in other news

There was a celebration at Trustmark Park on Thursday night, but it was the “bad guys” who threw down. The Jackson (Tenn.) Generals claimed the Southern League pennant with an 11-3 win against the Mississippi Braves that completed a 3-0 sweep. So … enough about that. In the Class A South Atlantic League, former DeSoto Central High star Austin Riley hit a home run – his 22nd of the year – to help the Rome Braves move to within a victory of the championship in the low-A loop. Rome beat Lakewood 2-0 on Thursday to take a 2-1 series lead with Game 4 set for tonight in New Jersey. “We’re ready to get after it,” Riley told milb.com. Riley’s star is rising. At age 19, in his first full pro season, he hit .271 with 20 homers and 80 RBIs for Rome, making Baseball America’s All-Low Class A team at third base. The 41st overall pick in 2015, he is currently rated Atlanta’s No. 6 prospect by BA and No. 13 by mlb.com with an ETA in the big leagues of 2019. “Riley has the makings of an impact run-producing hitter,” writes MLBPipeline. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound right-handed hitter could be in Mississippi sometime next summer. That should give M-Braves fans a little lift.