OXFORD | Grae Kessinger, while on stage last Saturday with his family during the annual Ole Miss FCA Breakfast, spoke of leaving his own legacy and making his tenure with the Rebels a special one in his own right.
The third-generation Ole Miss player chose the Rebels because of family and program and plenty of other reasons. And, sure, it brings a spotlight when grandfather, Don, is a six-time Major League All-Star, two-time Gold Glove winner and one of the best players in Ole Miss history — holding the all-time high in season (.436) and career (.400) batting averages.
But that spotlight is hot enough to burn at times, too, as much is expected.
Kessinger came into this season with a solid career at shortstop through two seasons. And early on in 2019 a mix of unluckiness and early-game struggles from the leadoff spot led to a .225 batting average going into league play. Ole Miss needed more and with out-of-league losses coming at a higher clip than normal, the Rebels had to have a spark in SEC games.
With a move to the No. 2 spot in the order, the junior has not only provided that in ample, consistent doses, but he’s on pace for one of the top SEC seasons in modern Ole Miss history.
Vanderbilt’s JJ Bleday has the eye-popping power numbers, and Jake Mangum at Mississippi State certainly has the career achievement as the SEC all-time hits leader, but Kessinger is the best player in the nation’s best conference through seven weekends.
Kessinger is hitting .467 with a 1.187 OPS in 21 SEC games, as Ole Miss (30-16, 13-8) heads to Baton Rouge for a three-game set with LSU (29-16, 13-8) beginning at 7 p.m. Friday.
That average leads the SEC, and Kessinger also tops the conference in slugging percentage (.667) and is second in on-base percentage (.520) in league games. Teammate Cole Zabowski is ninth and second in the league in average and slugging, respectively.
While Kessinger’s .360 overall average is impressive and 185 points higher than it was seven weeks ago, his consistent performances once the most important portion of the schedule began has kept the Rebels in the host discussion with three weekends remaining.
While Bleday has the headlines with 21 total home runs and nine in SEC play, Kessinger and Arkansas’ Matt Goodheart (also in the top three in average, on-base and slugging) are the conference’s best two performers in league games. Kessinger leads the SEC with 40 in-conference hits — four more than Mangum despite having 12 fewer at-bats.
Kessinger tops the league in total bases (58) and is second in doubles (9) and runs (24), third in RBIs (22) and sixth in stolen bases (6). His success has somewhat overshadowed Zabowski’s excellent league season. The first baseman/designated hitter is third in SEC play with 52 total bases.
Kessinger has an impressive portfolio to date, and the final weeks will dictate how it’s remembered. Ole Miss likely needs at least five and maybe six SEC wins in its last nine for a top-16 national seed. The Rebels have the nation’s 22nd best RPI as of Friday morning, and six league teams are at 13 wins or better in the standings.
In total, he’s reached base in 34 straight games. Combined with the league numbers, it’s in with — and above — other notable Ole Miss league seasons in the last couple decades.
Chad Sterbens, the Ole Miss shortstop in 2002, hit safely in the first 29 SEC games of the season before a controversial official scoring call in Starkville ended his 30-for-30 bid on the final day of the regular season. Sterbens hit .395 in those 30 SEC games, but that season is mostly known for the Rebels losing 10 of their last 12 league games to miss the postseason.
Kessinger, a part of that No. 1 national signing class in 2016, likely needs continued team success and potentially an even hotter finish to make a legitimate run at SEC Player of the Year.
But with three weeks to go, the numbers are clear. While leading the Rebels to at least a place of possibility and direct control of their postseason position, Kessinger has been the best player in the SEC.
