Tag Archives: Braves

30 Jul

m-braves by number

24 — Home dates, starting with tonight’s game against Tennessee, that remain before the Mississippi Braves are gone to Columbus, Ga.
74,359 — Total reported attendance at Trustmark Park this season, just over 2,000 per home date.
15-12 — The M-Braves’ second-half record, good for second place in the Southern League South. The team went 31-37 in the first half.
4 — Top 30 Atlanta prospects on the M-Braves’ current roster.
178 — Stolen bases by the team, which ranks first in the league.
44 — Steals by Justin Dean, an M-Braves season record and the best total in the league. Three other M-Braves rank in the top seven.
45 — Home runs by the team, last in the league.
10 — Homers by Tyler Tolve, who leads the team and ranks 11th in the league.
3.69 — Staff ERA, which ranks fourth in the league.
1.28 — Staff WHIP, which ranks second-worst in the league.
7 — Wins by Ian Mejia (tonight’s starter), tied for second-most in the league. He also leads the club in ERA (2.70) and strikeouts (88).

29 Jul

of local interest

An interesting subplot when Atlanta and Milwaukee get together is the performance of the players who came through Mississippi on the respective Double-A clubs. Both the Braves and Brewers have built winning teams with a heavy reliance on homegrown talent, though Atlanta’s lineup for tonight’s game at Milwaukee is missing several former Mississippi Braves stars. Ronald Acuna, Michael Harris and Ozzie Albies are out with injuries, leaving only Austin Riley and recent call-up Nacho Alvarez as M-Braves alums in the lineup. Third baseman Riley has started to rake after a sluggish start to 2024; he is batting .254 with 14 homers for a team that leads the National League wild card race despite a ridiculous rash of injuries. Alvarez, playing second base in Albies’ absence, has scuffled with an .087 average. The Brewers, first in the NL Central, will trot out four recent Biloxi Shuckers stars: Brice Turang, Jackson Chourio, Garrett Mitchell and Sal Frelick. Turang, the second baseman and leadoff batter, is among the league’s top base stealers with 31, and left fielder Chourio, only 20, a rookie of the year candidate, is batting .259 with 11 homers, 42 RBIs and 12 bags. Interestingly enough, the Braves have a former Shuckers standout at shortstop — Orlando Arcia — and the Brewers start an M-Braves product — William Contreras, a 2024 All-Star — at catcher. Milwaukee got a lift on Sunday when closer Devin Williams, a Shuckers alum, came off the injured list and threw a scoreless inning. He’ll likely get in tonight if the Brewers have a late lead. Two former M-Braves will be in Atlanta’s bullpen: right-handers A.J. Minter and Darius Vines, just recalled today from Triple-A. … The three-game series that begins tonight at American Family Field marks the first meeting of the Braves and Brewers this season. P.S. Cooper Pratt, the 2023 Gatorade player of the year at Magnolia Heights, was promoted by Milwaukee from Low-Class A Carolina to High-A Wisconsin. Pratt, a shortstop, hit .295 (.394 OBP) for Carolina with three homers, 36 RBIs and 25 steals.

