Former MSU pitcher excited to be back in Mississippi

BILOXI, MS (WLOX) - Long before ever making the Biloxi Shuckers roster, former Mississippi State pitcher Daniel Brown played in MGM Park once before.

“I remember it was a long one,” Brown said.

Throwing three strikeouts in three innings, Mississippi State’s 14-inning, 1-0 walk-off thriller over ULM on April 21, 2016 gave Brown a first taste of what eventually become his home stadium as a professional baseball player.

“It was cool being here as a younger college student, thinking there, hey, I wish I could play here (and get) a chance to make it to the Bigs,” Brown said. "And now we’re in that spot.”

Going 5-2 in his two years at State, including a 3.62 ERA his senior season, Brown earned a 7th-round selection by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2016 MLB Draft.

After starting out in the Rookie League, the 5-foot-9 lefty climbed the ladder in each year since, improving his strikeout-to-walk ratio in each of the last two seasons.

“My thing was just throwing more strikes," Brown said of approaching his first season in Double-A. "Getting back to attacking hitters and giving them the best stuff that I can to get them out. My thing was just get back to throwing strikes, repeating that and trying to get quicker innings.”

And so, three years after making his Biloxi debut, Brown is back at MGM Park, and excited to make an impact in front of some familiar faces.

“Baseball fans here in Mississippi, they’re a little different," Brown said with a smile. "Being able to experience that in college and play in front of that amazing fan base, it was really fun. I’m glad to be back down here in Mississippi.”

As for whether or not he expects to hear any cowbells ringing in MGM Park this year?"

“I hope so!" Brown said. "I have a couple friends that live over in Gulfport, so I hope to see them out here a little bit and bring as much Maroon and White as we can.”

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