Charlotte @ Richmond - Rain

Mobile 2, Mississippi 7

• J. Holt 4-5 2B, 2 RBI
• J. Guzman 4-4 2 RBI
• W. Cabrera 2-4 3B, BB, K
• K. Medlen 6IP 5H 1R 1BB 8K

Mississippi got offense from some unusual spots tonight including the new guy, Willie Cabrera. There was an insider article about clubs using relievers as starters in the minors in order to up their learning curve and Kris Medlen was the main focus of the article. I can't post the whole article but I can give a little snipet here:

And so now the Braves, two years after drafting Medlen in the 10th round out of Santa Ana (Calif.) JC, are kicking the tires on whether he could evolve into a starter. They've asked him to add a two-seam fastball, work on hitters, learn situations and so forth.

The article goes on to say that the Braves aren't really sure where his future is right now and Medlen himself waivers back and forth on whether or not he wants to start or relieve. Medlen doesn't necessarily have front of the rotation or back of the bullpen stuff, but he will be hard to ignore if he keeps putting up these stats as a starter.

Wilmington 11, Myrtle Beach 6

• T. Flowers 2-4 2B, 4 RBI, BB
• J. Heyward 0-3 BB

It looks like the Pelicans have gone into 'prepare for the playoffs' mode as they had 7 pitchers in this game. Heyward is now 0-Carolina League, but he did get on base. With the AFL rosters being announced a couple Braves guys were mentioned in their recaps of the teams. Tyler Flowers got the most attention with this tidbit:

X-Factor: Braves catcher Tyler Flowers might be the high Class A Carolina League MVP. Flowers, 22, hit .285/.427/.485 while playing his home games a difficult park for hitters at Myrtle Beach, showing power and the patience to draw walks, with 96 of them to go with 98 strikeouts. It looks like Flowers' bat would play at any position, but the Braves want him to stick at catcher. Of course, with Brian McCann under contract through 2012 with a club option for 2013, they certainly have the luxury to be patient with Flowers.

High praise for our young catcher. This is a reminder too that if Flowers moves off catcher it isn't because he can't catch, it's because we have Brian McCann.

Rome 12, Columbus 3 Game 1 (7 Innings)

• A. Coe 3-4 2 HR(7), 3 RBI
• C. Ludahl 3-4 2B
• F. Freeman 0-4 K
• E. Osuna 7IP 6H 3R 1BB 4K

Edgar Osuna  gets his 10th win of the season and has been very solid for the entire season. I haven't seen him play, does anyone know what his velocity is like and what he throws? I feel like he is going to be getting some publicity in the offseason and I'd like to know what to expect.

Rome 5, Columbus 13

• F. Freeman 2-4 RBI
• C. Johnson 3-4 HR(25), 4 RBI, K
  
• C. Kimbrel 1IP 1H 0R 2BB 3K

Kimbrel likes to live dangerously I guess. He allowed the bases to get loaded but struck out the side in process. He figures if it isn't a real save situation he'll find some way to make it interesting for himself. Cody Johnson ticks me off so much because he has so much talent but he really is boom or bust. Even from game to game. I bet his number of multi hit games rivals Freeman or Heyward simply because he gets them in bunches when he does get them.

Danville - Season Over

This was the first time since 2003 that Danville didn't participate in the Appy League playoffs. We'll have to see if there is any trickle up effect to Rome. Maybe a couple guys will get some ABs in the last few games.

Yankees 2, Braves 1

I wrote about this one on last nights recap because I'm dumb. Ok I didn't really write anything, mostly because nothing worthwhile happened.

Well I was just over at MLB.com and found this little piece of information. Here's the link for those who want to read it themselves:

Braves Deal Kotsay to Boston

In return we get minor league OF Luis Sumoza. I do no know anything about Sumoza other than what the stats tell me. He is having a solid season in the short-season New York-Penn League posting an OPS of .915 and swatting 11 homers in 193 ABs. He also has a 21/59 BB/K ratio, so he K's a bit but balances it with a few walks. He just turn 20 also so he has some time to grow and will probably go to Rome after everything gets finalized.

What do you guys think about the return we got for Kotsay? I like it, simply because we got something for him. I figured we might get cash or a PTBN but Sumoza looks like he could be a decent prospect and we unload the salary that we owe Kotsay. I'll call it a win for now, but was acquiring Kotsay for Joey Devine worth it in the long run?

Richmond 3, Toledo 2

• J. Anderson 1-5 SB(42)
  
• B. Canizares 1-4 2B

Anderson is fifth in the IL with a .314 BA and is tied for third with his 42 steals. Slot him in at leadoff the rest of the year and see what happens.

Mobile 2, Mississippi 4

• M. Young 1-2 RBI, 2 BB
• D. Heath 5.1IP 7H 2R 3BB 4K (1-2 HR(1) as a hitter)

It looks like Heath did everything in this game. Every Mississippi starter got on base at least once in the contest.

Mobile 0, Mississippi 1

• J. Schafer 1-2 BB
• C. Sencion 5IP 5H 0R 1BB 2K

Here is Sencion getting a chance to start again, and again he shows that he is a better pitcher as a starter. When he comes out of the pen his ERA is 6.63 vs 4.07 when he gets to start. We'll have to wait and see if the Braves give him a chance to start next season, and if so will it be in AA or AAA?

Wilmington 0, Mrytle Beach 6

• E. Campbell 2-3 HR(18), 3 RBI, K
• J. Heyward 0-3 K
• C. Rodriguez 1-3 HR(!1)
• S. Diamond 7IP 5H 0R 1BB 1K

Scott Diamond continue to put together one of the best seasons for any of our minor league pitchers. Heyward goes 0fer in his first game at the Beach and Eric Campbell is capping off a pretty damn good season.

Mobile 0, Myrtle Beach 2

• J. Heyward 0-3
• C. Rohrbough 7IP 2H 0R 0BB 4K

Well Heyward obviously will never hit above A ball so we might as well cut him loose now. The Beach gets the double shutout comb behind Cole Rohrbough's best start of the year. It will be nice to get him going right before the end of the season so he can have something to build towards next year.

Rome @ Columbus - Double Header Rained Out

Danville @ Burlington  -  Canceled due to Rain

Yankees 2, Braves 1

I looked, there wasn't much worht mentioning here.

Richmond 2, Toledo 3

• B. Lillibridge 1-4 3B, K
• S. Thorman 2-4 HR(19), K
• B. Canizares 3-4 RBI
• A. Lerew 4.2 5H 3R 5BB 1K

Lerew wasn't very good as he attempts to come back from elbow surgery. A 5-1 BB/K ratio can never bode well. I don't know at this point if we can truly expect anything from him in the future. I wouldn't be surprised to see Canizares get a look in September simply because we have very little offensively at 1B. I'm not at all convinced he is the answer though.

Mobile 0, Mississippi 1 - Game 1 (7 Innings)

• K . Kaaihue 1-2 3B, BB
• J. Schafer 0-1 2BB, K
• T. Redmond 5.1IP 4H 0R 3BB 6K

Redmond continues to impress and raises his season record to 13-5. The idea of anyone allowing Kala Kaaihue to leg out a triple is mind boggling.

Mobile 4, Mississippi 2

• J. Schafer 1-2 3B
• G. Creek 2-3 2 RBI, K
• T. Hanson 5IP 6H 4R 4BB 6K

A little bit of an off night for Tommy Hanson. Only one of the runs he allowed was earned, but he did give allow 10 base runners in 5 innings which is rare for him. Schafer continues to put together a huge August with an OPS around 1.130 for the month. Sure his walk rate is down, but his K rate isn't really up from other months and he is hitting the crap out of the ball. Maybe he is just being more aggressive at the plate. I'd rather have him hitting doubles and triples than walking twice a game.

Wilmington @ Myrtle Beach - Rained Out

Jason Heyward's rise to Atlanta is delayed one more day.

Rome @ Columbus - Rained Out

Freddie Freeman will get lonely over the next week.

Danville 5, Burlington 4 (10 Innings)

• C. Fuller 2-4 2B, RBI, BB
• J. Gilmore 3-4 HR(4), 2 RBI, BB

Jon Gilmore is batting nearly .400 this month and has 2 of his 4 homers. I would like to see him get another chance at Rome, but I fear it is too late now to make any difference.

Phillies 5, Braves 6 - Game 1

Braves 7, Phillies 8 - Game 2

Sorry I am really tired.

Richmond 6, Toledo 0

• J. Anderson 3-5 2 RBI
• B. Lillibridge 1-4 2B, 2 RBI, BB, K
• J. Phillips 3-4 2B, K

Richmond used four pitchers in this shutout. I'm not really sure why, but hey, it worked right? And what kind of offense have they been getting from their catchers lately? Phillips is hitting .382 in his last ten games and Corky Miller is hitting .400 with 4 HRS!!!!! (In his last 10 that is). Corky Miller is pretty much the worst hitter in baseball history so this really bottles the mind (you know, where something is so crazy it just takes your mind and puts it in a bottle...).

Mobile @ Mississippi (Both games Postponed due to Rain)

Wilmington 1, Myrtle Beach 4

• T. Flowers 2-4 2B, RBI, 2 K
• E. Mejia 2-4 2B, 2 RBI
• B. Hicks 1-4 HR(19), K
• K. Cofield 6IP 1H 0R 0BB 4K

Myrtle Beach continues to dominate their competition. I wonder if you could have moved this team up a level and they still could have competed? I doubt it, AA is a big jump, but who knows. On the season they are 85-48 which is a .639 winning percentage. That would be 103 wins over 162 game season. Cofield is another guy who has sneaked around and put together a pretty good season. He had a horrible July but so far in August his ERA is .57. Last I checked that was pretty damn good. Granted he hasn't been pitching but 3 and 4 innings a start this month, but tonight showed how good he has been.

Rome 2, Savannah 1 - Game 1

• J. Heyward 0-2 BB
• F. Freeman 1-3 2B
• R. Sullivan 6IP 4H 1R 0BB 3K

Since being promoted to Rome Sullivan has pitched better each time out. We drafted hims out of SCAD is Savannah and was pretty dominant in the Appy league. I don't really know much about him but I just have a good feeling about a guy who can pitch dominantly against competition in whatever college league SCAD is in and then come to Low A and still be better than most hitters.

Rome 1, Savannah 4

• J. Heyward 1-4 RBI, 2 K
• F. Freeman 0-3 2 K
• J. Locke 5IP 5H 2R 1BB 5K

Jeff Locke is still my favorite pitching prospect. Thats all.

Danville 4, Burlington 0

• L.V. Ware 1-4 3B, RBI, K
• C. Shehan 1-4 3B, RBI
• S. Kent 6IP 2H 0R 0BB 5K

Steve Kent really has all kinds of upside, mostly because he is young and doesn't have a ton of baseball experience coming from Australia and his body could stand to fill out a little bit more. I know the Braves were excited when they signed him and I, for one, can't wait to see what he can do against tougher competition.

GCL Braves - Off

Baseball America's Best Tools

I thought someone might have posted this by now, but I guess not. Anyways, BA posted their best tools (as voted for by league managers) and some lower level Braves got a lot of mention.

Jason Heyward was voted the best batting prospect as well as the most exciting player in the Sally League. This isn't really surprising as it looks like Heyward is being mentioned among the top 5-10 prospects in the game lately. I don't know if he merits that much attention yet, but I'm probably just saying that for fear of him becoming crappy when everyone finds out about him.

Hitters had a rough time getting any awards in the Carolina League because the Orioles decided keeping Matt Wieters there for most of the year was smart. Still, several Pelicans players came away with some awards. Tommy Hanson was voted the leagues best pitcher but wasn't awarded any other of the pitchers awards. Hanson is just good all around.

Brandon Hicks, Travis Jones and Gorkys Hernandez all won the best defense at their respective positions and Hernandez was also voted best OF arm and most exciting player in the league, which honestly surprised me a bit, mostly because of his off second half and his injuries. Someone with that kind of skill package must be pretty exciting. He comes off like an OF version of Furcal.

At Mississippi Luis Valdez came away with the best reliever and Van Pope got his customary best defensive 3B. In Richmond Charlie Morton was the best pitching prospect and Dave Brundage was voted the best manager prospect in the league. Another in the Bobby Cox lineage?

Richmond 8, Columbus 4

• J. Anderson 0-4 BB, K
• B. Lillibridge 3-4 2B, 3 RBI, BB, CS(7)
  
• C. Miller 4-5 HR(3)

Well the big news is Josh Anderson's hit streak is over. He got on base one time via an intentional walk but couldn't get one through the infield otherwise. Kinda funny when everyone else was hitting. But hey, thats how this game goes sometimes.

Mississippi 8, Carolina 2

• M. Young 2-4 BB, SB(26)
  
• J. Schafer 2-4 3B, HR(10), 3 RBI, BB, 2 K
• Q. Davis 3-4 HR(5), 2 RBI
• K. Medlen 6IP 3H 0R 1BB 10K

So those 10 hour a day workouts must really be helping Schafer out at this point. He has 10 XBH in his last 10 games during which time he is hitting .410. He is still having a great August but the odd thing with his numbers is his plate discipline has fallen off some this month compared to earlier in the year. Now granted if he holds onto a 1.000 OPS I could give two craps about how much he walks. Kris Medlen had probably his best outing as a starter.  As a starter he has a 3.23 ERA and is striking out nearly a man an inning. Do you want to see him in Atlanta next season?

Myrtle Beach 0, Winston-Salem 1 (11 Innings)

• E. Campbell 1-4 2B, BB, K
• J. Lyman 4IP 1H 0R 0BB 6K

Ryne Reynoso started this game and only pitched 2 scoreless innings for whatever reason and was pulled in favor of Jeff Lyman who through well in 4 innings. Maybe that is the key to get him pitching well. Start someone else and then bring him in. That way he doesn't really think he is a starter.

Rome @ Savannah (Double Header Rained out)

Elizabethton 12, Danville 3

• J. Gilmore 1-4
• C. Shehan 3-3 3B
• Mike Ekerson 2-4 2B, RBI, 2 K

The Braves and the Twins (Elizabethton's parent team) are the two most high school oriented teams in baseball when it comes to bringing in talent. I think it is probably a little less pronounced now than it was a few years ago, but about the time Moneyball came out you had Oakland and Boston on the 'polished college player' end of the spectrum and the Braves and Twins were way on the other end doing their high school thing. The funny thing about it too is Danville and Elizabethton always have very strong teams (I know a lot of the high school players go to the GCL, but Danville and Eliz. always have very young teams).

Braves @ Indians (Double Header Postponed Due to Rain)

Yay! Today is my birthday! (Friday that is)

Richmond 1, Columbus 6

• J. Anderson 2-4 2B, RBI, CS(7)
• D. Hernandez 2-4
  
• M. Acosta 1IP 1H 0R 0BB 0K

Apparently in the midst of this hitting streak Josh Anderson has taken hits away from all the other R-Braves. How sad. The streak is up to 26 games now and if you were wondering the international league record is 44 games set last season I believe. I want to say that the minor league hitting streak record is 61 games set by Joe Dimaggio. (Yep he holds the record for most consecutive games with a hit in the minors and majors).

Mississippi 3, Carolina 9 (Game 1 Suspended from yesterday)

• J. Schafer 1-4 2 K
  
• J. Guzman 1-4 2B, RBI

Really there wasn't a whole lot going on here. In an oddity of stats, Kris Medlen got the loss in the game after facing only one batter. He faced him yesterday and then the game was suspended. Deunte Heath allowed the runner to score and Carolina led the rest of the way giving Medlen the loss. How dumb.

Mississippi 9, Carolina 3 (Game 2 - 7 Innings)

• J. Schafer 1-4 RBI, K
• V. Pope 1-3 RBI, BB, K
• Q. Davis 2-4 2 RBI
• S. Marek 1IP 0H 0R 0BB 3K

You always like to see your late inning relievers striking out the side. Schafer has strung together a nice little 10 game hitting streak to get his stats back into the respectable territory. I wonder was the post season publications will say about him? Will they recognize his late season surge?

Myrtle Beach 2, Winston-Salem 3

• G. Hernandez 2-4 2 2B, 2 K
• C. Rohrbough 6.2IP 7H 3R 1BB 6K

Rohrbough pitched one of his better outings of the year and still got the loss as the offensive juggernaut that is the Pelicans couldn't get things going. Also this is the first time in a long time I remember putting Gorkys Hernandez name on this list. He still isn't even 21 so I'm not worried, but he has fallen off a lot since earlier in the season.

Rome @ Savannah - Postponed due to wet grounds

Elizabethton 1, Danville 4

• J. Campusano 2-4 2B, 2 RBI
• J. Gilmore 1-4 K
• C. Fuller 3-4 2 2B
• J. Thompson 2.2IP 4H 1R 1BB 4K

Highly touted draft pick Jacob Thompson makes his second appearance on the mound for Danville and does quite well. Campusano and Fuller continue to be two of the more consistent hitters on this team and some of the only ones hitting for any real power (most of the power at this level is gap power, don't think I mean homers).

Braves @ Indians - Postponed due to wet grounds

Richmond 5, Columbus 8

• J. Anderson 2-5 2B, K
• B. Canizares 2-3 2B, 2 BB
• C. Miller 3-3 2B, HR(2), BB

Wow, I think Corky Miller equaled his season hit total in Atlanta in one game with Richmond. The big story is that Josh Anderson continued his his hit streak, smacking a single in the first inning to extend it to 25 games (I think) now. Still impressive. Brent Lillibridge sucks.

Mississippi 2, Carolina 7

• M. Young 2-4 3B
• K. Kaaihue 4-4 2B, RBI
• J. Schafer 1-4

Kala Kaaihue is having a better season than Jordan Schafer. Matt Young is yet another player who has been scorching hot recently. He has 12 hits in his last 5 games. He has been prone this season to outbursts like this.

Myrtle Beach 2, Wilmington 1

• B. Hicks 2-2 HR(18), 2 RBI, K
  

Eh I don't really feel like anyone else deserves mentioning here. Hicks hit a 2-Run homer in the top of the 9th while trailing 1-0. Clutch hit baby!

