There is less fanfare surrounding this year’s Mississippi Braves, which is understandable.
Right fielder Jason Heyward is no longer in the lineup.
Heyward hit a dizzying .352 in 47 games with Mississippi last season, tallying 13 doubles, four triples, seven home runs and 30 RBIs. He has continued to shine in Atlanta, being named National League rookie of the month for April, but his absence has left an obvious void at the Double-A level.
“Sometimes it’s a good thing,” Mississippi manager Phillip Wellman said. “We’ve had those guys before, and when they’ve been promoted, it seems like everybody realizes, ‘Hey, we don’t have Brian McCann or Jeff Francoeur or Heyward anymore, so we’re going to have to step up and pull the rope.’
“We don’t have one of those big, blue-chip prospects right now, so every night it seems like we’ve got different guys driving in runs and different guys getting a big hit.”