“Baby Braves” first starred in Trustmark Park M-Braves fans watched ten players jump to Majors in 2005

Ten Mississippi Braves made the jump to Major League Baseball last year and each had a role in the Braves winning their unprecedented 14th straight National League East Division Championship. They all began their jump to the majors in Pearl, MS with the Mississippi Braves and now are expected to earn starting or key roles in Atlanta for 2006. Labeled the “Baby Braves” by the media when they arrived in Atlanta, Jeff Francoeur, Brian McCann, Macay McBride, Blaine Boyer, Chuck James, and Joey Devine left quite an impression on the fans in Pearl. Gracing the cover of Sports Illustrated was an amazing feat for Jeff Francoeur considering his midseason call-up to Atlanta. ‘Frenchy’ arrived in his hometown with a bang, belting a homerun in his first game on July 7. He also began hitting at a pace over the next month that was unrivaled in the majors. Francoeur eventually came back to earth and finished the season batting an even .300 with 14 homeruns and 45 RBIs. Francoeur also finished third in the balloting for Rookie of the Year. Francoeur was solid and sometimes spectacular for the M-Braves showcasing all the abilities that made him the most heralded of the organizations prospects. Francoeur hit .275 with 13 homers and 62 RBIs before his July 7 call-up and showed flashes of brilliance with his abilities in the outfield. Speed has always been a part of Francoeur’s game, but runners quickly discovered he has a cannon right arm in right field once picking off a runner that rounded first base a little too casually. Francoeur tied for the major league lead with 13 outfield assists in just 70 games played. Though Francoeur got all the attention, catcher Brian McCann was the first M-Brave to get the call from Atlanta to fill in for injured former all-star Johnny Estrada. McCann quickly developed a relationship with John Smoltz, later being named his personal catcher by the Atlanta ace. McCann also made a statement in the batter’s box making the decision of whether or not to keep McCann in the majors for the rest of the season tough on 2005 National League Coach of the Year Bobby Cox and General Manager John Schuerholz. McCann showed plenty of power at the plate and played stellar defense behind the dish while in Pearl by once hitting back-to-back homers with Scott Thorman. McCann’s was a walk-off shot that landed on the roof of the Cellular South Café. He also got the Braves only hit on April 30th against West Tenn, a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth to give Mississippi a 2-1 win. The M-Braves were picked in the preseason to be among the Southern League’s best pitching staff’s. First starter/reliever Macay McBride made the jump to AAA Richmond based on a solid start in Pearl. The hard throwing lefty just got hitters out and was soon using his fastball/slider combination to get big league hitters out. Blaine Boyer was another M-Braves hurler to make a difference in the big leagues after being called up on June 12 to solidify a shaky bullpen. Boyer limited major league hitters to a .243 average against in 43 games and once threw 15 consecutive scoreless innings. Another Atlanta native, Chuck James, skyrocketed through the Braves minor league system in 2005 stopping at four different levels including the big leagues. James baffled AA hitters in his 16 starts striking out 104 in 86.0 innings pitched and going 6-0 at home. M-Braves pitcher Joey Devine followed a similarly quick path to the majors. Devine also breezed through the Braves minor league system after being drafted in the first round of the June First-Year- Player Draft in June 2005. All Devine needed was 31 minor league innings before receiving the call to Atlanta becoming just the fourth player in the last 15 years to make the jump to the big leagues in the same year he was drafted. Six players with great stories from only the first season of the Mississippi Braves! There are many more to tell from last season and many more to be made in 2006 at Trustmark Park.