Over its 134-year history of varsity competition, University of Missouri baseball has compiled a rich tradition of player development. More than 200 Tigers have forged careers in professional baseball, including 49 who have reached the major leagues.
Currently, 24 former Mizzou student-athletes are competing on active rosters in affiliated professional baseball leagues throughout the country. Four former Tigers have reached the pinnacle of professional baseball and compete as active members of 2024 big league rosters: three-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time world champion RHP Max Scherzer (Texas Rangers), RHP Pete Fairbanks (Tampa Bay Rays); RHP Kyle Gibson (St. Louis Cardinals) and RHP Tanner Houck (Boston Red Sox). In addition, 20 Mizzou baseball alums are sharpening their skills throughout minor league baseball with the aspirations of joining that select group.
In this weekly series, we’ll chronicle the individual journeys of some of the top Tigers to play the game in pursuit of achieving their big-league dreams. From the Show-Me State to The Show!
MLB Notebook
June 14, 2024
In his first rehab start since April, RHP Max Scherzer held Oklahoma City scoreless on one hit over 4.0 innings Sunday (June 9) in Round Rock’s 3-1 victory. Mad Max, who is working his way back from offseason back surgery, could rejoin the big league Rangers following the completion of an anticipated second rehab appearance this weekend.
Off the field, the future Hall of Famer left his mark as well…
In 13 starts for St. Louis this season, RHP Kyle Gibson has gone 4-2 with a 3.76 ERA. Gibson has won his last three decisions and has logged 67 strikeouts over 76.2 innings for the year…RHP Pete Fairbanks has converted 9 of 10 save opportunities this spring in his 21 appearances for Tampa Bay this season. The right-hander needs one more save to reach the 50-save plateau for his MLB career after locking up the Rays’ 3-2 win over the Cubs on Thursday.
RHP Tanner Houck has been the model of consistency for the Red Sox this spring, working into the sixth inning in each of his 14 starts, including 12 outings in which he completed 6.0 frames. Houck notched his fourth-straight win Thursday with a 9-3 decision over Philadelphia, eclipsing his career-best season win total with his seventh victory of the season.
MiLB Notebook
June 14, 2024
RHP Ian Bedell has allowed one run or fewer while working into the sixth inning in each of his last three starts for Class AA Springfield (St. Louis); in his two June starts, Bedell has fanned 19 hitters while allowing just two earned runs in 11.1 innings…RHP Zach Franklin has allowed more than one earned run just one time in his last 10 relief appearances since April 25 for High-A Winston-Salem (Chicago White Sox); for the season, the North Carolina native has posted a 3-2 mound mark with 2 saves and a 3.20 ERA in 15 appearances…speaking of relief, RHP Drew Garrett has been lights out for Class A Clearwater (Philadelphia) all season, logging a 1.77 ERA, 3 saves and 32 strikeouts in 20.1 innings over 14 appearances…INF Josh Lester made his 2024 Class AAA debut for Omaha (Kansas City) on Wednesday; prior to his promotion from Class AA Northwest Arkansas, Lester was hitting .323 in the month of June and had clubbed 5 homers with 28 RBIs for the Naturals overall in 2024.
RHP Rorik Maltrud has been nearly untouchable since joining Class A Lynchburg’s (Cleveland) starting rotation in late May. The Texas native has not allowed an earned run over his last three starts, striking out 19 while allowing just 8 hits over 15.0 innings. For the season, Maltrud has posted a microscopic 1.04 WHIP, a 4-1 mound record and 2.68 ERA, while striking out 58 hitters over 47.0 innings for the Hillcats.
Like Maltrud, another Class of 2023 Tiger, INF Luke Mann, has enjoyed a successful start to the season; after hitting .296 and slugging 516 with 8 homers for Class A Stockton (Oakland), Mann has been even better for High-A Lansing since his promotion, batting .319 in his first 13 games with the Lugnuts…OF Kameron Misner has hit 8 home runs and swiped 19 bases for Class AAA Durham (Tampa Bay) so far this spring, including a June stretch over which he has logged hits in eight of his last 10 contests…INF Torin Montgomery has logged hits in six-straight games for High-A Beloit (Miami)…RHP Chandler Murphy has yet to allow more than one earned run in 8 starts for Class A Charleston (Tampa Bay) this season, compiling a 1.21 ERA with a WHIP of 0.94…In 24 relief appearances for Class AAA Indianapolis (Pittsburgh), LHP Rob Zastryzny has turned in 4-0 record and 2 saves to go along with a 2.63 ERA, including a string of 6 consecutive scoreless outings in May.
