Tag Archives: Mississippi Braves

30 Jun

stuff

Ole Miss product Zack Cozart, eligible to come off the disabled list (thigh strain) on Wednesday for Cincinnati, could be activated today, according to reports. The Reds host the Chicago Cubs this weekend at Great American Ballpark. Cozart is batting .320 with nine homers and 33 RBIs and led the voting for National League All-Star shortstop at last look. The rosters will be announced on Sunday on ESPN. … McComb native and Meridian Community College product Corey Dickerson was leading the vote for American League DH in the most recently released results. He is batting .330 with 17 homers and 39 RBIs for Tampa Bay. … Reds center fielder Billy Hamilton, the ex-Taylorsville High standout, was passed by Trea Turner for the MLB stolen base lead on Thursday, but with Turner now on the disabled list (broken wrist), Hamilton is the leading active thief with 33 bags. Turner has 35, Miami’s Dee Gordon 29. … Former Mississippi State star Hunter Renfroe hit his first home run in 13 days on Thursday, helping San Diego beat Atlanta. Renfroe has 16 homers – a record for a Padres rookie before the All-Star break – though he is batting just .225. … Former Mississippi Braves standout Freddie Freeman is expected to make a rehab start for Triple-A Gwinnett on Saturday. He could return to the Braves – at third base – next week. It’ll be interesting to see how that works out. M-Braves alum Johan Camargo has played fairly well at third for Atlanta and is batting .293 with 12 RBIs and 10 runs in 31 games all told. … Current M-Braves Mike Soroka and Ronald Acuna have been chosen for the World team in the All-Star Futures Game, set for July 9 in Miami. Former Biloxi Shuckers shortstop Mauricio Dubon, now in Triple-A, is also on the World roster. … Jake Mangum is off to a sizzling start in the Cape Cod League. The MSU star out of Jackson Prep is batting .359 with hits in nine of the 10 games he has played for Hyannis. Mangum had two hits in each of his first five games in the summer league. He was drafted in the 30th round by the New York Yankees as an eligible sophomore but is expected to return to Starkville for the 2018 season. … Brandon’s John “J.T.” Ginn and Hattiesburg’s Joe Gray have been participating in the Tournament of Stars this week in Cary, N.C. They are among the 80 prep players invited to the USA Baseball complex to compete for spots on the Under-18 National Team.

19 Jun

numbers to crunch

29 – Stolen bases, a total which leads the majors, by ex-Taylorsville High star Billy Hamilton, who got one Sunday to end a 13-game drought. Hamilton also had three hits, two runs and an RBI in fading Cincinnati’s loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
4 – Home runs allowed, a career-high, by Ole Miss alum Lance Lynn in 4 2/3 innings in St. Louis’ 8-5 loss to Baltimore. Lynn (5-4) yielded seven runs all told.
7 – Homers on the year for ex-UM star Seth Smith, who hit a leadoff bomb for Baltimore, the first of the four Lance Lynn allowed for St. Louis. Smith, batting .271, had two other hits and scored three times.
91 – Hits, most in the American League, by Meridian Community College product Corey Dickerson, who tallied three on Sunday. He is batting .330.
7 – Runs allowed in four games at Target Field by Cleveland in a sweep of Minnesota that moved the Indians into first place in the AL Central. Former Ole Miss star Mickey Callaway, the Indians’ pitching coach, saw his staff’s ERA drop to 3.93, tied for third-best in the AL.
3 – Hits in 13 at-bats in the Cleveland series by ex-Southern Miss standout Brian Dozier, who had a homer and two RBIs for Minnesota, which had a 2-game division lead before the Tribe arrived in town.
34 – Wins in 70 games for the Mississippi Braves, who completed the first half of the Southern League season with a 6-3 win against Montgomery at Trustmark Park. The M-Braves will send seven players to the SL All-Star Game in Pensacola on Tuesday.
6 – Strikeouts in five scoreless innings by USM’s Nick Sandlin in his Cape Cod League debut for Hyannis.

