The system did much better last night, 4-1 with everybody in action.

Gwinnett defeats the Charlotte Knights (White Sox) 5-4.
Heroes:
Tim Hudson – W (2-0), 5.2 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 6 H, 2 BB, 4 Ks. 0.84 ERA. He’s ready.
Anthony Varvaro – 2.0 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 BB, 4 Ks. 0.00 ERA. Also on rehab, but I do not know how soon he comes up.
Jordan Parraz – 3-for-4, 2 R. .382 BA.
Josh Wilson – 3-for-4, RBI, K, E. .263 BA
Luis Durango – 2-for-4, 2B, RBI, R, K. .224 BA
Goats:
Adam Russell – 0.2 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 H, 2 BB. 2.89 ERA. Made it a lot closer in the 9th.
Joey Terdoslavich – 0-for-4, K. .200 BA

Mississippi defeats the Birmingham Barons (White Sox) 9-6.
Heroes:
Andrew Russell – W (2-0) 2.0 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 3 Ks. 0.00 ERA. Only pitcher to show much control with the staff issuing an all-time high 13 walks.
Andrelton Simmons – 3-for-5, 2B, RBI, 2 R. .295 BA. 3rd straight game with a double.
Phil Gosselin – 2-for-3, 2B, 2 R, 2 BB, K. .296 BA.
Ian Gac – 2-for-3, 2B, 2 RBI, R, 2 BB. .314 BA.
Barrett Kleinknecht – 2-for-3, 2 R, BB. .191 BA.
Goats:
Chris Masters – 1.0 IP, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 H, 5 BB, 1 K. 5.28 ERA. Was pulled after allowing the first 5 batters reach in the 2nd. Bailed out by Chris Jones.
Todd Cunnigham – 0-for-6, 2 Ks. .237 BA.

Lynchburg defeats the Carolina Mudcats (Indians) 14-8.
Heroes:
Evan Gattis – 3-for-5, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 2 R, BB, K, SF. .424 BA. Left field!
Nick Ahmed – 4-for-5, RBI, 4 R, BB, 2 SB. .320 ERA.
Chris Garcia – 4-for-5, BB, CS, E. .345 BA.
Tommy LaStella – 1-for-3, 2 RBI, 2 R, 3 BB, 2 SB, E. .357 ERA.
Edward Salcedo – 2-for-6, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, 2 Ks, SB, E. .323 ERA.
Goats:
None.

Rome loses to the Hagerstown Suns (Nationals) 9-2.
Heroes:
Fernando De Los Santos – 3-for-4, 2B, RBI, R, K. .255 BA.
Goats:
A.J. Holland – L (1-3), 5 R, 5 ER, 7 H, 4 BB, 2 Ks, HR, WP, HBP. 3.04 ERA. Had an error changed to a hit which cost him 3 more earned.
Clint Wright – 2.2 IP, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 H, BB, 3 Ks. 7.71 ERA.

That's good to hear. I'm done hearing about what he's doing in A ball. Call me when he does it in AA, then I might start getting excited. :-)

FYI - All Questions Answered thread at MinorLeagueBall.com, if you would like to fire a question at the expert.

So after Rome's outing last night, is it safe to say that Carlos Perez just didn't turn the corner we thought he would last year like the other young latino arms did? Sad to see...he was highly regarded after his short stint in 2010 if I'm not mistaken.

I was just about to ask something along those lines.

Ha has a 22.00 ERA and a 3.88 WHIP in his last 3 starts.

"Is it over?" is what I had in mind.

Question from the Mike Newman chat on fangraphs:

4:56 [Comment From ClintC: ]
Who's surprised you the most in Braves minor league games this year?

4:57 Mike Newman: I'm surprised that Drury has completely lost his swing. He had the best at bat in the entire Baby Braves vs. Current Braves all-star game roping a double to RCF. I can't put into words how much he's struggling right now.

That made me curious so I checked his line: .157/.218/.200......ouch!!

I saw your reply to John Sickels regarding Evan Gattis. I agree with you. It's funny how he is being completely disregarded as a prospect due to his age even though he spent several years away from baseball.