28 Jul

three things

1) Having lost six straight, Atlanta was in desperate need of some positive energy on Saturday, and rookie right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach brought it. Schwellenbach stifled the New York Mets for seven innings in what was, considering the circumstances, perhaps the best performance of the season by a Braves starter. Maybe it will be a turning point. In the 4-0 win at CitiField, Schwellenbach allowed just two hits, no walks and struck out 11. He improved to 4-5 with a 4.06 ERA in 10 starts. Fans of the Mississippi Braves might recall his sparkling Double-A debut on May 15, when he tossed six shutout innings with nine K’s against Biloxi. He is the latest in a virtual parade of former M-Braves pitchers who have had significant impact as rookies in Atlanta over the past eight years as the team rose to the top in the National League East. It’s been cool to see. To wit: Sean Newcomb and Max Fried in 2017, Mike Soroka in 2018, Ian Anderson in 2020, Spencer Strider in 2021-22, Bryce Elder in 2022, Jared Shuster and AJ Smith-Shawver in 2023.
2) Former Biloxi High star Colt Keith might be clawing his way into consideration for American League rookie of the year. Keith, Detroit’s second baseman, went 2-for-4 with a homer, a triple and three RBIs in the Tigers’ 7-2 win against Minnesota on Saturday. The lefty-swinging Keith, 22, is batting .259 with 11 homers and 41 RBIs — .318 with eight bombs and 21 RBIs over the last 30 games. He got a rich contract in the off-season before ever playing a big league game, and he has held up his end. And the Tigers are 52-54, still lurking in the wild card race.
3) Nick Fortes hits at the bottom of the lineup for a team at the bottom of the standings. But the ex-Ole Miss catcher, who stays in the Miami lineup because of his defensive skills, has actually heated up with the bat this month. He went 2-for-4 with a squeeze-bunt hit and a run in the Marlins’ 7-3 win against Milwaukee on Saturday, raising his average to .203. He has just two homers and 17 RBIs in 74 games for a 38-66 club. However, in his last seven games he is batting .409 and in his last 15 he’s at .327.

25 Jul

long and gone

Matt Wallner jolted Philadelphia ace Aaron Nola for a 441-foot home run on Wednesday, the first run in a game Minnesota would go on to win 5-4. Former Southern Miss star Wallner’s blast into right-center at Target Field was his fourth with the Twins and his longest in MLB this season. But 441 ranks just seventh on the list of long bombs by Mississippians in the majors in 2024. Ex-Mississippi State standout Brent Rooker owns the longest, a 452-foot shot for Oakland on July 14, according to data on onlyhomers.com. Rooker has the top two and six of the 10 longest homers by players from the state. Austin Riley, the DeSoto Central High alum now with Atlanta, is third on the list with a 449-footer, and he also hit one 446. Six different Mississippians have hit homers of 430 feet or more this season, with MSU alums Nathaniel Lowe, Hunter Renfroe and Jordan Westburg also in that club. The longest homer in the majors this season was a 478-footer struck by San Francisco’s Jorge Soler on Sunday at Colorado. It’s worth noting that Wallner hit a reported 481-foot blast for Triple-A St. Paul at Louisville in mid-June. P.S. Left-hander Ryan Och, a 2021 draftee out of USM, pitched two scoreless innings for San Antonio (San Diego affiliate) on Wednesday, notched his first Double-A victory and cut his ERA to 0.79 in six appearances. … Ex-USM star Tyler Stuart, a 6-foot-9 righty, worked six innings (one run) for his third win for Double-A Binghamton (New York Mets). He is 3-7 despite a 3.96 ERA. … MSU alum and ex-big leaguer Dakota Hudson got rocked in his first start for Triple-A Albuquerque: nine hits, two walks, six earned runs in 3 2/3 innings. He was 2-12, 5.84, for Colorado this season.

22 Jul

spotlight on …

After making a smooth transition to Mississippi State and the SEC a year ago, Colton Ledbetter has moved seamlessly into the High-Class A level of pro ball in 2024. Ledbetter, a second-round draft pick by Tampa Bay last summer, is batting .268 with 11 home runs, 44 RBIs, 44 runs and 25 stolen bases at Bowling Green. He jumped to the South Atlantic League after playing just 18 games in Low-A last year. The 22-year-old outfielder, who bats from the left side, is ranked No. 14 on the Rays’ prospect chart by MLB Pipeline. An Alabama native, Ledbetter spent his first two years of college ball at Samford, a mid-level NCAA Division I program. He transferred to MSU in 2023 and batted .320 with 12 homers, 52 RBIs and 17 bags for the Bulldogs. Tampa Bay, reportedly impressed with Ledbetter’s all-around athleticism as well as his hit tool, made him the 55th overall pick in the 2023 draft. It might not be long before he jumps to Double-A. … Ledbetter ranks 13th in the SAL with his 25 steals, including one on Sunday. Former Southern Miss star Matthew Etzel had 31 steals for Aberdeen (Baltimore system) in the SAL and has added nine more at Double-A Bowie, a total (40) that tops all Mississippi products in the minors. Cooper Pratt, ex-Magnolia Heights star, has 22 steals for Carolina (Milwaukee) in the Low-A Carolina League. P.S. Right-hander Drue Hackenberg, Atlanta’s No. 9 prospect, struck out a club-record 16 batters in seven innings Sunday for the Mississippi Braves, who won at Pensacola 5-1 in 11 innings. Hackenberg, a 2023 draftee, has a 3.43 ERA in four Double-A starts. Tyler Tolve’s 11th-inning homer, his 10th of the year, was the game-turning hit. Justin Dean stole three bases for the M-Braves and leads the Southern League with 40.

