Tuesday's Report: Mercer/state/MLB draft; SEC Media Days, Acuna/HR Derby/Swanson, Braves/draft, Falcons; MLB/ASG, college 🏈/sports, NFL, NASCAR, golf, soccer, more
Monday's Central Georgia - and of interest to Central Georgia - news and notes, compiled from staff reports, email reports, the web, and social media.
In Coverage: Day 1 of SEC Media Days is in the books, with 15 stories
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Around/About Central Georgia
Three Mercer players go on Day 2 of MLB draft/state update
The first 10 rounds of the major-league draft are over, and three (former) Mercer players have been picked.
Outfielder Colby Thomas went in the third round to Oakland, Mercer’s fourth-highest pick ever and second-highest this century, after Kyle Lewis went to Seattle 11th in 2016.
Catcher Collin Price went three rounds later to Houston, and outfielder Bill Knight four rounds later to Seattle.
All three, however, were in the transfer portal. Thomas posted last month on Twitter that he was committing to Florida, and Knight posted earlier this month he was heading to Mississippi State. also entered the transfer portal. Price doesn’t appear to have made any decision public.
Knight led Mercer with a .337 average, 64 RBI, and 82 hits, and was tied for second with 17 home runs. He was also 10 of 11 in stolen bases.
Price was third at .315, with a team-leading 18 homers, second with 58 RBI.
Thomas played in 42 games, and hit .325, with 17 homers and 45 RBIs. His season ended early, in May, with a labrum injury.
Knight is a rising senior from Burke County, Price a junior from Lambert, and Thomas a sophomore from Valdosta.
Thomas was picked in the 37th round of the 2019 draft by Baltimore as a senior at Valdosta.
The Bears have other prospects, and can tie the school record of four picks easily. The MLB draft tracker has Angelo DiSpigna and Jackson Kelley as potential picks.
Others from Georgia high schools and colleges that went Tuesday, in order, with round and team: Georgia pitcher Jonathan Cannon, third, Chicago White Sox; Woodward outfielder Chandler Pollard, fifth, Texas; Georgia Tech outfielder Tres Gonzalez, fifth, Pittsburgh; Tech pitcher Zach Maxwell, sixth, Cincinnati; Georgia Premier Academy pitcher Javier Santos, seventh, Cleveland; GPA pitcher Jonah Tong, seventh, NY Mets.
Also: Tech pitcher Chance Huff, eighth, Washington; Georgia State shortstop Griffin Cheney, ninth, Texas; Tech first baseman Andrew Jenkins, ninth, Det4roit; Georgia second baseman Cory Acton, ninth, Atlanta; Kennesaw State outfielder Josh Hatcher, 10th, Texas.
Rounds 11-20 start at 2 p.m. on Tuesday on www.mlb.com.
Around/About Georgia/Southeast
Acuna topped by Alonso in HR Derby
Swanson return to LA is fitting
Sluggers top Braves Day 2 picks
Baseball/MLB
Soto is second National to win Home Run Derby
Kershaw hopes not to screw up ASG start at home
Ohtani and Kershaw starriest All-Stars
HR Derby to break All-Star Game tie
College Football
UCLA OL announces retirement, discusses suicide attempt
Sanders to donate half his salary to finish facility project
Kentucky keeps confounding top ‘pundits’
Chad Morris back in college, at South Florida
Colleges Sports
Oklahoma and Texas won’t leave early for SEC
BSB: Rule might calm Tennessee down a bit
Could NIL lead to end of arms race?
Staley unhappy with ESPN’s ESPY’s snub of player
Football/NFL/USFL
Lions’ Campbell ready to surprise
Auto Racing
Elliott frustrated at near miss
Golf
Smith’s caddie: ‘He’s got a big set’
How many beers fit in the Claret Jug?
Stupidest chants heard at St. Andrews
Feherty leaving NBC/TGC for LIV?
Soccer
Canada preps for US amid concern over federation’s dealings
Morgan assuming more vocal role for US women
Olympic Sports
Was Allen too fast for his own good?
Around the nation/world