15 Jun

here and there

Draft doodles: Twenty players were picked from Mississippi schools in the three-day MLB draft, from Mississippi State’s Brent Rooker at No. 35 overall to Ole Miss’ Kyle Watson at No. 1108. Southern Miss and Ole Miss had four players drafted each. State had three and Jackson State and William Carey one each. Three juco players were selected, two from East Mississippi CC (and none from Jones County JC, which spent most of the season ranked No. 1, or Hinds, the NJCAA Region 23 champion). Four high school players were tabbed, the first being Myles Christian from Olive Branch in the 18th round by Seattle. … Milwaukee picked two prep players: Lefty Garrett Crochet from Ocean Springs in the 34th round and outfielder Davis Bradshaw from McLaurin in the 35th. … Detroit picked two college players: USM’s Dylan Burdeaux (20th round) and UM’s Colby Bortles (22nd), both infielders. The Tigers have stocked up on Mississippi connections of late. Already in the system are Ole Miss alum Alex Presley on the big league team; Richton High product JaCoby Jones in Triple-A; ex-Madison Central standout Spencer Turnbull and former UM star Will Allen at high Class A; and State alums Jake Robson and Zac Houston in low-A ball. … Atlanta Braves prospect Mike Soroka, who has won five straight starts, takes the bump for the Mississippi Braves tonight against Montgomery at Trustmark Park. The big Canadian, 19 years old, is 7-3, 2.45 ERA and hasn’t allowed a run in 15 innings in his previous two starts. … On Montgomery’s roster is former Ole Miss and Pearl River CC standout Braxton Lee, who is enjoying a resurgent second season in Double-A. After batting .209 for the Biscuits in 2016, the lefty-hitting outfielder is at .310 with two homers, 16 RBIs, 42 runs and 10 steals in 59 games this season. … In the big leagues on Wednesday: Ex-State standout Hunter Renfroe hit his 14th homer for San Diego, matching Nate Colbert’s club record for most homers by a rookie before the All-Star break. Fellow Bulldogs alum Tyler Moore continues to shine as a regular for Miami, hitting his fifth home run. He is at .288 with 17 RBIs in 66 at-bats. MSU product Kendall Graveman, on Oakland’s disabled list with a shoulder strain since May 26, reportedly has started light throwing. The A’s opening day starter is 2-2, 3.83 in eight starts. Correction: Ole Miss had a fifth player picked, right-hander Brady Feigl in the 35th round by the Los Angeles Angels. His name did not appear on Baseball America’s chart of picks from Mississippi.

08 Jun

rise and shine

The stars came out – a couple of them, at least – in the Mississippi Braves’ 5-4, 12-inning win against Biloxi on Wednesday night at Trustmark Park. Two of the M-Braves’ seven Southern League All-Star selections – announced on Wednesday — played key roles in the victory, which moved the team to 30-29. The M-Braves are 3 games back of first-place Pensacola in the SL South with 11 games left in the first half. The amazing Ronald Acuna went 2-for-5 with two RBIs and fellow All-Star Joey Meneses put up a 2-for-4, including a single to open the 12th and start the winning rally. Acuna, 19, is batting .367 with four homers, 20 RBIs and 14 steals in 28 Double-A games. Of the other star picks, Travis Demeritte – the team’s home run leader — had an off-night (0-for-6), and Luis Valenzuela, who’s been sidelined for several days, walked as a pinch hitter. Catcher Kade Scivicque, the Southwest Mississippi Community College product, got a night off, and 19-year-old aces Kolby Allard and Mike Soroka had already worked in the series. After tonight’s game against the Shuckers, the M-Braves travel to Pensacola for five. … Atlanta had 19 players picked for minor league All-Star Games, including DeSoto Central High product Austin Riley in the Florida State League. The third baseman is batting .248 with eight homers and 35 RBIs for the Florida Fire Frogs.

07 Jun

numbers game

The number of the day on Tuesday was four, as in the MLB record-matching four home runs hit by that noted slugger (and former Huntsville Star) Scooter Gennett of the Cincinnati Reds. But here’s some more numbers, from Mississippi connections, worth noting:
13 – Home runs by Hunter Renfroe, the former Mississippi State standout who belted two in San Diego’s 10-2 loss to Arizona.
123 – Pitches, a career-high, by Ole Miss product Drew Pomeranz over five innings in Boston’s 5-4 win against the New York Yankees.
7 – Home runs by State alum Mitch Moreland, who hit a go-ahead two-run bomb for the Red Sox in the fourth inning.
5 – Strikeouts by Craig Kimbrel, the ex-Mississippi Braves star, in nailing down his 17th save for the Red Sox; he fanned Aaron Judge on a 99-mph fastball for the final out.
6 – Home runs by Seth Smith, the former Ole Miss standout whose leadoff blast was one of four by Baltimore in a 6-5 win over Pittsburgh.
9 – Home runs by Southern Miss product Brian Dozier, who went deep in Minnesota’s 12-3 loss to Seattle; it was his third homer in his last 10 games.
.353 – Batting average, second-best in the big leagues, for UM alum Zack Cozart, who went 2-for-3 in Cincinnati’s Gennett-fueled 13-1 victory against St. Louis.
.137 – Batting average for former Richton High star JaCoby Jones, sent back to the minors by Detroit.

