Stratton Scheduled To Make Pro Debut Sunday
STARKVILLE, Miss. --- It’s debut weekend in professional baseball for former Mississippi State pitching standout Chris Stratton.
The first-round draft pick of the San Francisco Giants from Tupelo, Miss., is scheduled to launch his pro career Sunday evening, taking the mound for the Salem-Keizer (Ore.) Volcanoes in a 7:05 p.m. (CDT) home game against Northwest League rival Yakima (Wash.).
Stratton earned 2012 SEC Pitcher of the Year honors and became the 20th player selected overall in Major League Baseball’s First-Year Player Draft last month. He compiled an 11-2 worksheet with a Southeastern Conference-best 2.38 earned run average and 127 strikeouts. The right-hander notched his lone career save in Mississippi State’s SEC Tournament-clinching shutout win over Vanderbilt.
Another junior on MSU’s 2012 pitching staff, left-hander Nick Routt, is eight games into his pro baseball career. The Silver Spring, Md., native sports a 1-1 record with a 5.59 earned run average after eight relief appearances with the Billings (Mont.) Mustangs in the Pioneer League. Routt was a 16th-round draft pick of the Cincinnati Reds.
