Four Former Bulldogs Sign Pro Baseball Deals

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) – Four former Mississippi State players are beginning their professional baseball careers. University officials said Thursday Nick Vickerson, Jarrod Parks, Jonathan Ogden and Wes Thigpen have all signed with their respective teams. Vickerson, an infielder and 20th-round selection of the Texas Rangers, will report to the Spokane (Wash.) Indians of the Northwest League. Parks, a third baseman who was taken in the 24th round by the Los Angeles Angels, is headed for the Orem (Utah) Owlz of the Pioneer League. Neither Ogden nor Thigpen were drafted, but they were signed as free agents by the Detroit Tigers. A shortstop and catcher, respectively, the duo will report to the Tigers’ training center in Lakeland, Fla.