AU BASEBALL: Sanders inks deal with Rockies

Former Auburn third baseman Joseph Sanders inked a deal with the Rockies sometime this week, the club announced on its official Web site Wednesday.

He was one of 27 Rockies to do so, including Alabama slugger Kent Matthes, who was selected one round earlier than Sanders and led the nation in home runs for the 2009 regular season. Both will report to the Rockies’ short-season affiliate, the Tri-City Dust Devils, in Pasco, Wash.

Sanders led Auburn in four different offensive categories this past season — doubles (14), home runs (19), RBIs (55) and slugging percentage (.737) – and was on pace to smash Frank Thomas’ record for most home runs in a season before a fastball to the jaw put his prolific campaign on pause for more than three weeks. He returned to the field, with a protective faceguard covering his broken jaw, for Auburn’s final series of the season against Alabama.

The Rockies selected Sanders, a Millbrook native who played at Stanhope Elmore High, in the fifth round with the 151st overall pick.

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