2008 Mississippi Braves Roster
Team Record: 73-66
Finished 2nd in the SL's South Division
Manager: Phil Wellman (73-66)
Affiliation: Atlanta Braves
Location: Pearl, Mississippi
Ballpark: Mississippi Braves Stadium
Attendance: 212,107, Avg. 3,166 in 67 home dates
Playoffs - Mississippi Braves 3 games, Birmingham Barons 0
Finals - Mississippi Braves 3 games, Carolina Mudcats 2
The Mississippi Braves of the Southern League ended the 2008 season with a record of 73 wins and 66 losses, finishing second in the league's South Division.
The Braves plated 628 runs and surrendered 643 runs. Kala Ka'aihue paced Mississippi with 14 home runs and drove in 61 runs. Matt Young led all qualifying hitters on the roster by connecting at a .289 clip. Todd Redmond topped the squad with 13 wins, while Kris Medlen and Todd Redmond earned a 3.52 ERA, leading regular hurlers.
Members of the 2008 Mississippi Braves who played in Major League Baseball during their careers were James Parr, Kris Medlen, Matt Diaz, Brandon Hicks, Diory Hernández, Tom Glavine, Jairo Asencio, Jonny Venters, Martín Prado, Jason Perry, Tommy Hanson, Jordan Schafer, Mike Hampton, Deunte Heath, Jeff Francoeur, John Smoltz, Todd Redmond, J. C. Boscán, Reid Gorecki, Rafael Soriano, Mark Kotsay, Mike Gonzalez and Matt Young.
Phil Wellman served as manager.Click on column headings to sort.
| Player | Bats | Throws | Birth Date | Height | Weight | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Derrick Arnold | R | R | August 3, 1983 | 5'9" | 165 | Milton, FL US |
| Jairo Asencio | R | R | May 30, 1983 | 6'2" | 180 | Sabana Grande de Palenque, San Cristobal DO |
| Ryan Basner | R | R | July 15, 1981 | 6'3" | 230 | West Chester, PA US |
| Paul Bennett | R | R | September 6, 1983 | 5'11" | 180 | Winston-Salem, NC US |
| J. C. Boscán | R | R | December 26, 1979 | 6'2" | 215 | Maracaibo, Zulia VE |
| Phillip Britton | R | R | September 25, 1984 | 6'0" | 205 | Richland County, IL US |
| Paul Bush | R | R | October 5, 1979 | 6'1" | 195 | Titusville, FL US |
| Willie Cabrera | R | R | August 3, 1986 | 5'11" | 195 | Los Angeles, CA US |
| Jose Camarena | S | R | May 29, 1984 | 5'10" | 170 | Panama, Panama PA |
| Greg Creek | L | R | August 29, 1982 | 6'3" | 225 | Augusta, ME US |
| Jairo Cuevas | R | R | January 24, 1984 | 6'2" | 215 | Santo Domingo, Distrito Nacional DO |
| Quentin Davis | L | R | March 7, 1983 | 5'10" | 170 | Darlington, SC US |
| Matt Diaz | R | R | March 3, 1978 | 6'0" | 215 | Portland, OR US |
| Bryan Dumesnil | R | L | September 19, 1983 | 6'3" | 210 | Nanaimo, BC CA |
| Dustin Evans | R | R | September 24, 1984 | 6'4" | 215 | Rome, GA US |
| Jeff Francoeur | R | R | January 8, 1984 | 6'4" | 225 | Atlanta, GA US |
| Jerome Gamble | R | R | April 5, 1980 | 6'4" | 235 | Alexander City, AL US |
| Tom Glavine | L | L | March 25, 1966 | 6'0" | 175 | Concord, MA US |
| Mike Gonzalez | R | L | May 23, 1978 | 6'2" | 200 | Corpus Christi, TX US |
