Tag Archives: Mississippi Braves

15 Sep

one more time

In his short time on the Mississippi Braves’ roster, Patrick Weigel has had a big impact. The 6-foot-6 right-hander pitched into the ninth inning and notched his first Double-A win against Biloxi on Sept. 1, when the M-Braves were still fighting for a playoff berth. In Game 2 of the Southern League South Division series last week, Weigel threw seven shutout innings as the M-Braves beat host Pensacola and evened the series at 1-all. Tonight at Trustmark Park, Weigel takes the hill in a do-or-die Game 3 of the SL Championship Series against the Jackson (Tenn.) Generals. Weigel, a seventh-round pick out of Houston in 2015, won 10 games at low Class A Rome this year before getting the promotion to Mississippi, where he had a 2.18 ERA in his three regular season starts. The M-Braves need a pick-me-up. They were done in by a three-run eighth inning in Monday’s opener at Jackson, losing 6-4. They managed just five hits in Game 2 on Tuesday and lost 2-0. The team’s hottest hitter in the series is another recent arrival, infielder Dylan Moore, acquired from Texas last month. He is 4-for-7 with an RBI and a run. The M-Braves must win three straight – at home — to claim the club’s second pennant. Based on recent results, they should feel confident with Weigel taking the ball. P.S. Former M-Braves and Ole Miss star Chris Ellis was named Baseball America’s pitcher of the day after throwing six hitless innings for Gwinnett on Wednesday night in the International League finals. (Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, managed by former Jackson Mets shortstop Al Pedrique, rallied to win the game and even the Triple-A series 1-1.) Ellis, who had a rough go with the G-Braves, has tossed 13 shutout innings in the postseason. … Mississippi State alum Brandon Woodruff from Wheeler made BA’s Minor League All-Star team. The right-hander was 14-9 with a 2.68 ERA and 1.02 WHIP at two levels in the Milwaukee system. He was 10-8, 3.01 at Biloxi.

14 Sep

stretch run

At the moment, Mitch Moreland is probably the only Mississippian who knows he’ll be playing in the MLB postseason. The Mississippi State product from Amory, who has 22 home runs, has helped Texas take a commanding lead in the American League West. Ex-Ole Miss star Chris Coghlan and Greenwood native Louis Coleman are also on first-place clubs with secure leads, but neither can be certain he’ll be on the postseason roster. Coghlan is a versatile reserve for the Chicago Cubs, Coleman a middle reliever for the Los Angeles Dodgers. In the three battles still being furiously waged – AL East, AL wild card and NL wild card – there are a bunch of Magnolia State products clinging to hope. The hottest team in the big leagues is Seattle, which has won seven straight to stay in the AL wild card hunt. Former Ole Miss standout Seth Smith is swinging it well – a .381 average with three homers, including a grand slam on Tuesday, over his last seven games. Boston currently leads, by a slim margin, the AL East, and UM alum Drew Pomeranz has been a good addition to the Red Sox’s rotation even though his numbers (2-5, 4.60 ERA) aren’t great. MSU product Jonathan Holder is now in the bullpen of the resurgent New York Yankees – the Baby Bombers – who are very much alive in the AL East and wild card races. Jarrod Dyson, the ex-Southwest Mississippi Community College standout, has helped keep Kansas City in the playoff chase, batting .290 with 12 runs, nine steals and solid defense in the outfield in his last 15 games. Rookie JaCoby Jones, the former Richton High star, doesn’t play a lot for Detroit – he is 4-for-18 – but has value as a late-inning sub at several positions. Houston, also still lurking in AL playoff race, would love to see Mississippi Gulf Coast CC alum Tony Sipp (5.45 ERA) regain his career form (3.68) down the stretch. In the National League, former State standout Adam Frazier has been a bright spot (.333, two homers, nine RBIs, 14 runs in 99 at-bats) on a Pittsburgh team that seems to be fading away. UM alum Mike Mayers is on St. Louis’ expanded roster but, having allowed 15 runs in three appearances, doesn’t figure to get a lot of significant work. P.S. Mississippi is well-represented on Baseball America’s Classification All-Star teams. Hunter Renfroe (Mississippi State) made the Triple-A team, Bobby Bradley (Harrison Central High) the high Class A team and Austin Riley (DeSoto Central) the low-A team. Ozzie Albies of the Mississippi Braves is on the Double-A team. … Ex-MSU star Dakota Hudson, the first Mississippian chosen in this year’s draft (in the first round by St. Louis), only pitched 14 2/3 innings as a pro but fared rather well. The right-hander allowed only one earned run and struck out 19 over three different levels. He started with four games in the rookie Gulf Coast League, moved to Palm Beach in the Class A Florida State League (0.96 ERA in eight games) and finished with two scoreless appearances and a save for Springfield in the Texas League playoffs.

