Talking Chop

Our minor league teams performed mostly mediocre this week asGwinnett went 3-3 (22-28; 5.5 GB), Mississippi only played 4 games and went 2-2 (24-24; 6.0 GB), Myrtle Beach went 3-3 (17-34; 17.0 GB) and Rome surprisingly was the best team with a 5-2 record and are 11-5 in their last 16 games (22-28; 9GB). Lets see who our best players were.

Who's Hot?

1. Mycal Jones - 10-26, 4 2B, 4 RBI, BB, 3K -  Myke Jones gets the nod here over some hot pitchers because of where he was at the beginning of the season and where he is now. Since about 2 days before May started Jones has been the best hitter on a fairly weak offensive team in Rome and he has made a case for himself being the best middle infield prospect the Braves have.
2. Arodys Vizcaino - 8IP 0H 0R 0BB 7K - Vizcaino gets the nod over a couple of other guys simply because he has been crazy dominant over his last 3 starts and he really stepped into the big shoes that Julio Tehran left behind.
   
3. Randall Delgado - 13IP 11H 4ER 0BB 16K - Sure Delgado's start today was probably his second worst of the season but it wasn't bad and the two combined are still damn impressive. Also throwing out a 16-0 K/BB ratio is pretty fantastic.
   
4. JJ Hoover - 8IP 5H 0R 0BB 7K - JJ Hoover has been stupid good over the past month of the season and he deserves some recognition after his best start of the year. His control has still been solid even with his struggles and he appears to be getting his strike out groove back on as well. I can't wait to see what he does in the coming months.
   

Honorable Mention: C. Kimbrel, T. Redmond (yeah he should probably be up there, but hey, its my list), Gwinnett; W. Cabrera, Mississippi; J. Teheran, Myrtle Beach; C. Harrilchak,  R. Lopez, B. DeVall, Rome.

Who's Cold?

1. Cody Johnson - 1-12 7K - Cody Johnson didn't play much this week (his team only had 4 games) but he didn't do anything in the games he did appear in and appears to be in another one of his slumps. He is making an art of this up and down type of season.
2. Freddie Freeman - 2-13 2B, 2K - Freeman missed a couple of games this week but overall he just hasn't been hitting the ball well recently. He is still performing admirably for a guy his age in the league he is in so there is no reason to give up on him, but I still want him to do well. 
3. Richard Sullivan - 5.1IP 7H 7R 5BB 4K - Sullivan has been pretty bad all season long and this start pretty much epitomizes what he has gone through. His power sinker is still a great weapon but it may be about time to make his expected move to the bullpen.
4. Kyle Rose - 5-21 3B, 2BB, 4K, 3 SB, 1 CS - Rose was rolling right along at the beginning of the season but he has fallen into slump in the past few weeks. If it hadn't been for his solid game tonight those stats would look a little worse. He does appear to be figuring out his issues stealing bases so there is a positive to be gleaned from he recent struggles and maybe moving him down in the order will spark his bat a little.

Dishonorable Mention: J. Schafer,T. Gustafson, Gwinnett; J. Thompson, M. Minor, Mississippi; L. Sumoza, Myrtle Beach ;M. Weaver, R. Weber, D. Hale, Rome.

Stock Up: Willi Cabrera - Mississippi - Willie has been a favorite of mine for a couple of seasons now and he has really turned on the jets this month. His average was up to .331 coming into today and he is among the Southern League leaders in a wealth of categories. He flashed some HR power in Myrtle Beach 2 seasons ago but has only shown doubles pop since then. Whether or not he finds that power again will be the different between him becoming a regular or a 4th OF.

Stock Down: CoryGearrin - Gwinnett - A lot of people (including me) were looking at Gearrin as a serious contender for a bullpen spot in Atlanta at some point this season but his control has wavered and he has been a lot more hittable. I'm not giving up hope on the guy, but I don't think he is quite the guy I thought he was when we started the season.