Monday Braves Farm Report, 7/24/2023

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.

Please check out the OFR Farm Report Podcast this week for more discussion and insight regarding the Braves farm system.

 

Weekly Round-Up

COMPLEX LEAGUES:

The DSL Braves went 2-4 last week, bringing their overall record to 10-23 and back in the cellar of the DSL North Division. That said, shortstop Mario Baez had an excellent week at the plate, going 8-for-21 with a homer and a stolen base and in 15 games this month he’s hitting .400/.475/.500. After six relief appearances, righty Rayven Antonio made his first pro start and did well, throwing 4 scoreless innings, allowing 1 hit and 2 walks and striking out 5.

The FCL Braves also had a rough go of it last week, going 1-4 and dropping back to 4th place in the FCL South Division with a 14-19 overall mark. Offensively it was a challenge for the whole team, though outfielder Douglas Glod hit his fifth home run of the season. The pitching wasn’t much better, though right-hander Rolando Gutierrez had another good piggyback outing, allowing only 1 run in 5 innings while striking out 3. In three appearances this month, Gutierrez has a 0.68 ERA in 13.1 innings and is limiting opponents to a .098/.196/.220 line against him.

AUGUSTA:

The Greenjackets split at home this week, taking 3 games from the Fredericksburg Nationals to go 11-13 in the second half, 5 games back of Charleston. Augusta will go on the road to take on those very same frontrunning Charleston RiverDogs this week.

Augusta came into the week struggling on offense, but got strong contributions from three regulars. Jose Dilone celebrated his elevation to primary first baseman after the promotion of Justin Janas to Rome but going 5-for-10 on the week with 3 walks, posting up a .615 OBP. Shortstop Ambioris Tavarez and outfielder Bryson Worrell each hit a pair of homers, with both or Worrell’s coming in the same game to power Augusta’s 6-2 win on Tuesday. Worrell also stole 6 bases this week while Tavarez contributed a double and a triple as well as stealing a base.

Augusta has had to patch together a new rotation after the recent promotions of Jorge Bautista and Spencer Schwellenbach. Right-hander Tyree Thompson is making a bid for one of those spots, and he allowed only 1 run on 4 hits in 6 innings in his start this week. Luis Vargas, returning to the club after spending most of the season with Rome, had a solid start as well, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) in 5 innings. The rest of the rotation struggled however, with Seth Keller again getting hit hard, this time to the tune of 8 runs while only securing 4 outs. Since coming off the injured list in late June, Keller has a 13.94 ERA in 5 appearances covering 10.1 innings.

Right-hander Giomar Diaz was promoted up from the FCL Braves and had a A-ball debut, throwing 3.2 innings of scoreless relief over 2 appearances.

ROME:

Despite several postponements due to bad weather, Rome and Hickory did manage to get all six games in this week and ended up splitting the series. Rome ended up right back at .500 for the second half and remain 5.5 games back of Hickory in the standings. Rome starts a North Carolina road trip tomorrow in Asheville.

Hickory treated Rome starting pitching fairly poorly in this series, with Patrick Halligan‘s 3 scoreless inning spot-start on Saturday the highlight for the Braves. Right-hander Jorge Bautista made his high-A debut, allowing 4 runs (3 earned) and 7 hits in 4.2 innings on Tuesday, striking out 6 as Rome came back late to win 8-6. Righty Jose Montilla had a strong week in relief, covering 6 innings over 2 appearances and allowing 1 run on 4 hits.

Left fielder Brandon Parker has been making good use of expanded playing time lately and his 8-for-16, 2 home run, 2 stolen base effort this week was enough to earn the OFR Position Player of the Week honors. Catcher Drake Baldwin only had 3 hits on the week but walked 5 times to post a .563 OBP. Third baseman David McCabe went 8-for-23 and posted the game winning RBIs on Tuesday with a two-run double and on Friday with a 2-run homer. Geraldo Quintero is running a 7-game on-base streak and had 7 hits in the series.

