Atlanta Braves Minor League Monday, August 3

Mar 5, 2014; Clearwater, FL, USA; Atlanta Braves left fielder Joey Terdoslavich (25) grounds out with the bases loaded in the fourth inning and drives in a run against the Philadelphia Phillies at Brighthouse Networks Field. Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports

Atlanta Braves Minor League Monday

To start the week, we’ll review the transactions of the last week:
Promoted to Atlanta: P Jake Brigham, P Mark Marksberry, P Mike Foltynewicz
Assigned to Gwinnett: 3B Hector Olivera
Demoted to Gwinnett: P David Carpenter, P Ryan Kelly
Promoted to Gwinnett: IF Luis Mateo, P Hunter Cervenka, P Mitch Lambson, P Victor Mateo
Assigned to Mississippi: P Zack Bird, P Josh Outman
Activated from DL to Mississippi: IF Emerson Landoni, P Ryne Harper, P Jorge Reyes
Promoted to Danville: 3B Austin Riley, P Mike Soroka
Demoted to GCL: P Franklin Azuaje
Released: Mississippi P Mark Lamm

Highlight Player of the Week:

Third baseman Austin Riley was promoted during the week to Danville from the GCL. Riley was the 41st pick this year in the June draft, selected with a competitive balance selection that the Atlanta Braves acquired in a trade. Riley’s a southern boy, hailing from DeSoto Central high school in Southaven, Mississippi. Riley was the prototypical “bad body” in scouting evaluations. He’s listed as 6’2, 220 pounds, and I’d probably put that at closer to 6’0 1/2″ and 240ish from my first views of him.

Riley had a lot of intrigue, but many teams were scared off for two reasons – first, his body style, second, his indecision whether to commit to hitting or pitching. The Braves drafted Riley to hit, and after a slow start in GCL, he’s exploded with the bat. He was promoted to Danville for the weekend, and his bat has not slowed down at all. His defense is average at best at third base (though Sunday’s defensive display may bring even “average” into question), but he absolutely has the arm to play in an outfield spot if he needs to move off of third base long-term, but I would bet that the Braves give him every chance at third before moving him.

Let’s look at the weekend’s games!

Next: Gwinnett Braves Report

Mississippi Braves (53-51)

Thursday

Mississippi fell in a pitcher’s duel on Thursday 3-2 to Birmingham. Stephen Janas got the start for the Braves and went 6 innings, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 9 hits and 2 walks while striking out 2. The M-Braves offense was held very quiet with no hitter reaching base twice on the day. Matt Lipka and David Rohm each had doubles on the day.

Friday

Birmingham made a strong push in the 9th inning, but Kyle Kinman was able to close the door as Mississippi won Friday 4-3. Recent acquisition John Gant won his first start with Mississippi, throwing 5 2/3 innings, allowing 1 run on 2 hits and 2 walks, striking out 7. Kevin Ahrens had a solid offensive day, collecting 2 hits, including a double, while also adding a stolen base. David Rohm also had two hits and a double. Rio Ruiz had a single and a walk. KD Kang also had a double, and Eric Garcia added a stolen base.

Saturday

Birmingham rode a 7-run 2nd inning to defeat Mississippi 7-3. Lucas Sims got the start and took the brunt of the Birmingham offensive explosion in that 2nd inning. Sims only threw 2 innings, allowing 7 runs on 8 hits and 2 walks while striking out 4. David Rohm had two singles and stole his 4th base of the season. Rio Ruiz and Eric Garcia each had two walks. Steve Rodriguez and Matt Kennelly each had a single and a walk. Matt Lipka added his 11th double.

Sunday

Mississippi rode a 4-run 7th inning to defeat Montgomery 5-3. Greg Ross picked up his 5th win, throwing 7 innings, allowing 3 runs (1 earned) on 6 hits, striking out 6. Emerson Landoni had 3 hits, including a double. Matt Kennelly had 2 singles. Rio Ruiz, Sean Godfrey, and Braeden Schlehuber each had a hit and a walk. Schlehuber had a triple.

Leaders

BA: KD Kang .293
OBP: KD Kang .360
SLG: KD Kang .417
HR: Three with 4
SB: Matt Lipka 14

W: Three with 6
SV: Tyler Jones 11
SO: Greg Ross 60
ERA: Mitch Lambson 0.00
WHIP: Mitch Lambson 0.67

Next: Carolina Mudcats Report

Carolina Mudcats (55-52)

Thursday

Carolina pulled back to .500 with a win over Frederick on Thursday, 5-2. Seth Webster earned his 6th win of the season, going 6 2/3 innings, allowing 2 runs on 7 hits while striking out 7. Justin Jackson went the last 2 1/3 innings perfect while striking out 3 to earn his second save. Joseph Odom reached base three times with a double, a single, and a walk on the day. Jacob Schrader and Connor Lien each had two hits, including a double. Reed Harper had two singles.

Friday

Carolina’s offense sprayed 12 hits in defeating Wilmington 4-1 on Friday. Recent acquisition Rob Whalen had a very good night for the Mudcats as the starting pitcher on the evening. He threw 7 innings, allowing 1 run on 3 hits and a walk, striking out 6. His only real damage was a 2nd inning solo home run by Ryan O’Hearn. Jacob Schrader had a double, a single, and a walk. Keith Curcio had two hits, including a double. Connor Lien and Reed Harper each had two singles.

Saturday

The Mudcats had a solid win on Saturday, defeating Wilmington 3-1. Brandon Barker picked up his 6th win, going 6 innings, allowing 1 run on 4 hits and 3 walks while striking out 4. Johan Camargo was the only Carolina hitter on base twice, hitting a single and walking once. Dustin Peterson added his 11th double of the season and drove in 2 runs.

Sunday

Sunday’s game was a fun watch as we got to see the Andrew Thurman who was there before the bus crash as Carolina won 6-0. Thurman went 7 innings, allowing only a single hit while striking out 7. Thurman was up as high as 95 on the ballpark reading (the TV showed the same pitch as 96), which is velocity he simply hasn’t had since his injuries from the crash. His secondary stuff was completely on point and when that’s doing well, that 91-93 that Thurman sits on looks so much faster. Jacob Schrader had 3 hits, including a double. Joey Meneses and Jose Briceno each had a double, a single, and a walk. Keith Curcio had two singles and stole his 12th base at Carolina.

Leaders

BA: Connor Lien .292
OBP: Connor Lien .345
SLG: Jacob Schrader .470
HR: Jacob Schrader 11
SB: Connor Lien 27

W: Seth Webster, Brandon Barker 6
SV: Richie Tate 4
SO: Blair Walters 62
ERA: Brad Roney 0.00
WHIP: Brad Roney 1.00

Next: Rome Braves Report

Rome Braves (45-60)

Thursday

Augusta scored 2 runs in the top of the 9th inning to defeat Rome 5-3 on Thursday. Zach Quintana got the start for Rome, throwing 6 innings, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3. Bryan De La Rosa had 3 hits, including a double. Stephen Gaylor had a triple, single, and a walk. Omar Obregon added two hits, including a double.

Friday

An exciting 9th inning fell just short as Rome fell to Augusta 5-3. The score was 2-1 Augusta entering the 9th inning, and Rome finished the game in the midst of a last inning push. Oriel Caicedo got the start and threw 5 innings, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 6 hits and 3 walks while striking out 1. Matt Tellor had two singles and a walk. Ozhaino Albies walked 3 times on the day. Omar Obregon had two singles. Joseph Daris picked up a single and a walk, while Stephen Gaylor had two walks. Jordan Edgerton stole his 7th base of the season.

Saturday

Rome picked up runs in the first two innings of the game and held on to win over Augusta 4-1. Touki Toussaint had a solid, if somewhat uncontrolled, start. He threw 6 innings, allowing 1 run on 2 hits and 5 walks, striking out 4. Rome’s defense picked up Jenkins after his walks, turning 3 double plays, interestingly each after a walk by Toussaint. Omar Obregon had 3 singles on the day. Wigberto Nevarez and Matt Tellor each had two hits, including a double. Ozhaino Albies had two singles.

Sunday

Rome won a pitching duel on Sunday, 2-0 over Augusta. Sean Furney picked up his 6th win, going 8 innings, allowing 6 hits and striking out 4. Joseph Daris was the only Brave to get on base multiple times with a double, a single, and a walk, along with stealing his 20th base of the season. Ozhaino Albies and Jordan Edgerton each had a double, and Tanner Murphy hit his 4th home run. Omar Obregon stole his 27th base of the season.

Leaders

BA: Ozhaino Albies .310
OBP: Braxton Davidson .389
SLG: Joseph Daris .416
HR: Braxton Davidson 7
SB: Ozhaino Albies 29

W: Sean Furney 6
SV: Zach Quintana, Dustin Emmons 3
SO: Zach Quintana 49
ERA: Taylor Lewis 0.00
WHIP: Sean Furney 1.11

Next: Danville Braves Report

Danville Braves (18-20)

Thursday

They started the game slow, but Burlington’s offense showed up starting in the 4th inning and just kept piling on, leading to a 10-4 win over Danville on Thursday. Ryan Clark got the start for Danville and went 4 innings, allowing 3 runs on 5 hits and a walk, striking out 3. Luke Dykstra led the Danville offensive attack with two doubles. Carlos Castro had a triple and a walk. Kurt Hoekstra had a single and a walk, while Jake Lanning had two singles.

Friday

Danville scored a late run to force extra innings, but eventually fell in 13 innings to Bristol, 4-2. Patrick Weigel got the start and pitched very well, throwing 4 scoreless innings, allowing 4 hits and striking out 3. Austin Riley had a solid debut in Danville with 2 hits, including a triple. Leudys Baez had 3 hits, including a double, and stole his 5th base of the season. Kelvin Estevez had two singles, while Alejandro Flores added 2 walks. Luke Dykstra had his 9th double of the season.

Saturday

Danville’s offense showed up big, defeating Bristol on Saturday 11-4. Mike Soroka had a tremendous first start for Danville, throwing 4 hitless, scoreless innings while walking 2 and striking out 6. Kurt Hoekstra had 3 hits, including a triple, 2 walks, and his 4th stolen base of the season. Carlos Castro had 4 hits, including a double. Leudys Baez had 3 hits, including a double. Austin Riley added two doubles. Jeff Campbell had two hits, including a double. Ray-Patrick Didder had a single and a walk while stealing his 7th base.

Sunday

After getting down early, Danville made a good comeback, but fell short on Sunday against Bristol, losing 6-4. Trevor Belicek got the start, going 4 innings, allowing 3 unearned runs on 4 hits while striking out 7. Rather than his bat, it was his glove that got Austin Riley headlines on the evening as Riley committed 4 errors on the day as part of 7 Danville errors on the day. Leudys Baez had 3 hits, including a double. Luke Dykstra had 3 hits and stole his 2nd base of the season. Carlos Castro had two hits, including a double. Riley had a single and a walk. Kurt Hoekstra added his 5th steal of the season.

Leaders

BA: Carlos Castro .364
OBP: Austin Riley .438
SLG: Austin Riley .643
HR: Leudys Baez 4
SB: Ray-Patrick Didder 7

W: Ryan Clark 3
SV: Chase Johnson-Mullins 4
SO: Patrick Weigel 30
ERA: Mike Soroka 0.00
WHIP: Mike Soroka 0.00

Next: GCL Braves Report

GCL Braves (14-19)

Thursday

The Braves offense put a hurting on the Blue Jays Thursday, winning 10-2. Gilbert Suarez got the start for the Braves, and he was tremendous, going 4 scoreless innings, allowing only a hit and a walk while striking out 7. Austin Riley had his 7th home run of the season as part of two hits. Ronald Acuna and Juan Yepez each had two hits, including a double. Alejandro Salazar had two singles. Jonathan Morales and Ronny Guillermo each had a single and a walk.

Friday

The Friday game against the Yankees1 team was postponed due to rain.

Saturday

A planned double-header was rained out in the 7th inning after the first game, but based on that game, the Braves were likely okay with that. In that first game Saturday, the Yankees1 team scored in every inning, defeating the Braves 11-5. Jaret Hellinger got the start and went 2 innings, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits and a walk, striking out 3. Ronald Acuna had a double, a single, and a stolen base. Bradley Keller had two singles. Franklin Azuaje had two walks. Juan Yepez had his 3rd stolen base of the year.

Sunday

The Braves had the day off.

Leaders

BA: Bradley Keller .322
OBP: Juan Yepez .402
SLG: Ronald Acuna .453
HR: Isranel Wilson 4
SB: Ronald Acuna 7

W: Evertz Orozco 3
SV: Three with 1
SO: Jhon Martinez 23
ERA: Jhon Martinez 2.36
WHIP: Jhon Martinez 0.90

Next: DSL Braves Report

DSL Braves (26-28)

Thursday

The Braves defeated the Red Sox2 team 6-3 on Thursday. Frank Gil got the start, throwing 3 innings, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 3 hits, striking out 1. William Contreras had a double, single, and a walk. Sander Boeldak had two singles and a walk. Raysheandall Michel had three singles. Luis Alonso had two hits, including a double.

Friday

The Braves picked up a win over Rangers2 on Friday, 3-2. Javier Sanchez got the start and threw 3 innings, allowing only one home run as his only hit while striking out 3. Sander Boeldak had two singles and a walk while stealing his 7th base on the season. Luis Mejia, Anthony Concepcion, and William Contreras each had a single and a walk. Contreras also stole his second base of the year.

Saturday

The Braves had a huge offensive game on Saturday, defeating the Rangers2 team 19-7. Luis Mora started the game and went 3 innings, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits and a walk. Sander Boeldak had 4 hits, including his first home run of the season and stole his 8th base of the year. Grendis Ferrer had three hits, including a double. Randy Ventura had a double, a single, a walk, and stole 2 bases to bring his season total to 43. Luis Mejia had 2 singles and a walk. Terrence Josephina and Jeremy Fernandez had 2 hits, including a double. Alex Aquino and Luis Alonso each had two singles, and Aquino stole his 7th base. Anthony Concepcion rounded out the offense with a single and a walk as each Brave was on base at least twice.

Sunday

The Braves had Sunday off.

Leaders

BA: William Contreras .333
OBP: Randy Ventura .426
SLG: William Contreras .405
HR: Anthony Concepcion 3
SB: Randy Ventura 43

W: Carlos Lopez 4
SV: Ramon Taveras 4
SO: Ali Pantoja 33
ERA: Jason Laguna 2.22
WHIP: Ramon Taveras 0.88

Next: Braves Prevent Sweep