Talking Chop

There weren't a lot of wins spread around the Braves' organization as Gwinnett wnt 3-4 (7.5 GB), Mississippi was a very poor 1-6 (8.5 GB), Myrtle Beach also went 3-4 (19 GB), Rome was 2-5 (10.5 GB), and the DSL Braves were the only winners, going 3-1 (0.5 GB).

Who's Hot?

1. Myke Jones- 12-28, 2B, 3 HR, 7 RBI, BB, 2 K, SB - Jones takes the top spot on the Hot Sheet for the second week in a row, thanks to a .429 average and a 1.234 OPS for the week. He had a hit in every game and has raised his average 130 points since the beginning of May.
   
2. Samuel Sime - 9-27, 3 2B, 5 RBI, 3 BB, 2 K - Sime continues to shine, hitting well above his career average for the season. He hasn't slugged for much or gotten on base at a great clip this year, but this week he came in with a .444 slugging percentage and a .400 on base percentage.
   
3. Mike Minor- 8 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 2 BB, 11 K - Minor only made on start this week but it was the best of any Braves farm hand. The 11 strikeouts in 8 innings are just a tick below the 12.9 strikeouts per 9 innings he's averaging for the year.
   
4. Donell Linares - 8-28, 2 2B, 3B, HR, 4 RBI, 4 K - Linares filled up the box sheet this week, collecting each possible kind of hit on the way to slugging .536. He doesn't take a lot of walks, just 9 on the year, but if he can slug like that it's easy to overlook.
   

Honorable Mentions: Mike Dunn, Cory Gearrin, Tim Gustafson, Todd Redmond, Chris Resop, Joe Thurston, Jordan Schafer, Gwinnett; Juan Abreu, Antoan Richardson, Mississippi; Yeliar Castro, Benino Pruneda, Luis Avilan, Randall Delgado, Brett Oberholtzer, Matt Kennelly, Mike Jones, Myrtle Beach; David Hale, Brett DeVall, Cory Rasmus, Arodys Vizcaino, Andrew Wilson, Jace Whitmer, Cory Harrilchak, Rome; Aris Alcantra, Abraham Espinosa, DSL

Who's Cold?

1. Cody Johnson - 1-18, BB, 11 K - Like Jones, Johnson again takes the top spot, but unfortunately that means he's been cold for 2 weeks. He struck out in 58 percent of his plate appearances this week, a number that just can't be spun in any kind of positive way.
   
2. Matt Young - 3-20, 3B, RBI, 3 BB, 2 K, SB - Young just wasn't productive this week, only reaching base at a .260 clip. After getting on at a .414 pace last season he's down to a .312 OBP this season. For a player who relies on getting on base, this isn't a good trend.
   
3. Scott Diamond- 0-2, 11.1 IP, 9 R, 8 ER, 15 H, 5 BB, 8 K - Diamond hasn't had much success in his second go around in AA and this week was his worst of the season. He gave up a 6.35 ERA and a 1.76 WHIP while losing both of his starts.
   
4. Robby Hefflinger - 4-25, 3 2B, 2 RBI, 5 BB, 8 K - Hefflinger showed some pop this week, as 3 of his 4 hits were doubles, but any time you hit .160 with a .580 OPS and strike out in 27 percent of your plate appearances, you're cold.

Dishonorable Mentions: JoJo Reyes, Clint Sammons, Barbaro Canizares, Brandon Hicks, Gwinnett; Mike Broadway, Erik Cordier, Tommy Palica, Richard Sullivan, Jacob Thompson, Mauro Gomez, Randy Gress, Willie Cabrera, Mike Daniel, Mississippi, Paul Clemens, Chad Rodgers, Travis Jones, Calvin Culver, Cole Miles, Myrtle Beach; Robinson Lopez, Christian Bethancourt, Chris Curley, Matt Weaver, Jake Hanson, Rome

Stock Up - Luis Avilan - The 20 year old lefty was originally signed out of Venezuela in 2005. He's always put up good numbers, but after a 2.61 ERA and 1.16 WHIP in 20.2 innings (15 games) for Rome, he's put up 8.2 no-hit innings in 5 games for Myrtle Beach, allowing just 4 walks. Solid lefties are always in high demand and a guy who can knock them down like Avilan will always be highly sought after.

Stock Down - Matt Weaver - After hitting .265 with a .644 OPS with the GCL and Danville in his debut season last year, the 20 year old Weaver is down to just. 235 with a .591 OPS this season. He's also moved off of shortstop, spending most of his games at second base. He doesn't get on enough, with a .292 OBP in 93 career games, and he doesn't hit with much authority, compiling just a .322 slugging percentage in that time. He was a 9th round draft pick just last season, so there's plenty of reason to believe he's talented, but he's going to have to start putting things together to gain some traction in the organization.