Kemp Alderman’s explosive series cements status as rising Marlins prospect

Former Ole Miss baseball slugger Kemp Alderman snapped his power slump in a big way on Sunday. 

Alderman has reached Double-A Pensacola in the Miami Marlins organization. Alderman was drafted by the Marlins in the second round of (No. 47 overall) of the 2023 MLB Draft. 

He was 4 for 4 with a double and a pair of home runs in an 8-4 over the Biloxi Shuckers. Alderman finished 9 for 22 with eight RBI on the series and became the first three-time winner of the Southern League Player of the Week in Blue Wahoos franchise history.

“You’ve just got to know what to do when things start going bad because as everyone knows, this is a game of failure,” Alderman told MLB.com. “So, sometimes things aren’t gonna go your way. It’s how you’re gonna react when things are going bad vs. when things are going good because anybody can keep going when things are going good. 

“It’s how you react when it’s going bad.”

Alderman had homered in just one of his previous 17 games. 

He’s slashing .287/.336/.452 on the season with 12 home runs and 17 stolen bases. Alderman is ranked as the Marlins’ No. 8 overall prospect and went to Spring Training.

He’s a Mississippi native from Decatur and was an All-American in his final Ole Miss season. Alderman appeared in 54 games and led the Rebels in nearly every offensive category, hitting .376 with a slugging percentage of .709 and on-base of .440.

“We’re just seeing it big and trying to hit the ball hard,” Alderman told MLB.com. “Swing at strikes, take the balls and score runs. Just trying to keep it simple and play the game like a kid. Have fun and try to do good and help the team win.”

Alderman was a member of Ole Miss’ 2022 national title team. He broke out a year later as a junior, even pitching out of the bullpen.

Alderman totaled 80 hits with 61 RBI, 19 home runs and 151 total bases. He also led the team in two-out RBI (23) and batting average with runners on base (.393). His 80 hits and 151 total bases were the fourth-highest in the SEC during the regular season. His batting average and RBI were the seventh-highest. 

Alderman finished the regular season ranked No. 25 in the country in total bases, No. 35 in home runs and No. 51 in hits.

His 19 home runs were the third-highest single-season total by a Rebel in program history.

His batting average was the highest in a season since 2012, when Alex Yarbrough hit .380.

Alderman won the Ferriss Trophy, presented annually to the most outstanding college baseball player in the state of Mississippi. He was the first Rebel to win the award since Austin Bausfield in 2014.

“I’ve known Kemp for a really long time,” Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco previously said of Alderman. “I’ve known Kemp since he was 12-years-old, and he’s played travel ball with my son, Sam. I know Kemp and I know his family. I know him better than I’ve known any recruit, probably, in the history of the program. 

“We’ve never had somebody in the program hit the ball as hard. Hard consistently, day in and day out, in [batting practice], intrasquad games [and] the exit velocity.”