Tag Archives: M-Braves

29 Jan

a spring in their step

Former East Central Community College standout Tim Anderson has been rated the No. 10 shortstop prospect in the minors by mlb.com. Anderson also has received an invitation to the Chicago White Sox’s major league spring training camp next month. A first-round pick in 2013, Anderson batted .301 with nine homers and 40 RBIs in an injury-interrupted 2014, finishing the season in Double-A. He also played well in the Arizona Fall League. … Other Mississippians who have received non-roster invites to big league camps include Petal High alumnus and former Mr. Baseball Anthony Alford (Toronto), Mississippi State product Hunter Renfroe (San Diego), ex-Hattiesburg High star Robert Carson (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Mississippi Gulf Coast CC alum Joey Butler (Tampa Bay). … Also of note: Former Mississippi Braves catcher J.C. Boscan has signed a minor league deal with Kansas City and will report to the Royals’ big league camp. P.S. Hinds Community College is ranked No. 2 in the NJCAA’s preseason poll, and Jones County Junior College is slotted at No. 11. Hinds, 40-21 and a Division II World Series finalist last year, opens on Feb. 7 against Mineral Area (Mo.) in Raymond. Jones, 46-11 and MACJC state champion in 2014, starts Feb. 7 against Jeff Davis (Ala.) in Ellisville.

27 Jan

a bright spot

Atlanta Braves fans looking for something to feel jazzed about do have this: Jose Peraza has been rated the No. 1 second base prospect in the minors by mlb.com. The speedy Peraza, who played for the Mississippi Braves last summer, could be playing in Atlanta sometime this season. Only 20, the right-handed hitting Peraza has batted .306 with 177 steals, 25 triples and 218 runs in 343 career minor league games. In 44 games for the M-Braves, he hit .335 with 25 steals and 35 runs. And, yes, his defense is good, too. If you didn’t see Peraza at Trustmark Park last summer, you’ve probably missed your chance. He’ll likely open 2015 at Triple-A Gwinnett.

17 Jan

out in left field

To borrow a line from the movie “Moneyball,” when someone hits a ball to left field against Atlanta this season, will there be anyone there to pick it up? The trade of Justin Upton opened the door in left for Evan Gattis, the former Mississippi Braves slugger. But now Gattis, too, has been dealt away. Who plays left? Zoilo Almonte? Say it ain’t so. Perhaps, ex-M-Braves standout Joey Terdoslavich will get a long look in spring training. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound switch-hitter doesn’t show up on the prospect charts, but he has power, which Atlanta needs, desperately. Terdoslavich, who hit .315 with five homers for the Double-A M-Braves in 2012, is rated the best power hitter in Atlanta’s minor league system by Baseball America. He hit 33 homers the last two seasons at Triple-A Gwinnett. Todd Cunningham, who also played in Pearl in 2012, could vie for Atlanta’s left-field job, but he’s not a power guy and looks better suited to center field. Also out there are Cedric Hunter, who had a good year for the M-Braves in 2014, and Cuban signee Dian Tascano, though neither is on the 40-man roster. … The Gattis trade did bring into the Atlanta system a candidate for the M-Braves’ third-base job: Rio Ruiz. Ruiz hit .293 with 11 homers at high Class A Lancaster in Houston’s system in 2014. Now entering his fourth pro season, he could be ready for Double-A. A 6-2, 215-pound lefty hitter, Ruiz also becomes the “third baseman of the future,” with Kyle Kubitza also having been traded.

19 Dec

coming soon?

Mallex Smith, one of the minor leaguers acquired by Atlanta in the Justin Upton deal, is an intriguing player. And he could start the 2015 season in the Mississippi Braves outfield. Mallex is a left-handed hitter with speed, a good skill to have at Trustmark Park. A fifth-round pick by San Diego in 2012, the 5-foot-9, 170-pound Mallex has 169 stolen bases in 265 minor league games. He also has a .290 career average. He played at two levels of A-ball in 2014, batting .327 with five homers, 16 RBIs, 43 runs and 40 bags in 55 games in the high Class A California League. If Smith doesn’t start next season at the TeePee, it shouldn’t be long before he gets there.

