Tag Archives: M-Braves

24 Aug

summer fun

Biloxi Shuckers fans were given quite a treat this summer. The first team Milwaukee sent to its new Double-A home won a first-half championship and was packed with prospects, including Orlando Arcia, who is still there and still raking. The Venezuelan shortstop, rated the Brewers’ No. 1 prospect and No. 13 overall by mlb.com, had his first career two-homer game on Sunday at MGM Park. He is batting .342 over his last 10 games and .302 for the year, with eight homers, 62 RBIs, 34 doubles and 23 steals. Arcia turned 21 earlier this month. Biloxi hitting coach Sandy Guerrero told milb.com that Arcia is not quite big league-ready, but “he’s not that far.” … Meanwhile, the Mississippi Braves have moved into first place in the second-half race in the Southern League South. Lucas Sims, one of Atlanta’s top pitching prospects, threw six strong innings, fanning 10, and Rio Ruiz, another prospect, homered as the M-Braves beat host Pensacola 3-1. If the M-Braves win the title — there are 14 games left — they would meet the Shuckers in the first round of the SL playoffs. That would be quite a treat for both fan bases. P.S. Former Mississippi State star Hunter Renfroe hit his third homer in five Triple-A games for El Paso (San Diego Padres) on Sunday. … Ex-State standout Kendall Graveman threw six shutout innings for Oakland on Sunday but got a no-decision and remains winless in his last eight starts. What’s worse, he suffered an oblique injury and may have to go on the disabled list.

18 Aug

crunch time at teepee

Birmingham is one of the Southern League’s best hitting teams. The Mississippi Braves are running out a rotation filled with prospects, young guns that could be in Atlanta in the near future. The compelling clash of Barons bats and M-Braves arms begins tonight at Trustmark Park in Pearl. Right-hander John Gant is slated to start Game 1 for Mississippi. He is followed in the rotation by Lucas Sims, Greg Ross, Zack Bird and Andrew Thurman. Birmingham, hitting .261 (second in SL) as a team with 482 runs (fifth), features a dynamic 1-2 punch at the top of its order. Former East Central Community College star Tim Anderson, one of the Chicago White Sox’s highest rated prospects, is batting .316 and tops the league in runs (69) and steals (45). Two-hole hitter Jacob May is batting .296 with 31 bags, second in the league. For power, the Barons have Christian Marrero (12 homers), Danny Hayes (seven) and Brian Fletcher (six). They’ll test the young guns. Gant, recently acquired from the New York Mets, has been slotted in as the Braves’ No. 23 prospect by mlb.com. Since joining the M-Braves, he is 2-0 with a 1.56 ERA in three outings. Sims, Atlanta’s first-round pick in 2012 and the seventh-best prospect, is 1-2, 5.87 in five Double-A starts. Jackson native Bird, acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers and ranked No. 12 on the prospect chart, is 1-1, 4.26 over three starts. No. 18 prospect Thurman, picked up from Houston late in the spring, took a loss in his M-Braves debut on Aug. 14, allowing four earned runs in 4 2/3 innings. Ross doesn’t have a top 30 rating, but the Double-A veteran is 7-9, 3.98 in 23 games. P.S. Former M-Braves star Brian McCann did something Monday night that no catcher in the New York Yankees’ long history has done, according to the Elias Sports Bureau: He drove in five runs and threw out three runners attempting to steal. McCann’s efforts, which included his 21st homer, led the Yankees to an 8-7, 10-inning win over Minnesota. One of the runners he cut down was Southern Miss alum Brian Dozier, who had three hits for the Twins.

