STARKVILLE — Three Mississippi State baseball players were named finalists for the Boo Ferriss Trophy, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame announced Monday.
MSU junior right-hander Dakota Hudson, junior outfielder/pitcher Reid Humphreys, and freshman outfielder Jake Mangum joined Ole Miss junior outfielder J.B. Woodman and Delta State senior outfielder Will Robertson as finalists.
The award is given annually to the top college baseball player in the state of Mississippi. Major League Baseball scouts and Mississippi’s college coaches chose the finalists. The scouts and coaches will account for 90 percent of the final vote. Fan voting, which accounts for 10 percent, begins today and runs through Sunday at www.cspoavoting.com. The winner will be announced Monday at a luncheon at the Cleveland Country Club.
The award is named after former MSU and Boston Red Sox pitcher David M. “Boo” Ferriss.
After coming out of the bullpen last season, Hudson is 8-3 with a 2.52 ERA. He has struck out 91 and walked 27 in 89 1/3 innings.
Humphreys is batting .333 with 15 doubles, two triples, five home runs, and 44 RBIs. The Brandon native is 0-1 with a 6.05 ERA and a team-high six saves.
Mangum is second in the Southeastern Conference with a .405 batting average. The Pearl native has nine doubles, three triples, a home run, and 25 RBIs.
Woodman is batting .325 with 11 doubles, a team-leading 12 home runs, and 47 RBIs. He also has nine assists from the outfield.
Robertson led the Gulf South Conference with a .426 batting average. The Falkner native has 27 doubles, eight home runs, and 71 RBIs.
No. 3 MSU (37-14-1, 18-9 SEC) will play host to Arkansas (26-25, 7-20) on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday in the final weekend of the regular season. The Bulldogs have won eight in a row, while the Razorbacks are on a nine-game losing streak.
n In other news, the Bulldogs moved up in one poll and remained steady in five.
After winning at Troy and sweeping Auburn, MSU moved from No. 7 to No. 5 in Collegiate Baseball’s poll.
The Bulldogs remained No. 3 in the Baseball America, Perfect Game, and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association polls and No. 4 in the D1Baseball.com and the USA Today Coaches polls.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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