Atlanta Braves Minor League Review: Mississippi Braves

Atlanta Braves Minor League Review: Mississippi Braves

Mississippi had a number of hitters come through the organization this year and even more pitchers, many of whom ended up in Gwinnett. Because of the turnover, the Mississippi lists will be a touch shorter.

Catchers/Infielders

Levi Hyams was a 19th round selection in 2012 out of the University of Georgia, and while his only real major league future is as a utility guy as he doesn’t really have the glove or bat to profile at any one spot, he did have a solid season for Mississippi at the plate in 2015. The 25 year-old started the season in Carolina, but he actually hit better at Mississippi. His overall line was .257/.351/.373, but in Mississippi that slash line was .274/.375/.390. He primarily played second base for Mississippi, but he did put in at least one game at 4 other positions, and his solid on-base skills plus his defensive versatility could carry him to a major league utility role.

Emerson Landoni has been a slow riser through the minor league system since the Braves signed him after being released by the Yankees organization after the 2011 season. After bouncing between high-A and AA since his acquisition, Landoni stuck at the AA level all season and filled a top-of-the-order slot for the Braves for most of the season while playing a very solid middle infield (84 games at shortstop and 24 games at second). Landoni’s line on the season was .297/.339/.380, and with his contact skills and ability to ably play both middle infield positions, the 26 year-old could get a chance to be a bench infielder for 2016, but that is likely his role if he does make the major leagues.

Chris O’Dowd was acquired from the Rockies in the David Hale trade over the offseason, and to start the season, the Braves thought they may have found a gem as O’Dowd hit .304/.429/.468 in his first 26 games. His defense was rough enough at catcher that the M-Braves did try him in the outfield for a few games to keep his bat in the lineup. Then the hammer dropped as O’Dowd was suspended for PED use, ending his season. It leaves a huge question mark over O’Dowd’s 2015 production, but even 80% of that production would rocket O’Dowd toward the majors as one of the better offensive catchers as long as he could handle things behind the plate. He’ll be back at Mississippi most likely in 2016 to start, and let’s hope we see no difference in his production at the plate.

While his stats may not suggest he belongs on this list, Rio Ruiz was one of the biggest name prospects for the Braves coming into the season. His overall season line looks rough, and there’s no hiding from that – .233/.333/.324. However, Ruiz turned 21 in late May this year, so he was quite young for the level. Ruiz did show good eye, even when he was struggling to make contact with a 63/94 BB/K ratio on the year. What is very, very encouraging was Ruiz’s end of the season. From August 1 until the end of the season, effectively the last 5 weeks of the season, Ruiz hit .285/.350/.472 with a normal BABIP, so it wasn’t a “luck-driven” hot streak. Those sorts of numbers from a 21 year-old at AA would be incredibly elite. We’ll see where the Braves put him in 2016. I thought AA was a bit aggressive in 2015, but he did eventually respond to the jump in level at a young age, so he could be a candidate to return to Mississippi to build on the end of 2015 or to go to Gwinnett to get him a step closer to the majors.

Next: Mississippi Outfielders