Rome - Off

Bristol 11, Danville 3

• J. Gilmore 1-4
• G. Rodriguez 1-4 2B, RBI, 2 K

Casey Hodges got roughed up in his second straight start after dominating the league in his first 10. Steven Kent also didn't fair well in this one, though he still was striking guys out.

Toledo 0, Richmond 3

• J. Anderson 1-3 2B, BB
• B. Jones 3-4 2 HR(9), 3 RBI
• J. Parr 6IP 2H 0R 2BB 5K

Put Brandon Jones on that list of players having a good August. He has 5 of his 9 homers in this month and is sporting a 1.022 OPS on the month. Josh Anderson ties the International League's longest hit streak this season (I could have sworn I read it was 21 games) at 24 games. James Parr has been remarkably good this season and I think he will find his way onto the 40 man roster in the near future.

Mississippi 12, Carolina 3

• M. Young 3-5 RBI, BB, SB (25)
• R. Gorecki 4-5 2 2B, 2 RBI, K
• J. Schafer 3-5 2 HR(9), 3 RBI, 2 K
• T. Redmond 6IP 6H 3R 2BB 7K

Lots of offense in this game. Schafer is having a great August as we all know and also has 5 of his 9 homers in this month. He is making a late season push and might just force the Braves to send him to AAA to start next year. I'm sure we will see him in training camp. Todd Redmond also got his 12th win of the season. Brandon Hicks was also sent back to Myrtle Beach before after last night's game when Paul Bennett was activated from the DL.

Myrtle Beach 5, Wilmington 3

• T. Flowers 1-3 2B, RBI, K
• E. Mejia 2-4 2 HR(20), 3 RBI
• C. Rivas 6IP 1H 0R 1BB 6K

Mejia is working on his 70 XBH on the seaso. I don't know anything about Carlos Rivas but a 6 inning 1 hitter always catches my eye. Hicks also played tonight with a double in 4 ABs.

Lake County 6, Rome 9

• J. Heyward 1-3 BB
• F. Freeman 2-3 BB, K
• C. Johnson 2-4 3B, HR(23), 4 RBI, K
• C. Kimbrel 1IP 2H 1R 0BB 0K

Heyward has a modest 6 game hitting streak going. Craig Kimbrel allowed his first run in Rome and only his second earned run since turning pro. I guess we should just write this kid off. Cody Johnson is slugging .681 this month and has 7 of his homers. These hitters are loving the hot weather aren't they?

Bristol 3, Danville 7

• L.V. Ware 2-5 K, SB(10)
• J. Campusano 4-5 SB(4)
• J. Gilmore 2-5 2 RBI, K
• C. Shehan 2-3 2 2B, 2 RBI
• D. Francis 6IP 9H 3R 1BB 6K

A pretty solid game from the Appy Braves. Jon Gilmore keeps his average right at .333 for the season. Shehan is flashing some of his hitting potential. I'm still calling him my sleeper bat in this draft. The guy destroyed the college ranks this season. And Francis continues his strong work, though 6Ks is a little too 'normal'. I was really hoping to see him K like 20 guys in a game.

Tiger 6, Braves 9

• C. Culver 2-4 HR(2), 3 RBI, BB
• C. Maddox 3-5 2 2B, 2 RBI
• J. Hanson 1-2 2 BB
• D. Delgado 5IP 6H 4R 1BB 4K

Delgado had his worst start of the season but the GCL team capped a rare night where all of the minor league teams won their games. Good work!

Toledo 6, Richmond 5

• J. Anderson 1-4 3B, RBI, 
• B. Jones 2-4 2B, HR(6), K
• J. Perry 3-4 2B, HR(8), K

Josh Anderson's streak is now up to 22 games and is the longest in the IL this season. He will most definitely get the September call up as an audition for next season. Brandon Jones may have regained a little of his power stroke this month as he has half of his season's 6 homers in August. He'd be good in LF for us next year if he can reproduce his numbers from last season.

Mississippi - Off

Reports are saying that everyone is tired of playing against Tommy Hanson and they decided to end the season early.

Potomac 3, Myrtle Beach 0

• G. Hernandez 2-4

This was a rare shut out of the offensive powerhouse that is the Myrtle Beach Pelicans. In fact it is only their 4th of the season (2 in the past 5 games though).

Lake County 5, Rome 1

• J. Heyward 1-3 2B
• F. Freeman 1-4 K
  
• A. Coe 3-4 2B, K

I don't have much to say about this game.

Danville - OFF

GCL Braves -OFF