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.
Also be sure to check out the OFR Farm Report Podcast where we discuss these events and give opinions and commentary.
Which player would you most like to read a Prospect Spotlight on?
— Outfield Fly Rule (@OFRSports) June 23, 2022
Prospect Spotlight: Andrew Hoffmann
Position: RHP
Age: 22
Height: 6′-5″
Weight: 210 lbs
Performance: 13 G, 13 GS | 2.48 ERA | 3.75 FIP | 69.0 IP | 2.09 BB/9 | 10.04 K/9
Current Grades
Fastball: 45
Curveball: 50
Changeup: 45
Control: 50
Command: 35
Hoffmann was Atlanta’s 12th-round selection in last year’s draft out of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign after posting a strong season with the school (2.87 ERA, 11 starts, 62.2 IP, 15 walks, 64 strikeouts). The book on him at the draft was that he already had a relatively advanced three-pitch mix and that was borne out in his early looks in pro ball. Hoffmann was assigned directly to low-A Augusta after signing where he pitched to a 2.73 ERA in 7 starts, tossing 29.2 innings and striking out 37. This season he was advanced to Rome where he’s been just as impressive, throwing 69 innings in 13 starts with a 2.74 ERA and generally being the most dependable starter on staff.
Hoffmann has a mechanically sound wind-up without a lot of moving parts, pausing as he brings his leg up before striding and throwing from a 3/4th angle. He keeps the ball hidden for a long while adding a little bit of deception, and stays roughly upright through most of the delivery. This has a side effect of allowing his 92-95 mph 4-seam fastball to seem to have a rising action to hitters, helping him get his solid 22.2% infield fly ball rate on batted balls. His breaking ball is a curve that sits low-80s with good depth and natural glove-side fade that gives right-handed batters fits when he’s throwing it well. Hoffmann’s third pitch is a solid change-up that has good fade and plays well with his fastball.
Hoffmann is control-over-command at this point, and he can fill up a strikezone efficiently but can get hittable if he gets predictable or if his fastball gets too much of the zone. Hoffmann does his best pitching with runners on base, and with runners in scoring position he has only allowed 6 hits out of 74 batters faced with 29 strikeouts. He’s built like a workhorse and is currently second only to teammate Dylan Dodd in innings pitched by South Atlantic League pitchers. He is also currently second in ERA, sixth in batting average against, fourth in walk rate, and tenth in strikeout rate.
It looks like the Braves may have stolen themselves a solid back-end rotation candidate, or perhaps a bulk middle-innings eater if he should convert to the bullpen at some point. He could approach his ceiling if his command continues to develop and perhaps getting another pitch (a cutter to give lefties another look and play off the curve would be my choice). -AH
Weekly Round-Up
COMPLEX LEAGUES:
Down in Santo Domingo, right-hander Didier Fuentes had one of the better starts in the organization, throwing 5 shutout innings and striking out 6 without any walks for the DSL Braves. Lefty Rolando Gutierrez continued to make an impression, throwing 4 shutout innings in his start; in 11 innings over 3 starts he still has not allowed an earned run, striking out 15. Righty Jose Chavez threw 4 shutout innings in relief, allowing only two baserunners while picking up a win. Marco Patino pitched 3.2 innings in relief over two outings without allowing a run.
Infielder Leiker Figueroa had a strong effort this week after playing sparingly the first two weeks of the season, going 3-for-11 with a home run and 8 walks. Outfielder Maximo Maria hit his first pro home run this week while going 4-for-15. Top prospect Diego Benitez only had two hits on the week.
In the FCL, corner infielder Jose Dilone has gotten increased playing time recently and he responded with a .286/.375/.571 week with a homer and 5 RBI. Outfielder Tyler Collins seems to be working his way back into the line-up slowly, this week appearing in 3 games and getting 11 plate appearances. After a scorching first two weeks of the season, outfielder Ethan Workinger has gone ice cold, this week going 0-for-14.
Right-hander Jorge Bautista picked up two starts this week, pitching a total of 8.2 innings and striking out 11. Veteran minor leaguer Jason Creasy threw two scoreless outings while righty Jay Jackson made a rehab appearance, throwing six pitches in an inning of work. Adam Shoemaker had his best appearances since the start of the short season, throwing 5 shutout innings in a start, allowing only 2 baserunners and striking out 5.
AUGUSTA:
Augusta completed the first half of the season with a winning record at 36-30, albeit 11 games behind first place Myrtle Beach, who will advance to the playoffs. The Jackets got the second half off to a good start however, winning two of the final three games at Fayetteville and winning the series 4 games to 2. They will host Columbia this week.
