Welcome to the Braves Farm Report! Every Monday we take a look back at the previous week in the Braves minor league system, recapping the week’s action, spotlighting top performers, analyzing rosters and transactions, and sometimes answering questions or doing deep dives into Braves prospects.
FCL Braves Roster Revealed
With an agreement with the newly union-empowered minor league players bringing paychecks to players in complexes during extended spring training, major league teams lost their financial incentive to keep the complex leagues from playing games, so the leagues are starting earlier this season. That gives us yet another roster to look at. The majority of this squad consists of players moving up from the Dominican Summer League, with a smattering of players continuing from last year. The biggest strength of the team would appear to be the crop of middle infielders.
The composition of the squad will change drastically in August as players from the draft trickle down to North Port.
Infield
SS Mario Baez
IF Carlos Cordero
IF John Gil
IF Roiber Niazoa
IF Angel Nieblas
SS Jose Perdomo*
A lot of the attention here will be on 17-year-old Perdomo, the top-dollar international signee from this year’s class and according to many publications already a top-10 Braves prospect. He is making the jump straight stateside rather than starting out in the DSL, however he is starting the season on the IL so for now the infield will be a mix of the others, headlined by Baez, the lone DSL Braves position player All-Star last season who is only a month older than Perdomo.
Outfield
OF Jair Casanova
OF John Estevez
OF Junior Garcia
OF Elian Garcia
OF Douglas Glod
OF Luis Guanipa
OF Kadon Morton
OF Noah Williams
Guanipa was Atlanta’s top international signee from the 2023 period and the 18-year-old Venezuelan will look to improve on a somewhat lackluster DSL performance last season. He’s all-round talent that should stick in center field and provide speed and power. He will be flanked most days by fellow 2023 signee John Estevaz and Douglas Glod, in his second FCL Braves Opening Day roster. Both Estavez and Glod are billed as potential power bats.
Kadon Morton was a 2019 draftee that spent most of the 2023 season struggling at the plate with high-A Rome, so his inclusion here makes one wonder if a transition to the mound may be happening. (ed. note: yes, that is what is happening, Morton made his pitching debut on May 6)
Catcher
C Josnaider Orellana
C Harry Owen
C Luis Parababire
C Alen Pineda
C Will King*
Owen returns to the squad after only getting into 7 games in 2024 and will likely get a plurality of the work behind the plate. Orellana and Parababire shared most of the catching duties for the DSL Braves in 2023, and both also have experience at first base, so one or both may be in the line-up on any given day. Pineda will provide depth at both catcher and first base.
King was Atlanta’s 20th-round selection in 2023 and seemed like a candidate for a full-season assignment but is hurt and will miss the 2024 season.
Starting Pitching
RHP Jeremy Reyes
RHP Luis Arestigueta
RHP Anthony Garcia
LHP Rolando Gutierrez
RHP Genderson Almonte
RHP Juan Sanchez
The line between starting and relief pitching at this level is a thin one, with piggybacking a regularly employed tactic and the club looking to see how various players perform in various roles. Reyes and Arestigueta were the stand-outs from last season’s DSL campaign. Garcia missed all of the 2023 season recovering from a UCL tear. Gutierrez, Almonte, and Sanchez all return to the FCL for another season.
Relief Pitching
RHP Cristobel Abreau
RHP Rayven Antonio
RHP Whilmer Guerra
RHP Miguel Hernandez
RHP Jhonny Martinez
RHP Justin Militello
RHP Jose Ojeda
RHP Hayder Ortiz
RHP Styven Paez
RHP Carter Rees
RHP Marco Patino
RHP Yorvi Pirela
RHP Albert Rivas
LHP David Rodriguez
RHP Juan Sanchez
RHP Ronaldo Alesandro*
RHP Jose Chavez*
RHP Justin Long*
Some of these pitchers will also make starts and roles will change often. Of these pitchers Antonio was a stand-out for the DSL Braves last season and represented the squad as an All-Star. He’s joined by Abreu and Guerra in making the jump from the DSL.
Hernandez, Martinez, Ojeda, Patino, Pirela, and Rivas all return from last year’s squad after showing aptitude but still needing more polish before moving up to full-season ball. Militello, Ortiz, and 2023 15th-rounder Rodriguez are all coming back after missing the 2023 season with injuries while Rees was a pick-up from the Angels organization.
Alesandro, Chavez, and Long will all miss the season with injuries.
Weekly Round-Up
AUGUSTA:
The Greenjackets hosted the Charleston RiverDogs this week and dropped three of five games, with Sunday’s contest cancelled due to rain. This drops Augusta to 12-14 on the season, now in forth place in the South Division, 3.5 games behind front-running Fayetteville. The team next travels to Myrtle Beach to go fight the Pelicans.
