Welcome to the Braves Farm Report, where we will take a look at the Braves farm system and look at trends and players that seem interesting, and give first hand accounts of what we’re seeing down on the farm.
This week we released our Mid-Season 2019 Top 30 Braves Prospect Update into the wild… check it out! Also be sure to watch the Futures Game tonight starting at 7:00 Eastern on MLB Network for top Braves prospects Cristian Pache and Ian Anderson. Pache will be leading off for the NL squad while Ian Anderson will be the starting pitcher.
Life On the Farm
DSL BRAVES:
The Braves went 2-4 on the week, with starting pitching having a particularly rough go of it. Starters combined to give up 16 runs in 23.1 innings pitched.
Offensively, the team has been carried by outfielder Deivi Estrada (5-for-13, 1 HR, 4 RBI) and IF Yerangel Medina (7-for-17, 2 doubles).
GCL BRAVES:
The GCL Braves went 2-3 for the week with Satuday’s game rained out. The team got reinforced this week by minor league veteran pitchers on rehab outings – Tristan Beck, Freddy Tarnok, Caleb Dirks, and Corbin Clouse – but the standout pitching performance came from right-hander Eudi Ascencio, who tossed 5 scoreless innings in relief on Thursday, allowing only one hit and striking out 5.
Outfielder Michael Harris continues to be the stand-out performer from the 2019 prep draftees, this week going 6-for-17 with a double and a triple.
DANVILLE:
The D-Braves went 3-4 on the week, the 4 losses coming in a mid-week streak. Overall Danville is at 9-9, but only 1.5 games back of Pulaski in their division.
The piggybacking duo of right-handers Darius Vines and Mitch Stallings has proven to be effective; in two games last week Vines has started the game and gone two scoreless innings with Stallings then picking up the next 5 innings each game and earning the win. The Braves also continue to get good work from swingman Filyer Sanchez, racking up 6.2 scoreless innings over two outings, striking out 7 batters and only allowing 3 baserunners.
Outfielder Charles Reyes showed out this week, launching his first two home runs of the season including a grand slam on Monday. He also pitched in the final innings of a blowout 5-14 loss on Wednesday, but since there is the possibility that children will be reading this, I will not elaborate. Outfielder Willie Carter also had a strong week, hitting .357/.471/.714 with his own grand slam Sunday in the decisive blow against Pulaski, plus a two-run shot Saturday night to earn OFR Position Player of the Week honors. In a plot twist, first baseman Bryce Ball did not hit a home run this week but still hit a respectable .294/.409/.471 with three doubles. IF Ray Hernandez missed time this week, but returned to the line-up Saturday night with a three-run homer.
ROME:
Rome went 3-4 this week, dropping into a three-way tie with Columbia and Augusta atop the division standings, one game over Charleston and Greenville.
Rome wasted two excellent starts from Odalvi Javier this week. After holding Kanapolis scoreless for six innings on Monday, Javier pitched seven scoreless against Asheville Saturday but got no-decisions each night as Rome got shut-out each game. Jose Olague also delivered two quality starts, allowing only 2 earned in a combined 15 innings, including a 9-inning complete game shut-out against Asheville on Friday to take OFR Pitcher of the Week. Gabriel Noguera also had his best start of the season, allowing 2 unearned runs in 6.2 innings and striking out a career-high 9 batters.
Offensively the team continued to get strong production from the top half of their line-up, with Justin Dean, Braden Shewmake, and Greg Cullen hitting a combined 30-for-75 with 22 runs scored on the week. Outfielder Jeremy Fernandez is starting to heat up as well, going 7-for-21 with 6 RBI, though his next base-on-balls will be his first of the season.
FLORIDA:
The big news of the week was the retirement of former international bonus baby Derian Cruz at the ripe age of 20, followed by the return of CJ Alexander and Tristan Beck to the roster.
Beck’s return was particularly important for the team this week, as his start on Saturday snapped a six-game losing streak that dropped the team into it’s customary last place spot in the standings with a 5-14 second-half record. Beck held Bradenton to four baserunners in 6 innings in his first Fire Frogs start since April. He was backed by a Drew Lugbauer solo homer and a Jordan Rodgers RBI double and three scoreless innings of relief from Sean McLaughlin and Daysbel Hernandez.