14 Aug

beating the bushes

Bobby Bradley ain’t goin’ away. The former Harrison Central High star homered Thursday for the second straight game and now has 22 for the season at Class A Lake County. The lefty-hitting first baseman, Cleveland’s No. 7 prospect (by mlb.com), is hitting .275 with four homers and 17 RBIs in his last 10 games, boosting his season stats to .254 with 74 RBIs. And remember, he’s 19 years old. … Kansas City, which already has a great bullpen, also has Louis Coleman humming along at Triple-A Omaha, apparently ready if needed. The former Pillow Academy star and Greenwood native has seven saves, seven wins and a 1.84 ERA in 33 games. Coleman, 29, has 148 big league appearances but none in 2015. … Starkville native Julio Borbon is batting .483 over his last 10 games for Norfolk, Baltimore’s Triple-A club, and is at .281 with 20 steals for the season. Like Coleman, onetime big leaguer Borbon isn’t on the 40-man roster, but it would seem he could help the Orioles as they fight to stay in the American League playoff race. … DeSoto Central product Austin Riley, the first Mississippian picked in this year’s draft, is back from a short stint on the disabled list and hitting .325 with two homers and seven RBIs for Atlanta’s rookie-level Danville club. … West Lauderdale alum Blake Anderson, the first Mississippian picked in the 2014 draft, is on the DL at short-season Class A Batavia. The catcher, a first-round supplemental pick by Miami, is hitting .220 with two homers and 11 RBIs in 22 games. … Wade Wass, former Meridian Community College slugger, has seven homers at Class A Burlington in the Los Angeles Angels’ system. Wass, a catcher who signed out of the Cape Cod League last summer, is batting .256 with 35 RBIs in 75 games. … Ex-Murrah star Zack Bird took his first Double-A loss on Thursday for the Mississippi Braves. The right-hander lasted just two innings against Mobile, yielded five runs and walked five batters; M-Braves pitchers walked 11 all told in the 9-1 loss. Bird is 1-1 with a 4.26 ERA, 12 walks and eight strikeouts in 12 2/3 innings over three starts. … East Mississippi CC alum LeDarious Clark’s scorching start (see previous posts) is a fading memory. He went hitless in seven straight games from late July into August, and despite a current five-game hit streak, is batting .135 over his last 10 games at short-season Spokane in the Texas system. His average is down to .298. For the season, Clark’s numbers look good: eight homers, 21 RBIs, 37 runs and 19 steals in 45 games. But he hasn’t homered since July 22 and has one RBI, five steals and 22 strikeouts since that date.

11 Aug

deja vu

This had a familiar ring: Jose Peraza, in his major league debut on Monday night, got a triple for his first hit. Last summer, June 19 to be exact, Peraza, in his Double-A debut with the Mississippi Braves, also smacked a triple. This is not a fluke; he is very fast. Peraza, a second baseman who was Atlanta’s top-rated prospect entering this season, made his MLB debut for the Los Angeles Dodgers, who got him in a trade just before last month’s deadline. He is a nice addition to the fantasy team of former M-Braves who aren’t playing for Atlanta. At catcher, there’s Brian McCann, who has 18 homers for the New York Yankees. At first base, Evan Gattis (17 homers, 60 RBIs for Houston). At shortstop, Yunel Escobar (.309 for Washington). At third base, Martin Prado (.268 for Miami). In the outfield, Jason Heyward (.286, nine homers for St. Louis), Gregor Blanco (.286 for San Francisco) and Jeff Francoeur (.273, 10 homers for Philadelphia). Starting pitcher: Charlie Morton (Pittsburgh) or Alex Wood (another new Dodger), each of whom has seven wins. Closer: Craig Kimbrel (32 saves for San Diego). Feeling nostalgic?

05 Aug

finishing touch

For Mississippi Braves right-hander Jason Hursh, change has done him good. Since moving from the rotation to the bullpen in early July, Hursh has a 2.25 ERA, a win and two saves in nine appearances. He has allowed 11 hits and two walks with nine strikeouts in 12 innings out of the pen. Atlanta’s No. 13-rated prospect (by mlb.com) entering this season, the 2013 first-round pick had been erratic as a starter: 2-6, 5.63 ERA this season after going 11-7, 3.58 at the Double-A level a year ago. Hursh got the W on Tuesday night, working a scoreless frame in a 7-6, 11-inning decision against Montgomery that moved the M-Braves’ record to 21-17 in the second half. They are 2.5 games out of first in the Southern League South. The club ranks ninth in the 10-team league in runs and last in slugging and homers, but pitching may just keep them in the playoff hunt. The staff includes six of Atlanta’s current top 30 prospects: Lucas Sims (No. 8), Murrah High alum Zack Bird (13), Hursh (now 18), Mauricio Cabrera (22), John Gant (24) and Stephen Janas (30). The M-Braves have a solid 3.53 ERA with an SL-best 38 saves and have allowed the fewest home runs in the league. Gant (1-0, 1.59) goes tonight against the Biscuits at Trustmark Park in his second start since coming over from the New York Mets in one of last week’s trades.

