Redhawk alums Dodd and Dirden soar in spring training

Joey Lucchesi was the last Southeast Missouri State baseball player to play in the big leagues.

His last season was in 2016, a year in which the Redhawks won the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament championship, just before Andy Sawyers began his coaching tenure in SEMO.

The next SEMO big leaguer is on the way, the question is who and where?

Dylan Dodd (Atlanta Braves) and Justin Dirden (Houston Astros) are still fighting for roster spots in spring training.

“They taught me just about everything I’m utilizing right now here in pro ball,” Dirden said. “All things go through them, and I think they definitely not only set a good foundation for the team that they have right now but moving forward as well.”

The World Baseball Classic has allowed these guys to stick around longer than usual and they have made the most of their extended stay. It originally appeared as if their time was still a year or two away, but the recent play of Dodd and Dirden may have accelerated their timetable. Dodd has allowed only one run over 12 innings with 15 strikeouts in four spring appearances. Last year in the minor leagues he went 12-9 with a 3.36 ERA and 153 strikeouts in 142 innings between Single-A Rome, Double-A Mississippi, and even one start in Triple-A Gwinnett.

Sawyers believed that Dodd would become a big leaguer this season, just not right away.

“He most likely will be in the big leagues by the All-Star Game,” Sawyers said. “I just don’t think they’re gonna start the year with him in the Major Leagues. He’s gonna get there before the summer’s out. If they were to have him start the year in the rotation, it would mean they’d have to send some guys on the 40-man back, and there’s a business element to how you manage the roster in the Major Leagues. So I think he’s gonna be in the big leagues by the time the All-Star Game happens.”

After a recent round of cuts, the Braves now have 32 players left on their spring training roster, including Dodd. Ian Anderson and Bryce Elder were recently optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett, which leaves Dodd and Jared Shuster as the two finalists for the fifth starter’s job. Shuster is the No. 1 prospect in the Braves farm system, and to Sawyers’ point, probably the favorite to break camp despite both being outside of the 40-man roster.

Dirden has entered spring training on a team with a seemingly established outfield but has made a good impression by going 7-for-21 with a pair of home runs in 14 Grapefruit League games.

He’s not just at his big league camp, but with the defending World Series champions.

“It’s been awesome,” Dirden said, “getting to see how they work, especially guys like [Kyle] Tucker. [Michael] Brantley was a seasoned vet not only with a team now but, in baseball.”

Ironically, Dirden’s chances of breaking camp are tied to Brantley’s injury. Should Brantley start the season on the injured list, the Astros will need someone like Dirden, who can flash his speed and glove in all three outfield positions.

Like Dodd, Dirden had a successful minor league season, in which he hit 24 home runs, drove in 101 runs, and slash .302/.384/.558 for Double-A Corpus Cristi and Triple-A Sugar Land.

“It’s definitely not for the faint of heart, for sure,” Dirden said. “Once you go from college to pro ball, it’s definitely a job. You’re going on eight-hour bus rides or 10-hour bus rides and you’re facing the best teams in the world, at least until you get to the big leagues. You got to bring your A-game every day and make sure you’re mentally focused and ready to go for sure.”

The Redhawks have won back-to-back OVC Tournament titles but could have possibly made it three straight titles. Dirden’s last season in SEMO was in 2020, with Dodd, Wade Stauss, and Andrew Keck. Dodd was emerging as the pitcher who would go on to be the highest MLB Draft pick in SEMO history. Keck went on to be a 10th-round draft pick by the Braves last year, and Stauss was a slugger who Sawyers said, “had like raw Major League power, like huge juice,” signed with the St. Louis Cardinals and was invited to spring training this year.

“We had three guys off that team in Major League spring training right now and I think two of them are going to make big league debuts this year with Dylan and Dirden,” Sawyers said.

Unfortunately, that season was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Dirden’s career ended on the spot and his chances of getting drafted collapsed when the 2020 MLB Draft was shortened to only five rounds.

“I think that year was definitely upsetting just because not only did the players know that, but I think the coaches knew that as well,” Dirden said. “There’s a number I have and we had a practice that day, and we actually got the call that day that the OVC got slammed and my coach just kind of left because he knew what was being left behind and that was out of his control, and same with the players. We were upset but, looking back and understanding that although they lost I think Dodd was still there for that year I believe and Stauss, they still had a phenomenal foundation with the coaches and the players that were there and you know, they got it done.”

With the conclusion of the World Baseball Classic, teams will have all their stars back and seven spring training games left to finalize their Opening Day roster. For Dodd and Dirden to make it this far bodes well for their futures.