SB Nation - Atlanta Braves

SBN Awards: NL Cy Young

gondeee — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:53:03 -0000

Every year the bloggers and members of the SBN baseball blog community get together and do our own BWAA-style voting for all of the major awards. This year two Braves placed in the NL Cy Young voting, Javier Vazquez and Jair Jurrjens. Here is the voting breakdown:

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
1	Tim Lincecum	San Francisco Giants	18	13	-	129
2	Chris Carpenter	St. Louis Cardinals	9	4	7	64
3	Adam Wainwright	St. Louis Cardinals	4	4	10	42
4	Javier Vazquez	Atlanta Braves	-	5	7	22
5	Dan Haren	Arizona Diamondbacks	-	3	4	13
6	Ubaldo Jimenez	Colorado Rockies	-	1	1	4
7	Cliff Lee	Philadelphia Phillies	-	-	1	1
8	Jair Jurrjens	Atlanta Braves	-	-	1	1

Here is how Javier Vazquez and Jair Jurrjens stack up against the top-3 vote getters:

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Tim Lincecum	15-7	32	32	4	2	0	0	225.1	168	69	62	10	68	261	2.48	1.05

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Chris Carpenter	17-4	28	28	3	1	0	0	192.2	156	49	48	7	38	144	2.24	1.01

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Adam Wainwright	19-8	34	34	1	0	0	0	233.0	216	75	68	17	66	212	2.63	1.21

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Javier Vazquez	15-10	32	32	3	0	0	0	219.1	181	75	70	20	44	238	2.87	1.03

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Jair Jurrjens	14-10	34	34	0	0	0	0	215.0	186	71	62	15	75	152	2.60	1.21

This was a pretty close race, and any of these guys could have a case for being the Cy Young.

2009 SBN Baseball Awards - NL Rookie Of The Year.

Ed Chigliak — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:12:00 -0000

More photos » by Gene J. Puskar - AP

Is Andrew McCutchen the SB Nation's '09 NL Rookie of the Year? (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

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In 2008, the voting members of the SB Nation's baseball sites elected Cubs' catcher Geovany Soto as the NL Rookie of the year after the then-25-year-old catcher had hit .285 with 35 doubles, 23 HR's and 86 RBI's in 141 games behind the plate in Chicago. The only other player to receive a 1st place vote last season was Braves' right-hander Jair Jurrjens, who finished his rookie campaign with a (13-10) record, a 3.68 ERA, 139 K's, (6.4 K/9) and a 1.37 WHIP in 31 starts and 188.1 IP, but Jurrjens finished 3rd overall in the voting behind the Reds' Joey Votto, whose 10 2nd place votes allowed him to take second overall, but made him a distant runner-up to the SB Nation's top choice. Over a week later, the Baseball Writers Association of America awarded their NL Rookie of the Year Award to the same Cubs' catcher, with Votto and Jurrjens finishing second and third...

Who will the SB Nation's Baseball writers pick as the 2009 NL Rookie of the Year? The answer is only a jump away...but before you click through, register your own choice for ROY in the Poll below...

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
1	Tommy Hanson	Atlanta Braves	9	9	6	78
2	J.A. Happ	Philadelphia Phillies	6	9	7	64
3	Andrew McCutchen	Pittsburgh Pirates	8	3	5	54
4	Chris Coghlan	Florida Marlins	7	5	4	54
5	Dexter Fowler	Colorado Rockies	-	3	1	10
6	Randy Wells	Chicago Cubs	-	-	6	6
7	Garrett Jones	Pittsburgh Pirates	1	-	-	5
8	Casey McGehee	Milwaukee Brewers	-	1	2	5
9	Seth Smith	Colorado Rockies	-	1	-	3

• Atlanta Braves' right-hander Tommy Hanson ended 2008 by winning the Arizona Fall League's MVP award, (the first time a pitcher in the hitter-friendly league had done so), and though he started the '09 season in the minors he was up by June and able to win 11 of the 21 starts he made, going (11-4) and allowing just 41 ER in 127.2 IP for a 2.89 ERA with 116 K's (8.2 K/9) and a 1.18 WHIP. (ed. note - "When's the first Strasburg v Hanson matchup?")

• J.A. Happ finished the 2009 season with 2 appearances in the World Series for the Phillies, giving up a run on 2 hits in 2.2 IP against the eventual-"World Champion" Yankees. In 23 starts and 35 overall appearances during the regular season, Happ was (12-3) with a 2.93 ERA, 3 complete games, 2 shutouts and a 1.23 WHIP in 166.0 IP, in which he struck out 166 (6.5 K/9) and walked just 56 (3.0 BB/9).

• Washington, DC fans saw the best Andrew McCutchen had to offer this season, when the then-22-year-old outfielder hit 3 HR's in 5 at bats in one game at PNC Park to help Pittsburgh to an 11-6 win over the Nationals. The former 1st Round pick, taken 11th overall by the Pirates in 2005, finally arrived in the majors in early June, giving him enough time to get in 433 at bats, over which he accumulated 124 hits, (26 doubles, 9 triples, 12 HR's), for a .286 AVG with a .365 OBP, .471 SLG, .836 OPS, (122 OPS+), 22 steals and 54 RBI's.

?'s For The DC Faithful...

• Would Jordan Zimmermann have competed for the ROY award if he'd been able to go all season?

• Is Strasburg a lock for next year's award?

• Did I give Chris Coghlan too much credit with a third-place vote because of what he was able to do against the Nationals? Clearly, I wasn't the only one he impressed, but I wonder if the Marlins' early dominance of DC influenced my decision?

• Will the Pirates' OF of Lastings Milledge, McCutchen and (Jose Tabata?) be the envy of the NL in a few seasons? Did I tell you what Former DC GM Jim Bowden said about Milledge? No? Eh, some other time....

• Strasburg v Hanson Pt. 1? Who's going to miss that?

Poll

Who is your 2009 NL Rookie of the Year?

Braves Name Dave Wallace and Garey Ingram to Minor League Posts

gondeee — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:51:18 -0000

The Atlanta Braves have named Dave Wallace minor league pitching coordinator and Garey Ingram the hitting coach at Class-AA Mississippi. We already knew about the Wallace hiring from a Seattle newspaper, but here is the official announcement:

Atlanta Braves Director of Player Development Kurt Kemp announced today that the Braves have hired two new staff members, as Dave Wallace has agreed to terms to become the Club's Minor League Pitching Coordinator and Garey Ingram has been named the hitting coach at Mississippi (AA). Wallace, who was given a two-year contract through the 2011 season, replaces Kent Willis. Wallace's primary responsibility will be to oversee the progress and development of the Braves' minor league pitchers at all levels.

The rest of the release is after the jump.

"With the hiring of Dave Wallace as our Pitching Coordinator, we feel that our minor league pitching program couldn't be in better hands," said Kemp. "Dave's depth of experience, his knowledge, and his leadership give us great confidence that the pitchers in our system will have the greatest opportunity to grow, learn, and develop into the best pitcher's they can be."

Wallace began his professional career as a pitcher in the Philadelphia Phillies organization in 1970 and has worked as a major league and minor league coach and/or front office executive since 1981.

Wallace worked in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization from 1981-97 and again from 2001-03, when he served as the Dodgers' Sr. Vice President/Baseball Operations, overseeing LA's minor league operations and consulting with the General Manager on baseball operations. Wallace also served the Dodgers as a Special Assistant to the GM (Dec., 2000-April, 2001) and interim GM (April-Oct., 2001).

He has served as a major league pitching coach with the Dodgers (1995-97), New York Mets (1999-2000), Boston Red Sox (2003-06) and Houston Astros (2007). He joined the Seattle Mariners in October 2007 and spent two seasons (2008-09) as Special Assistant to the General Manager/Minor League Pitching Coordinator.

Ingram spent the 2009 season as the hitting coach for San Francisco's Double-A Connecticut affiliate after spending the previous seven seasons (2002-08) as a minor league hitting coach in the Los Angeles Dodgers system. He was the hitting coach for two years at Class-A Great Lakes and also coached the Columbus/South Georgia Waves from 2003-06.

"We are very pleased to have Garey join our staff," said Kemp. "Hitting Coordinator Leon Roberts and I have been impressed with Garey and we feel he will do a great job teaching and coaching our Double-A hitters at Mississippi."

Ingram retired from his 14-year professional playing career in 2002 and began his coaching career that same season with the Gulf Coast League Dodgers. His playing career included parts of three major league seasons (1994-95, '97) with the Dodgers. He made history on May 19, 1994, when, as pinch-hitter, he became the 67th major league player to homer in his first plate appearance, doing so at Denver's Mile High Stadium.

The former infielder/outfielder was drafted by the Dodgers out of Middle Georgia Junior College in 1989. He currently resides in Columbus, Ga.

Good moves by the Braves.

Why the Braves should sign Billy Wagner

gondeee — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:23:34 -0000

The Atlanta Braves should sign Billy Wagner to be their closer... this is pretty much a no-brainer, especially after I learned that his agent is named Bean Stringfellow. I repeat, his agent is named Bean Stringfellow... and he used to pitch in the Braves organization:

First off, I love the stache. Classic late-70s, early 80s middle-American tweener stache. I think I had a couple of cousins who sported such a thing. I just can't get over that name, Bean Stringfellow. It literally turned my mood around today.

Thank you Bean Stringfellow.

You do realize that every time anyone mentions Billy Wagner from now on, they must refer to him as "Billy Wagner, whose agent is Bean Stringfellow," or somehow work in that name. Every. Time.

I can't believe that Rowland's Office hasn't highlighted this guy yet... major fail.

Bean Stringfellow got as high as triple-A.

SB Nation NL Rookie of the Year

Eric Stephen — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:00:19 -0000

More photos » by Morry Gash - AP

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In a very close vote, Tommy Hanson of the Braves won the SB Nation NL Rookie of the Year award, over J.A. Happ, Andrew McCutchen, and Chris Coghlan. Here are the results:

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
1	Tommy Hanson	Atlanta Braves	9	9	6	78
2	J.A. Happ	Philadelphia Phillies	6	9	7	64
3	Andrew McCutchen	Pittsburgh Pirates	8	3	5	54
4	Chris Coghlan	Florida Marlins	7	5	4	54
5	Dexter Fowler	Colorado Rockies	-	3	1	10
6	Randy Wells	Chicago Cubs	-	-	6	6
7	Garrett Jones	Pittsburgh Pirates	1	-	-	5
8	Casey McGehee	Milwaukee Brewers	-	1	2	5
9	Seth Smith	Colorado Rockies	-	1	-	3

Hanson faced the Dodgers once this season and pitched decently enough, not allowing a run until the fifth inning. However, he had the misfortune of running into the buzz saw that was Jason Schmidt's turn back the clock game, where Schmidt allowed just one hit (and five walks!) in six scoreless innings. That game also marked George Sherrill's debut as a Dodger.

Here are the ballots that Phil & I submitted:

Phil: Hanson, Happ, McCutchen

Eric: Garrett Jones (yes, I was the one!), Hanson, Casey McGehee

I don't really have a legitimate excuse for not having Andrew McCutchen in my top three. I whiffed on that one.

Elvis Andrus of the Rangers won the SB Nation AL ROY award.

SBN Baseball Postseason Awards -- National League Rookie of the Year

WholeCamels — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:27:18 -0000

More photos » by H. RUMPH JR - AP

Can J.A. Happ snare the SBN National League Rookie of the Year Award? (AP Photo/H. Rumph Jr)

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The SBNation bloggers voted on the BBWAA postseason awards, and we're rolling out the results! Today: National League Rookie of the Year. Results after the jump...

Atlanta Braves starter Tommy Hanson narrowly defeated Phillies lefty J.A. Happ, garnering 78 points and nine total first place votes, to Happ's 64 points and six first place votes.

The Pirates Andrew McCutchen and the Marlins Chris Coghlan tied for third place, with 54 total points.

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
1	Tommy Hanson	Atlanta Braves	9	9	6	78
2	J.A. Happ	Philadelphia Phillies	6	9	7	64
3	Andrew McCutchen	Pittsburgh Pirates	8	3	5	54
4	Chris Coghlan	Florida Marlins	7	5	4	54
5	Dexter Fowler	Colorado Rockies	-	3	1	10
6	Randy Wells	Chicago Cubs	-	-	6	6
7	Garrett Jones	Pittsburgh Pirates	1	-	-	5
8	Casey McGehee	Milwaukee Brewers	-	1	2	5
9	Seth Smith	Colorado Rockies	-	1	-	3

SBN Awards: NL ROY

DyingQuail — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:00:54 -0000

by Tony Tribble - AP

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This was, by far, the most difficult category for me to make my selections and I believe it was the same for HLP. Although we ended up texting out a resolution, I know that we ended up with different picks.

At some point during that insanely depressing text conversation, I realized that I didn't have as firm of grasp of the ROY pulse because there were no Astros with possible hopes of claiming the title. Apathy really got the best of me in this incident. I guess next year we could have Gervacio, Jason Castro, and someone I'm not thinking of at this second.

The fun part of this vote is playing: can you spot the homer-ism? Not that I'm lambasting anyone for it, but there a couple that jumped out at me and made me snicker a little.

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
1	Tommy Hanson	Atlanta Braves	9	9	6	78
2	J.A. Happ	Philadelphia Phillies	6	9	7	64
3	Andrew McCutchen	Pittsburgh Pirates	8	3	5	54
4	Chris Coghlan	Florida Marlins	7	5	4	54
5	Dexter Fowler	Colorado Rockies	-	3	1	10
6	Randy Wells	Chicago Cubs	-	-	6	6
7	Garrett Jones	Pittsburgh Pirates	1	-	-	5
8	Casey McGehee	Milwaukee Brewers	-	1	2	5
9	Seth Smith	Colorado Rockies	-	1	-	3

SB Nation Awards: Rookie of the Year

Jim McLennan — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:55:12 -0000

by Matt Slocum - AP

Tommy Hanson = NL Rookie of the Year

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Moving on to the next in the series of SB Nation awards, we have the voting for Rookie of the Year. In contrast to the Manager of the Year award yesterday, which was a landslide for Jim Tracy, this was a great deal closer. The top four contenders all received between six and nine first place votes and it was largely the distinctions further down the rankings which decided the final victory. One thing, however, remained unchanged: the word "Diamondbacks" was not to be heard on any voter's lips, despite the decent performance by the like of Gerardo Parra in this area.

After the jump, we'll go through the ballot in detail, and throw a few reminders at you, in case you're not quite able to put a face to the name.

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
1	Tommy Hanson	Atlanta Braves	9	9	6	78
2	J.A. Happ	Philadelphia Phillies	6	9	7	64
3	Andrew McCutchen	Pittsburgh Pirates	8	3	5	54
4	Chris Coghlan	Florida Marlins	7	5	4	54
5	Dexter Fowler	Colorado Rockies	-	3	1	10
6	Randy Wells	Chicago Cubs	-	-	6	6
7	Garrett Jones	Pittsburgh Pirates	1	-	-	5
8	Casey McGehee	Milwaukee Brewers	-	1	2	5
9	Seth Smith	Colorado Rockies	-	1	-	3

Arizona faced winner Tommy Hanson on August 17th in Atlanta., and he pitched pretty well that day, giving up two runs on six hits over six innings - he walked none and struck out seven. Arizona lost 8-4, with Hanson taking the win, though to be honest, the six unearned runs allowed by Max Scherzer that day, probably had something to do with it as much as Hanson. Curiously, runner-up J.A. Happ posted exactly the same line against us, when we faced the Phillies on July 29th. However, he ended up with the loss, the Braves running into the buzz-saw which was, er, Yusmeiro Petit. The Petit Unit shut down the potent Philadelphia line-up for six innings, and Justin Upton drove in three runs as we blanked the visitors 4-0. Based on their performance against us, Randy Wells would probably be a Rookie of the Year contender, as he blanked us for seven innings during the final series at Wrigley.

On the position player side, if we were going purely on performances against the Diamondbacks, neither Andrew McCutchen nor Chris Coghlan would likely have qualified, as neither made much of an impression. In six games, McCutchen went 5-for-29, with no home-runs and one RBI, though five walks helped elevate his OPS to a merely mediocre .693. Chris Coghlan would have been delighted with anything like that: in seven games, he was 4-for-25, posting a line of .162/.192/.200, and a K:BB ratio of 6:1. Better numbers were posted by Casey McGehee (7-for-12 with two HR), though he only played in three games against Arizona. In more at-bats, the award would go to Dexter Fowler, who in 38 PAs versus the Diamondbacks, was at .310/.459/.586, with three stolen bases.

My ballot went Happ, Coghlan, Hanson. Even though Happ was relatively old for a rookie, at 26, you can't ignore a 145 ERA+. Some of the raw numbers, such as WHIP, went in Hanson's favor, and at age only 22, he's got astonishing potential - he's probably more likely to win a Cy Young down the road, and become another in the long line of great young Braves pitching. However, Happ threw almost forty more innings and was also working in a much less pitcher-friendly environment. Despite his struggles against us, Coghlan flourished, ending the year with a .321 batting average, sixth-best in the National League. He also had a credible K:BB ratio of 77:53, and didn't embarrass himself with the glove, in his first professional year playing the outfield.

Moving over to the American League, it's really hard to comment meaningfully, as I barely know anything about most of the contenders. Still, got to love any players named "Elvis," especially one playing in Texas. I note Andrew Bailey getting almost twice as many first-place votes, but also getting left off almost half the ballots, and that cost him first-place. It'll always be tough for a closer to win this award. Further down the list, I note former Diamondbacks prospect Brett Anderson, traded to Oakland as part of the Dan Haren trade. He had a solid year, especially given he's only 21. In July, he had a complete-game shutout against the Red Sox, and less than two weeks later, took a perfect game into the eighth. Haren didn't come cheaply...

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
1	Elvis Andrus	Texas Rangers	6	9	6	63
2	Andrew Bailey	Oakland Athletics	11	1	3	61
3	Jeff Niemann	Tampa Bay Rays	3	5	3	33
4	Rick Porcello	Detroit Tigers	2	7	2	33
5	Brett Anderson	Oakland Athletics	5	1	3	31
6	Gordon Beckham	Chicago White Sox	1	2	8	19
7	Nolan Reimold	Baltimore Orioles	1	-	1	6
8	Matt Wieters	Baltimore Orioles	-	1	3	6
9	Brad Bergesen	Baltimore Orioles	-	1	-	3
10	Ricky Romero	Toronto Blue Jays	-	1	-	3
11	Travis Snider	Toronto Blue Jays	-	1	-	3

Tomorrow, it'll be the Cy Young award, and one hopes that Dan Haren might perhaps merit a mention on a ballot or two there?

