MOBILE, Ala. – Fourteen former University of South Alabama baseball student-athletes opened the summer in Major League Baseball and Minor League Baseball.

David Freese is batting .284 with eight doubles, one triple, eight home runs, 36 RBIs, 23 runs scored and an .803 OPS in 80 games played with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Freese is hitting .311 with three home runs, 13 RBIs and six runs scored in his last 15 games, and batted .364 with three doubles, one triple, three home runs, 15 RBIs and seven runs scored while posting a 1.044 OPS, including a .426 on-base percentage, in 20 games played in the month of July. The Pirates enter Tuesday's game at Colorado eight-and-a-half games behind the Chicago Cubs in the National League Central Division. 

Jordan Patterson is batting .272 with 20 doubles, one triple, 20 home runs, 60 RBIs, 60 runs scored, five stolen bases and an .895 OPS in 94 games played for the Albuquerque Isotopes, the Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. Patterson has hit safely in seven of his last 10 games while hitting .333 with one home run, five RBIs and five runs scored.

Right-handed pitcher Ben Taylor is 7-2 with a 2.93 ERA and seven saves in 36 relief appearances for the Columbus Clippers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. Taylor has struck out 58 batters and issued eight walks in 46 innings pitched while posting a 0.96 WHIP. He has not allowed an earned run in eight of his last 10 appearances, and has struck out 21 batters against three walks in that 12-inning span.

Adam Lind is batting .216 with seven doubles, eight home runs, 32 RBIs, 21 runs scored and an .890 OPS in 46 games played with the Pawtucket Red Sox, the Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Lind has hit safely and driven in at least one run in four consecutive games dating back to July 27 against the Charlotte Knights, and has homered twice in that span. 

Left-hander Locke St. John is 4-3 with a 2.23 ERA and three saves in 27 relief appearances with the Down East Wood Ducks, the Class-A Advanced affiliate of the Texas Rangers. St. John has recorded 54 strikeouts against 12 walks in 40 1/3 innings pitched. The southpaw has not allowed an earned run in nine of his last 11 appearances, which covers a span of 17 2/3 innings.

Travis Swaggerty is batting .277 with eight doubles, one triple, four home runs, 12 RBIs, 20 runs scored, eight stolen bases and an .820 OPS in 31 games played with the West Virginia Black Bears, the Class-A Short Season affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Swaggerty has hit safely in seven of his last 10 games while batting .270 with two home runs, three RBIs, five runs scored and four stolen bases. 

Right-hander Tyler Carr is 2-1 with a 3.75 ERA in eight relief appearances with the Williamsport Crosscutters, the Class-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. Carr has struck out 12 batters against three walks in 12 innings pitched, and has not allowed an earned run in five of his last six appearances which covers a span of 9 1/3 innings.

Right-hander Matt Peacock is 3-3 with a 5.06 ERA in seven appearances, all of which have been starts, for the Visalia Rawhide, the Class-A Advanced affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Peacock has struck out 40 batters and issued 12 walks in 37 1/3 innings pitched with the Rawhide after being promoted from Class-A Kane County earlier in the season.

Cole Billingsley is batting .209 with 20 doubles, three triples, four home runs, 37 RBIs, 45 runs scored and 14 stolen bases in 98 games played for the Frederick Keys, the Class-A Advanced affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. 

Right-hander Randy Bell is 2-4 with a 7.05 ERA in nine appearances, seven of which have been starts, for the Clinton LumberKings, the Class-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. Bell has struck out 29 batters against 12 walks in 37 innings pitched.

Jared Barnes has recorded two hits, one RBI and two runs scored in five games played with the Gulf Coast League Marlins, the Rookie-level affiliate of the Miami Marlins. He was put on the 60-day disabled list on June 27.

Dylan Hardy is batting .211 with two doubles, two triples, 11 RBIs, eight runs scored and two stolen bases in 24 games played with the Lowell Spinners, the Class-A Short Season affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Hardy has hit safely in nine of his last 10 games while hitting .294 with six RBIs, two runs scored and one stolen base.

Brendan Donovan has recorded one double, one triple, two RBIs and two runs scored in four games played with the State College Spikes, the Class-A Short Season affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. Donovan was placed on the disabled list just one week into the season, and spent most of the summer rehabbing his injury in Jupiter, Fla.

Right-hander Kevin Hill went 2-1 with a 1.96 ERA and one save in 10 relief appearances for the Corpus Christi Hooks, the Double-A affiliate of the Houston Astros, and struck out 14 batters against 10 walks in 18 1/3 innings pitched. The Astros released Hill on June 22, but he signed with Kansas City T-Bones – an independent team that competes in the American Association – on Aug. 1. Hill is 1-1 with a 3.65 ERA and one save in 12 relief appearances with the T-Bones, and has recorded eight strikeouts and issued four walks in 12 1/3 innings pitched.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with USAJaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at Twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

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