Stories about some Rattlers

Both of these stories are from Bob Brainerd at Fox Sports Wisconsin's website.

The first, about Hunter Morris, is from early July, but I just found it:

Waiting in the Wings

Hunter Morris found the Miller Park air refreshing and breathable. The roof panels were open, and sunny skies splashed down upon his chestnut hair while he was noticeably perched on the top seat of the home team dugout, watching Prince Fielder work at the position he hopes to anchor someday.

“It’s some big shoes to fill, definitely,” said first baseman Hunter Morris, the Brewers fourth round draft pick out of Auburn. “And hopefully everything works out best for him, for the organization and it all take its course as it may.”

The breathing exercise was a welcome exhale for a player who was anxious to sink his teeth into the opportunity for advancement through the Brewers food chain. His selection by Milwaukee came on a Tuesday, setting Hunter Morris in motion.

“I left my house on Sunday afternoon, drove almost all the way to Milwaukee, got my physical Monday morning, got into Appleton Monday night, and then 7:30 the next morning I’m on a four-hour bus ride to Clinton, Iowa,” recalls Morris. “So, it was a good couple of days before I got my feet settled.”

This one is on Rattlers pitcher Jake Odorizzi:

Future's Market

Butchering Jake Odorizzi’s name over the public address speakers has become commonplace anytime he takes to the bump. “A regular occurrence,” said Odorizzi, who no longer bothers to politely redirect and reel someone in with the proper pronunciation: Oh-duh-RIZZ-ee. “Some people pronounce letters that aren’t even in my last name. I just go along with it. It’s better to have your name announced wrong than not at all.”

Two summers ago, Jake was antsy for any major league team to call his name, phonetics aside, during the first round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. With the Illinois State Tournament set to open a day after the draft, the 18-year-old senior pitcher and shortstop didn’t have the option of relaxing at home. “We drove out to Joliet and sat in the hotel for about four hours watching the draft going on,” recalls Odorizzi. “The hotel didn’t have any air conditioning in the lobby. So we were sitting there sweating it out, literally.”

The Milwaukee Brewers ceased the drama, and the perspiration, by selecting the Highland, Illinois product right out of high school with a supplemental pick, the 32 overall.

“Once my name got called it was a relieving feeling and then I had to get ready and concentrate on the game for the next day,” said Odorizzi.

Head over to read both stories.

Profiling Hunter Morris

Rattlers first baseman Hunter Morris is the next subject of the Post-Crescent Profiles.

Q: What's your favorite aspect of Appleton?

A: "Very welcoming. You go out to eat and stuff, for some reason, you don't advertise it or anything, but people know you play for the Timber Rattlers. The community is so into this team and the games, they recognize you outside the stadium, which is pretty cool. You see that in a lot of college towns but you don't expect it in bigger cities."

Click through and read it all.

Meet Hunter Morris

The 2010 fourth round pick the Brewers is Hunter Morris out of Auburn. He has just been added to the active roster for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. Morris is making his professional debut tonight as the Rattlers take on Clinton in the final game of a three-game series.

Morris, wearing #18, will be playing first base and batting fifth tonight.

For details on Morris, here is his bio page from Auburn.

And check his scouting report at mlb.com.


The release from Auburn announcing Morris as a selection in the '10 draft.

The 2010 Southeastern Conference Player of the Year, Morris led Auburn at the plate with a .386 batting average, 18 doubles, five triples, a single-season school-record 23 home runs and 76 RBI. He also scored 66 runs and had a .743 slugging percentage and a .455 on base percentage. In three years at Auburn, he hit .345 with 40 doubles, seven triples and 46 home runs, driving in 158 RBI. This season he became just the second player in SEC history to be named the SEC Freshman of the Year and the SEC Player of the Year. Milwaukee's selection of Morris marks the second time that he was drafted after the Boston Red Sox selected him out of high school.

"Every part of baseball is a funny thing. No, I am not surprised (at not being selected until the fourth round). I have been through the process before having gone out of high school. I had high hopes that it would have happened earlier, but I am in a good situation and the Brewers are a great organization. It's an exciting opportunity so I am looking forward to see what the future has in store," Morris said.

That future starts with the Timber Rattlers tonight.

But, one quick look into the past...From yesterday...

Hunter Morris was named a First Team All-America by both Baseball America and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association while teammate Brian Fletcher was named a Second Team All-America by the NCBWA, both organizations announced on Wednesday.

Morris, who has also been named a First Team All-American by Rivals.com and Ping!Baseball.com, is Auburn's first First Team All-America selection since Todd Faulkner and Gabe Gross in 2000.
...
The 2010 Southeastern Conference Player of the Year, Morris led the SEC in home runs (23), RBI (76), slugging (.743) and total bases (202) while helping Auburn win the SEC West Division championship for the first time since 1995. The cleanup hitter in a lineup that ended the year with a school-record .348 batting average, 131 home runs and 293 extra-base hits, he hit a team-best .386 and helped Auburn advance to the SEC Tournament for the first time since 2003 and the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005.

Auburn's triple crown winner, he established Auburn school records for home runs and total bases in a single season while his 105 hits was the third most by an Auburn player in a single season. He also scored a team-high 66 runs during his junior campaign.

A fourth round pick by the Milwaukee Brewers in last week's draft who has already signed a professional contract, he finished his Auburn career with 46 career home runs and a .628 slugging percentage, both fifth all-time, and 93 extra-base hits, seventh all-time.