Six M-Braves Named Southern League All-Stars

PEARL, MS -- The Southern League of Professional Baseball Clubs announced its South Division All-Star team Wednesday, July 3, selecting six Mississippi Braves players to the 2013 Southern League All-Star Game. The North Division takes on the South Division Wednesday, July 17 at Bragan Field at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville.

 

Four position players were selected to represent the Mississippi Braves including catcher Christian Bethancourt, outfielder Jose Martinez, infielder Jaime Pedroza and third baseman Edward Salcedo. Starting pitcher Gus Schlosser and reliever Mark Lamm were the only members of the M-Braves pitching staff selected to the South Division roster.

 

Bethancourt, 21, has posted a .253 batting average with 10 doubles, four homers and 19 RBI in 49 games for the M-Braves this season. Entering to the 2013 season, the Panamanian was named by Baseball America as the Best Defensive Catcher and was ranked as the third-best prospect in the Braves organization. He was recently named to the 15th annual SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game World Roster for the second-consecutive season. Bethancourt signed with the Atlanta Braves as a free agent on March 12, 2008.

 

Martinez, 24, has a .301 average with 12 doubles and four homers in 75 games for the M-Braves. Martinez ranks fifth among Southern League leaders with his .301 batting average and his 29 RBI rank second on the M-Braves team. Martinez has a .386 average against left-handed pitchers this season, and he's posted a .368 mark with runners on and two outs. With runners in scoring position, Martinez is hitting .309 but with RISP and two outs, he's hitting .321. A native of Venezuela, Martinez was signed by the Atlanta Braves as a free agent on November 28, 2012.

 

Pedroza, 26, is hitting .281 with seven doubles, a triple, two home runs and 27 RBI in 73 games at Double-A Mississippi. The California native was signed by the Atlanta Braves out of the Atlantic Independent League on July 19, 2012, after spending six years in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.

 

Salcedo, 21, leads the M-Braves in RBI (41), doubles (18) and home runs (9). He's posted a .268 batting average in 80 games for the Mississippi club this season. Salcedo strung together a 14-game hitting streak (5/15-30) earlier this season, posting a .385 average during that span. He entered the 2013 season ranked as the 17th-best prospect in the Braves organization according to MLB.com. A native of the Dominican Republic, Salcedo was signed by the Braves as a non-drafted free agent on February 23, 2010.

 

Schlosser, 24, has gone 6-2 with a 2.36 ERA (fifth-best in the league) in 17 starts for the M-Braves this season. His six wins lead the team and rank second in the Atlanta organization. Schlosser strung together a five-game winning streak (4/23-5/15) earlier this season, tying a M-Braves record set by Brett Oberholtzer in 2011. He was also named Southern League Pitcher of the Week, week ending May 5. During that week, he made two starts and picked up wins in both contests while posting a 0.69 ERA. The 2012 Carolina League Pitcher of the Year was selected by the Braves in the 17th round of the 2011 draft out of Florida Southern College.

 

Lamm, 25, leads the M-Braves with 10 saves on the season and ranks second in the Atlanta Braves organization. In 32 outings this season (second-most in the Southern League), Lamm has posted a record of 3-3 with a 2.53 ERA. He's recorded 44 strikeouts in 42.2 innings of work. Lamm notched three-consecutive saves in mid-June and strung together a scoreless streak of 15.1 innings pitched (5/2-31). Lamm was selected by the Braves in the sixth round of the 2011 draft out of Vanderbilt.

 

The North Division All-Stars were announced Tuesday, July 2. Players were selected after a vote by Southern League field managers, radio broadcasters, general managers and print media. All players on Southern League rosters as of June 12 were eligible for the voting. Starting lineups for the North and South Divisions will be announced on Monday, July 8 and Tuesday, July 9, respectively.

 

Don't miss your chance to see these all-stars and the rest of the 2013 M-Braves. The Braves take on the Mobile BayBears in Wednesday's series finale followed by the M-Braves annual Independence Day Celebration and a supersized fireworks show. First pitch is scheduled for 7:00 PM at Trustmark Park. After a five-game road trip to Birmingham, the M-Braves return for a five-game homestand against the Chattanooga Lookouts July 10-14.

 

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