Tuesday's Report: Houston County/draft, Macon Touchdown Club, Bacon; Wimbledon's Tech star, Braves/draft/Acuna, Hawks, Falcons, Tech, AMS; NBA, MLB, tennis, colleges, NFL, soccer

July 10, 2023 Central Georgia Sports Report

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Baseball

Coastal Plain

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Around/About Central Georgia

Houston County’s Woods gets drafted

Former Houston County pitcher Jaden Woods was the only Central Georgian picked through the first two days of the MLB Draft.

Woods went Monday afternoon to Pittsburgh with the third pick of the seventh round, 197th overall.

Woods is 8-5 in three seasons at Georgia. His junior year interrupted by missing some starts due to arm tiredness and a bicep injury, Woods finishing 3-3 with only 10 starts. His best season was his first, when he went 4-1 with a 4.58 ERA, mostly as a reliever.

He has 195 strikeouts and 82 walks in 155.2 innings, opponents batting .213, with 15 starts and 52 appearances.

He graduated from Georgia in May with a degree in sport management, and is eligible to return, although he participated in Senior Day festivities. New Georgia head coach Wes Johnson was the pitching coach at LSU, which had Paul Skenes go to Pittsburgh with the No. 1 pick.

Woods went 9-2 as a junior at Houston County, his senior year erased by COVID-19.

Georgia Tech had three players drafted, with four high school players from the state selected.

The final day of picks starts at 2 p.m.

Through the first two days, players from a Georgia high school or college chosen, with round, overall number, and school: 1/32. Colin Houck, SS, Parkview, NY Mets; 3/83. Antonio Anderson, North Atlanta, Boston; 4C/132. Kristian Campbell, SS, Georgia Tech, Boston; 5/162. Isaiah Drake, OF, North Atlanta, Atlanta; 6/173. Jake DeLeo, OF, Georgia Tech, Miami; 8/226. Jackson Finley, P, Georgia Tech, Oakland; 9/268. Blake Wehunt, P, Kennesaw State, Boston.

CB-A: Tai Peete, SS, Trinity Christian-Sharpsburg, Seattle

Macon Touchdown Club schedule for 2023 set

There will some Gator voices in mostly Bulldog country when the Macon Touchdown Club’s 78th season starts.

Email centralgasports@gmail.com if there’s a problem.

Former Florida wide receiver Chris Doering and ex-head coach Dan Mullen are the newcomers to the Touchdown Club’s guest list for 2023.

After that, familiar names with a few returnees after a spell at the weekly gatherings at the Methodist Home for Children and Youth on Pierce Ave.

The club season gets going with the Middle Georgia Kickoff Classic at Mercer on Aug. 19, with Jones County-Northside and Mary Persons-Northeast at Mercer.

The weekly meetings start three weeks later, on Sept. 11, with Mercer’s Drew Cronic, followed by Sewanee head coach – and former Middle Tennessee State head coach and Georgia Tech assistant – Andy McCollum and radio host Bill King to close out September.

Georgia Southern’s Clay Helton visits on Oct. 2, with Georgia Tech’s Brent Key next, and then Kennesaw State’s Brian Bohannon, UGA broadcaster Jeff Dantzler, and Maconite Chris Hatcher of Samford, on Oct. 30.

Doering speaks on Nov. 6, with Mullen a week later, Army head coach and former Georgia Southern boss Jeff Monken after that, and ESPN’s Dari Nowkhah to end the regular season.

Georgia’s Kirby Smart leads the jamboree in February or March.

Cost is $250 for 12 regular-season meetings and the year-end jamboree in March.

For information, contact Bryant Longshore at 478-808-5718 or Bryant-longshore@gmail.com, or go to www.macontouchdownclub.com.

Macon wins on road in 10

A pair of wild pitches was the difference in Macon’s 7-5 win at Forest City in Coastal Plain action.

Antonio Brown and Elijah Frank came in on wild pitches for a two-run lead, and Brady Pendley retired the Owls in order in the bottom half for the win. He went five innings in relief, with seven strikeouts, two walks, and five hits.

John-Reagan Freeth and Nolan Clifford each had two hits for Macon, which is third in the West, just behind Forest City and Lexington County.

Around/About Georgia

Tech’s Eubanks still dreaming, takes down top-10 Tsitsipas

The poster child for 2023 Wimbledon is a Yellow Jacket, and now gets some perks

Atlanta grabs a slugging SS, metro outfielder on Day 2

Most-bought jersey in MLB this year? It’s a Brave

Hawks’ Fields talks about Collins trade

Addition of Bates will expedite Falcons’ defensive progress

Will Georgia Tech be playing in a newly-named home soon?

Fried’s timetable?

Rain made Sunday at AMS mighty entertaining

NBA/WNBA/Basketball