21 Jul

sudden change

Down goes Ozzie Albies. Up comes Nacho Alvarez. That’s what mlb.com’s Mark Bowman has reported. Having lost second baseman Albies, a former Mississippi Braves shortstop, for eight weeks with a broken wrist on Sunday, the Braves apparently will replace him with Alvarez, the M-Braves’ 2024 opening day shortstop. Alvarez, drafted in 2022 out of a California juco, rose quickly on the Braves’ prospect charts. He moved from third base to short this season and batted .265 with no homers, 15 RBIs and 16 steals in 48 games with the Double-A M-Braves. After a promotion to Triple-A Gwinnett in early June, he really took off. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound righty hitter batted .336 with seven homers, 24 RBIs and five bags in 28 games with the Stripers. Alvarez has never played second base in pro ball. When he debuts, possibly Monday vs. Cincinnati, Alvarez will join Albies, Braden Shewmake, Vaughn Grissom, Dansby Swanson, Johan Camargo, Luis Hernandez, Yunel Escobar, Diory Hernandez, Brandon Hicks, Brent Lillibridge, Tyler Pastornicky, Andrelton Simmons, Ed Lucas, Daniel Castro and Dylan Moore as M-Braves shortstops to make the big leagues.

21 Jul

family affair

On a three Dog night in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday, only Jordan Westburg came away feeling any joy. Ex-Mississippi State star Westburg and the Baltimore Orioles celebrated an 8-4 win against Texas, handing former Bulldogs Nathaniel Lowe and Justin Foscue another hard loss. Westburg, a teammate of Foscue’s in Starkville, went 3-for-5 with a homer and three RBIs as the Orioles, first in the American League East, won their 60th game. The Rangers, defending World Series champs, dropped their second straight to the O’s out of the All-Star break and fell to 46-52, 6 games back of surging Houston in the AL West. Lowe and rookie Foscue — recalled from the minors on Saturday — each had a hit and scored a run in the Rangers’ second inning, when they cut a 4-0 deficit to 4-2. It got no closer. Foscue was hitting .241 with three homers and 15 RBIs at Triple-A Round Rock; Saturday was his first MLB game since April 7, when he went on the injured list. Westburg, a 2024 All-Star, is batting .273 with 16 homers for a Baltimore club that leads the majors in bombs. For the record, Brent Rooker, another ex-State star, hit his 22nd homer Saturday for Oakland and leads all Mississippians (native or school alum) in homers this season. (Rooker reportedly is a hot trade candidate.) DeSoto Central High product Austin Riley belted his 13th homer for Atlanta. Of note: Former Southern Miss standout Chuckie Robinson went 1-for-3 in his 2024 big league debut for the Chicago White Sox.

16 Jul

it’s a wrap

Three more Mississippi State pitchers and five from Ole Miss were picked in rounds 11-20 of the MLB draft. The total number drafted from state schools over the three days was 21, eight of them Bulldogs pitchers. MSU’s Tyson Hardin (Milwaukee), Tyler Davis (Kansas City) and Cam Schuelke (Cleveland) went on Day 3, along with outfielder Connor Hujsak (Tampa Bay) and shortstop David Mershon (Los Angeles Angels). Ole Miss draftees included third baseman Ethan Lege (Pittsburgh) and pitchers Connor Spencer (Oakland), Xavier Rivas (New York Yankees), Cole Tolbert (Boston), Hunter Elliott (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Kyler Carmack (Philadelphia). Southern Miss outfielder Dalton McIntyre went to Atlanta. Only one high school player — Jackson Prep’s Konnor Griffin, the ninth overall pick — was drafted this year, and none were picked from the state’s non-Division I schools or junior colleges.

