'Baseball in Alabama' book by Doug Wedge set to be released on May 28

The Atlanta Braves continued their winning ways during the past week and moved up in the National League East standings.

Since Monday of last week, the Braves went from third in the NL East to being tied for second in the division with Philadelphia. During that time, Atlanta posted four total road wins against Cincinnati and the Phillies. As of Monday, the Braves were 16-11 overall and were sporting an 11-7 record against division opponents.

Atlanta was scheduled to play a three-game set against the Mets in New York Tuesday through today (Thursday). Hopefully, Atlanta will win two out of three against the Mets, so they can continue their climb up the division standings.

Of course, the big news this week out of the Atlanta Braves camp was the official debut of phenom outfielder Ronald Acuna, who made his first Major League appearance in Atlanta’s 5-4 win over the Reds on Wednesday of last week. Atlanta is expecting big things out of Acuna, and some are already calling him a one-day Hall of Famer. Only time will tell, but here’s hoping that he lives up to the hype – and remains a Brave for a long, long time.

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I also got word this week that a new baseball book is coming down the pipe. Arcadia Publishing & The History Press announced this week that “Baseball in Alabama” by Doug Wedge will be officially released on May 28. Subtitled “Tales of Hardball in the Heart of Dixie,” this book includes a foreword by Hal Baird, who served as Auburn’s head baseball coach from 1985 through 2000.

I haven’t read this book yet, but I plan to. Wedge is a noted baseball history writer and is perhaps best known for his 2015 book, “The Cy Young Catcher,” which was about former Big League catcher Charlie O’Brien’s experiences catching for several big name pitchers. In “Baseball in Alabama,” Wedge hits on big names like Hank Aaron, Ozzie Smith, Satchel Paige and Bo Jackson, but also lesser knowns like Bob Veale and Britt Burns.

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Speaking of baseball, Evergreen’s youth baseball and softball leagues will enter their second full week of games this week, and the Cardinals are already off to a 2-0 start. Big thanks this week to Debbie Barlow, who is turning in the stats for the Little League teams this year. Debbie has handled this duty for a number of years and if your child’s name has made it into the paper, you should thank Debbie for a job well done.