MISSISSIPPI:

The Mississippi Braves continued their Tennessee road swing with a stop in Kodak to face the Tennessee Smokies. Unfortunately, bad weather and the Smokies thwarted their efforts to get above .500 as they dropped five out of six to lower the second-half record to 8-12. The M-Braves now return home to start a two-week homestand against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos.

Mississippi received solid pitching performances at the beginning and the end of the week with some troublesome starts in-between. Domingo Robles gave up two runs over 5.2 innings on Tuesday in an eventual loss, Tyler Owens made his first Double-A start on Wednesday although he was roughed up for three runs and seven hits in just 2.1 innings, Alan Rangel saw his season record fall to 1-10 after giving up five runs in just three innings on Friday, and Tanner Gordon gave up five run in five innings on Saturday. On Sunday, though, Luis De Avila had a second straight start in which he gave up no hits as he tossed six scoreless frames, giving up just two walks and an HBP while striking out eight, earning OFR Pitcher of the Week for the second consecutive week. Over his last two starts, De Avila has pitched eleven hitless and scoreless innings along with five walks and 14 strikeouts.

The bullpen had a rough week as all but one pitcher gave up at least one run during the week. The exception was Hayden Harris as he tossed 2.1 scoreless innings over two games and now sports a 1.15 ERA since his promotion from Rome. Victor Vodnik’s dominant run finally ended this week as he was scored upon in both of his outings, giving up four hits and four walks over just two innings but somehow allowing just two runs.

Drew Lugbauer made his return from the injured list this week and, although he played sparingly, he went 5-for-10 with a double, home run, and three RBI while raising his OPS to 1.029. Outfielder Jesse Franklin went 5-for-15 with a double, home run, two HBP, and two stolen bases.

GWINNETT:

The Gwinnett Stripers returned home this week for a series against the Norfolk Tides. The two teams alternated wins throughout the week, leading to a series split. The Stripers now take their 42-53 season record to Florida for a series against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp.

For the most part, Gwinnett received good efforts from their starting pitchers this week. Justus Sheffield tossed seven innings of two-run baseball on Tuesday, although that went to waste when the bullpen collapsed after he exited the game. On Wednesday, Jared Shuster was once again roughed up as he gave up six runs over five innings. Max Fried made a rehab start on Friday and got his reps in with 65 pitches thrown in 3.1 innings. He did give up three runs and two home runs but left the game healthy. Nick Margevicius pitched five innings of one-run ball on Saturday while AJ Smith-Shawver wrapped up the week with five scoreless innings on Sunday with just two hits and two walks allowed in 81 pitches.

The bullpen was hammered for 22 runs over the course of the week, but there were some tremendous efforts: Daysbel Hernandez struck out all five batters he faced in relief of Max Fried on Friday just before his promotion to Atlanta. Jackson Stephens was moved from Rome earlier in the week and tossed two scoreless innings on Saturday, striking out three. Brian Moran was the only bullpen arm to record multiple scoreless outings during the week (2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K).

Gwinnett’s offense was hit-and-miss during the week, scoring three or fewer runs four times during the week. Hoy Park had a monster week with four multi-hit games as he went 10-for-16 with a home run and four RBI (.625/.684/.684). Vaughn Grissom also had four multi-hit games with a double and four RBI (.364/.417/.409). Braden Shewmake’s series did not go as well as he went just 1-for-21 with four walks and a stolen base (.048/.200/.048). Luke Williams had a good week, going 4-for-14 with a home run, six walks, and two stolen bases (.286/.500/.500).

POSITION PLAYER of the WEEK:

PITCHER of the WEEK:

Transaction Round-Up

• 7/16/2023: Draft picks OF Jace Grady, LHP Lucas Braun, SS Cam Magee, RHP David Rodriguez, RHP Isaac Gallegos, C Will King signed. 
• 7/17/2023: Draft picks OF Kade Kern and LHP Riley Frey signed.

