It’s the last year our Double-A affiliate, the Mississippi Braves, will be in Pearl, Mississippi and honestly, it’s about time. If’ you’ve never been to Pearl, it’s hot and humid. I’ve lived in New Orleans, Mobile, Auburn, and Santa Rosa Beach, and Mobile is the only city I’ve lived in that had comparative humidity to Pearl Mississippi. Imagine if you were in a steam room with a bearskin rug wrapping your body. Even then, you’d only be 1/2 as miserable as being in Pearl for a July night game. Next year, the Double-A squad will move to Columbus, GA where the commute is only 1 hour and 40 minutes to Truist. Pearl has it’s advantages and disadvantages. If a hitter can make it in Pearl, he’ll likely be fine. If a pitcher can make it in Pearl, it’s hard to trust and one would be wise to not look at the ERA, but focus more on WHIP, K%, BB%, and pitch movement. Think about Pearl as the complete opposite of Coors Field and you’ll have found a good comp.

Today’s list will chock full of pitchers and slim pickens for hitters, but that’s just the way it goes in the most friendly pitching park in the MiLB.

Mississippi Braves Offensive Success Stories

  • Nacho Alvarez: Definitely the most exciting position prospect in our system a the moment, Nacho isn’t hitting for any power, but does have 15 hits (14 singles and 1 2B) and is rocking a robust .429 OBP.
  • Justin Dean: Dean has been in the Braves system since 2018 and is well-liked amongst his peer and coaches. He’s currently rocking an .880 OPS, but it’s likely not worth getting excited about as this is his 4th year playing at Pearl.
  • Yolbert Sanchez: A career MiLB Journeyman, Yolbert can field almost anywhere and, like Nacho, is putting bat to the ball quite a bit with very little power. Still, it’s good enough for an .846 OPS, which is at least quadruple what I could do.

Mississippi Braves Pitching Success Stories

  • J.J. Neikro: Joe Neikro’s son has never been much of a prospect, but is putting together a strong start to the season, which has been seriously aided by a 1.1 BB/9 and a 7 K/BB rate. Interesting note on JJ: He’s a pitching coach for the Blue Jays offseason instructional league.
  • Ian Mejia: In 3 games started, Mejia has a 3.29 ERA in 13.2 IP. He’s also only allowed 9 hits on the season, but is making up for them with 4 walks per 9 innings.
  • Jake McSteen: I’ve been told by people that know that McSteen has got some really good stuff. I’ve also been told that he has a long ball problem. Scouting his stat-line, that rings true. However, thus far, 2024 is looking strong with a 1.35 ERA and an 8 K/BB rate (in a 6.2 IP sample).
  • Patrick Halligan: 24 y/o Halligan out of Pensacola State College is having an extraordinary start to his season, pitching 6.1 innings with a 1.42 ERA and a 0.947 WHIP. His K/BB rate is 10:1. He might be one to keep an eye on.

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