J.J. Niekro has thoroughly laid claim to the title of staff ace as he threw his third consecutive scoreless start on Tuesday. Since becoming a starter on May 22, Niekro has allowed only 4 earned runs in 35.1 innings over 6 starts, and none in his past 18 innings. He has struck out 33 batters against only 6 walks. The rotation got reinforcement from the FCL as Rainiery Rodriguez re-joined Augusta after appearing in 10 games in 2021. Rodriguez put a good foot forward, allowing only 1 earned run in 5.1 innings pitched on Wednesday. AJ Smith-Shawver allowed 3 runs in his start but did not walk anyone and struck out 9 in his 5 innings. Sunday starter Samuel Strickland danced around 8 hits but did not walk anyone or allow a run to help Augusta to a 10-3 win.
Right-hander Miguel Pena, fresh off a five-game suspension for leaving the bullpen during a benches-clearing incident, gave the team its best relief work this week, throwing 3.2 scoreless innings over two outings and striking out 5.
Infielder Geraldo Quintero had a monster week at the plate, enough to earn the OFR Position Player of the Week honors, going 10-for-22 with 6 walks to give him a .586 OBP. This allowed him to score 7 times, and he also knocked in 6 runs while hitting 4 doubles, 2 triples, and stealing 3 bases for good measure. Outfielder Kadon Morton was 8-for-22 with 2 homers and 3 stolen bases himself. While his overall numbers aren’t impressive after a very slow start, Morton has heated up with the summer, and is hitting .328/.446/.541 for the month of June. Outfielder Connor Blair and first baseman Mahki Backstrom both homered twice on the week.
ROME:
Rome finished up the the first half with a 36-30 record, 5.5 games back of first place Bowling Green who will get an automatic playoff berth. They stumbled out of the gate of the second half by dropping two of the last three of the six-game set with Hickory, and won just two of six overall. The Braves will next hit the road to Greenville before coming home for two weeks prior to the All-Star break.
Rome received excellent production from their catchers this week, with Javier Valdes going 4-for-9 with a homer and a double and Tyler Tolve 4-for-11 with two doubles. Outfielder Jacob Pearson dropped down from AA Mississippi to fill in for the promoted Cody Milligan in the lead-off spot and hit .292/.414/.625 on the week with 2 homers and 2 stolen bases. Shortstop Vaughn Grissom carried over his good work from last week, hitting safely in all six games on his way to a .308/.357/.462 batting line with a homer and 3 stolen bases. Third baseman Justyn-Henry Malloy has been Rome’s most consistent hitter this season and this week was no exception as he went 6-for-18 with two doubles and a stolen base.
On the pitching side, right Andrew Hoffmann continued his good work on the season with 6 shutout innings to win his start on Thursday. Hoffmann now has a streak of 5 starts without allowing more than 2 earned runs. Lefty Luis De Avila halted a run of disappointing performances with a 5 inning-1 hit-1 run effort on Saturday, striking out 9. Dylan Spain had a strong week out of the bullpen with 4.2 shutout innings over two appearances.
MISSISSIPPI:
The struggles of the Mississippi Braves, particularly on offense, continued this week as they lost four out of six in Montgomery to kick off the first half of a two-week road trip. The record for the M-Braves now stands at 29-40 as they move on to Biloxi to continue their road swing against the Shuckers.
Tanner Gordon was the pitcher who got the bookend starts this week and took losses in both as he gave up seven runs over nine total innings. Freddy Tarnok had his second solid start in a row as he gave up just one run over five innings on six hits, striking out five with no walks. Alan Rangel had a similarly effective start as he gave up two runs over five innings. Jared Shuster gave up three runs in 4.1 innings but only one was earned as he had several defensive miscues behind him. Unfortunately, Darius Vines could not follow up on his very successful start from the previous Sunday as he labored in giving up three runs in four innings on Saturday along with another home run on 86 pitches.
The M-Braves’ offense continued to struggle as they scored just nineteen runs over their six games. Newly promoted 2B/CF Cody Milligan hit safely in his first five games at Double-A on his way to a .227/.346/.273 week with three runs scored. Outfielder Justin Dean had a second straight good week in going 8-for-24 with two doubles and a triple (.333/.385/.500) while fellow outfielder Andrew Moritz hit safely in all six games (.417/.440/.542) and now has a ten-game hitting streak. Infielder Yariel Gonzalez was 5-for-18 but had four errors, 3B C.J. Alexander was 3-for-21 with a home run, and 1B Drew Lugbauer was just 2-for-19 with a home run and four walks (but only five strikeouts!).
GWINNETT:
The Gwinnett Stripers started a two-week road trip in Nashville this week. After taking two of the first three games in the series, the Stripers dropped the final three to leave their season record at 35-37. Gwinnett now moves on to Norfolk to take on the Tides.
