The Mississippi Braves, or M-Braves as they were referred to locally, were a Minor League Baseball team based in Pearl, Mississippi, a suburb of Jackson, from 2005 to 2024. They were the Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves and competed in the Southern League. The M-Braves played their home games at Trustmark Park. After the 2024 season, the team relocated to Columbus, Georgia, to become the Columbus Clingstones.
| Mississippi Braves | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Minor league affiliations | |||||
| Class | Double-A | ||||
| League | Southern League | ||||
| Division | South Division | ||||
| Major league affiliations | |||||
| Team | Atlanta Braves | ||||
| Minor league titles | |||||
| League titles (2) |
| ||||
| Division titles (3) |
| ||||
| First-half titles (1) |
| ||||
| Second-half titles (1) |
| ||||
| Team data | |||||
| Name | M-Braves | ||||
| Colors | Red, white, blue, gold | ||||
| Ballpark | Trustmark Park | ||||
| Website | milb.com/mississippi | ||||
History
editIn 2005, the Southern League's Greenville Braves relocated to Pearl, Mississippi, from Greenville, South Carolina, due to the poor condition of Greenville Municipal Stadium, and the failure to reach an agreement with the Greenville County council for a new ballpark.
The M-Braves' first season began on April 18, 2005 at Trustmark Park with a loss to the Montgomery Biscuits.
In conjunction with Major League Baseball's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Braves were organized into the Double-A South.[1] They won the 2021 Southern Division title with a first-place 67–44 record.[2] They qualified for the playoffs by having the best record in the league.[3] The Braves defeated the Montgomery Biscuits, 3–2, in the best-of-five series to win the Double-A South championship.[4] Shea Langeliers was selected as the league's Top MLB Prospect and Dan Meyer as the Manager of the Year.[5]
In December 2021, Diamond Baseball Holdings bought the Mississippi Braves from Atlanta Braves owner Liberty Media.[6]
In 2022, the Double-A South became known as the Southern League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.[7]
In 2024, the Braves announced that the 2024 season would be their final season in Mississippi, and that they would be relocating to Columbus, Georgia, for the start of the 2025 season as the Columbus Clingstones.[8][9]
Championships
editOn September 13, 2008, the Mississippi Braves beat the Carolina Mudcats, 3–2, in the 10th inning of the decisive Game 5 of the Southern League Championship Series. This was the M-Braves first championship and the first Southern League title for Atlanta's Double-A franchise since 1997.[10] The M-Braves' second title came in 2021 in the Double-A South.[4]
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M-Braves current home, Trustmark Park
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Greenville Braves logo. The franchise moved from Greenville to Pearl at the end of the 2004 season.
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Trustmark Park, home of the Mississippi Braves
Television and radio
editAll Mississippi Braves games were televised live on MiLB.TV. Since 2023, all regular and post-season Mississippi Braves games aired on 102.1 The Box.[11] The broadcasters were Chris Harris and Jack Sadighian. From 2009 to 2022, games aired on WYAB 103.9 FM.
Notable players
edit- Blaine Boyer* (2005)
- Danny Burawa
- Román Colón (2005)
- Chuck James (2005)
- Brian McCann* (2005)
- Jay Powell* (2005)
- Martín Prado* (2005–2006)
- Gregor Blanco (2005-2006)
- Joey Devine* (2005–2007)
- Jeff Francoeur* (2005, 2008)
- Max Fried* (2017)
- Chipper Jones* (2006)
- Yunel Escobar (2006)
- Manny Acosta (2006)
- Matt Harrison (2006)
- José Ascanio* (2006–2007)
- Jarrod Saltalamacchia* (2006–2007)
- Kris Medlen (2007-2008)
- Tommy Hanson (2008)
- Matt Diaz (2008)
- Jordan Schafer (2008, 2010)
- Jason Heyward (2009)
- Freddie Freeman (2009)
- Craig Kimbrel (2009)
- Nate McLouth* (2009)
- Julio Teherán (2010)
- Mike Minor (2010, 2014)
- Arodys Vizcaíno (2011, 2015)
- Andrelton Simmons* (2012)
- Evan Gattis (2012)
- Christian Bethancourt (2012-2013)
- Philip Gosselin (2012-2013)
- Tommy La Stella (2013)
- Alex Wood (2013)
- Mallex Smith (2015)
- Brian O'Connor (2005)
- Ronald Acuna Jr. (2017)
- Michael Harris II (2022)
* Promoted directly to Atlanta.
References
edit- ^ Mayo, Jonathan (February 12, 2021). "MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues". Major League Baseball. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
- ^ "2021 Double-A South". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ Heneghan, Kelsie (July 1, 2021). "Playoffs Return to the Minor Leagues". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ a b Sheehan, Stephanie (September 26, 2021). "Rangel Steers Braves to Double-A South Crown". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ "Postseason All-Stars". Minor League Baseball. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ Tucker, Tim (December 8, 2021). "Braves sell minor-league teams in Gwinnett, Rome and Mississippi". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
- ^ "Historical League Names to Return in 2022". Minor League Baseball. March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
- ^ "A Letter to Our Fans: 2024 will be the M-Braves' final season in Pearl". MiLB.com. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
- ^ Rice, Mark (September 6, 2024). "Atlanta Braves' Double-A baseball team moving to Columbus gets new name". Ledger-Enquirer. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
- ^ http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080914/SPORTS09/809140389 The Clarion-Ledger: M-Braves complete mission
- ^ "M-Braves, New South Radio announce 780 AM, 102.1 FM The Box as new flagship radio station". 23 March 2023.
External links
edit- Official website
- Manager Phillip Wellman's tirade
- "Mississippi Braves Media Guide" (PDF). 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-02-28. Retrieved 2007-10-04.
- Mississippi Braves photos