Bulldog Great Powell Honored As SEC Legend
Starkville, Miss. - Mississippi State baseball great Jay Powell was honored this past week at the 2014 Southeastern Conference Tournament as one of four SEC Legends. In addition, current players C.T. Bradford and Gavin Collins were named to the this year's SEC All-Tournament team, the league announced Sunday night.
Powell was part of a class which featured Phil Garner of Tennessee, Jake Gibbs of Ole Miss and Bobby Richardson from South Carolina. The three-year letterman at MSU was recognized on the field during State's game Friday, and again with the other three SEC Legends and Commissioner Mike Slive Saturday during the semifinals. During his time in Hoover, Powell also signed autographs at took photos at the AT&T Legends Pavilion Saturday, one day after participating in the annual SEC Youth Clinic alongside MSU volunteer coach Jake Wells.
The Collinsville, Miss., native played in Starkville from 1991-93, playing each year on teams which advanced to the NCAA Regionals. Powell finished his career as one of the most accomplished pitchers in school history, leaving school with a 2.82 career ERA and 17 saves. His 10 saves in his freshman campaign set the school record at the time, and along with his 1.28 ERA in 1991 earned him a spot on Baseball America’s freshman All-American team. Powell played in 67 career games with the Maroon and White, earning 11 wins and throwing five complete games.
In 1993, he became the fifth MSU player and second Bulldog pitcher ever drafted in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft, being selected 19th overall by Baltimore. The hard-throwing righty went on to play 11 seasons in the big leagues for five different teams. The 6-foot-4 flamethrower was traded by the Orioles to the Florida Marlins on Dec. 6, 1994, before making his debut in The Show at age 23 with the Marlins on Sept. 10, 1995. His best season was 1997, when he was 7-2 with a 3.28 ERA in 79.2 innings for the Marlins. On Oct. 26, 1997, Powell earned the win for Florida in game seven of World Series against Cleveland, bringing the south Florida franchise its first world championship. Following stints with Houston (1998-2001), Colorado (2001) and Texas (2002-04), the former Bulldog great appeared in his last MLB game with the Atlanta Braves on July 29, 2005. Powell ended his big league career with a 36-23 all-time record and 22 career saves in 512 appearances. Powell is one of a prestigious group of pitchers who threw for at least 10 Major League seasons and never had a losing record.
Currently Powell serves as head baseball coach at Jackson Academy.
Bradford, a senior outfielder, hit .471 (8-for-17) in four starts with three runs, two walks, a double and an RBI. Collins, a freshman catcher, went 6-for-14 (.429) in four starts with two walks, a run and an RBI. Bradford made the team for the first time in his career, while Collins became the first Bulldog catcher since Barry Winford in 1988 to make the all-tournament squad. For more information on Bradford, Collins and the nationally-ranked Bulldogs, follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateBB.
Powell was part of a class which featured Phil Garner of Tennessee, Jake Gibbs of Ole Miss and Bobby Richardson from South Carolina. The three-year letterman at MSU was recognized on the field during State's game Friday, and again with the other three SEC Legends and Commissioner Mike Slive Saturday during the semifinals. During his time in Hoover, Powell also signed autographs at took photos at the AT&T Legends Pavilion Saturday, one day after participating in the annual SEC Youth Clinic alongside MSU volunteer coach Jake Wells.
The Collinsville, Miss., native played in Starkville from 1991-93, playing each year on teams which advanced to the NCAA Regionals. Powell finished his career as one of the most accomplished pitchers in school history, leaving school with a 2.82 career ERA and 17 saves. His 10 saves in his freshman campaign set the school record at the time, and along with his 1.28 ERA in 1991 earned him a spot on Baseball America’s freshman All-American team. Powell played in 67 career games with the Maroon and White, earning 11 wins and throwing five complete games.
In 1993, he became the fifth MSU player and second Bulldog pitcher ever drafted in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft, being selected 19th overall by Baltimore. The hard-throwing righty went on to play 11 seasons in the big leagues for five different teams. The 6-foot-4 flamethrower was traded by the Orioles to the Florida Marlins on Dec. 6, 1994, before making his debut in The Show at age 23 with the Marlins on Sept. 10, 1995. His best season was 1997, when he was 7-2 with a 3.28 ERA in 79.2 innings for the Marlins. On Oct. 26, 1997, Powell earned the win for Florida in game seven of World Series against Cleveland, bringing the south Florida franchise its first world championship. Following stints with Houston (1998-2001), Colorado (2001) and Texas (2002-04), the former Bulldog great appeared in his last MLB game with the Atlanta Braves on July 29, 2005. Powell ended his big league career with a 36-23 all-time record and 22 career saves in 512 appearances. Powell is one of a prestigious group of pitchers who threw for at least 10 Major League seasons and never had a losing record.
Currently Powell serves as head baseball coach at Jackson Academy.
Bradford, a senior outfielder, hit .471 (8-for-17) in four starts with three runs, two walks, a double and an RBI. Collins, a freshman catcher, went 6-for-14 (.429) in four starts with two walks, a run and an RBI. Bradford made the team for the first time in his career, while Collins became the first Bulldog catcher since Barry Winford in 1988 to make the all-tournament squad. For more information on Bradford, Collins and the nationally-ranked Bulldogs, follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateBB.