Many Braves fans who follow our top young prospects at high-A Myrtle Beach and low-A Rome have been waiting for the likes of Jason Heyward, Freddie Freeman, and Gorkys Hernandez to get promoted to the next level. The Braves seem to be taking a cautious approach with their hot hitting prospects and hard throwing pitching prospects, but they may have begun the proces of moving players up to the next level for the final month of the minor league season.
Myrtle Beach shortstop Brandon Hicks is (surprisingly) the first Pelican prospect to get the call to double-A Mississippi. Hicks was ranked as our 14th best prospect to begin the season by Baseball America. His promotion is surprising as he was not one of the hotter hitters at the Beach, posting only a .232 batting average and a team-high 114 strikeouts. He also leads the team with 17 homeruns and 12 stolen bases.
We'll have to wait and see if there are any more promotions from the low minors to higher levels.