12 Sep

numbers to ponder

As the Mississippi Braves and Jackson (Tenn.) Generals square off in the 2016 Southern League Championship Series, here’s a Mississippi minor league postseason primer:
1 – Number of Southern League pennants won by the Mississippi Braves, who arrived in Pearl in 2005 and won the title three years later at Trustmark Park.
1 – Number of SL pennants won by the Jackson Generals, the Tennessee version, who took the title 16 years ago when they were known, regrettably, as the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx.
2 – Number of Texas League pennants won by the Jackson Generals, the Mississippi version, who claimed those crowns in 1993 and 1996.
1 – Number of pennants won by the Jackson Senators, who captured the independent Central League title at Smith-Wills Stadium in 2003.
3 – Number of pennants won by the Jackson Mets, who took Texas League championships in 1981, 1984 and 1985.
8 – Streak of Texas League playoff appearances reeled off by the Jackson Mets from 1980-87.
4 – Southern League postseason appearances by the M-Braves.
3 – Number of Southern League awards won by the 2016 Jackson Generals: Tyler O’Neill was MVP, Ryan Yarbrough was pitcher of the year and Daren Brown was manager of the year.
1 – Number of M-Braves who made the SL postseason All-Star team: outfielder Dustin Peterson.
9 – Wins, in 15 games, by the M-Braves against the Generals this season.
5 – Number of Southern League starts in 2016 by M-Braves lefty Michael Mader (0-3, 2.40 ERA), slated to go in Game 1 of the SL Championship Series tonight at Jackson, Tenn.
9 – Number of wins, in 12 decisions, this season by Andrew Moore, the Generals’ scheduled starter in Game 1. He has a 3.16 ERA over 19 starts.
6 – RBIs by Carlos Franco, on 7-for-15 hitting, in the M-Braves’ South Division series win against Pensacola.
7 – Hits, in two postseason games, by M-Braves newcomer Kade Scivicque, the former Southwest Mississippi Community College (and LSU) star.
152 – Strikeouts this season, most in Double-A, by M-Braves lefty Sean Newcomb (8-7, 3.86 ERA), who is slated to start Game 2 against Jackson.
8 – Number of players from the 2016 M-Braves’ original 25-man roster who are still on the club.
1 – Number of former M-Braves on the Generals’ current roster: pitcher Ryne Harper.
Photo: Carlos Franco of the M-Braves heads for home. Joe Culpepper/Shuttergig.com

10 Sep

on the brink

The Mississippi Braves were wounded and backed into a corner earlier this week. Having already lost their highest-rated prospect (Dansby Swanson to promotion in mid-August) and one of their top power hitters (Jacob Schrader to injury) down the stretch, the M-Braves lost sparkplug Ozzie Albies to a season-ending injury during Game 1 of the Southern League South Division playoff series. Then they lost the game to Pensacola in the bottom of the ninth, stung by an error and two walks. But things can change quickly in the postseason, and here are the M-Braves today, leading the series 2-1 and aiming to win it in Game 4 at Trustmark Park. Pick a hero; there have been many. In Game 2 on Thursday, Patrick Weigel was brilliant on the mound and Carlos Franco mashed a three-run homer in a 5-0 victory. Back at the TeePee on Friday, the M-Braves used four pitchers and 17 hits to crush the Blue Wahoos 9-2. Mallex Smith, a 2015 M-Braves star back on a big-league rehab assignment, provided three hits and three runs. Southwest Mississippi Community College alum Kade Scivicque, acquired in a recent trade with Detroit, went 4-for-4 with an RBI. Franco, now 6-for-11 in the series, and Joey Meneses added three hits each, and Keith Curcio, a recent call-up from Class A Carolina, hit an inside-the-park home run. The spotlight is now on right-hander Lucas Sims, Atlanta’s first-round pick in the 2012 draft who gets the start tonight. Sims, still a highly rated prospect, is 36-36 with a 3.91 ERA in an uneven minor league career. It’s a huge game for many reasons. A lot of people, in Atlanta and elsewhere, are paying attention. A berth in the SL Championship Series — where the M-Braves haven’t been since 2008 — is on the line, and there’s nothing like celebrating on your home field. If there is a Game 5, the series goes back to Pensacola. … Meanwhile, in Lawrenceville, Ga., on Friday, former Mississippi State star Tyler Moore hit a grand slam to help the Triple-A Gwinnett Braves pound Columbus 11-1 in the International League playoffs. Ex-Ole Miss standout Chris Ellis, who began this season in Mississippi, threw seven shutout innings for the G-Braves, who lead the series 2-1.

07 Sep

homer happy

Chris Maloney has shook a lot of hands this season. The Jackson native and former Mississippi State player is the third-base coach for the St. Louis Cardinals, so virtually every time one of them hits a home run, Maloney greets them as they make the turn for the plate. And, boy, has that happened a lot this season. The Cardinals have hit 201 bombs, most in the National League. They hit five on Tuesday night, three in the ninth inning en route to a stunning, 9-7 victory at Pittsburgh. St. Louis is in the thick of the NL wild card scrap. The Pirates are fading from view. A beneficiary of the Cardinals’ rally was Mike Mayers, the former Ole Miss standout who had such a rough big league debut (nine runs in less than two innings) back in July. Mayers worked a 1-2-3 eighth on Tuesday and got the win, lowering his ERA to 34.71. … In another meaningful game, ex-UM star Seth Smith hit a pinch homer – his 12th of the year and first in two months – for Seattle, but the wild card-hopeful Mariners fell short, 10-7, against American League West leader Texas. … The amazing Brian Dozier (see previous post), the former Southern Miss standout, tied the AL record for homers by a second baseman with his 39th in Minnesota’s loss to Kansas City. … And Mississippi Braves alum Dansby Swanson hustled his way to his first MLB homer, circling the bases on a ball off the center-field wall at Washington. The last Atlanta player to hit an inside-the-parker for his first homer was Paul Runge in 1985. Swanson also hit an inside-the-park home run for the M-Braves.

07 Sep

september’s game

It’s September in the minor leagues, and the herd has been cut. Only the best teams are moving forward. The best players on those teams now get to perform in a different arena. The Mississippi Braves head into the Southern League playoffs with a passel of Atlanta prospects on the roster, and how those players fare could go a long way in determining the M-Braves’ postseason fate. The best-of-5 SL South Division series begins tonight at Pensacola with left-hander Sean Newcomb, Atlanta’s No. 3 prospect (by mlb.com), going to the mound to face Rookie Davis, Cincinnati’s seventh-best prospect. Ozzie Albies is Atlanta’s No. 2. Projected by many to be the Braves’ second baseman in 2017, Albies hit .321 in Double-A this season (and won the SL batting title with an “adjusted” average of .315). Dustin Peterson (No. 18) was an SL MVP candidate after batting .282 with 12 homers and 88 RBIs. Those two are key hitters in an M-Braves attack plagued by dry spells. With a chance to win the division title, the M-Braves scored only one run in their final two games, lost both and entered the playoffs as a wild card, meaning if there is a Game 5 in the division series, it’ll be in Pensacola. The Blue Wahoos won both halves, winning 10 of their last 11 to overtake the M-Braves in the second half. Still, the M-Braves’ pitching looks good enough to win a title. Following Newcomb (8-7, 3.86) in the posted rotation is Patrick Weigel (1-2, 2.18 in three starts) on Thursday and Max Povse (4-1, 2.93) on Friday back at Trustmark Park. Weigel is the No. 28 prospect, Povse No. 20. If there is a Game 4 in Pearl, No. 14 Lucas Sims (5-5, 2.67) will get the nod. Ten teams started out in April chasing a Southern League pennant. Four are left. Every game is big now. It’s September.