15 Jul

sweet finishing kick

Brent Rooker, who isn’t going to the MLB All-Star Game, put an exclamation point on his all-star caliber first half on Sunday. The ex-Mississippi State standout crushed a pair of 450-foot home runs — two of a club-record eight hit by the Oakland A’s in an 18-3 win at Philadelphia — and heads into the break with a .291 average, 21 homers and 62 RBIs. Those are better numbers than he had last year when he made the American League All-Star squad as the A’s lone representative. Rooker did admit some disappointment at not getting another invite — he also would have been a great Home Run Derby participant — but said he wasn’t going to dwell on it. “I’m just looking to finish the first half strong,” he told mlb.com. Mission accomplished. He hit .458 over his last seven games, and the two homers on Sunday were jaw-droppers. Teams looking to add power for the stretch drive surely have noticed. … Like Rooker, Austin Riley was a 2023 All-Star who isn’t going to Arlington, Texas, this week. Also like Rooker, the DeSoto Central High product finished the first half strong for a resurgent Atlanta team. Riley went 1-for-4 in the Braves’ 6-3 win at San Diego on Sunday and has reached base safely in 12 of 13 July games, batting .307 over the last seven. He is at .257 with 12 homers and 39 RBIs for the year. … In last year’s Midsummer Classic, Riley made two great defensive plays at third base and went 1-for-2 at the plate in the National League’s 3-2 win. One of his highlight plays came on a screaming line drive by Rooker, which Riley converted into a double play. Rooker had a double in two ABs.

05 Jul

star-spangled performance

There is something special about having a big day on July 4, when baseball tends to command center stage in the sports world. Brent Rooker, the Mississippi State product now with the Oakland A’s, rose to the occasion on Thursday, going 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI (plus a stolen base!) in Oakland’s 5-0 win over the visiting Los Angeles Angels. Rooker is making a strong case for a second straight trip to the All-Star Game. He is batting .273 with 17 homers and 50 RBIs. He went 6-for-10 with two homers in the A’s three-game sweep of the Angels and is batting .352 over his last 15 games. The full All-Star rosters will be announced Sunday. “Just being candid and being honest, I think the numbers I’ve put up this year are right in line with the rest of the guys that will be there,” Rooker told mlb.com. “If I’m there, awesome.” Rooker is also a trade candidate for a last-place A’s team that is 33-56 and going nowhere in 2024. … Other star-spangled performances from July 4: Ex-State standout Jordan Westburg, another All-Star candidate, hit his 14th home run for Baltimore. Former Southern Miss star Nick Sandlin came off the injured list and got the last three outs in a win by surging Cleveland. Biloxi High product Colt Keith hit his fifth home run in a 2-for-4 day for Detroit. MSU alum Hunter Renfroe went 2-for-4 with an RBI for Kansas City. Former DeSoto Central standout Austin Riley went 1-for-3 with an RBI for Atlanta. P.S. Down in the minors, ex-USM star Justin Storm notched his fourth win with two solid innings of work for Low-Class A Jupiter in the Miami system. The 6-foot-7, 230-pound left-hander, a 2023 draftee, has a 1.40 ERA, an 0.97 WHIP, two saves and 35 strikeouts in 25 2/3 innings over 16 games this season. The Madison Central alum isn’t currently listed among the Marlins’ Top 30 prospects (by MLB Pipeline), but he must be knocking on that door. … Bryson Ware, former Germantown High and Pearl River Community College standout, blasted two homers for Low-A Clearwater (Philadelphia system) and now has nine bombs and 40 RBIs on the year.