Thinking about April 3, 2014. Thinking about who might take the field for the Mississippi Braves when they open next season at Trustmark Park against Mobile. There could be a few holdovers from the 2013 club that made the Southern League playoffs (third time in team history) as a wild card, but there should also be a strong wave of new players rolling in from Class A Lynchburg. Names of note include: third baseman Kyle Kubitza, who batted .260 with 12 home runs, 28 doubles and 57 RBIs for the Hillcats and is playing in the Arizona Fall League; shortstop Elmer Reyes, who went to big league camp last spring and hit .250 with 30 doubles and 60 RBIs at Lynchburg; outfielder David Rohm, a .302 hitter with 33 doubles and 53 RBIs; and outfielder Matt Lipka, a supplemental first-round pick in 2010 who batted .251 with 29 doubles, 40 RBIs and 37 stolen bases. Another Double-A candidate is catcher-turned-outfielder Josh Elander, a 2012 draftee who reached high-A last summer and was named Atlanta’s minor league player of the year. He hit .262 with four home runs and 32 RBIs in 61 games at Lynchburg after batting .318 with 11 homers and 61 RBIs at low-A Rome. Elander “does everything you look for when you evaluate a hitter,” Braves farm director Ronnie Richardson told milb.com. Elander might get more time at Lynchburg to start 2014, but he’ll be in Pearl soon enough. Also on the Lynchburg roster last season was Mississippi native William Beckwith, a big first baseman who slugged nine homers in 53 games but batted just .229. Outfielder Robby Hefflinger, who tore it up at Lynchburg (.286, 21 homers, 52 RBIs) before a midseason promotion, scuffled with the M-Braves (.173, six homers) and is likely to return. It wouldn’t be a shock to see third baseman Edward Salcedo back, along with second baseman Phil Gosselin and outfielder Mycal Jones. Pitching is always much harder to forecast. Aaron Northcraft, Gus Schlosser and Cody Martin — mainstays of the M-Braves’ 2013 rotation — may well go to Triple-A Gwinnett, as could closer Ryne Harper. The top starters at Lynchburg were Jarett Miller (9-8, 3.73 ERA), Greg Ross (9-6, 3.27), Ryan Weber (6-5, 3.84) and Ryan Hinson (4-4, 2.48). Nate Hyatt had 12 saves, John Cornely 11. We can speculate — hope? — that J.R. Graham, the highly rated right-hander who missed most of 2013 with a shoulder injury, will be back in Mississippi next season. He was 1-3, 4.04 in eight starts last year. Heck, he could be on the hill on April 3, 2014. Sure, opening day is five months away, but it’s not too soon to start thinking about it. P.S. Tommy La Stella, the M-Braves’ standout second baseman in 2013, is batting .351 through 11 games in the Arizona Fall League. … Former M-Braves manager Brian Snitker, Atlanta’s third base coach the last couple years, will manage Triple-A Gwinnett in 2014.
