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SL Mississippi Braves

Saturday, May 8 vs. Pensacola Blue Wahoos: 6:05 PM: Trustmark Park

May 8, 2021 - Southern League (SL)
Mississippi Braves News Release


Mississippi Braves (0-4) vs. Pensacola Blue Wahoos (4-0)

Starting Pitchers: RHP Victor Vodnik (0-0, --) vs. RHP Jason Alexander (0-0,--)

Radio: 103.9 FM WYAB and on ONLINE HERE

Gameday Stats: LINK

TV: MiLB.TV

Today's Promotions:

Post-Game Fireworks - Stay after the game and enjoy the first Post-Game Fireworks Show of the season.

Magnet Schedule Giveaway - Early arriving fans will receive a 2021 Mississippi Braves Magnet Schedule presented by The Pizza Shack.

City of Pearl Night - Celebrating the citizens and businesses of Pearl.

Today's Roster Moves: N/A

TODAY'S GAME: The M-Braves continue the opening series of the 2021 season tonight at Trustmark Park, with game five of the six-game set against Pensacola.

- Mississippi is still in search of their first win of 2021, trailing Pensacola by four games in the South Division of the Double-A South. The M-Braves are the lone team in the league without a win.

- The M-Braves bullpen is off to a solid start in 2021, posting a 1.59 ERA (3ER/17.0IP) with 17 walks and 24 strikeouts. The bullpen is holding the Wahoos to a .111 batting average.

- Despite the 0-4 start, Mississippi has the second-best ERA as a pitching staff, to Pensacola, in the Double-A South at 3.94. The pitching staff is third in strikeouts with 41, but last in walks with 29.

MILLER TIME: INF Jalen Miller hit his 37th career home run on Opening Night, May 5th, in the sixth inning, and first as a member of the Atlanta Braves organization. His homer traveled 404 feet to left field. Miller, an Atlanta native, attended Riverwood International Charter School in Sandy Springs, Ga, which is just 3.9 miles from Truist Park. His family had season tickets at Turner Field.

WELCOME BACK MATT: 27-year-old RHP Matt Withrow made his first appearance as an M-Brave in 1,440 days, May 26, 2017, on Opening Night, May 5th. Withrow struck out five over 2.0 innings.

FIRST ROUND PICKS AND PROSPECTS: The squad features both of Atlanta's first-round selections from the 2019 draft in catcher Shea Langeliers (#9) and shortstop Braden Shewmake (#21). They represent the third and fourth-ranked prospects in the organization, according to MLB.com and Langeliers is #64 on the MLB.com Top 100 and sixth-ranked catching prospect in baseball.

- Overall, the M-Braves feature seven of the Braves' Top 30 prospects. After Langeliers and Shewmake, OF Trey Harris (#14), RHP Victor Vodnik (#15), INF Greyson Jenista (#19), INF C.J. Alexander (#20) and OF Justin Dean (#26) are among the Top 30.

- Returning M-Braves pitchers include RHP Josh Graham, RHP Kurt Hoekstra, RHP Nolan Kingham, RHP Sean McLaughlin, RHP Brandon White and RHP Matt Withrow.

BRAND NEW COACHING STAFF: The 17 newcomers on the 28-man roster join an entirely new coaching staff, all having major league experience. The M-Braves are led by manager Wyatt Toregas and is joined by hitting coach Einar Diaz, pitching coach Dan Meyer and coach Devon Travis.

- Toregas, 38, is a former catcher who played in 22 major-league games across two seasons with Cleveland (2009) and Pittsburgh (2011). After spending the previous five minor-league seasons managing in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, the upcoming campaign will be his first with the Braves, including most recently with High-A Bradenton in 2019. in fives seasons, Toregas holds a 293-263 (.527) record as a skipper entering the 2021 season.

150 MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUTS: Despite no season in 2020, the M-Braves saw their 150th player make their major league debut. Starting in 2005, the 150 include 32 All-Star Game appearances, 11 Silver Sluggers, 12 Gold Gloves, 11 World Series champs, two Rookies of the Year, and one MVP.

- In 2020, William Contreras, Joe Odom (SEA), Ricardo Sanchez (STL), Cristian Pache, Ian Anderson, Patrick Weigel, Bruce Zimmermann and Tucker Davidson. The first was Brian McCann back in June, 2005.

WELCOME TO THE DOUBLE-A SOUTH: In MLB's new structure for the 2021 season, the M-Braves will be part of the Double-A South. The eight-team circuit consists of eight former members of the Southern League, split into two divisions. Mississippi will be in the South Division along with the Biloxi Shuckers (Milwaukee Brewers), Montgomery Biscuits (Tampa Bay Rays), and Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Miami Marlins). The North Division will consist of the Birmingham Barons (Chicago White Sox), Chattanooga Lookouts (Cincinnati Reds), Rocket City Trash Pandas (LA Angels), and Tennessee Smokies (Chicago Cubs).

- The M-Braves will play the South Division in 80 of the 120 games this season. In a shedule quirk, the M-Braves will not play the new Rocket City Trash Pandas this season. The clubs were scheduled to meet during the first series of the 2020 season.

2019 SEASON IN REVIEW: The Mississippi Braves concluded their 15th anniversary season in Central Mississippi with a 64-75 overall record, finishing fourth in the Southern League South Division. While the club missed out on the postseason for the third-straight season, the 2019 campaign saw the 3 millionth fan enter Trustmark Park, 1,000th franchise win, third no-hitter in club history, record three postseason All-Stars and the first Southern League Most Valuable Player.

- Despite finishing 11-games below .500, the M-Braves only had a -8 run differential this season (491-483). The club went 10-13 in April, 14-15 in May, 15-13 in June, 14-14 in July, 9-20 in August and was the only Southern League team to go 2-0 in September. The M-Braves were 33-37 at Trustmark Park, 31-38 on the road, 19-27 in one-run games, 13-15 in day games, 51-60 in night games, 16-15 in shutout games and 7-7 in extra-inning games.

- OF Drew Waters was named the league's Most Valuable Player after leading the Southern League in several offensive categories, despite a promotion to Triple-A Gwinnett on Aug. 5. In 108 M-Braves games, the 20-year-old finished the season by leading the league in batting average (.319), hits (134), doubles (35), triples (9) and extra-base hits (49). He finished among the top 10 in slugging (2nd, .481), OPS (2nd, .847), total bases (3rd, 202), runs (T-5th, 63) and OBP (8th, .366).

Check out the Mississippi Braves Statistics



Southern League Stories from May 8, 2021


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