The Braves announced that that they signed 20 of their 21 draft picks, with 11th-rounder infielder Brady Day deciding to return to Kansas State for his junior year.

• 7/17/2023: RHP Roddery Munoz claimed off waivers by the Washington Nationals from the Atlanta Braves

Munoz was DFA’s last week to make room for Lucas Luetge on the 40-man roster. Munoz has had an odd season with the Braves. Used as a reliever for Gwinnett, Munoz displayed the characteristic command issues he had shown during his rise through the organization, though through 14 appearances nothing that would seem to be too alarming. Munoz was briefly called up to fill a spot in Atlanta but never appeared in a game before being sent all the way down to the FCL Braves, presumably to work on something specific. After spending half of June in Florida, he returned to Gwinnett for 3 more appearances — again, without anything seeming to be amiss — before getting DFA’d. Considering that the Braves later this week would release two players to make room on the 40-man roster, it’s clear that this being the first move to make room indicates that the Braves front office had lost faith in a player who was considered a top 30 prospect in the organization by most publications.

• 7/18/2023: OF Forrest Wall selected from AAA Gwinnett; LHP Kolby Allard placed on the 60-day injured list (left shoulder nerve inflammation)

First the good news: former 2014 first round pick and 10-year minor league veteran Wall gets his first major league call-up. While he has yet to make an appearance at the plate, Wall showed the havoc he can create with his legs when he pinch-ran for Eddie Rosario in the 9th inning on Saturday and promptly stole second and third, putting himself 90 feet away from scoring the tying run against Milwaukee.

The bad news is that Allard’s season appears to be be done just as it was getting started. Allard came out of a start at home against the White Sox on July 16 with the injury. This spring he appeared to be on the way to winning a rotation spot before an oblique injury delayed him until mid-June.

• 7/18/2023: RHP Zack Austin signed to a minor league contract. 
• 7/19/2023: RHP Shay Schanaman signed to a minor league contract. 

As mentioned last week’s farm report, the Braves have been one of the more aggressive players in the non-drafted free agent market. Austin pitched for Central Florida last season after two years with Jefferson Community College in Watertown, NY. Schanaman was Nebraska’s closer last season, a position once held by current Braves prospect Spencer Schwellenbach in 2021.

• 7/18/2023: 1B Justin Janas assigned to A+ Rome from A Augusta; IF Eliezel Stevens assigned to A Augusta from A+ Rome

The Carolina League leader in hits and OBP at the time of promotion, Janas gets the bump up in search of a greater challenge. Stevens was the reserve first baseman for Rome and now becomes the reserve first baseman for Augusta behind recent promote from the FCL Braves Jose Dillone.

• 7/18/2023: RHP Giomar Diaz assigned to A Augusta from FCL Braves

Diaz had started to separate himself from the pitching pack in the FCL and come up to backfill for the released Darling Florentino.

• 7/19/2023: RHP Seth Elledge selected from AAA Gwinnett; OF Sam Hilliard placed on 10-day injured list (right heal contusion); LHP Danny Young released; signed RHP Mike Morin to a minor league free agent contract and assigned him to AAA Gwinnett

Hilliard suffered the injury while running the bases a few games before. Elledge would hold down the spot for just a short while, until the Braves would need a starting pitcher to fill in what had been Kolby Allard’s spot. Young is out with the year with an injury and the Braves simply needed the 40-man roster spot.

Morin is a 9-year minor league veteran who has had major league experience in parts of 7 seasons with 6 different teams, the last being 3 games with the Marlins in the shortened 2020 COVID-19 season. After being cut at the end of spring training for the White Sox, he signed with Guerreros de Oaxaca of the Mexican League.

• 7/19/2023: 1B Drew Lugbauer actvated from the 7-day injured list for AA Mississippi; OF Jacob Pearson placed on the developmental list for AA Mississippi

Lugbauer is having his best offensive season in his pro career (.284/.401/.627, 14 home runs), but has been stymied over the last month by persistent injuries.

