Monday Braves Farm Report, 4/11/2022

Mississippi LHP Jared Shuster. (Mississippi Braves via twitter)

Welcome to the first Braves Farm Report of the 2022 season, 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.

Also be sure to check out the OFR Farm Report Podcast where we discuss these events and give opinions and commentary.

Mailbag

Q: Are any of the guys the Braves lost when the Coppy deal went down nearing the majors? – D. Stout

A: When MLB penalized the Braves back in 2017, it was thought at the time that it could deal a devastating blow to their farm system, particularly due to the removal of highly-rated prospects like Kevin Maitan. Of the twelve prospects that were removed, three are no longer playing in stateside ball and only four have only reached as high as Double-A, including Maitan, and it appears he is being pushed upward as his performance (41 wRC+ at High-A in 2021) has not merited the promotion. Ji-Hwan Bae was not among the aforementioned twelve but had his contract rejected by MLB as part of the punishment against the Braves. He signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates and has reached Triple-A although he has had issues as well with injuries and a 30-game suspension in 2019 due to domestic violence. Bae is ranked #17 in the Pirates top 30 prospects according to MLB Pipeline, none of the others are ranked in any top 30 at all.

One prospect, however, chose to re-sign with the Braves: outfielder Brandol Mezquita has now reached full-season ball and is now playing for the Augusta Greenjackets. He has shown some promise and currently resides just outside the OFR Top 30 prospects at #33.

It would be ironic if the one prospect who chose to return ended up being the most successful of the bunch, but it is possible. -MC

Q: What is the latest thinking about CJ Alexander? – S. Baldwin

A: Alexander’s stock fell dramatically due to an injury-riddled 2019 season and the lost Covid season of 2020. In 2021, he started off slowly in May and had a dreadful June and July as he only hit .130 during those two months. However, he rebounded strongly in August/September with a .938 OPS over his last 32 games. Alexander is no longer among the top 30 prospects in the organization but that doesn’t necessarily mean there isn’t a path for him to get to the big leagues. He still reached double figures in home runs and stole 14 bases in 15 attempts last season. Although Austin Riley is firmly entrenched at third base in Atlanta, there is nobody in front of Alexander at Gwinnett and if he plays well this season, he could have a future as a 1B/3B utility player. However, if he doesn’t play well, Justyn-Henry Malloy is playing third base at Rome and could challenge for his position in the near-future. With Alexander turning 26 this summer, it’s now or never for his future in the Braves organization. -MC

Q: Who are the most toolsy boom or bust players in the system? – B. Grant

A: On the pitching side, the first player that comes to mind is Roddery Munoz. Munoz can hit 100 mph with an easy fastball and has a potential wipe-out slider but needs to hone his command and stay healthy. Munoz is starting this season with Rome.

On the position-player side, I’ll go with outfielder Kadon Morton, the former Arlington Seguin High School (TX) football star. Morton has top-notch raw tools across the board, and the Braves have been essentially teaching him baseball skills since he was drafted in the 19th round in 2019 and given an overslot bonus. -AH

Q: Also, which pitcher has the deepest arsenal of different quality pitches? – B. Grant

A: Bryce Elder right now probably has the deepest and most advanced repertoire. He primarily utilizes a two-seam fastball, slider, curve, and change-up on the regular and seems to also mix in a four-seam fastball to change a batter’s eye line on occasion.  All four of his main pitches show as above-average at least, with the slider and change-up flashing plus. -AH

Weekly Round-Up

AUGUSTA:

The Greenjackets didn’t win a series until June last season, but they took care of business this weekend, taking 2 of 3 against the Columbia Fireflies on the road. Augusta will next take the trip down highway 501 to Myrtle Beach for a six-game set starting on Tuesday.

Augusta’s offense was the story of the series as the team scored 6, 17, and 8 runs respectively in the three games. The Greenjackets socked 7 home runs over the series, including two by shortstop Cal Conley on Sunday. Infielders Geraldo Quintero and Mahki Backstrom, outfielder Kadon Morton, and catchers Antonio Barranca and Adam Zebrowski also went deep. Outfielder Brandol Mezquita went 5-for-12 with a double while speedy third baseman Quintero was on base 8 times in the series between 4 hits and 4 walks.

The Jackets got a strong Opening Day start from right-hander Royber Salinas, who struck out 11 of the 18 Fireflies he faces while giving up 2 runs, 1 of them earned. The Greenjackets were one Peyton Williams blown save from winning that game and sweeping the series. Teenage starters AJ Smith-Shawver and Adam Shoemaker followed on Saturday and Sunday and got off to solid starts to the season. Smith-Shawver allowed 3 runs (2 earned) in 3.2 innings while striking out 5, while Showmaker gave up 3 in 2.1 innings while also striking out 5. Right-hander J.J. Niekro had a fine long-relief outing on Sunday, throwing 3.2 hitless innings, only giving up 2 walks. Lefty Kris Anglin pulled the same duty on Friday, going 3.1 scoreless innings.

ROME:

Rome got off on a good foot over the weekend, taking 2 of 3 against the Greensboro Grasshoppers on the road. They will come home on Tuesday to take on the Hudson Valley Renegades of the New York Yankees affiliate system.

The Braves got off to an authoritative start on Friday, running up an 11-0 lead going into the 5th inning on Opening Day before finally winning 16-6. Outfielder Landon Stephens was 3-for-4 with a home run and a double to pace the offense. Infielder Vaughn Grissom started his 2022 campaign with a 5-for-14 series with a double and knocked in 4 runs.