The Braves' Tommy Hanson wins the SBN NL Rookie of the Year

gondeee — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:11:06 -0000

Every year the bloggers and members of the SBN baseball blog community get together and do our own BWAA-style voting for all of the major awards. This year they have chosen the Atlanta Braves rookie starting pitcher Tommy Hanson as the SBN NL Rookie of the Year. This, despite neither of the two Atlanta votes going his way. Perhaps our voters were being too cautious, or not wanting to put too much pressure on our young hurler. The reality is that Hanson is by far the better major league prospect on this list, with McCutchen probably a close second, and that may have swayed some voters despite Hanson only spending half a season in the big leagues. I find it interesting that four different rookies got a substantial number of first place votes. Here are the results:

Rk	Player	Team	1st	2nd	3rd	Pts
1	Tommy Hanson	Atlanta Braves	9	9	6	78
2	J.A. Happ	Philadelphia Phillies	6	9	7	64
3	Andrew McCutchen	Pittsburgh Pirates	8	3	5	54
4	Chris Coghlan	Florida Marlins	7	5	4	54
5	Dexter Fowler	Colorado Rockies	-	3	1	10
6	Randy Wells	Chicago Cubs	-	-	6	6
7	Garrett Jones	Pittsburgh Pirates	1	-	-	5
8	Casey McGehee	Milwaukee Brewers	-	1	2	5
9	Seth Smith	Colorado Rockies	-	1	-	3

The real Rookie of the Year awards will be announced next week.

The SBN NL Cy Young will be tomorrow and Atlanta has several hurlers that should get some votes.

Braves Top-10 Minor League Right Handed Starting Pitchers (1-5)

cbwilk — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:05:55 -0000

Julio Teheran's funky delivery helped catapult him to the top of the Braves' pitching prospects list.

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The Braves have a long history of developing dominant Major League pitching and that trend seems to be continuing with the emergence of Tommy Hanson with Atlanta this season and with the near limitless potential of their top right handed starting pitching prospects. The top half of the list contains a pair of foreign born live arms, one of whom could become a future ace, a former second round draft pick whose stuff and body is as projectable as any pitcher to come through the system since Kevin Millwood, and a pair of more polished, durable college players who eat innings like candy.

1. Julio Teheran B/T: R/R Born: 1/27/1991 Ht: 6'2" Wt: 150
When he was signed out of Columbia as a 16 year old in 2007, Teheran was considered the top international talent available and was a major coup for Atlanta's scouting department. But, his status as a top prospect was quickly revoked by many as he battled both tendonitis and a sore shoulder as well as severely dented confidence in his professional debut, pitching just 15 innings for Danville in 2008, with a record of 1-2, an ERA of 6.60 and a WHIP of 1.46. But, those who continued to believe in him despite his struggles were rewarded for that faith in 2009, as he returned to Danville and pitched masterfully, with a 2-1 record, 2.68 ERA, and 0.98 WHIP in 43.2 innings covering 7 starts. He was rewarded for his efforts with a promotion to Rome at the beginning of August, where he pitched well, especially considering his youth, in another 7 starts, with a 1-3 record, 4.78 ERA, and 1.40 WHIP in 37.2 innings.

The jump to Rome was obviously an adjustment for him, as he saw a sizable increase in all of his numbers, including allowing more hits (10 per 9 innings compared to 7.4 for Danville), walked more (2.6 per 9 innings compared to 1.4 for Danville), and struck out less (6.7 per 9 innings compared to 8.0 with Danville). But, while his final start was poor, he was making adjustments, pitching 17.1 innings in the three starts before that while only allowing 4 runs and striking out 14 while walking 8.