• 7/20/2023: RHP Jackson Stephens activated from the 7-day injured list by AAA Gwinnett; RHP Joe Harvey released by AAA Gwinnett

Stephens made 39 appearances for Atlanta in 2022, but was injured in his last one, a spot start the day after the Braves clinched the division title, and missed the postseason. Coming into spring on a non-guaranteed contract, Stephens didn’t make the squad and reported to Gwinnett where he made one appearance before being put back on the IL. Stephens started a rehab stint on June 27 and made 6 appearances between the FCL Braves and high-A Rome before being activated.

Harvey had a 5.64 ERA in 24 appearances with Gwinnett.

• 7/20/2023: OF Brandol Mezquita activated from the 7-day injured list

Mezquita will again try to jump start a season that has been hampered by injury and poor play. He will have to fight for playing time in right field with Ethan Workinger, Stephen Paolini, and Kadon Morton, though none of the four have been hitting well lately.

• 7/21/2023: LHP Danny Young signed to a minor league contract

Young will continue his recovery from his injury with the team.

• 7/22/2023: RHP Allan Winans selected from AAA Gwinnett; RHP Seth Elledge optioned to AAA Gwinnett; OF Eli White

In another feel-good story of minor league perseverance, former minor league Rule 5 pick Winans was able to make his major league debut in a spot start at Milwaukee over the weekend. Winans has been the staff ace at Gwinnett this season, compiling a 2.81 ERA in 18 appearances (13 starts). He did reasonably well, holding the Brewers scoreless through the first 4 innings before allowing 2 runs in the 5th and getting relieved, departing with the Braves in the lead.

White was injured and out for the season with a torn labrum and the Braves needed the 40-man roster spot.

• 7/22/2023: 1B Joshua Fuentes placed on the 7-day injured list for AAA Gwinnett; C Dominic Miroglio activated from the developmental list

Former Colorado Rockie Fuentes was in the midst of a disappointing season with the Stripers (.232/.292/.355) and starting to lose playing time to Joe Dunand and major league veteran Jesus Aguilar even before the injury.

• 7/23/2023: RHP Daysbel Hernandez selected from AAA Gwinnett; RHP Yonny Chirinos claimed off waivers from the Tampa Bay Rays by the Atlanta Braves; RHP Michael Soroka optioned to AAA Gwinnett; RHP Jesse Chavez transferred from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list; RHP Seth Elledge designated for assignment

It’s been quite the roller-coaster for Seth Elledge this week, who was designated for assignment for the fourth time this season, the second by the Braves.

Hernandez is a long-time Braves farmhand who appeared close to a major league call-up after the 2021 season but suffered a torn UCL while playing winter ball that off-season. That said, his fastball and slider have looked outstanding his time with Mississippi and Gwinnett this year and may get a long look in the Braves bullpen.

Chirinos was a surprise DFA by the Rays; in 15 appearances this season (4 starts), he had pitched to a reasonable 4.02 ERA, though advanced metrics showed that his luck on balls in play may not be sustainable. Still, the Braves picked up a career major league 3.64 ERA swingman for nothing.

With the Braves looking at two off-days this week, they wouldn’t even need a fourth starter until Saturday, at which point either Chirinos could take the start or one of AJ Smith-Shawver or Jared Shuster could be recalled from Gwinnett. With Max Fried likely to return to the rotation next week, Soroka’s near-term future in the rotation is cloudy.

• 7/23/2023: OF Justin Dean assigned to AAA Gwinnett from AA Mississippi; OF Dalton Guthrie placed on the 7-day injured list

This will be Dean’s third stint with Gwinnett this season and he will try to improve on his .189/.333/.270 AAA batting line for the season.

Your Moment of Zen

ICYMI, Nolan Kingham's diving play was number one on the SportsCenter Top Ten yesterday. pic.twitter.com/sMeK2bYwjr

— Gwinnett Stripers (@GoStripers) July 24, 2023