by Sports Xchange

--1B Freddie Freeman's offense in the Arizona Fall League was improving as his wrist heals, and he was batting .308 (12-for-39) through 11 games. The wrist injury prevented Freeman from being promoted to Class AAA Gwinnett from Class AA Mississippi for the final week of Gwinnett's season, as teammate CF Jason Heyward was.

--SS Brandon Hicks, a Class AA Mississippi player, was working on his offense in the Arizona Fall League, concentrating on driving the ball rather than trying to hit home runs. He was batting .273 with a .429 on-base percentage through 12 games. His defense has been big-league quality for the last year, according to manager Bobby Cox.

--LHP Mike Minor, the seventh pick in this year's draft, had a 1.04 ERA after four Arizona Fall League starts. That rose to 2.31 after five starts, but he had pitched just 11 2/3 innings total. Minor debuted with Class A Rome (Ga.) late this season and had a 0.64 ERA in four starts.

--RHP Craig Kimbrel had posted a 1.35 ERA in 6 2/3 innings over six relief appearances in the Arizona Fall League. The Braves see him as a possible closer.

--RHP Lee Hyde, working his way back from injuries, struck out eight and walked three in his first six relief appearances (5 2/3 innings total) in the Arizona Fall League.

BY THE NUMBERS: 90 -- Wins the Braves, as currently constructed, should be good for in 2010, in the estimation of GM Frank Wren.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "For a first year here, I thought he gave us probably more than we expected." -- GM Frank Wren, on RHP Kenshin Kawakami.