03 Aug

here and there

The list of Mississippians to play for the Mississippi Braves will grow tonight when Jackson native Zack Bird makes his Double-A debut at Trustmark Park in Pearl. Former Murrah High star Bird joins a group that includes Jay Powell, Michael Rosamond, John Thomson, Van Pope and Brent Leach. Powell (West Lauderdale High), Rosamond (Madison Central), Pope (Terry) and Leach (Brandon) were prep and college stars in the state. Thomson, a Vicksburg native who appeared with the M-Braves on two different major league rehab assignments, went to high school in Sulphur, La. A number of Mississippi natives also played for Jackson’s old Texas League franchise, including Murrah product Fletcher Thompson, the second baseman for the 1993 pennant-winning Generals. Bird, acquired last week from the Los Angeles Dodgers, was 5-7 with a 4.75 ERA in 19 games (17 starts) at the high Class A level this season. … The Tippah Tribe beat the Tupelo Thunder 5-1 on Sunday in New Albany to claim the Cotton States League championship. Northwest Mississippi Community College alum Stephen Sexton and Bryan Ray Jr. homered for the Tribe. … Former Southern Miss star Brian Dozier matched his career-high for homers with No. 23 for Minnesota on Sunday; the Tupelo native, now in his fourth MLB season, has 70 career homers. … Taylorsville High product Billy Hamilton is 51-for-58 on steal attempts this season for Cincinnati, an 88 percent success rate. His 2014 rate was 71 percent; he was thrown out an MLB-high 23 times while stealing 56 bases. … McComb native and Meridian CC alum Corey Dickerson is back on Colorado’s disabled list, his third trip of the year, this time due to broken ribs. He has played just 43 games, hitting .315 with five homers. … Former Itawamba CC standout Desmond Jennings is 1-for-5 in two rehab games at Triple-A Durham. Out since April with a knee problem, he figures to rejoin the Tampa Bay club sometime soon. … Last but hardly least, ex-Richton High star JaCoby Jones hit three homers for Erie on Sunday, his third game with Detroit’s Double-A club since he was traded last week (for Joakim Soria) by Pittsburgh. Jones, a shortstop, had 10 homers in A-ball this season and 23 in 2014.

30 Jul

’round and ’round

This trade deadline stuff will make your head spin: Former Mississippi Braves Alex Wood, Luis Avilan and Jose Peraza are gone from Atlanta’s roster, shipped to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a trade that brought in Cuban third baseman Hector Olivera – and his $37M contract. Hard to figure where Atlanta is going with all of this, isn’t it? … Also joining the Braves organization is former Murrah High star Zack Bird, a ninth-round pick by the Dodgers in 2012 who has a 16-35 record and 4.74 ERA in four years in the low minors. The 6-foot-4 right-hander was in the Class A California League at the time of the deal. He could make it to the Double-A M-Braves sometime in the near future. … One small save for Washington, one giant (well, sorta) save for Mississippi State product Jonathan Papelbon. In his first appearance for the Nationals today, Papelbon worked a 1-2-3 ninth, punching out Michael Morse for the final out in a 1-0 win over Miami. It would have been a thing had Papelbon blown his first save try with the Nats, don’t you think? … Meanwhile, ex-M-Braves ace Matt Harrison, trying to battle back this season from injuries (see previous posts), is off to Philadelphia as part of the blockbuster deal that sent Cole Hamels to Texas. “He’s got a long track record of great success. It’ll be huge for us,” Rangers first baseman and MSU alum Mitch Moreland told mlb.com about Hamels. … And this just in, former Richton High star JaCoby Jones has been dealt from Pittsburgh to Detroit in exchange for closer Joakim Soria. Jones, 23, a shortstop, was just recently promoted to Double-A, which had sparked speculation a deal might be in the works with him.