17 Dec

trade talk

Published reports say San Diego and Tampa Bay are talking about a trade that would send outfielder Wil Myers to the Padres. Such a move would give San Diego, which already has added Matt Kemp, a glut of outfielders and would likely mean yet another trade. Former Ole Miss star Seth Smith of Jackson would probably be “the most attractive and affordable ($6.5 million) piece for most clubs,” according to mlb.com. Smith, in his first year with the Padres after coming over from Oakland, batted .266 with 12 home runs, 48 RBIs and 31 doubles in 2014. The lefty hitter played mostly left field and mostly against right-handed pitching (.240, zero homers in 50 at-bats vs. lefties). Smith is a career .265 hitter with 85 homers in the big leagues since making his debut with Colorado as a September call-up in 2007. P.S. Aaron Holbert will join Phillip Wellman as a four-term manager of the Mississippi Braves when the Double-A club hits the field in 2015. Brian Snitker, Jeff Blauser and Rocket Wheeler all served just one season. … Former M-Braves on the move in recent days include Zeke Spruill (traded by Arizona to Boston), J.R. Graham (a Rule 5 pick by Minnesota), Sean Gilmartin (Rule 5 pick by the New York Mets) and Antoan Richardson (minor league deal with Texas). Graham, who spent the last two (injury-dampened) seasons in Mississippi, will have a solid shot at making the Twins’ roster in the spring.

11 Dec

eye on …

It’ll be interesting to see how ex-Mississippi Braves standout Todd Cunningham fits into Atlanta’s plans in 2015. Cunningham, a switch-hitting outfielder, is batting .282 with five runs and two steals through 11 games with Licey in the Dominican Winter League. This after batting .287 with eight homers, 58 RBIs and 19 bags at Triple-A Gwinnett this past season. Cunningham, a second-round pick out of Jacksonville State in Alabama in 2010, has hit at every level, including a 2-for-8 showing in the big leagues in 2013. With the M-Braves in 2012, he impressed with a .309 average, three homers, 51 RBIs and 24 steals. He is currently leading off for Licey and playing center field. He can play anywhere in the outfield, which might make him a valuable piece for the remodeled Braves. P.S. John Lindsey, the veteran slugger from Hattiesburg, has nine homers through 21 games in the Mexican Pacific League. He is batting .282 with 20 RBIs for Navojoa.

09 Dec

four months out

Four months from today, the Mississippi Braves will open the 2015 season — their 11th at Trustmark Park in Pearl — against the Tennessee Smokies. Sure, it’s a little early to start a countdown … but what the heck. Here’s a shot in the dark at how the team might line up come April 9. At catcher, Tyler Tewell, who batted .251 with eight home runs and 45 RBIs at Class A Lynchburg. Braeden Schlehuber (.230, 41 RBIs for the M-Braves) could return at that spot. At first base, Seth Loman, the minor league veteran who was re-signed after hitting .261 with 11 homers and 59 RBIs in an injury-interrupted campaign. At second base, Emerson Landoni, who batted .271 for the M-Braves before getting sent down to open the job for rising prospect Jose Peraza. At shortstop, Daniel Castro, another midseason call-up from Lynchburg who batted .277 with four homers and 20 RBIs in 51 games. At third base, Kevin Ahrens, a former Toronto first-rounder who hit .266 with seven homers, 65 RBIs and 41 doubles at Lynchburg. In the outfield, David Rohm (.255 in Mississippi), Will Skinner (.253, 11 homers, 52 RBIs at Lynchburg) and Cuban Dian Tascano, 25, who reportedly agreed to terms with Atlanta on Monday and needs some minor league seasoning. Also in the outfield picture are Matt Lipka and Robby Hefflinger, each coming off a poor, injury-marred season. The rotation may well be headed by Lucas Sims, Atlanta’s top pick in 2012 who went 8-11 with a 4.19 ERA at Lynchburg, or Tyrell Jenkins, acquired from St. Louis in the Jason Heyward deal. Greg Ross (7-3, 2.08) impressed with the M-Braves in 2014, and Jarrett Miller (8-9, 4.04) was a steady arm in Lynchburg. J.R. Graham, who had a rough 2014 coming back from injury, might well be back in the bullpen. Alex Wilson (16 saves, 2.02 ERA) was an outstanding closer at Lynchburg. As for who’ll be managing the 2015 M-Braves, Atlanta has not yet announced its minor league staff assignments, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Aaron Holbert back at the helm for a fourth year. He has done a commendable job. P.S. Former Petal High star Anthony Alford is plugging away with decent results in the Australian Baseball League. Alford, a Toronto prospect, is hitting just .239 but has a .346 on-base percentage and 21 runs in 18 games as Canberra’s leadoff batter. He hit his second homer on Sunday. … Former Hattiesburg High standout Robert Carson, hoping to get back to the big leagues, is pitching in the Dominican Winter League and has not allowed a run in three appearances for the Gigantes del Cibao. The big left-hander, who has a 6.82 career ERA in 31 MLB games (all with the New York Mets), is now in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ system, his third organization.

