Mathews High School honored three of its standout baseball players from years past last week, holding them up as examples for current and future Blue Devil diamond stars to follow.

Before last Thursday’s Mathews-Middlesex varsity baseball game, the school took time out to recognize retired Major League Baseball pitcher Keith Atherton, and former All-American college players Jeremy Elliott and Jonathan Dehoux, dedicating signs trumpeting their accomplishments.

Atherton, a 1978 MHS graduate, threw eight no-hitters in high school. He pitched three seasons for the Oakland A’s before being traded to the Minnesota Twins in 1986. The following year, he pitched in two World Series games as the Twins claimed the title. In 1990, he was inducted into the Virginia High School League Hall of Fame. Elliott, a 1999 MHS graduate, had a storied career at Christopher Newport University, leading the Captains to back-to-back appearances in the Division III World Series. His junior year, CNU ...