Welcome to the latest weekly report on the Atlanta Braves farm system from Last Word on Baseball! Gwinnett and Rome performed admirably, but Florida and Mississippi combined to go 3-10 this week with a multitude of issues on offense. Florida and Mississippi scored two runs or less in nine out of 14 games this week. Rome led the way for Atlanta’s farm system with a 6-1 record and Ian Anderson and Brett Cumberland receiving pitcher and player of the week honors. Ronald Acuna and Mike Soroka also continue to impress in Mississippi. (Prospect ranking listed in parenthesis. All rankings taken from MLB.com’s Atlanta Braves Prospect Watch Top 30.)
Weekly Atlanta Braves Farm Report: Brett Cumberland Leads Rome Win Streak
Gwinnett Braves (Triple-A)
The Gwinnett Braves posted a strong week with a 4-2 record. Gwinnett had a strong week despite getting a few inconsistent results from their starters. Lucas Sims (18th) and Sean Newcomb (fifth) combined for seven earned runs, nine walks, and 10 strikeouts in nine innings pitched. The one bright spot from this week is Patrick Weigel (15th) who picked up his first Triple-A win. Weigel allowed one earned run with five hits and three walks scattered over six innings. He has seen a rough stretch to begin his stint in Gwinnett, but this start is something Weigel can build on moving forward.
Outfielder Dustin Peterson (17th) continues to find his feet after his season debut. Peterson was 6-for-22 with four runs scored, a double, and four RBI, which is not a bad start for Peterson after missing time due to a broken hand. Infielder Johan Camargo (unranked) continues to play well in Gwinnett. Camargo had six hits, a triple, two doubles, two walks, two runs scored, and an RBI this week. He is now batting .311/.357/.481 with 11 extra-base hits in Gwinnett. His brief stint in Atlanta has not yielded much in the way of results, but it still may be worth a shot to give Camargo more playing time in Atlanta.
Mississippi Braves (Double-A)
The Mississippi Braves struggled with a 1-5 record this week, mainly due to a struggling offense. Mississippi scored more than three runs just once in a down week. Southpaw Kolby Allard (third) suffered his second defeat of the season despite another decent outing. Allard surrendered just two runs with five strikeouts over five innings. He did struggle with command in his start while walking four batters and allowing one home run. Allard’s ERA for the season now sits at 1.83, and this one bad start does little to tarnish what he has put up all season. Soroka (fourth) would have been the organizational pitcher of the week, if not for an incredible performance in Rome. Soroka allowed a lone earned run, three hits, and two walks while striking out 10 over 5.2 innings. The 19-year old Canadian is having a fantastic season for Mississippi. Soroka has a 2.96 ERA, 51 strikeouts, and just 16 earned runs in nine starts, and he looks primed for a nice future with Atlanta.
Any report on Mississippi is bound to include Acuna (seventh), and this week is no different. The 19-year old Venezuelan outfielder is building quite a season for himself. Acuna went 8-for-24 with a home run, three doubles, three RBI, and two runs scored. He now boasts a .603 slugging percentage and 1.039 OPS in 18 games for Mississippi. The debate amongst fans of whether or not Acuna will receive another promotion this season will likely continue. It is natural for fans to want to his young players get a chance, but it is doubtful that Atlanta will take any risks in rushing the uber-talented Acuna.
Florida Fire Frogs (Advanced-A)
The Florida Fire Frogs continue to be one of the most inconsistent teams across MiLB. The Fire Frogs were 2-5 this week with performances on opposite ends of the spectrum. The Frogs scored 17 runs in their two victories, but they managed to score just five total runs in their five losses. Reliever Jacob Webb (unranked) picked up the lone victory of the week with three scoreless innings on Monday. Webb now holds a 1.67 ERA with 33 strikeouts in 13 appearances out of the bullpen. Webb has not allowed a run in seven of his last 10 games, and he has yet to allow more than two runs in any appearance.
Third baseman Austin Riley (12th) had a decent showing for Florida this week. He started the week 0-for-6, but he began to find his groove. Riley finished the week 7-for-18 with a home run, triple, double, three RBI, and four runs scored. It was a tough week for the Frogs, but Riley continues to show his power potential at the plate.
Rome Braves (Single-A)
The Rome Braves are the team of the week after going 6-1, including a six-game win streak. Rome’s rotation posted four games of at least five innings pitched and two earned runs or less to set the tone for the team. The story of the week was the young righty Anderson (sixth). Anderson is the organizational pitcher of the week after posting six shutout innings. He allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out 11 in his best start to date. Anderson’s season ERA sits at 3.73, but he now has 59 strikeouts in 41 innings pitched over nine starts. High school pitchers are always risky draft selections, but Anderson looks well on his way to a solid career.
Outfielder Randy Ventura (unranked) did a great job at setting the tone during Rome’s win streak. The young leadoff hitter went 10-for-19 with a double, four runs scored, and an RBI in four of Rome’s six wins this week. Ventura is now hitting .335 with a .374 OBP in 42 games for Rome. He will need to develop a bit more power moving forward, but there is still time for Ventura to grow and fill out. Catching prospect Cumberland (29th) also did his part for Rome this week. Cumberland went 10-for-27 with three home runs, three doubles, 14 RBI, and six runs scored. His performance this week earns him player of the week honors. The young catcher raised his batting average 38 points this week and will hopefully build on it moving forward.
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