05 Jun

whatever happened to …

Cody Satterwhite, the former Ole Miss star out of Hillcrest Christian, is pitching for Triple-A Syracuse in the Washington system. He is 0-2 with a 5.79 ERA in eight appearances. Satterwhite has been in pro ball since 2008, battling through injuries and still chasing the big league dream. The 30-year-old right-hander spent part of last season in Japan, signed with Baltimore in the off-season, was released at the end of spring training and caught on with the Nationals. … Also on the Syracuse roster are Pascagoula’s Joey Butler (.275 in 15 games) and UM product Aaron Barrett (on the disabled list). Butler last appeared in the majors in 2015 with Tampa Bay; he spent 2016 in the Cleveland system. Barrett, who had earned a role in the Nats’ pen in 2014-15, missed all of 2016 with an injury, became a free agent and re-signed with Washington this year. … Ex-Itawamba Community College star and veteran big leaguer Desmond Jennings is hitting .237 with six home runs and 19 RBIs at Triple-A Las Vegas in the New York Mets’ system. Released by Tampa Bay last summer, Jennings signed with Cincinnati, got released again in spring and landed with the Mets. … Murrah High alum and onetime Mississippi Braves pitcher Zack Bird is now in the Texas organization but on the disabled list at Class A Down East. Bird, who made three appearances for the M-Braves in 2015, posted an 8.87 ERA in 28 games in A-ball for the Braves in 2016. The Rangers claimed the big right-hander on waivers. … Tanner Cable, the Belhaven University alum from Southaven, signed with the Gateway Grizzlies of the independent Frontier League shortly after the Blazers’ season ended and has a 3.64 ERA over six games. Cable, who also pitched at Northwest CC and Delta State, was 9-2, 2.29 ERA in two seasons at Belhaven.

04 Jun

the list grows

Quite a few must-see players have passed through Trustmark Park over the 13 seasons the Mississippi Braves have called it home. Francoeur, McCann, Saltalamacchia, Schafer, Heyward, Freeman, Simmons, Gattis, Peraza, Swanson — to name a few of the position players who’ve come along on their way to the big leagues. Ronald Acuna belongs on the must-see list. The 19-year-old Venezuelan-born outfielder, promoted from A-ball on May 9, homered in his first at-bat – first pitch, actually – for the M-Braves and has been wearing it out ever since. He is batting .389 with four homers, 18 RBIs and 12 steals through 24 Double-A games. He is already a two-time Southern League player of the week selection and was named Atlanta’s Double-A player of the month for May. The M-Braves are back home today for the start of a five-game homestand against the Biloxi Shuckers, second in the SL South with a 30-25 record. The M-Braves (27-28) are 4 games back in third with 15 left in the first half. P.S. While eyeing Acuna, don’t overlook Joey Meneses, a 25-year-old outfielder/first baseman from Mexico who is batting .349 with six homers and 23 RBIs. He isn’t on the Braves’ prospect charts, but perhaps he should be. … Erstwhile big leaguer Kris Medlen is slated to start tonight for the M-Braves as he attempts to work his way back to Atlanta. Medlen, a member of the 2008 M-Braves title team, allowed one run in 4 1/3 innings in his first appearance with the current team. He is 41-25, 3.25 ERA in his big league career. … Props to former M-Braves star Alex Wood, now with the Los Angeles Dodgers, who was named the National League pitcher of the month for May. He went 5-0, 1.27 ERA and has a streak of 23 1/3 scoreless innings he’ll take into his next start, which is expected to be next weekend. The left-hander with the funky delivery is currently on the disabled list with a minor injury.