23 Jul

here and there

Jonathan Papelbon worked two scoreless innings and got the victory in Philadelphia’s 5-4 win over Tampa Bay on Wednesday, dropping his ERA to 1.63. He has 16 saves. And yet reports are that interest from other clubs in acquiring the disgruntled former Mississippi State star has waned. Isn’t this odd? … Former Southern Miss star Connor Barron, who went undrafted in June after his senior year, remains unsigned, which raises the question of whether he is healthy. Barron can play. He was an All-State shortstop at Sumrall High, where he played on four Class 3A championship teams. Injuries plagued his first three years at USM, but, after a strong 2014 summer season in the Texas Collegiate League, he put up good numbers for the Golden Eagles this season. A lefty-hitting outfielder, Barron batted .290 with eight homers, 40 runs and 13 steals for a good team. … The first-place Mississippi Braves (16-9) took a six-game win streak, matching their season-best, into Wednesday’s game against Mobile at Trustmark Park in Pearl. When you look at their lineup and stats, you have to wonder, How does this team do it? … Biloxi native Barry Lyons threw out the first pitch at the Biloxi Shuckers game at MGM Park on Tuesday night. Lyons, who starred for Delta State and the Jackson Mets before going on to the big leagues, played an unsung part in bringing pro baseball to the Coast. … Mississippi State’s Jacob Robson is scheduled to play in the Cape Cod League All-Star Game on Saturday. Canada native Robson, a CCBL player of the week earlier this month, is batting .297 with eight RBIs and 11 runs in 24 games for the Bourne Braves. Robson batted .324 with 41 runs in 54 games for the Bulldogs this past season.

21 Jul

rolling with changes

Change has become a constant for the Mississippi Braves’ pitching staff, which will roll out Lucas Sims tonight for his Double-A debut at Jackson, Tenn. Sims, Atlanta’s top draft pick in 2012 and current No. 3 prospect (by mlb.com), was 3-4 with a 5.18 ERA in nine starts at Class A Carolina. Perhaps the Braves just thought he needed a change of scene. The M-Braves recently added No. 17 prospect Mauricio Cabrera, who also had so-so stats at Carolina (5.52 ERA). He debuted on Sunday, throwing two scoreless innings in a win against Jacksonville. In that same game, ex-starter Jason Hursh, the No. 12 prospect, notched his first save. Hursh was 2-6, 5.63 as a starter. He has allowed two runs in six innings out of the pen. The M-Braves already have a standout closer: LSU product Tyler Jones, who has taken the reins from promoted Ryan Kelly, has 11 saves and a 1.55 ERA. The M-Braves’ rotation, which lost No. 10 prospect Tyrell Jenkins to Triple-A Gwinnett earlier this month, includes two other July additions: No. 26 prospect Steve Janas, 1-2, 3.86 in four starts, and indy league-signee Andrew Barbosa, 2-1, 6.23. … Kudos to manager Aaron Holbert for becoming the team’s all-time wins leader on Monday with 269. He passed Phillip Wellman, who has one thing Holbert would love to add: a Southern League championship ring. The M-Braves, 15-9 and first in the SL South entering tonight’s game, return to Trustmark Park in Pearl on Wednesday to face division rival Mobile.

17 Jul

wild, wild life

File it under Crazy. The Mississippi Braves rallied from a 10-0 deficit with a 10-run inning, squandered two late leads and then won in walk-off fashion in the 10th inning Thursday night against Jacksonville at Trustmark Park. The final was 15-14 in a game that featured 33 hits and five errors, four by the visiting Suns. Steve Rodriguez, hitting .184 entering the game, knocked in the winner with his third hit. David Rohm, who had reached on an error to start the M-Braves 10th, scored the decisive run. Jacksonville KO’d M-Braves starter Andrew Barbosa – who threw seven shutout innings in his debut last week – in a six-run second inning en route to building a 10-0 lead heading to the bottom of the third. The offensively challenged M-Braves promptly erupted for 10 runs. The M-Braves took leads of 13-10 and 14-13 but couldn’t hold them. Rodriguez then came through in the 10th to end a 4-hour, 6-minute affair that can’t be classified as anything but crazy. Eric Garcia, filling in at shortstop for hot-hitting Emerson Landoni, had four hits, three RBIs and three runs for the M-Braves, now 11-9 in the second half of the Southern League season.