OKLAHOMA CITY, Ok.- Savannah State University (SSU) was well represented in a minor league baseball park more than 900 miles from Savannah on May 17, 2023. Former SSU baseball standouts Kyle McGowin and Dexter Kelley were on the field together since their days as teammates in 2011.
 
This time, McGowin was pitching and Kelley was behind the plate. Kelley was not the catcher but instead he was the homeplate umpire during Automated Ball-Strike System (ABS) game .
 
McGowin is a pitcher with the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, a triple AAA affiliate with the Houston Astros organization. The Space Cowboys were playing the Oklahoma City Dodgers in Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.
 
The crowd of 4,012 saw McGowin and his team fall short to the Dodgers 5-1.
 
McGowin started the game for Sugar Land and lasted four innings on the mound. He struck out two batters while surrendering one hit and one walk.
 
It was just the second appearance of the season for McGowin with Sugar Land. He made his debut with the Space Cowboys on May 12 in a relief appearance by throwing three scoreless innings to help preserve a 7-6 win.
 
So far, McGowin has made two appearances and pitched seven innings. He has given up one hit, walked three batters and recorded five strikeouts for a 0.00 earned run average.
 
A native of Sag Harbor, New York, McGowin pitched three seasons at Savannah State (2011-13) and led them to win the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament during the 2013 season where  he earned All-MEAC and All-American honors.
 
Kelley was an outfielder with Savannah State for four seasons (2008-11). During his junior year, the Augusta, Georgia native was second in NCAA Division I with .88 stolen bases per game (his total of 44 steals was fourth).
 
After earning his undergraduate degree from SSU, he umpired a few high school games before being invited to the MLB umpiring camp. He showed promise and earned a scholarship to another camp in Fort Myers, Fla., then received another scholarship to the Wendelstedt Umpire School (named after legendary umpire Harry Wendelstedt) in Daytona Beach.
 
Kelley graduated at the top of his class and eventually began working Gulf Coast League games. Since then, he's climbed from rookie ball to the New York-Penn League, to the Single A Florida State League, to the Double A Southern League and is now working the AAA League games.
 
McGowin was drafted by the Los Angeles Angels in the fifth round of the Major League Baseball Draft. He spent three years with the Angels organization before being traded to the Washington Nationals in December 2016. In September 2018, he made his major league debut with the Nationals against the St. Louis Cardinals.