05 Sep

there and here

In a battle royale at the bottom of the American League Central on Sunday, former Southern Miss standout Brian Dozier and East Central Community College product Tim Anderson put on quite a show, combining for six hits, four RBIs and four runs. Dozier, running away with the all-Mississippi home run derby, hit his 35th for last-place Minnesota. But Anderson, the rookie, drove in the go-ahead run as the fourth-place Chicago White Sox took a 13-11 victory in 12 innings at Target Field. … Jarrod Dyson, the ex-Southwest Mississippi CC star, delivered a big two-run triple and scored on a hit by Paulo Orlando as Kansas City took a late lead against Detroit in a battle of AL Central and wild card contenders. But the Royals ultimately fell 6-5 at Kauffman Stadium. … Billy Hamilton’s resurgent season for Cincinnati may have come to a painful end when the Taylorsville High product departed mid-game with a strained oblique. Hamilton, leading the majors in steals with 58, has been on a roll in the second half, boosting his average to .260 and his on-base percentage to .321. … Chicago Cubs announcers anointed it “the Jason Heyward Game” after the former Mississippi Braves star drove in three runs in a 3-2, 13-inning win over the San Francisco Giants at Wrigley Field. Heyward, scuffling at the plate this year (.234, 41 RBIs), atoned for a run-scoring error in right field by knocking in the game-tying run in the ninth and the game-winner in the 13th in what might have been a National League postseason preview. … A day after being eliminated from Southern League playoff contention, the Biloxi Shuckers, behind the brilliant pitching of ex-Mississippi State star Brandon Woodruff, throttled the M-Braves 7-0 at Trustmark Park. The M-Braves, who clinched a playoff berth – and reportedly celebrated with gusto – by winning on Saturday, can still claim the SL South title with a victory today or a Pensacola loss. If they have to settle for the wild card, they lose the chance to host a deciding fifth game in the best-of-5 first round of the playoffs.

02 Sep

brave ramblings

The Mississippi Braves appear to have righted the ship in the nick of time. A 5-1 win over Biloxi on Thursday night at Trustmark Park was the team’s third straight and reduced their magic number to 3 for clinching the Southern League South second-half title. The M-Braves, shaking out of a funk that saw them lose eight of nine, have four home games left against the Shuckers, who still have a shot at a wild card playoff entry. For the M-Braves, Patrick Weigel, in just his third Double-A start, went 8 1/3 innings, allowing a lone, unearned run. Dustin Peterson and Ozzie Albies homered, and rehabbing big leaguer Mallex Smith, back on his old stomping grounds, went 2-for-3 with two RBIs. The only thing lacking was a big crowd – an announced 2,128. … Former M-Braves star Freddie Freeman is playing like an MVP. Unfortunately, he’s playing for the worst team in the National League. Freeman has a 24-game on-base streak during which he is batting .361 with 10 homers. He’s at .289 with 28 bombs for the year. … Shae Simmons, another ex-M-Braves standout, threw a clean inning in relief for the Braves on Thursday, his first MLB appearance in over two years. He had Tommy John surgery 18 months ago. … When Jed Bradley, now with Atlanta, makes his debut, he will go into the books as another former Mississippi Brave and former Biloxi Shucker to reach the majors. Bradley, 26, a left-hander, was drafted by Milwaukee – 15th overall — out of Georgia Tech in 2011. He made it to Double-A Biloxi this year, posting a 6.20 ERA before being traded to the M-Braves. He found something in Pearl, putting up a 4-3 record with a 2.35 ERA as a starter and earning a promotion to Triple-A. … Ex-M-Braves infielder Daniel Castro delivered an 11th-inning walk-off hit, scoring M-Braves alum Matt Lipka, as Triple-A Gwinnett beat Durham 1-0 on Thursday. … Austin Riley has a 16-game hitting streak at Class A Rome, which is clinging to first place in the South Atlantic League South. The third baseman out of DeSoto Central High is batting .360 with five homers and 16 RBIs in that stretch. The 2015 draftee, already one of the Braves’ top-rated prospects, is hitting .269 with 19 homers and 76 RBIs for the year.

