By Robert Wilson
Jackson Prep and Mississippi State alumnus Jake Mangum is off to a good start in his first week of playing Class AA pro ball with the Binghamton (N.Y.) Rumble Ponies of the Northeast League.
Mangum, a center fielder, has three hits in eight at-bats in his first two games against Erie Saturday and Sunday. The 6-foot-1, 174-pound Mangum hit two home runs with six runs batted in and seven runs scored in nine games for Class A Brooklyn before being promoted. Former MSU teammate Cole Gordon is a pitcher for Binghamton.
Magnum was a three-time Perfect Game All-American and led Prep to three consecutive MAIS state championships. He hit .504 and was 8-0 and a 1.48 earned run average his senior season.
Magnum became the SEC’s all-time hits leader at MSU, finishing with 383 career hits, fourth best in NCAA history, and set school records with at-bats, games played and doubles.
Mangum was a fourth-round pick by the New York Mets in the 2019 Major League Draft and played his first season with Brooklyn in the New York-Penn League, hitting .247 and led the team with 17 stolen bases in 53 games. There was no minor league baseball in 2020 due to COVID.
Mangum is the son of former Magee High, Alabama and Chicago Bears defensive back John Mangum and nephew of former Magee High, Ole Miss and Carolina Panther tight end Kris Mangum.