| Reid Gorecki | R | R | December 22, 1980 | 6'1" | 200 | Queens, NY US |
| Kevin Gunderson | R | L | September 16, 1984 | 5'10" | 165 | Portland, OR US |
| Javier Guzman | S | R | May 4, 1982 | 6'0" | 170 | Samana, Samana DO |
| Mike Hampton | R | L | September 9, 1972 | 5'10" | 185 | Brooksville, FL US |
| Tommy Hanson | R | R | August 28, 1986 | 6'6" | 220 | Tulsa, OK US |
| Deunte Heath | R | R | August 8, 1985 | 6'4" | 240 | Atlanta, GA US |
| Diory Hernández | R | R | April 8, 1984 | 6'0" | 185 | San Pedro de Macoris, San Pedro de Macoris DO |
| Brandon Hicks | R | R | September 14, 1985 | 6'2" | 215 | Houston, TX US |
| J. C. Holt | L | R | December 8, 1982 | 5'9" | 175 | Alexandria, LA US |
| Sung Ki Jung | R | R | August 6, 1979 | 5'10" | 161 | Yeo Soo, KR |
| Mark Jurich | L | L | December 29, 1980 | 5'10" | 195 | Flagstaff, AZ US |
| Kala Ka'aihue | R | R | March 29, 1985 | 6'2" | 230 | Kailua, HI US |
| Mark Kotsay | L | L | December 2, 1975 | 6'0" | 220 | Whittier, CA US |
| Carl Loadenthal | L | L | December 27, 1981 | 5'10" | 190 | Philadelphia, PA US |
| Chad Lundahl | R | R | August 14, 1984 | 6'2" | 190 | Thousand Oaks, CA US |
| Jeff Lyman | R | R | January 14, 1987 | 6'3" | 225 | San Francisco, CA US |
| Robert Marcial | R | R | April 21, 1984 | 5'10" | 170 | Northridge, CA US |
| Stephen Marek | L | R | September 3, 1983 | 6'2" | 240 | Houston, TX US |
| Kris Medlen | S | R | October 7, 1985 | 5'10" | 190 | Artesia, CA US |
| Brad Nelson | R | R | January 5, 1982 | 6'3" | 210 | Phoenix, AZ US |
| Michael Nix | R | R | May 21, 1983 | 6'5" | 235 | Auburn, AL US |
| James Parr | R | R | February 27, 1986 | 6'1" | 185 | Albuquerque, NM US |
| Nelson Payano | L | L | November 13, 1982 | 6'1" | 190 | Santo Domingo, Distrito Nacional DO |
| Jason Perry | L | R | August 18, 1980 | 6'0" | 200 | Fremont, NE US |
| Van Pope | R | R | February 26, 1984 | 6'0" | 200 | Jackson, MS US |
| Martín Prado | R | R | October 27, 1983 | 6'0" | 215 | Maracay, Aragua VE |
| Todd Redmond | R | R | May 17, 1985 | 6'3" | 240 | St. Petersburg, FL US |
| Mike Rozema | L | R | September 16, 1981 | 6'2" | 180 | Ridgewood, NJ US |
| Jordan Schafer | L | L | September 4, 1986 | 6'1" | 205 | Hammond, IN US |
| Carlos Sencion | L | L | November 17, 1984 | 6'6" | 170 | Sanchez Ramirez, DO |
| Ray Serrano | R | R | January 19, 1981 | 5'9" | 220 | Ponce, PR |
| Dan Smith | L | L | September 9, 1983 | 6'5" | 250 | Hagerstown, MD US |
| John Smoltz | R | R | May 15, 1967 | 6'3" | 210 | Detroit, MI US |
| Rafael Soriano | R | R | December 19, 1979 | 6'4" | 230 | San Jose, San Pedro de Macoris DO |
| Jonny Venters | L | L | March 20, 1985 | 6'3" | 200 | Pikeville, KY US |
| Matt Young | L | R | October 3, 1982 | 5'8" | 175 | Temple, TX US |
Average attendance is based upon the number of actual home dates where known (most leagues from 1992 and later). Where the number of home dates is not known, the average is calculated using half the team's total games.
