Ed Easley Becomes 51st Diamond Dawg To Reach Big Leagues
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Former Mississippi State All-American catcher Ed Easley became the 51st player in school history to reach Major League Baseball, the St. Louis Cardinals announced Friday.
Easley played in Starkville from 2005-07, starting 179 out of the 182 games he played in. The Olive Branch, Miss., native finished his career at Dudy Noble Field hitting .331 (237-for-716), tallying 155 runs, 137 RBIs, 44 doubles and 19 home runs.
In his final year at MSU, Easley was the recipient of the Johnny Bench Award as the nation’s top catcher, becoming the first catcher in school history to earn All-America honors. The catcher hit .358 with a team-leading 63 RBIs in his final season in Maroon and White, leading MSU to its eighth appearance in the NCAA College World Series.
On June 7, 2007, Easley was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first round (61st overall) of the MLB Draft, becoming the highest-drafted catcher in school history. Easley spent seven seasons in the Arizona farm system, before signing a free agent minor league deal with St. Louis on Nov. 18, 2013. The Cardinal hit .296 in 80 games with Triple-A Memphis in 2014, before receiving a MLB spring training invite this past January.
Easley and the Cardinals begin a three-game series Friday at Cincinnati at 6:10 p.m. Game two Saturday and the series finale Sunday both begin at 12:10 p.m.
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