By John Breech / STAFF

If you were at Publix on Friday and you noticed that the guy bagging your groceries looked a lot like Atlanta Braves pitcher Kris Medlen, you’re not going crazy, because it actually might have been the Atlanta Braves 23-year-old right-hander.

On July 31, Braves pitchers Kenshin Kawakami, Boone Logan and Kris Medlen were at the Publix on State Bridge Road to promote the team’s “Shop with the Braves Program.” Fans who were seeking autographs from the Braves trio were encouraged to donate school supplies to the Atlanta Community Bank’s Kids In Need Program. Kids In Need is a program that annually distributes almost 200,000 pounds of brand new school supplies to teachers in low income schools.

Medlen, Logan and Kawakami put on quite a show for the several hundred avid Braves fans in attendance. Logan, a 24-year-old from Texas who will be celebrating his birthday on August 13, started the day off signing autographs in front of the grocery store. Now, no one would mistake the Braves left-hander for a Jonas Brother, but Logan had a Jonas Brother size crowd building in the Publix Parking lot. Many of the over one hundred well wishers were attractive females looking to get a picture with the Braves rugged reliever, who hasn’t surrendered an earned run in over a month.

While Logan signed autographs outside, Kawakami dazzled spectators with his cooking skills. With the help of a Publix employee, Kawakami prepared a ‘beanie weenie pizza.’ And yes, during food preparation, Kawakami did have to wear a hairnet, something Medlen was quick to point out, “Nice hairnet there on Kenshin,” Medlen told the Publix cashier standing next to him. The former Japanese star looked a little confused at times, but fans who sampled the final product seemed to approve of the 35-year-old rookie’s cooking skills. Kawakami, who is playing his first year of Major League Baseball after playing over a dozen years in Japan, had a throng of Japanese fans following him throughout the day.

Finally, there was Medlen. The California native was bagging groceries for customers who were checking out. After spending a few minutes in the express land, Publix management felt it was time to move Medlen to a real aisle. Medlen tried his best, but he would probably be the first to admit that he has no future in bagging. The 23-year-old even apologized to one customer when he took a particularly long time, “Sorry about this,” he said. “I’ve never bagged groceries before.”  

The team will be holding two more “Shop with the Braves” promotions before the season ends. The dates of the upcoming events are August 22 and September 5. The team will announce the Publix location and which players will be signing autographs a few days before each event.