Monday, August 6, 2007

FORMER PIONEERS SHINING ON THE DIAMOND THIS SUMMER

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- This summer has been a very successful one for seven former Tusculum College baseball players as they continue to play professionally throughout the minor league ranks.

Kevin Hammons (Jamestown Jammers), Brandon Dickson (Swing of the Quad Cities) and Eric Butler (South Bend Silver Hawks) are pitching in the Class A ranks, while Adam Beacham (Burlington Royals), Ben Swaggerty (Idaho Falls Chukars) and Brandon Tuten (Gulf Coast Dodgers) are in the Rookie League. Former TC hurler Bobby Darling (Rio Grande Valley White Wings) is pitching in the independent United Baseball League.

Hammons, a 6-4, 190-pound southpaw pitcher from Jonesborough, Tenn., has posted a 3-0 record with the A-affiliate of the Florida Marlins. The 24^th-round draft pick of the Marlins, has a 3.63 earned run average while limiting the opposition to a .194 batting average. Hammons had a stellar senior campaign at Tusculum in 2007 as he posted a 9-1 record with a 2.77 earned run average. He was named to the Daktronics All-American Second Team and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association All-America Second Team. He struck out 80, while walking just 23 in 74.2 innings.

Hammons was tabbed the Daktronics South Region and SAC Pitcher of the Year, while also being selected to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District IV First Team. During his two seasons at Tusculum, Hammons went 11-2 and accounted for a 4.10 ERA, the eighth lowest in school history.

Dickson, a 6-5, 190-pound right-hander from Marbury, Ala., has been the workhorse on the staff for the Swing of the Quad Cities, the A-affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. Dickson has an 8-6 record with a 3.78 ERA. He has appeared in 25 games, including 17 starts while striking out 64 with a save. Earlier this summer, he was named to the Midwest League All-Star Team. The Swing of the Quad Cities is currently in second place in the Western Division.

Dickson made his professional debut last summer with the Johnson City Cardinals (rookie affiliate) where he posted a 1-0 record in his nine appearances. He tallied a 6.35 ERA and a save with the Red Birds. Dickson went 5-2 with a 3.39 earned run average in his first and only campaign with the Tusculum in 2006. Dickson tied a then school single-season record with his 24 mound appearances, all in relief. He tallied four saves in his 58.1 innings of work, as he allowed 59 hits while walking a dozen and striking out 37. Dickson garnered South Atlantic Conference Pitcher of the Week honors once. Tusculum posted a 40-14-1 record in 2006, while capturing the program's second SAC Championship. Dickson attended Central Alabama Community College prior to Tusculum. In his two seasons at the Alexander City, Ala. School, Dickson went 11-7. In 2004, he posted a 7-3 record with a 3.31 ERA, hit .292 and was named the team’s Defensive Player of the Year.

Butler, a 6-4, 243-pound right-hander from Morristown, Tenn., has a 2-2 record in his first year with the Silver Hawks (A-affiliate, Arizona Diamondbacks). He has a 3.38 ERA this year with three saves and 42 strikeouts in 45.1 innings. In his last 10 mound appearances, he has a 2.73 ERA and a 2-0 record.

Butler is entering his second year in the Arizona farm-system, after pitching last year with the Yakima Bears. Butler was selected by the Diamondbacks in the 43^rd round of the 2005 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. At Yakima, Butler went 3-5 with a 4.15 earned run average in his 15 starts. He tossed 78 innings where he struck out 65 and limited the opposition to a .256 average. Butler went 8-6 in 2005 for the Pioneers where he posted a 3.31 earned run average. In his 15 starts in his senior campaign at Tusculum, he tossed four complete games, struck out 76 and limited the opposition to hit only .226 against him in his 98 innings of work. He shined late in the season as he won four of his last five starts, posting a 1.65 ERA during that span. In his last collegiate start, he tossed a two-hit shutout against No. 9 Tampa in the opening game of the 2005 NCAA Division II Tournament. For his efforts, Butler was named to the NCAA South Region All-Tournament squad. In his two seasons with the Pioneers, Butler went 15-11 with a 3.35 career ERA. He was named to the 2004 All-South Atlantic Conference First Team as he went 7-5 during his freshman season with a 3.40 ERA. Butler played his prep baseball at East High School where he was an All-State selection on the mound.

Beacham, a 5-8, 170-pound catcher from Atlanta, Ga., has appeared in seven games with the Burlington Royals, the Appalachian League affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. He is hitting .214, including .333 in his last three games. His first professional hit came July 8 against the Greeneville Astros in his return to Pioneer Park. This past weekend, he went 2-for-2 with a triple against Johnson City. The Royals are 24-20 and are in second place in the Appy League Western Division.

Beacham starred on the Tusculum diamond from 2003-06 where he played in 160 games, including 122 starts behind the plate. He batted .284 for his career, including .329 in 2006, earning All-SAC Second Team honors. In 2006, he recorded seven doubles, two triples and seven home runs to go along with 42 runs batted in. He also demonstrated speed on the base path, recording 11 stolen bases in 15 attempts. Beacham's 13 career home runs are tied for 10^th in the Tusculum record books. He is also tied for eighth in career sacrifice flies (8), 10^th in sacrifice hits (11), third in put outs (765) and tied for sixth with his .985 career fielding percentage. At the 2005 Food Lion SAC Tournament, Beacham shined hitting .500 with four home runs as the Pioneers captured the tournament title. For his efforts, Beacham was named the SAC Tournament Most Valuable Player.

Swaggerty, a 6-1, 185-pound Knoxville, Tenn. native has made 13 relief appearances at Idaho Falls, the Pioneer League affiliate of the Royals. Swaggerty has a 1-0 record and a save to go along with 29 strikeouts in 19 innings of work. The Chukars were first half divisional champions in the Pioneer League and are currently in first place in the South Division in the second half of the league chase.

Swaggerty posted an impressive 5-0 record and a team-best six saves in his 24 appearances this past season with the Pioneers. His save tally was 35^th in the nation (NCAA Division II), while posting a 1.69 ERA, the second lowest on the team. He also accounted for 61 strikeouts, walked 17 and limited the opposition to a .210 batting average.

Swaggerty especially shined down the postseason stretch, recording a pair of saves during the 2007 NCAA II South Regional in Tampa, Fla. He tossed the final three innings in Tusculum's 4-1 win over nine-time national champion Florida Southern as he finished with seven strikeouts. The next day, he scattered two hits and struck out four in TC's 7-6 win over nationally-ranked Florida Gulf Coast. He led the Pioneers to the championship game of the 2007 Food Lion SAC Tournament. In his three appearances, he pitched eight innings, allowed two hits, struck out seven and recorded a save. For his efforts, he was named to the SAC All-Tournament Team. During his career at Tusculum, Swaggerty appeared in 44 games, which are tied for eighth in school history. His 117 career strikeouts are also tied for eighth, to go along with a solid 8-2 record on the mound. He also made the most of his lone career plate appearance with a RBI double against Albany State this past season.

Tuten, the most recent professional signee from Tusculum, has been solid in his first three outings with the Dodgers of the Gulf Coast League (Los Angeles Dodgers). In his 3.1 innings of work, he has allowed just one hit, no walks and struck out six. He has a 1-0 record and a save, while holding the opposition to a .100 batting average. The GCL Dodgers are in first place in the East Division and have the best record in the league at 28-8.

In his first and only season with the Pioneers (2007), he posted a 5-4 record with a 2.20 earned run average which was third best on the team. Tuten made 15 appearances including 11 starts as he tossed 61.1 innings, walked 17 and struck out 61. He pitched a complete game victory against Lenoir-Rhyne College in the 2007 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament. For his efforts, he was named to the SAC All-Tournament team.

The Mt. Pleasant, Tenn. native came to Tusculum from Motlow State Community College where he garnered All-Conference recognition. He played his prep career at Mt. Pleasant High School as his squad captured three District championships and won a pair of Region titles.

Darling is in his second professional season of independent baseball. He pitched last year with the Rockford River Hawks of the Frontier League and is in his first campaign with the White Wings. He has a 3-1 record in his 14 relief outings. He has pitched 33 innings while posting a 6.27 ERA.

Darling, a 6-6, 230-pound right-hander from Midlothian, Va. posted a 6-3 record in 2006 with Tusculum. He tallied a 4.82 ERA, including a pair of complete game outings. He tossed 52.1 innings where he struck out 29 in his dozen appearances, including 10 starts. Darling batted .267, including .348 in 2004, where he tallied a home run and five runs batted in.

During his prep career, Darling was an All-District selection at Monacan High School. He also shined off the diamond at Tusculum, where he was a member of the Athletic Director's Honor Roll.

In 2007, Tusculum broke or tied 45 team and individual records, including six SAC marks. The Pioneers tallied an impressive 50-14 record and finished third at the NCAA Division II South Regional. The Pioneers' 50 wins are the most in school and conference history. Tusculum captured its third straight league championship, while advancing to the NCAA Tournament for a third time in five years.

Tusculum College, located in Greeneville, Tenn., is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and is a NCAA Division II member of the South Atlantic Conference which is comprised of nine colleges and universities in Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina.

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