01 Sep

fall preview

The team to watch in the Arizona Fall League is, without a doubt, the Salt River Rafters. Initial rosters for the prospect-packed circuit have been released, and the Rafters’ includes: JaCoby Jones, the Richton High product who is off to a sizzling start in his big league career with Detroit; Ole Miss alum Chris Ellis and ex-Southern Miss standout Bradley Roney, both in Triple-A in Atlanta’s system; former Madison Central star Spencer Turnbull (Detroit); Southwest Mississippi Community College product Kade Scivicque, who recently joined the Mississippi Braves; current M-Braves Ozzie Albies (Atlanta’s No. 3 prospect), Dustin Peterson (Southern League All-Star), Akeel Morris and Evan Phillips; and current Biloxi Shuckers (and Milwaukee prospects) Brett Phillips and Jacob Nottingham. Anthony Alford, the former Petal High standout now playing in Toronto’s system, is on the Mesa roster. The AFL season starts Oct. 11. (Not on an AFL roster, surprisingly perhaps, is ex-Harrison Central star Bobby Bradley, the Class A Carolina League MVP and a top Cleveland prospect.) P.S. Fred Lewis, the ex-big leaguer from Stone County and Mississippi Gulf Coast CC, recently was released by Southern Maryland in the independent Atlantic League. He was batting .256 with four homers and 12 RBIs and had spent a chunk of time either inactive or injured. At 35, after 15 years of pro ball, the former second-round pick (by San Francisco out of Southern University in 2002) might be done.

31 Aug

quick hits

On a terrific Tuesday in major league baseball: Former Richton High star JaCoby Jones made his MLB debut, with his parents in the Comerica Park stands, and went 2-for-4 with two RBIs to help Detroit beat the Chicago White Sox 8-4. … East Central Community College alum Tim Anderson had a hit for the ChiSox but also made two errors at shortstop and now has 11 on the year. … Southwest Mississippi CC product Jarrod Dyson went 3-for-5 with a run, an RBI, a triple and a steal, but Kansas City fell to the New York Yankees 5-4. Former Mississippi Braves standout Chasen Shreve got the last two outs with the bases loaded to secure the save for the Yanks … Mississippi State alum Buck Showalter’s Baltimore Orioles beat ex-Jackson Mets star John Gibbons’ Toronto Blue Jays 5-3, snapping the first-place Jays’ four-game win streak. The third-place O’s are 3 games back in the American League East. … Ole Miss product Drew Pomeranz yielded three runs and fanned eight over 6 2/3 innings but got a no-decision for Boston, which lost to Tampa Bay 4-3 and sits second in the AL East. … Former Southern Miss standout Brian Dozier hit his 31st homer of 2016, but Minnesota lost to Cleveland 5-4. … Ex-State star Kendall Graveman (10-9) took the loss for Oakland, allowing three runs over seven innings in a 3-1 defeat against Houston. Former M-Braves star Evan Gattis hit his 22nd homer for the Astros. … UM alum Seth Smith singled as a pinch hitter and scored the go-ahead run for Seattle in the eighth inning, but the Mariners fell to Texas 8-7 on Rougned Odor’s walk-off homer. … M-Braves alum Dansby Swanson had two hits and three RBIs to propel Atlanta (and Julio Teheran) past San Diego 7-3. … Jose Peraza, another former M-Braves star, went 4-for-4 but couldn’t help Cincinnati get past the Los Angeles Angels, who won 4-2. Taylorsville’s Billy Hamilton and Ole Miss’ Zack Cozart were a combined 0-for-9 for the Reds. … Down on the farm, Ozzie Albies and Joey Meneses sparked the M-Braves to a come-from-behind 6-3 win over Chattanooga that kept the scuffling Double-A club in first place (by a half-game) in the Southern League South. P.S. Tyler Moore, the ex-State star, is back on the field at Triple-A Gwinnett in the Braves’ system. He is 5-for-20 with a homer and four RBIs in five games since his return. The onetime big leaguer is at .244 with three homers and 14 RBIs in 21 games with Gwinnett this season.