Former Southeast player returns to Giants' roster

Former Southeast Missouri State baseball standout Justin Christian is back in the major leagues.

Christian, who played his lone season at Southeast in 2003, was recalled by San Francisco from Class AAA Fresno on Friday.

Christian received his latest opportunity after the Giants placed Aubrey Huff on the disabled list due to a sprained knee. Christian was in the lineup Friday night against the Mariners as the designated hitter and went 0 for 3. He did not play Saturday and was used as a pinch-runner Sunday.

Huff was supposed to fill the DH role for most of the Giants' current nine-game stretch in American League ballparks. The Giants will rotate players at DH in the next week, according to media reports.

Christian, an outfielder who was not drafted, was having a big year at Fresno, ranking among the Pacific Coast League leaders in batting average (.364), runs (51) and doubles (19).

Christian, 32, previously had played parts of two seasons in the major leagues, with the Yankees in 2008 and the Giants in 2011. He totaled 87 at-bats during those stints.

Christian had been the only ex-Southeast baseball player currently with a major league organization until Shae Simmons and Trenton Moses recently signed with the Braves after being selected by Atlanta in this year's draft.

---

Shortstop Kenton Parmley's signing with the Gateway (Ill.) Grizzlies last week means the independent professional baseball team has two Southeast products on its roster.

Logan Mahon, a left-handed relief pitcher who completed his eligibility at Southeast in 2011, is in his first year with the Grizzlies.

Mahon was selected by the Rockies in the 22nd round of the 2011 amateur draft. He worked just six innings with the Casper (Wyo.) Ghosts of the rookie Pioneer League due to arm issues last year and was released before this season.

The Grizzlies, who are based in Sauget, Ill., and compete in the Frontier League, already had a strong Southeast connection in Phil Warren.

Warren, who is in his sixth season as the Grizzlies' manager, played at Southeast from 1997 through 2000.

---

Another former Southeast baseball player currently competing for an independent team is Asif Shah, who suited up for the Redhawks in 2006 and 2007 after transferring from junior college.

Shah is an outfielder with the Lincoln (Neb.) Saltdogs of the American Association.

Lincoln is Shah's third independent squad since his first professional season in 2009. Last year he made the Frontier League All-Star team as a member of Normal, Ill.

Also playing for the Saltdogs is pitcher Drew Graham, who spent his freshman season at Southeast in 2006 before transferring and finishing his college baseball career at Louisiana-Monroe.

---

Southeast's Dickey Nutt and countless other basketball coaches across the country no doubt began using their smartphones a lot more over the weekend.

A new NCAA rule went into effect Friday that allows Division I men's basketball coaches to text and call recruits as often as they want provided the players have concluded their sophomore year of high school.

Previously, according to NCAA rules, coaches were limited in the amount of times they could call a recruit and they were prohibited from texting them.

The new rule also allows coaches to contact recruits through various forms of social media like private messages on Facebook or Twitter.

---

Recently hired Southeast director of athletics Mark Alnutt, along with several of the Redhawks' coaches, made the rounds in St. Louis last week, greeting Southeast alumni at various events.

Alnutt's trip to St. Louis included a visit with KMOX sports director Tom Ackerman. An interview with Alnutt was scheduled to air Sunday morning on the high-powered radio station.

---

Former Tennessee Tech pitcher Stephen Pryor recently played a role in a historic performance.

Pryor, 22, was among the six hurlers who combined to throw a no-hitter in the Mariners' 1-0 victory over the Dodgers. It marked just the 10th combined no-hitter in major league history.

Pryor, making only his fourth big league appearance at the time, was credited with his first win after going 1/3 of an inning.

---

Former Morehead State basketball standout Kenneth Faried recently finished his first season with the NBA's Denver Nuggets by being named to the league's All-Rookie first team.

Faried, who helped guide MSU to two OVC tournament titles and two NCAA tournament wins in his four-year career, averaged 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds in 46 games for the Nuggets. He led all NBA rookies in field-goal percentage at 58.6 percent and posted 15 double-doubles.

Faried was taken 22nd overall in the 2011 NBA draft, becoming the first MSU player and the eighth OVC player to be selected in the first round of the NBA draft.

Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian.