an honorable mention

Austin Riley, the former DeSoto Central High star, can add another line to his resume. The Rome Braves, for which Riley was arguably the best player this past season, were named Baseball America’s minor league team of the year. Riley was a young player (19) on a young team that brushed off a weak first half to roll to the South Atlantic League championship. “That team is a microcosm of the rebuild within our entire farm system,” Atlanta general manager John Coppolella told BA. Riley, a third baseman, is one of the jewels of that system. In just his second pro season, he batted .271 with 20 homers, 80 RBIs, 39 doubles and 68 runs in 129 games for the low Class A R-Braves. He also belted two homers in the SAL Championship Series. There’s a chance he reaches Double-A Mississippi sometime next summer. Right-hander Patrick Weigel, who made it to Double-A last summer, went 10-4 with a 2.51 ERA as part of a loaded Rome rotation. Weigel put up a 2.18 ERA in three starts for the M-Braves and also pitched a gem in the Southern League playoffs. P.S. Former Murrah standout Zack Bird, who pitched for the M-Braves in 2015, is an unprotected prospect in Atlanta’s system who might be plucked in the upcoming Rule 5 draft. Bird had a rough 2016 at high-A Carolina (8.87 ERA in 28 games).