It’s always bothered me a bit when people call Vicksburg a “small town.”

We’re not a big city, by any means, but 50,000 people do live around here and we sit at a pretty major crossroads along the biggest river in the country. There’s more exciting places to live, for good and for bad, but we’re hardly a one-stoplight backwater in rural Nebraska.

In baseball, especially, we’ve had as enough talent in the past two decades to rival any city of any size.

Of the 20 players who have won the Vicksburg Post’s baseball Player of the Year award since 1994, 16 have gone or are set to play at least junior college ball.

Nine have gone on to four year colleges, and seven played professionally.

There has been a Ferriss Trophy winner (Brian Pettway of Warren Central and Ole Miss) and a major leaguer (WC’s Taylor Tankersely, who was the Marlins’ first-round draft pick in 2004 out of Alabama.

In fact, over the last 20 years there might not have been a time when there wasn’t at least one Vicksburg native playing college baseball somewhere.

It’s not all a happy coincidence, of course. A lot of the players who have gone on to make a name for themselves beyond the local high school ranks have helped others to do the same.

Justin Henry, who reached the Triple-A level, has held a youth baseball camp at Halls Ferry Park each spring for the past several years.

Former WC pitcher Shea Douglas, who went on to star at Southern Miss and reached the Double-A level in the Cleveland Indians’ organization, has coached several youth teams in the past decade.

Ex-Vicksburg High star Clyde Kendrick, who was drafted by the Texas Rangers last week, credits a single phone call to Tankersley with giving him a pitching tip that made him a pro prospect.

Kendrick also said he got sage life advice from Roosevelt Brown, who is at the forefront of Vicksburg’s baseball success.

Brown played at Vicksburg High and spent four years in the majors with the Cubs. He’s since returned to his hometown and worked as a mentor and coach to scores of Vicksburg’s youngsters.

Brown is part of an extended family that includes current and former major leaguers Justin and B.J. Upton, Dmitiri Young and Ellis Burks.

No one can call Vicksburg small-time when it comes to baseball.

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Ernest Bowker is a sports writer. He can be reached at 601-619-7120, or via email at ernest.bowker@vicksburgpost.com