Davis Polo. A name you’ve heard before and a name you’ll need to get used to hearing. After a solid outing in his High-A debut, he took the mound for his second start with Rome. His stat line shows three earned runs, but they really don’t tell the story of how great he was in this game. Only six batters reached base during his six inning performance. Two of the three runs he allowed came from solo home runs, showing how well he limited the damage when runners were on base. His slider and changeup proved to be an issue for Winston-Salem hitters, generating plenty of swing-and-miss at the bottom of the zone. He finished the game with a single game career high 12 strikeouts and 22 whiffs.

Let’s talk about a guy that at the beginning of the season really wasn’t on many people’s radar. A guy that was just getting back from Tommy John surgery at the end of 2023, went undrafted, and has completely changed the trajectory of his career in a matter of one full season of professional baseball. I’m talking about Daniel Brooks, a 6’7” right-handed pitcher out of the College of Charleston. 

I normally don’t write about the Major League team, not because I don’t have the same passion for them that I have for the minor league, because I do. Its just not what I've set out to do with my writing. But when the Braves have a series like they just did against a team like the Dodgers, it has to be done.

There were plenty of performances to talk about this week, but two pitchers in particular stood out and continued to show just how much talent the Braves have throughout their minor league system.

The Rome Emperors took on the Asheville Tourists, the Houston Astros affiliate, this weekend, and what started with a huge offensive performance on Saturday turned into an impressive series for a new-look Rome lineup.