04 Dec

rumor has it

Sifting through the many trade rumors that pile up this time of year, we come across at least one that might be worth keeping an eye on. It could have ramifications for a Mississippi college product, Alex Yarbrough, who is knocking on the big-league door. A writer for Sports on Earth predicts that the Los Angeles Angels will trade veteran second baseman Howie Kendrick to Washington for some young arms. Should that deal go down, it would open the door for former Ole Miss star Yarbrough to take the second base job with the Angels this spring. Yarbrough, 23, is rated the No. 9 prospect in the LA system. He isn’t on the 40-man roster because, as a 2012 draftee, he doesn’t have to be protected yet. True, he hasn’t played above Double-A, but plenty of players have jumped from that level to The Show. Yarbrough is a switch-hitter who batted .285 with five home runs, 77 RBIs, 66 runs and 38 doubles at Arkansas in 2014. He is a .295 career hitter in the minors. Defense is said to be his shortcoming — 10 errors, .982 fielding percentage this past season — but he was an All-SEC defensive player at Ole Miss, so he’s not exactly a liability in the field. The Kendrick-to-Washington trade might not happen this off-season. But Yarbrough appears close enough to being ready that the Angels may be forced to make some kind of move soon to clear a spot. P.S. The roster remake in Atlanta has seen the departure of several former (and well-regarded) Mississippi Braves, including Jason Heyward, Tommy La Stella, Jonny Venters and, possibly, Kris Medlen and Brandon Beachy. But, M-Braves fans will note, there are still 25 alums of the Double-A club on Atlanta’s 40-man roster, including recent additions Jose Peraza and Kyle Kubitza, intriguing prospects who could be in the lineup sometime in 2015.

24 Nov

the big reveal

Biloxi’s Southern League team gets its name today. Shrimpers? Black Jacks? Mullet? A big announcement ceremony is planned. Speeches will be made. Cheers will be heard. Merchandise will go on sale. That’s all well and good, but it would also be nice if team officials would announce where they plan to play in 2015. We already know that the new MGM Park won’t be finished for the start of the season in April and may not be ready until August. Is the team going to play all road games until August? Is the team going to play in Huntsville, its former home, until the new park opens? Does it make sense to have a grand opening in August, with only a handful of home dates available? Inquiring minds want to know. The Mississippi Braves are scheduled to play “at Biloxi” from May 6-10 and again in August. The M-Braves host the new team, still a Milwaukee Brewers affiliate, for the first time from June 11-15.

18 Nov

catching up

With five hits in his last three outings, Anthony Alford appears to be finding his stroke in the Australian Baseball League. The former Mr. Baseball from Petal High is 5-for-12 with a home run, six runs and two RBIs in his last three games for Canberra. For the young ABL season, Alford is at .219. Drafted by Toronto in the third round in 2012, Alford has just 94 minor-league at-bats to date as he had been focused on football, which he has now given up. … Mississippians Hunter Renfroe and Tim Anderson got kudos from mlb.com’s Jim Callis for their work in the Arizona Fall League, which wrapped up last week. Mississippi State product Renfroe, a San Diego prospect, batted .284 with a league-best six homers and 20 RBIs. He also led the AFL in extra base hits, total bases and slugging. Anderson, a Chicago White Sox prospect from East Central Community College, hit .301 with six steals. “(F)ew shortstops can match his tools,” Callis wrote. … Tyrell Jenkins, the 6-foot-4 right-hander acquired by Atlanta from St. Louis in the Jason Heyward deal, posted a 2.22 ERA in the AFL. Jenkins, 22, is a candidate for the Mississippi Braves’ roster in 2015, which will be his sixth pro season. He pitched in high-A ball this past season. … Former M-Braves star Jeff Francoeur will get another shot (how many is that?) at making a big league club next spring, this time with Philadelphia. Francouer had a big year (.289, 15 homers, 69 RBIs) in Triple-A with San Diego in 2014, though he didn’t hit at all in his MLB trial. … Ex-MSU standout Tyler Moore is batting .299 with six homers, 17 RBIs and 19 runs in 22 games in the Dominican Winter League as he attempts to improve his stock in the Washington organization. … Mississippi Gulf Coast CC alumnus Roy Corcoran, 34, is pitching in the Mexican Pacific League. The onetime major leaguer is 2-3 with a 3.66 ERA for Hermosillo. Corcoran, who originally signed with the Montreal Expos in 2001, pitched in independent ball the last two years. His last MLB season was 2009; he has a career 4.17 ERA in 82 games. … Belhaven University is ranked No. 14 in the NAIA preseason poll. The Blazers open the 2015 campaign on Jan. 30 at Smith-Wills Stadium in Jackson. William Carey also opens that day in Hattiesburg.