Ian Mejia and Brandon Parker named Farm Bureau Pitcher and Player of the Week

PEARL, MS (September 17, 2024) — The Mississippi Braves and Farm Bureau proudly announce that RHP Ian Mejia and OF Brandon Parker have been named the final Farm Bureau Pitcher and Player of the Week for August 27-September 2.

Mejia, 24, closed out his phenomenal 2024 season with a rain-shortened complete-game shutout on Saturday night in Biloxi. Mejia allowed no runs on four hits with two walks and five strikeouts in the 6-0 win over the Shuckers. The Tuscon, AZ native finished the season by leading the Southern League with three complete game shutouts and ranked among the league leaders in strikeouts (2nd, 123), ERA (3rd, 3.47), opponents' batting average (4th, .233), WHIP (4th, 1.32), starts (T-5th, 23), and innings pitched (7th, 124.1).

The Mississippi right-hander set a new club record with 30.1 consecutive scoreless innings for the M-Braves from April 28 to June 5. The two-time Southern League Pitcher of the Week tossed a seven-inning no-hitter in game two of the May 17 doubleheader vs. Biloxi (7.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 11 SO). His 11 strikeouts were a career high. It was the fifth no-hitter in M-Braves' history.

The Atlanta Braves drafted Mejia out of New Mexico State in the 11th round of the 2022 draft.

Parker, 25, hit a home run in three straight games last week, batting .333 (4-for-12) with eight RBI, four runs, two walks, and a 1.512 OPS. The Saucier, MS native became the second M-Braves player to homer in three-straight games this season, joining Tyler Tolve. Parker's three-run homer in game one of last Thursday's doubleheader gave the M-Braves a brief 3-2 lead, and on Friday, he finished 2-for-4 with a two-run homer in a 7-0 victory. Parker capped his week with a three-run home run in Saturday's 6-0 win.

Parker finished the year with nine home runs and 33 RBI over 74 games. The Atlanta Brave selected Parker in the tenth round of the 2019 draft out of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.