I'm also interested to hear his answer to your Flande question.

Drury went hitless for his first 22 AB. That's a cold start.

Since then, he has hit .229/.288/.272.

Yes. That's still not good, but that's much better than the .000 it was about two weeks ago. I think we need to wait a little before we decide that Drury has completely lost his swing.

Further, Drury has walked as many times in 75 PA as he did all of last season. I am sure he knows that he has to walk more, so maybe he is adjusting to taking more pitches.

Yeah, I was a little shocked at how he phrased that. I think it is a bit early in the season too.

Sure. I get that Gattis is not suddenly a top 100 prospect, but is that totally unattainable because of his age?

I agree....it really makes no sense. Let's say he moves to AA and hits .330/.390 with a ton of power......he STILL wouldn't be a top prospect because he is 25 and not 22?

I like John Sickels, but his answer felt flippant, not thoughtful.

With two years as a pro and the same stats in AA, he is a pretty highly regarded prosepct, IMO. Certainly, if he was hitting .400 with power and walking at AAA as a 25 year old catcher, he would be a top 100 guy, no matter the number of years in the minors. How different would that be at AA? Especially with only 2 years as a pro?

Sickels answered another question about Gattis and his answer was a little better the 2nd time around.

(Q) - Evan Gattis - He’s tearing the ball (something around a .900 slugging) in High-A to begin the season. Given his age but somewhat windy career path, do you feel that he can offer the Braves anything in the next few years? Or does your scouting (and/or your sources) believe that he’s not got the skills to be a productive Major League player?

(A) - I don’t just dismiss him as no prospect, but he is just too old to project from High-A. We have to see him at higher levels to know.

I think the Braves need to be aggressive about him. if he stays hot, I would move him to Double-A in May and see if he maintains it. If he does, then maybe you have something.

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This answer makes more sense than the earlier, "he's too old to be considered a prospect" type reply. He really didn't have much of an answer to your Flande question.

Agree that the answer is much better and hard to argue.

Here are the other Braves questions from the chat:

Q) What are your reports on Julio Teheran from this year? One source says his breaking ball has been much improved. Another says his fastball hasn’t been what it was. Are either/both of these accurate?

JS) well i've heard the thing about his breaking ball being better
I hadn’t heard anything confirmed about fastball slippage.
Keep in mind that velocity reports are often exaggerated anyway

Q) Flande leads the IL with a .096 BAA and has yet to allow an earned run. What do you know about his stuff and does it play as a starter?

JS) I don’t have a report for 2012 on his current stuff. In past seasons, his velocity has varied between 86 and 92 MPH on the fastball, with a mediocre breaking ball and a very good changeup.

Q) Not Necessarily A Prospect, but if you exclude Matt Kemp, is there any other power speed combo in the game better than Y. Cespedes?

JS) Heyward has stolen six bases already. I think you'd have to put him in the conversation.

Q) Salcedo’s good start for Lynchburg is being overshadowed by Gattis’ monster start. Have you heard anything about him that makes you think he is really tapping into his potential as a star type prospect?

JS) I think he is legitimately tapping his power, however his approach/contact is still an issue and batting average/OBP could be troublesome as he moves up.

Q) Kyle Kubitza: Best 3B prospect in Atlanta’s system?

JS) i'd probably go Salcedo

Q) David Filak was a 4th round pick in 2010 and had a good debut with the Braves that season in short season ball. He then crashed last year in lower A was demoted and is now off to a great start in lower A. How do you see his development going forward?

JS) His walk rate is pretty high so despite the other numbers I think caution is wise.
I’d like a current scouting report (which I don’t have at my fingertips) before commenting further.

I understand Gattis was promoted to AA after the game yesterday.

Yes, he will play LF, DH, 1B and back-up catcher. It would be a great thing for the Braves to have a starting LF with some history of professional catching on his resume'. I really hope he succeeds at AA. It will be a big test for him.

Yep. Big step.

But, it was the right move.

I just saw you mentioned it yesterday in another thread.

Christhian Bethancourt just went to the DL with a hamstring strain. Gattis and Kennely to split catching duties until Bethancourt returns.

He's not supposed to do that.