Harrilchak Headed to Arizona Fall League

WILMINGTON, DE - Myrtle Beach Pelicans outfielder Cory Harrilchak has been named to the roster of the Arizona Fall League's Phoenix Desert Dogs, it was announced Tuesday. Harrilchak and six other Atlanta Braves' minor leaguers will join the five-time defending AFL champions when the showcase circuit's season kicks off on October 12.

Harrilchak was taken by the Braves in the 14th round of the 2009 MLB First-Year Player Draft and is in his second 2010 stint with the Pelicans after a short promotion to Myrtle Beach in May. The 22-year-old has batted .269 in 58 games in a Pelicans uniform after a solid start to his season at Class A Rome. A product of Elon University, Cory entered the 2010 season as the third-best right field prospect in the Braves system according to Baseball America behind current big league phenom Jason Heyward and Harrilchak's Pelicans teammate Luis Sumoza. The publication also named Harrilchak as the best pure hitter in the Braves' minor league ranks. Harrilchak has excelled at pitcher-friendly BB&T Coastal Field where he boasts a .300 batting average in 27 games. The lefty outfielder heated up during the month of July, batting a red-hot .324 in 28 games with his first home run in the Carolina League, 14 runs batted in, and a scorching .901 OPS.

After signing with the Braves following the 2009 draft, Cory became the regular three-hole hitter for the Danville Braves of the Rookie Appalachian League and surged in his first season in professional baseball. While helping to lead the D-Braves to the Appy League title, the outfielder batted .324 with two home runs, 41 runs batted in, 43 runs scored, and an .842 OPS.

While at Elon, the Cary, North Carolina native was named a First-Team All-Southern Conference performer while batting .338 with 18 doubles, 16 home runs, and a program-record 79 runs scored in 2009. The year prior, he batted .410 and became the first Elon player to top the .400 plateau since the program joined the Division I ranks in 2000. A poll of SoCon coaches listed Harrilchak as one of the conference's three best pure hitters, the hitter coaches least wanted to face, the best baserunner, and even the circuit's most underrated pitcher.

Joining Harrilchak on the Desert Dogs roster are five former Myrtle Beach players: Gwinnett Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman (2009 w/Pelicans), who was called up to the Atlanta roster on Tuesday, and right-handed Gwinnett Braves pitchers Michael Broadway (2008-09), Brandon Beachy (2009), Erik Cordier (2009), and Mississippi Braves' righty Kyle Cofield (2008). Along with those five, Mississippi Braves shortstop Tyler Pastornicky, acquired by the Braves in the July deal that sent shortstop Yunel Escobar to the Toronto Blue Jays, was also named to the Desert Dogs roster.

Founded in 1992, the Arizona Fall League has become the premier offseason destination for many of the top prospects in Minor League Baseball. Just last year, the AFL was home to players like the Braves' Jason Heyward, Mike Leake of the Cincinnati Reds, Buster Posey of the San Francisco Giants, Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals, and more. Harrilchak's roster spot is a rare one. The six teams in the AFL are mostly comprised of Double-A and Triple-A players with only a limited number of Single-A athletes lining rosters throughout the league.

The Pelicans continue their final road series of the year looking to bounce back Wednesday night in the third game of a four-game set at Wilmington when they send southpaw Matt Crim (7-10, 4.88) against Blue Rocks right-hander and 2009 first round draft pick Aaron Crow (1-2, 5.79) at 6:35.