positive signs

After a generally disappointing season with the Mississippi Braves, Brandon Hicks stepped it up in the Arizona Fall League. The highly regarded shortstop, who played at lot of third base (out of necessity) in the AFL, hit .310 with a homer and 11 RBIs in 84 at-bats in the prospect-packed league that concluded its regular season today. Hicks, who is good with the glove, batted .237 with 10 homers and 48 RBIs for the M-Braves, though he did finish strong. Still, his 131 strikeouts in 464 ABs were a concern. Still think he’ll be back for another tour, if only a short one, in Pearl in 2010. … Former Itawamba Community College star Desmond Jennings, the Southern League MVP for 2009, was added to the Tampa Bay Rays’ 40-man roster today. The swift outfielder is moving swiftly toward his big league debut.