04 Jun

out there

In Buffalo, home of the Toronto Blue Jays’ Class AAA affiliate, former Picayune High standout T.J. House picked up his first win in five starts on Saturday, throwing six shutout innings in a 4-0 victory over Charlotte. In 10 starts overall, the 27-year-old left-hander is now 5-4 with a 3.20 ERA, perhaps serving notice to the big club that he could help if needed. Good to see him having some success. House, signed as a minor league free agent in the off-season, got a look from the Blue Jays as a non-roster player in spring training, but that ended when he was struck in the head by a line drive on March 10. He didn’t pitch again for several weeks. He went 5-3 with a 3.35 ERA for Cleveland in 2014 but was up for a total of just eight games with the Indians the past two years. … In Detroit, Ole Miss product Alex Presley went 3-for-4 with his first home run of the season for the Tigers in a 10-1 victory against the Chicago White Sox. Presley, trying to hold onto a job with the Tigers, is 5-for-15 with three RBIs, six runs and two steals since being called up on May 28. Saturday’s homer was the 27th career MLB blast for the veteran outfielder, now with his sixth team, a journey that began in Pittsburgh in 2010. … In Baltimore, ex-UM star Seth Smith came to the plate as a pinch hitter representing the tying run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth against Boston and former Mississippi Braves closer Craig Kimbrel. (Ah, the joys of channel surfing on XM radio.) Kimbrel, having a rare off night during a sensational stretch, won this battle, locking up Smith – a .270 hitter with five homers — on a breaking ball for a called third strike on a 2-2 pitch. Red Sox, 5-2. Kimbrel has 16 saves in 17 opportunities and a 1.07 ERA.

26 May

around the horn

Former Mississippi State star Adam Frazier, a Georgia boy, homered at Atlanta’s new launching pad, SunTrust Park, on Thursday to help Pittsburgh beat the Braves 9-4. Frazier also homered on Wednesday in another Pirates victory. All told, he was 4-for-13 in the four-game series with seven walks, five runs and six RBIs. Frazier is batting .361 in 28 games. … Hunter Renfroe, a Mississippi boy who also played at State, continues to swing a big bat for San Diego. Including a 2-for-4 effort on Thursday in a win against the New York Mets, the Crystal Springs native is batting .316 with three homers, seven RBIs and nine runs in his last 10 games. He’s at .232 with nine bombs. … Ex-Ole Miss star Drew Pomeranz delivered a much-needed quality start for Boston, which beat Texas 6-2 at Fenway Park. After three straight wobbly efforts, Pomeranz went six innings, allowing two runs on four hits and fanning 11. “Felt lost for a couple of starts,” Pomeranz told The Associated Press. A Red Sox broadcaster called Thursday’s outing a “clinic of curveballs.” It was also a clinic of punchouts, as the Rangers whiffed 20 times against five Boston pitchers. Former Mississippi Braves standout Craig Kimbrel struck out four – yes, four – in the ninth inning. He has retired 53 of the last 56 batters he has faced and now has 40 K’s in 20 2/3 innings with a 0.87 ERA. … Gregor Blanco, one of the three original M-Braves (2005) still playing, has filled in nicely as the center fielder and leadoff batter for Arizona with A.J. Pollock out. Blanco went 3-for-4 with a home run on Thursday in a win over Milwaukee. He is batting .293 with three steals in 16 games. … With Josh Donaldson and Troy Tulowitzki expected to be activated from the disabled list today by Toronto, Ole Miss alum Chris Coghlan’s roster spot might be in jeopardy.

22 May

see the future

It’s certainly good to see Dansby Swanson heating up in Atlanta. The rookie shortstop is batting .353 with a pair of homers and nine RBIs over his last 10 games. He’s up to .207, four, 17 for the season. There really aren’t a lot of reasons to watch the scuffling Braves. Swanson — among the scant few Mississippi Braves alums now playing for Atlanta — is one. While so many current Braves are just aging placeholders, Swanson is part of a future that holds great promise. Baseball America’s projected 2020 lineup for Atlanta includes Swanson and fellow former M-Braves Freddie Freeman (of course), Julio Teheran, Ozzie Albies, Dustin Peterson, Sean Newcomb and Patrick Weigel, plus current M-Braves Ronald Acuna, Kolby Allard and Mike Soroka. Austin Riley, the DeSoto Central High product now playing in high Class A, is also in that group. Others who could contend for roles by 2020 are current M-Braves Travis Demeritte, Max Fried and Luiz Gohara and Ian Anderson, Kevin Maitan and Cristian Pache, highly touted prospects in the low minors. Atlanta’s farm system is truly stacked. Some of this new wave of Braves will arrive later this year or next. If all goes according to the apparent master plan, the Braves will be something to see again soon. P.S. Peterson, a Southern League MVP candidate last year after batting .282 with 12 homers and 88 RBIs in Pearl, is playing again at Triple-A Gwinnett. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound outfielder suffered a hand injury while in spring training with the big club.