Lefty Phil Pfeifer had an outstanding week, going 8 innings with a career-high 11 strikeouts last Sunday against Tampa, but with 2 unearned runs coming in to be the difference in a 2-1 loss. Pfeifer followed that up with 3 relief innings piggybacking with the rehabbing Kevin Gausman and again only allowing 2 unearned runs.
The Fire Frogs offense took the week off for the most part with outfielder Andrew Moritz the only standout performer. Since joining Florida, Moritz has hit .310/.365/.362, mostly out of the lead-off spot. Ender Inciarte joined the team on his own rehab assignment, going 1-for-14 so far.
MISSISSIPPI:
The M-Braves had a terrible week in losing all seven games and now have an eight-game losing streak. The offense was the main culprit, scoring just 22 runs in seven games with 13 of those being in one game. They were shut out three times and scored just one run and three runs in two other contests.
What little offense to be had was provided by Drew Waters, who recovered from his mini slump in a .400/.464/.600 week while even taking three walks. It was Cristian Pache’s turn to have an off week as he prepared to leave for the Futures Game, going just .217/.333/.348 for the week. Ryan Casteel supplied some big power including a three-homer game on Wednesday on his way to a .286/.310/.714 week. Catcher William Contreras continued to struggle on offense with a 1-for-14 week and outfielder Greyson Jenista had just a .227/.261/.364 line although he hit his first Double-A home run.
The M-Braves’ pitching gave up 33 runs over their seven games but fourteen of those were in one game and seven were in another. They just happened to lose two 1-0 games and lost two other games by scores of 3-0 and 3-1. Joey Wentz was the standout among the starting pitchers in giving up just two runs over 12.2 innings on eight hits and five walks while striking out 19. Tucker Davidson had a mixed bag in his two starts with one good one (7 IP, 2 ER, 9 K) and one poor one (3.2 IP, 5 K, 7 K). Jasseel De La Cruz also had another good outing in giving up just one earned run in six innings on Tuesday. Claudio Custodio was the best reliever for the M-Braves this week with two scoreless outings covering six innings. Unfortunately, Mississippi relievers had a catastrophic outing on Wednesday in Pensacola where they took over after Ian Anderson pitched a scoreless first inning in a tune-up appearance before the Futures Game. Following Anderson’s exit, M-Braves relievers threw seven innings, gave up fourteen runs on eighteen hits and eight walks, blowing what was at one point a 13-6 lead and wasting a three-home run outing by 1B Ryan Casteel, the first in M-Braves history.
GWINNETT:
The Gwinnett Stripers were 5-3 over the past week, led surprisingly by superior pitching. Gwinnett pitchers allowed 29 runs over the eight games and gave up three or fewer in five of them. Patrick Weigel was the premier starter for Gwinnett this week with two starts totaling 9.1 innings where he gave up just one run on four hits, striking out thirteen and walking only two. Weigel’s command and control appear to be rounding into form as he continues to build up his arm following Tommy John surgery. In Saturday’s start, he threw a season-high 89 pitches. Kolby Allard also started twice on the week, although he didn’t fare as well in allowing nineteen baserunners in ten innings although only five earned runs scored as a result. Kyle Wright continued his good run of late in tossing six shutout innings on Wednesday, scattering just five hits and no walks while striking out eight. In four starts dating back to June 14th, Wright has a 1.42 ERA, a 0.789 WHIP, 11.4 K/9 and just a 1.8 BB/9. Huascar Ynoa (5.2 IP, 3 ER) and Mike Foltynewicz (5 IP, 2 ER) also had decent starts to round out the week.
Several relievers fared well this week: Shane Carle tossed five shutout innings over three appearances, Thomas Burrows had two scoreless appearances covering 3.1 innings in his return from Mississippi, Grant Dayton pitched two perfect innings in his only outing for the week before being called back up to Atlanta and even infielder Sean Kazmar got in on the act, pitching a scoreless ninth inning on Friday night to earn the win as Luis Marte hit a walk-off home run. On top of that, Kazmar even had a home run as a position player earlier in the game. Unfortunately, things didn’t go as well for Jeremy Walker in his first appearance after being promoted from Mississippi. Walker gave up seven hits and three runs over 2.1 innings.
The offense took a bit of a step back for Gwinnett this week as it was led once again by AAA All-Star outfielder Travis Demeritte, who only hit .238 but had a .385 OBP and .524 SLG. He was somewhat hampered by eleven strikeouts in 26 plate appearances. Adam Duvall had a rough week where he was just 6-for-29 on his way to a .207/.233/.379 line. Rafael Ortega, Luis Marte and Andres Blanco all hit over .300 for the week and each had an OPS of over .800. Catcher Alex Jackson was 4-for-16 with two doubles and seven strikeouts.
POSITION PLAYER of the WEEK:
PITCHER of the WEEK:
Transaction Round-Up
6/29/2019: RHP Ricky DeVito, LHP Andy Samuelson, RHP Darius Vines, RHP Peyton Williams, and RHP Justin Yeager promoted to Rk Danville from GCL Braves
6/29/2019: RHP Luis De Jesus, RHP Javier Ciriaco, LHP Miguel Jerez, RHP Cameron Kurz, and RHP Zach Seipel assigned to GCL Braves from Rk Danville
Some of the higher-profile arms from the 2019 draft move up to Danville after getting a few innings in the more controlled environment of the GCL.
7/1/2019: SS Juan Morales promoted to A Rome from Rk Danville
7/1/2019: 3B Darling Florentino assigned to GCL Braves from A Rome
The 18-year-old Florentino has promise and a lot of raw power, but the Rome assignment was a stretch from the beginning; getting him back down to the rookie leagues where he can rebuild confidence.
7/1/2019: OF Drew Campbell signs with Braves, assigned to A Rome
7/1/2019: OF Henry Quintero released from A Rome
Campbell was a 23rd round pick out of Louisville, who was in the College World Series finals just two weeks ago, so he didn’t require ramp-up time to knock off rust.
Quintero was a Cuban international free agent signed in the 2017/18 signing period as a 23-year-old. Now 25 and playing a part-time role in Rome without demonstrating any of the power that the Braves were hoping would be forthcoming.
7/2/2019: IF Derian Cruz voluntarily retired from A+ Florida
Cruz was rated as the number 5 prospect in the 2015/16 signing class when he signed with the Braves for a $2 million bonus. Cruz has been plagued by both poor contact skills and shaky defense since first climbing to the A-ball level in 2017 and this season he started out in extended spring training before re-joining Rome for the third season in May. Cruz had recently been promoted to Florida to make room for newly drafted players in Rome.
I did a complete write-up of Derian Cruz for the Atlanta Braves Top 50 Prospects list that came out in November, where he came in at #38, if you would like expanded thoughts on the Cruz situation.
7/2/2019: Signed Jose Barett, Samuel Bastardo, Jose Camacaro, Deivy Castro, Wilfrank Graciano, Luis Jose, Luis Moreno, Yorfran Nieves, Albert Rivas to futures contracts
Speaking of the international signing class, the Braves stayed busy despite MLB sanctions that are limiting the team to only giving signing bonuses no greater than $10,000. I have no information on any of these players.
7/2/2019: RHP Freddy Tarnok sent on rehab assignment to the GCL Braves
Tarnok has been off the Florida active roster since June 4 with an undisclosed injury.
7/3/2019: RHP Tristan Beck activated from the 7-day injured list for A+ Florida
The first of two really good pieces of injury news, Beck resumed his spot in the Fire Frogs after suffering an injury in April. Beck had made two rehab starts with the GCL Braves prior to activation.
7/3/2019: LHP Corbin Clouse and RHP Caleb Dirks sent on rehab assignment to the GCL Braves
Two injured Gwinnett relievers will work back into competitive shape. Dirks has been on the injured list since August 2, 2017.
7/3/2019: LHP Thomas Burrows promoted to AAA Gwinnett from AA Mississippi
7/3/2019: RHP Andres Santiago assigned to AA Mississippi
Burrows gets his second crack at the AAA level and the juiced ball. Burrows had been very effective (again) with Mississippi.
7/3/2019: RHP Jonathan Aro activated from the 7-day injured list for AAA Gwinnett
7/3/2019: RHP Jose Rafael De Paula placed on the 7-day injured list for AAA Gwinnett
De Paula has been one of the most effective Striper relievers this season, but this is the second time that he has spent time off the roster working through an injury.
Aro has been a gunslinger this year; this was his 12th transaction since Opening Day, but the week wasn’t done with him.
7/4/2019: RHP Joey Estes signs with Braves, assigned to GCL Braves
7/3/2019: RHP Yoeli Lopez released from the GCL Braves
Estes was yet another well-rated prep star that the Braves managed to sign despite only taking him in the 16th round thanks to canny maneuvering of the draft pool.
Like Cruz, Lopez was another member of the 2015 international signing class, albeit at nowhere near that kind of signing bonus. A strong-armed outfielder, Lopez was converted to the pitchers mound after the team concluded that his bat wouldn’t carry him much farther. The conversion has been rocky, and this season he only had pitched to one batter.
7/3/2019: LHP Carlos Caminero promoted to GCL Braves from DSL Braves
Caminero is 21 years old and moves up a level where the competition is a little closer to his age level. Caminero was sporting a 1.87 ERA in 17 appearances with the DSL Braves before this promotion.
7/4/2019: OF Connor Blair assigned to Rk Danville
Blair signed almost two weeks ago but had been pending assignment. The 15th-rounder out of the University of Washington made his pro debut Friday night, going 1-for-4 with 2 RBI.
7/5/2019: RHP Kenny Wells signs with Braves, assigned to Rk Danville
7/4/2019: 1B Nicholas Vizcaino released from Danville
Wells was pitching with the Morehead City Marlins of the amateur wooden-bat Coastal Plain League, preparing for his senior season with Seton Hill University when the Braves came calling. Projected to be a selection in the last draft, Wells was passed over instead, allowing the Braves to sign him as a non-drafted free agent. A reliever in college, Wells brings a mid-90s fastball and a developing breaking ball to Danville.
Vizcaino was signed in 2017 after his release from the Yankees organization. In parts of three rookie league seasons, Vizcaino hist .220/.292/.311.
7/5/2019: RHP Jeremy Walker promoted to AAA Gwinnett from AA Mississippi
7/5/2019: RHP Jonathan Aro assigned to AA Mississippi from AAA Gwinnett
In a widely anticipated move, Walker moves up to the unfriendly confines of CoolRay Field (for pitchers that is, they’re really nice people there). Walker has been magnificent this season with the M-Braves but will need to get acclimated to the MLB/AAA ball.
And as promised, here’s lucky transaction 13 for Aro.
7/5/2019: 3B CJ Alexander activated from 7-day injured list for AA Mississippi, assigned to A+ Florida
The second big injury return this week. Less than four months after undergoing a procedure to remove a bone spur form his elbow, Alexander heads back to action. In somewhat of a surprise, Alexander isn’t being worked back in rehab appearance but jumps right back in, albeit one level below where he was initially signed on Opening Day. It looks like the plan is to work him again at first base and DH for the time being.
7/6/2019: IF Braulio Vasquez activated from the 7-day injured list for A Rome
7/6/2019: SS Juan Morales assigned to Rk Danville from A Rome
Vasquez went out at a bad time in mid-May just as playing time was opening up with an injury to third baseman Darling Florentino. He’ll have an opportunity now to try to get the bat going.
7/6/2019: RHP Kurt Hoekstra promoted from AAA Gwinnett from A+ Florida
7/6/2019: RHP Josh Graham placed on 7-day injured list for AA Mississippi
7/6/2019: RHP Jason Creasy assigned to AA Mississippi from AAA Gwinnett
The Stripers has all but emptied their bullpen in a double-header Friday and called up Hoekstra to fill innings. That said, Hoekstra has been outstanding this year after converting from being a position player last season.
No word on what’s ailing Graham, but a solid season for the M-Braves has been interrupted by a three-appearance stretch where he’s allowed 4 runs and only gotten 6 outs.
Creasy was one of those aforementioned Striper relievers that pitched on Friday; he has been pretty effective for Gwinnett, especially since June, and should make his way back up to Lawrenceville before too long.
Mailbag Q&A
Q: Biggest rising prospect and biggest falling prospect since beginning of season? And what under the radar prospect is making their move into the top prospects list? – A. Hensley
A: Jasseel De La Cruz went from just outside the Top 30 this offseason to #9 on the midseason list. The biggest faller would be Izzy Wilson, who went from being in the Top 30 to being released two weeks ago. Of those within the organization, I guess Corbin Clouse fell the most, though he was still within spitting distance of the Top 30.
I continue to be a huge fan of Victor Vodnik, who rose from 40 to 20 on the midseason update list. He’s the most exciting pitcher in A-ball for the Braves right now. All of the prep talent signed by Atlanta in the latest draft and is currently in the GCL will be worth keeping an eye on — OFs Michael Harris, Kaden Morton, and Stephen Paolini, SS Vaughn Grissom, and pitchers Tyler Owens, Jared Johnson, and Joey Estes.
Q: How is Demeritte ripping up triple-A, but only #23? – T. Bragg
A: The short answer is that everyone is ripping up AAA, so I don’t know if Demeritte doing it too is “real”. That said, he did climb 10 spots from the prior ranking; we’re watching and hoping, and the lowering of his strikeout rate to around that 25% threshold is big. I’d feel a lot better if were still playing above average second and third base rather than corner outfield.
Q: Braden Shewmake player comparison? Let’s do Langeliers too while we’re at it. – C. Murphy
A: I generally don’t do comps publicly because it generates unfair expectations for guys when there’s so much development ahead of them. Comps are used by scouts and evaluators as shorthand to say what type of player they are anticipating the prospects to become, but fans take it to mean that they will put up similar numbers. In the end, it’s a self-defeating exercise to make comps public.
But I’m nothing if not self-defeating, so let’s give Shewmake a Robin Ventura comp and Francisco Cervelli for Langeliers.
Q: Is Jenista ever going to hit? – P. Fisk
A: Yes. He’s working on a fairly extensive swing change. It’s a work in progress, and results may be ugly for awhile. To make you feel a little better, here’s Jenista hitting a homer this week.
Q: When can we expect to see Kolby Allard in the show again? – P. Summers
A: Allard’s success in Gwinnett over the last six weeks likely puts him in the discussion for when the Braves need a spot starter or someone to come up to be the emergency long reliever, like the team has called upon Bryse Wilson, Kyle Wright, and Huascar Ynoa for at different points this season. As far as being in the mix for a permanent rotation spot, he’s still behind Foltynewicz, Wilson, and probably Wright.
Q: Do you think Pache and Waters get a promotion soon to triple-A soon, perhaps Anderson too? – D. Smith
A: I think all three will be promoted to Gwinnett after the trading deadline.
Q: When is Ender Inciarte coming back? – C. Phillips
A: By the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Inciarte will have to be activated no later than July 21, the conclusion of a 30-day rehab assignment. Of course, he can be activated prior to that if the team wishes (h/t to Braves Options Guy for doing the math).
Q: We need Ender in CF. Please tell me he’s coming back. – L. Middlebrooks
A: This isn’t in the form of a question, you lose your money but retain control of the board.
Q: What happens when Ender comes back? Does he come off the bench? – M. Purser
A: I can’t imagine the team sitting any of the current outfielders for Inciarte, so I’d guess he takes a bench spot. It also seems unlikely that the team would want to lose Matt Joyce or Charlie Culberson, so it’s either option Johan Camargo to Gwinnett, go to a 7-man bullpen, or create room via trade or release. If I was a betting man, I’d guess a 7-man bullpen in the short term, but a trade within a couple of weeks.
Q: Early report of potential September call ups? Wondering about our CF depth if Ender doesn’t come back. – E. Allen
A: Addressing the last question first, there’s nothing indicating Inciarte won’t be back. If for some reason he has a setback and a centerfielder is needed, I’d imagine one of Rafael Ortega or Ryan LaMarre, both major league vets, would be called up from Gwinnett. If a long-term centerfielder is needed, I suspect the Cristian Pache era would start a little earlier than planned.
For potential September call-ups, it’s usually a good idea to look at the guys already on the 40-man roster and who will be needed to be added to the 40-man in the coming offseason. So look for relievers like Dan Winkler and Shane Carle to come back up, if they aren’t up by then anyway, plus 40-man roster prospects like Huascar Ynoa, Kyle Wright, Kolby Allard, and Patrick Weigel. For guys not on the 40-man roster, look at Cristian Pache,
Q: What isle is Walter Banks usually ushering on? – D. Summerall
A: When he’s not getting feted by the team and fans for being the community treasure he is, Mr. Banks can usually be found minding section 107 at SunTrust Park.
Q: How many home runs will Ronald Acuna Jr. hit in the home run derby tommorow? – T Merrbau
A: 69.
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