While Teheran does have electric stuff, combining a fastball that tops out at 97 mph, but which is much more effective when he works it in the 94 to 95 range, with a devastating curveball that rolls in at 83 mph and a slurvey slider that could become his best pitch with more work, his mental makeup is his most impressive asset. Ironically though, his overconfidence was a part of his problem in 2008 when he had a difficult time dealing with the fact that the professional hitters in America weren't instantly intimidated by him like the amateurs in Columbia had been. Once he realized that he might not always be the best player on the field, and that he might not always have his best stuff, he was able to enter 2009 with a newfound willingness to be a pitcher instead of a thrower, and that cerebral outlook on the game, combined with his stuff, makes him likely to reach his ceiling as a Major League ace. It's also shown in his stats, as his strikeouts dropped from last season to this one but his effectiveness improved dramatically, a clear indication that he was pitching more to contact and allowing his defense to perform behind him.

Teheran will begin 2010 back at Rome as a 19 year old and the Braves are confident enough with his ability and makeup that they will have no problem moving him quickly if he succeeds. Don't be surprised to see him join Myrtle Beach's rotation sometime around the middle of the season, with AA and perhaps the Major Leagues both possibilities in 2011.

2. Zeke Spruill B/T: S/R Born: 9/11/1989 Ht: 6'4" Wt: 184
After being selected in the second round of the 2008 draft, Spruill was very successful in his debut for the Orlando Braves in the GCL, with 7 wins and no losses, a 2.93 ERA, and a 1.25 WHIP in 40 innings. He continued his success this season with Rome, winning his first 6 decisions, before finishing the season with a team leading 8 wins to go with 6 losses, a team leading 3.03 ERA, and a 1.24 WHIP in 116 innings covering 20 games (19 starts). But the season wasn't a total success for him, as he found himself demoted back to the GCL team for the majority of August as punishment for some minor disiplinary problems. He used his time at the lower level to focus on his secondary pitches, specifically his changeup, and it showed in his numbers, as he collected a 1-0 record, 4.58 ERA, and a 1.47 WHIP in 19.2 innings.

While this demotion does spark some concern, it really isn't a major issue and isn't something that should be held against Spruill. While he doesn't have quite as good stuff as Teheran does, pairing a low 90s fastball with late movement with a biting curveball and a developing slider and changeup, he is similar in that he's smart enough at a young age to pitch to contact and allow his defense to make plays for him. He has the perfect body for a pitcher, and is very comparable to Kevin Millwood at the same age, making it plausible that he could gain velocity and stamina as he moves up the ladder.

Spruill proved capable of handling the Sally Leauge, so in 2010 he'll move up to Myrtle Beach to attempt to corral the Carolina League as a 20 year old. He's still incredibly young and has a long way to go in his development, but, provided the Braves can fine tune his pitching and keep his maturation on course, he seems verly likely to reach his ceiling as a number 2 or 3 starter in a Major League rotation.

3. Randall Delgado B/T: R/R Born: 2/9/1990 Ht: 6'3" Wt: 165
Delgado's overall numbers, a 5-10 record, 4.35 ERA and 1.38 WHIP in 124 innings covering 25 starts, don't look that impressive, but given the context of his youth, playing the season as a 19 year old, and his improvement over the course of the year, with a 4-4 record and 3.96 ERA in 72.2 innings after the All-Star break, it was a very successful year. He was even better toward the end of the year, with a 2-1 record, a 3.47 ERA, and 33 strikeouts in 23.1 inning in August, follwed with a 1-1 record, 2.31 ERA, and 12 strikeouts in 11.2 September innings. One thing he was consistently able to do was to strike people out, racking up 141 strikeouts on the season, good for 10.2 per 9 innings.

While most pitchers struggle down the stretch in the second half of their first full season, Delgado flourished, indicating the high level of maturity and determination that has been prominent since the Braves first signed him out of Panama in 2006. His fastball tops out at 94, but works better when he backs it off a few miles per hour, and he pairs it with a changeup and curveball, both of which he's dramatically improved in his time with the organization. He has a tall, lean body, which is still filling out, that allows him great leverage on his pitches, which are further enhanced by a deceptive delivery.