Starters Dylan Dodd, Andrew Hoffmann, and Tanner Gordon each threw at least 4 innings in their first turn of the rotation while the bullpen only gave up 5 runs all weekend, 4 of those coming on a Friday meltdown by right-hander Marrick Crouse.

MISSISSIPPI:

The Mississippi Braves opened their 2022 season on Friday and, much like their parent club, celebrated their championship in front of their home fans. The M-Braves opened the season against the very club against which they won their title, the Montgomery Biscuits. The Biscuits came out on top this time around, taking two out of three during this abbreviated series. The M-Braves now hit the road but stay in-state to face the Biloxi Shuckers.

The M-Braves had two solid starts during the series with Darius Vines giving up just one run and one hit over five innings in his first Double-A start while holdover Jared Shuster also gave up just one run in five innings of work. William Woods did not fare as well during his opening night start, giving up three runs in just three innings on two walks and four hits.

No Mississippi reliever appeared more than once during the three-game set. Hayden Deal did solid work in relief of Woods on opening night, tossing 2.2 innings of hitless ball and gave up no runs although he walked three. Jake Higginbotham followed up on his solid spring training work with 1.2 innings of scoreless ball on Sunday. The returning Indigo Diaz was roughed up in his outing, giving up three runs and walking three while retiring just one hitter in blowing a save on Saturday night.

All eyes were on newcomer OF Michael Harris, who did not disappoint with a 5-for-13 series with a three-RBI game on Sunday. He stole his first base during that game although he was also caught twice. 1B-DH Drew Lugbauer took up where he left off last season, going 4-for-14 with a home run and four RBI while striking out five times. Fellow newcomer OF Jesse Franklin was just 2-for-10 but had a four-walk game on Sunday. Outfielder Trey Harris did not play in the first game of the series but went 4-for-9 over the next two games with a home run.

GWINNETT:

The Gwinnett Stripers opened their 2022 International League campaign on the road against the Memphis Redbirds. The Stripers split the six-game series with all three of the losses coming by just one run. The Stripers now head home to face the Nashville Sounds.

Gwinnett starting pitching was led by Kyle Muller, who started twice during the series, giving up just three runs over 9.2 innings of work, striking out thirteen while walking just two. Touki Toussaint had a fine start after getting into some early trouble, giving up just one run in 4.2 innings while striking out eight. Jackson Stephens had a solid first start for Gwinnett, allowing two runs over six innings while striking out seven with no walks. Jasseel De La Cruz was quite efficient in his first start, giving up one run and two hits in four innings on just 41 pitches.

Gwinnett threw out an army of bullpen arms this week with eleven different relievers registering appearances. Michael Tonkin racked up two saves with two scoreless innings of work while Nolan Kingham allowed just one baserunner over 3.1 scoreless innings. Brad Brach, Dylan Lee, Seth Elledge, and Connor Johnstone were among the relievers registering multiple scoreless outings.

Returning outfielder Travis Demeritte led the new-look Gwinnett offense with a huge series, going 8-for-23 with four doubles, a triple, a home run, four RBI, and two stolen bases during a .348/.444/.739 week. Infielder Pat Valaika had three multi-hit games during a 9-for-23 week where he had a double, two home runs, and nine RBI (.391/.481/.739). Shortstop Braden Shewmake got off to a strong start in going 5-for-12 in his first three games before being removed from the lineup at the beginning of Friday night’s game. No word yet on any potential injury or how long he will be out of action. Outfielder Greyson Jenista was 4-for-14 with two home runs (and seven strikeouts) while catcher Chadwick Tromp hit safely in all four games in which he appeared. Infielder Ryan Goins had a tough week as he was just 1-for-21 with seven strikeouts.

POSITION PLAYER of the WEEK:

Gwinnett OF Travis Demeritte (Matthew Caldwell/Gwinnett Stripers)

PITCHER of the WEEK:

Augusta RHP Roybar Salinas. (MiLB TV/Columbia Fireflies)

Transaction Round-Up

  • 4/5/22: Mississippi Braves placed LHP Corbin Clouse on the 60-day injured list

Clouse confirmed on his Instagram account that he underwent Tommy John surgery. An awful set-back for the talented left-hander after finally making his way back last year from shoulder surgery.

Hernandez underwent Tommy John surgery in the off-season. Waters suffered a hamstring injury early in the spring. It is unclear what Wilson’s injury is, but it’s a tough set-back for a pitcher who forced himself onto the Braves 40-man roster last season.

  • 4/8/22: Atlanta Braves signed free agent CF Delino DeShields Jr. to a minor league contract; assigned him to Gwinnett Stripers

The trade of Cristian Pache to the A’s in the Matt Olson deal and injuries to Ronald Acuña Jr. and Drew Waters leave the Braves thin in center field at the moment. DeShields had been in the Miami Marlins camp this spring but didn’t make the team, so Atlanta scooped up the defensive standout. DeShields spent most of the 2021 season in the Reds organization, hitting .255/.375/.426 in 25 games with the big-league club.

  • 4/9/22: Atlanta Braves signed free agent LF Preston Tucker to a minor league contract; assigned him to Gwinnett Stripers

Opening Day 2018 left fielder Preston Tucker returns to the Braves organization after three seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization. The now-31-year-old brother of Houston Astros star Kyle Tucker will provide some outfield depth.

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