Why Not Jason Heyward?

It's finally September! I've looked forward to this day for quite a while. I'm on vacation, football is in the air, and it's time for baseball's stretch run.

It's also time for September roster expansion. Baseball teams may expand their rosters from 25 players to 40. Given the recent spate of injuries to the Atlanta Braves' outfield, September couldn't have come at a better time.

Ryan Church is apparently chronically injured, and Nate McLouth just had a setback with his oft-injured hamstring. So you can imagine my confusion when I heard whom the Braves decided to bring up on Sept. 1; or more likely, whom they did not bring up.

Brooks Conrad, who never should have been sent down in the first place; Clint Sammons, who makes sense as a third catcher down the stretch; and reliever Luis Valdez because you can never have too much pitching.

Somewhat conspicuous by his absence in the September callups is Brandon Jones. Jones is a lefty, and we all know the Braves don't need many more of those, but at the very least he could provide some much needed depth in the outfield.

Gregor Blanco was also missing from the list. Also a lefty, Blanco has spent quite a bit of time in the majors and is fast...really fast. You can never have too much speed on the bench, especially down the stretch.

When you consider the Braves currently have 0-fer king Reid Gorecki and utility-man Omar Infante splitting time in center, it has to completely blow your mind—at least it did mine.

Not taking away from his recent tear, Matt Diaz is an 0-for-4 night away from being serviceable at best, again. Garret Anderson has injury concerns in left field as well.

The current state of this Atlanta outfield is bleak at best.

Which brings me to the point of this article: The Braves have a young, right-fielder at Double-A Mississippi who is tearing up the Southern League right now.

Jason Heyward has recently seen his average drop to .336...yes, I said drop. He's had seven home runs and 27 RBI in 44 games for Mississippi. Heyward is an athlete. He is fast and a tremendous defender. He's pretty much all you can ask for in a top prospect.

He is not only the Braves' top prospect. He is the No. 1 prospect in all of baseball. So why not? Why not let the kid come up for a month and get his feet wet. Let him get a taste of the big leagues before he becomes the starting right-fielder in 2010.

The detractors say, let him heal up from a full season of professional ball before joining the Arizona Fall League in November. No need in rushing a can't-miss prospect. Not to mention the injury concerns that would come up if he plants the wrong way or gets hit by a pitch in the hand, etc.

All those points are completely valid, and I understand each of them. But at this point, I think the potential return and production outweigh the fears of injury or being rushed.

Remember what Andruw Jones did in '96 after a mid-August callup? In 31 games he hit five home runs and knocked in 13. But most memorable were his two World Series Game One home runs.

It's not that the Braves are going to make the World Series this season (heck, the playoffs look improbable at this point), but the stir it would create to see Heyward playing in Atlanta in this final month could be worth purchasing a ticket.

I know it's probably not going to happen, but I sure can hope. Not only can I hope, but I can question as well. There have been many Bobby Cox/Frank Wren moves I have questioned this season. Such as the Conrad demotion, the Gorecki promotion, the fact that Greg Norton is still on this team, and, of course, why Manny Acosta lasted until August.

Alas, this is what we have. A team in the thick of the Wild Card race with two ailing outfielders and a converted infielder/utility-man splitting time with a career minor leaguer who looks completely clueless at the plate.

Somehow though, the Braves remain in the conversation.

I just can't help but believe that conversation would reach fever pitch, and maybe their offensive play would improve by adding baseball's No. 1 prospect for the season's final month.