A promotion to Myrtle Beach as a 20 year old in 2010 is in line for Delgado, where he'll join a bevvy of talented young pitchers. His stuff and makeup is as good as any pitcher in the system, and while he could find himself developing into a front of the rotation starter, it's just as plausible, given his mentality and strikeout ability, that he could develop into a shutdown closer.

4. JJ Hoover B/T: R/R Born: 8/13/1987 Ht: 6'3" Wt: 215
After signing at the dealine in 2008 after being drafted in the 10th round, Hoover pitched just 4.2 innings for Danville last season, but he had a great full season debut this year, going 7-6 with a 3.35 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 134.1 innings covering 25 games (18 starts) for Rome. He also made an emergency start for Myrtle Beach, getting roughed up and allowing 3 runs while walking 5 in just 3 innings. But, that one outing does nothing to mar his season, as he led Rome in innings pitched, strikeouts, 148 (good for 9.9 per 9 innings) and strikeouts per walk, 5.92. He was also very successful at keeping down his walks, with just 25 on the season, good for only 1.7 per nine innings.

Hoover has a strong, thick body that makes him a durable workhorse and he combines that with a sinking low 90s fastball, a looping curve that is becoming more effective as he tightens it up, a good changeup, and a hard slider. He's an advanced pitcher with a good handle on what he wants to accomplish on the mound. At worst, he'll develop into a middle of the rotation innings eater, but his stuff and durability would play well out of the bullpen, so there's a chance he could become a Peter Moylan like bullpen workhorse, capable of coming out and shutting down a team on any given night.

He'll enter 2010 as a 23 year old, which makes him older than the typical top prospects at the lower levels, but that age, combined with his unquestionable success from 2009 and the glut of young arms looking to work in the Myrtle Beach rotation next season make it possible that a strong Spring Training could catapult him to AA Mississippi in 2010.

5. Jacob Thompson B/T: R/R Born: 11/19/1986 Ht: 6'6" Wt: 215
At one point in his college career at the University of Virginia, Thompson was viewed as a possible first round talent, so the Braves feel like they got him as a steal by selecting him in the fifth round in 2008. He pitched just 9.2 innings last year, including 4.2 for his hometown Danville Braves, but proved to be a workhorse this season, as he pitched 154.2 innings in 27 games (25 starts) between Rome and Myrtle Beach, with a 7-9 record overall and a 1.40 WHIP. Oddly enough, he was better at the higher level, posting a 5-4 record, 3.57 ERA, and 1.43 WHIP in 90.2 innings with Myrtle Beach compared to a 2-5 record, 5.20 ERA, and 1.37 WHIP in 64 innings with Rome. While he did walk more batters for the Pelicans, 4.2 per 9 innings compared to 2 per 9 innings for Rome, he also managed to strikeout more batters, 7.7 per 9 innings with Myrtle Beach compared to just 5.8 per 9 with Rome, and give up fewer hits, 8.7 per 9 inning with the Pelicans compared to 10.4 per 9 with the R-Braves.

Whatever issues Thompson was having at the lower level he clearly worked out during his time with the Pelicans, something that can likely be attributed to the team's pitching coach, Altanta's resident Minor League pitching guru, Guy Hansen. His massive, strong frame allows him to get a ton of downward leverage toward the plate, but his lankiness and deceptive delivery also make repeating his arm action difficult. This is what he worked on with Hansen and if he can keep himself consistent, his arsenal of pitches, a low 90s fastball, a biting slider, a developing changeup, and his best pitch, a diving curveball, combined with his durability could make him a solid middle of the rotation innings eater, capable of winning a ton of games for a Major League team.

Thompson will enter 2010 as a 23 year old, so given his age and the success he showed at Myrtle Beach, there's a very good chance he could begin the season with AA Mississippi. He needs to be diligent and remain consistent while continuing to develop his already good feel for pitching. If he can do that, the Braves certainly will have a steal on their hands, and a promising young pitcher who could help them out in late 2010 or 2011.