SP Dakota Hudson (Cardinals) - Lost 7-3 to Twins (Game 1), Won 6-4 over Twins (Game 2)
- Season stats: 2-2 record, 3.19 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 27 K, 31.0 IP
RF Hunter Renfroe (Rays) - Lost 5-3 to Nationals
- Season stats: .155 BA, .231 OBP, .623 OPS, 6 HR, 19 RBI, 14 R
SP Brandon Woodruff (Brewers) - Lost 8-3 to Tigers
- Season stats: 2-3 record, 3.91 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 55 K, 46.0 IP
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