Bryce Elder was the Gwinnett starter to get two outings this week: after a solid first start (7 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, 2 HR), the second did not go nearly as well (5 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, 2 HR). Tucker Davidson, however, had a tremendous start on Wednesday in tossing 6.2 scoreless innings, striking out nine with no walks while giving up just six hits to earn OFR Pitcher of the Week honors. Huascar Ynoa had an awful start on Friday where he did not get out of the first inning, giving up four runs while retiring just two hitters on 36 pitches. Kyle Muller had his fifth straight tremendous start, giving up just two runs over seven innings while allowing just five runners to reach base.
In the bullpen, Touki Toussaint continued his stint there although he did not fare well in either outing this week (2.1 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 HR). Victor Vodnik had mixed results with a one-inning scoreless outing in his first appearance but gave up a run in 1.1 innings during his second one. Michael Tonkin (3 IP, 7 K), Jacob Webb, Jesus Cruz, Brandyn Sittinger, and Seth Elledge each had two scoreless appearances during the week.
Outfielder Drew Waters was 6-for-24 on the week with five runs scored, a triple, home run, two stolen bases, and three RBI (.250/.357/.458). OF-DH Alex Dickerson was 6-for-21 with two doubles and a home run (.286/.318/.524). Shortstop Braden Shewmake was 5-for-14 with a home run while fellow infielder Ryan Goins was 6-for-16 with three doubles. Outfielder Eddie Rosario began a rehab assignment with Gwinnett on Saturday and was 3-for-10 with two RBI in two games with four strikeouts.
POSITION PLAYER of the WEEK:
PITCHER of the WEEK:
Transaction Round-Up
- 6/20/2022: Atlanta Braves recalled 1B Mike Ford from AAA Gwinnett; optioned RHP Jesus Cruz to AAA Gwinnett
MLB finally enforced the roster rule that caps the number of pitchers on the active major league roster at 13 after essentially punting it for 18 months in the wake of the COVID emergency and then the lockout. The Braves had to send down a surprisingly useful Jesus Cruz and bring up Ford, who will see minimal if any playing time barring an injury.
- 6/20/2022: RHP Nick Vincent released by AAA Gwinnett
A ten-year major league vet, Vincent was in Braves spring camp on a minor league contract but failed to make the squad. In 19.1 innings with the Stripers over 15 appearances, Vincent had a 5.12 ERA and allowed 5 home runs. Soon to be 36 years old, it may be the end of the line for the righty.
- 6/20/2022: RHP William Woods sent on rehab assignment to FCL Braves from AAA Gwinnett
Woods has been out since May 10 with and ankle injury. Woods has yet to make an appearance in a game for the FCL Braves, but if his return to action is close Gwinnett stands to have an impressive back half of the bullpen between Woods, Victor Vodnik, Seth Elledge, Jesus Cruz, and Touki Toussaint.
- 6/20/2022: RHPs Darling Florentino and Miguel Pena activated for A Augusta
The two relievers had been serving five-game suspensions for their actions in a benches-clearing incident in Columbia back on June 11.
- 6/20/2022: RHPs Adel Dilone and Andres Sanchez assigned to FCL Braves from DSL Braves
These moves seem likely to help the FCL Braves fill innings with the promotion of starter Rainiery Rodriguez to Augusta. Sanchez in particular had been impressive in his two outings with the DSL Braves and could be a starter once he settles in.
- 6/21/2022: 2B/OF Cody Milligan assigned to AA Mississippi from A+ Rome; OF Jacob Pearson assigned to A+ Rome from AA Mississippi
Milligan has been the best lead-off hitter in the South Atlantic League this season, leading the league in OBP and runs scored at the time of this promotion. The Braves will hope that this move will help a moribund Mississippi offense that has struggled since the promotion of outfielder Michael Harris II to the majors.
- 6/21/2022: SS Luke Waddell placed on 7-day injured list for AA Mississippi; 2B Tyler Krieger activated from 7-day injured list
Krieger has been out since late April. He will fill in for Waddell, who despite being on the active roster had not played in a game since May 30.
- 6/21/2022: RHP Rainiery Rodriguez assigned to A Augusta from FCL Braves
Rodriguez had not allowed a run in three appearances with the FCL Braves prior to the promotion. He joins an Augusta squad that has had a tough time getting innings from their starters outside of JJ Niekro and Jordano Perez.
- 6/24/2022: C Dawson Dimon assigned to FCL Braves from AAA Gwinnett
The life of an organizational catcher. This is the third different assignment for Dimon since being acquired on June 6. To date he has made one plate appearance, getting a hit for Rome on June 16.
- 6/25/2022: OF Eddie Rosario sent on rehab assignment to AAA Gwinnett from Atlanta Braves
This is slightly ahead of initial estimates on Rosario, giving hope he could be activated before the All-Star break.
Your Moment of Zen
CLEMMMYYYY!!
A 458-foot 💣 gives the M-Braves a 3-0 lead!! pic.twitter.com/raBrldiNVm
— Mississippi Braves (@mbraves) June 25, 2022
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