The week got off to a good start as outfielder Jace Grady‘s 6th-inning grand slam broke a 5-5 tie and provided the winning margin to overcome a short and somewhat shaky outing by right-hander Cade Kuehler, who allowed 6 hits and 3 walks in only 4.2 innings. In fact, short and shaky could describe most of the starting pitching efforts by Augusta starters this week with Davis Polo following on Thursday with only 2 innings in a 4-5 loss. Didier Fuentes was better the following night, allowing 1 run in 4 innings while striking out 5, but Augusta’s offense was punchless as the teams went into extra innings tied 1-1. Charleston scored twice in the 10th thanks to first a catcher’s interference call on Jacob Godman followed by Godman’s inability to handle a throw from shortstop for an unearned run. Augusta would tie it in the bottom of the 10th however with back-to-back RBI singles by outfielder Robert Gonzalez and Godman, but Charleston would win it 4-3 after a wild pitch by closer Giomar Diaz to bring in the winning run.
Winning the next game after a tough loss is always therapeutic, and the Jackets went to therapy on RiverDog pitching Friday night with a 13-hit attack including the second home run of the season by first baseman Drew Compton. The game was won in walk-off fashion after an RBI triple by third baseman Luis Sanchez tied the game. After Compton was intentionally walked and second baseman Will Verdung walked conventionally, Gonzalez drew yet another walk to win the game 6-5. Long-man Luis Vargas got the win after throwing 3 hitless innings in relief of starter Garrett Baumann who had the shortest and shakiest start of the season.
Saturday’s match-up would feature the strongest starting pitching performance of the season with right-hander Adam Maier tossing 5 innings of 2-hit ball, walking none and striking out 6. RiverDog pitching matched zeroes however and the teams went into extras in a scoreless tie. Each team would score in the 10th, and Charleston would score in the top of the 11th as well before rain forced the game to be suspended. It was concluded Sunday, with Augusta tying the score again in the bottom of the 11th, but Charleston put the game away in the 12th with two runs off Giomar Diaz, who did not have his best week. Sunday’s actual game was called in the top of the 2nd due to rain and will not be made up.
The shaky starting pitching the week obscured some good work done by middle relievers as Beau Philip, William Silva, Adel Dilone, LJ McDonough, Zack Austin, and Vargas all threw multiple innings of zeroes on the board. Offensively this was a big week for Grady, who hit .438/.526/.625 including that Tuesday grand slam, and for Sanchez who hit .412/.500/.529 on the week after only going .234/.279/.281 coming into the series.
ROME:
Rome was a rude host to the Hickory Crawdads, besting their guests in four of six contests, which allowed them to surge into first place with a 14-11 overall record, 2 games over the slumping Bowling Green Hot Rods. Rome will host the 15-12 Brooklyn Cyclones this week.
The Emperors got off to a good start on the week with superb pitching by Lucas Braun, Samuel Strickland, and Shey Shanaman, who combined for three hits and one run to stifle Hickory in a 3-1 win. Braun struck out 7 and walked none in his 6.2 innings. Right-hander Owen Murphy, named the South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Month of April, had his shakiest start of the season on an Education Day afternoon, walking 4 but gutting through 5.2 innings and only allowing 2 runs. Rome however could only muster 6 hits and 1 run against Rangers prospect Mitch Bratt and the following relievers.
Rome would pound out 11 hits, including an E.J. Exposito homer, to back a bullpen game on Thursday, winning 8-4. Right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach would have his second consecutive start where he was just too hittable on Friday, giving up 4 runs on 5 hits. Rome would fight back on offense however as once again Schanaman and Strickland shut down the Crawdads attack and the teams would be locked 4-4 at the end of 9 innings. Relief pitching in extras would be a problem for both teams in extras. For Rome, seldom-used Chad Bryant allowed two runs in the 10th, but Rome countered with 2 of their own to extend the contest. The teams would trade single runs in the 11th, and in the 12th Bryant would allow 2 more, with reserve infielder Carlos Arroyo coming into strike out the final batter and keep the game at 9-7. Rome would score again, but with 2 runners on, catcher Dawson Dimon and centerfielder Kevin Kilpatrick would strike out to end the game, final score 9-8.
Rome would exact some revenge for the loss by winning both games over the weekend with righty Drue Hackenberg tossing his best outing since Opening Weekend, allowing only 1 runs and 2 hits in 6 innings, leading to a 3-1 victory. Rome used a 7-run 4th inning in an 11-1 slaughter to wrap up the series on Sunday. The game also marked the return of right-hander Jhancarlos Lara to the Rome rotation. Lara allowed only 1 hit (but walked 3) in his 3-inning start, striking out 5 and throwing 57 pitches. Command was understandably rusty, but he showed a high-90s fastball and broke off a number of good sliders. Righty Landon Harper was strong in relief, striking out 6 in 3 innings.
E.J. Exposito went 11-for-23 on the week, mashing 3 home runs and 2 doubles while stealing a whopping 5 bases to win OFR Position Player of the Week while playing first, second, short, and DH in different games. Infielder Nick Ward went 5-for-16 and knocked in 6 runs while oufielder Ethan Workinger kept up his consistent production, going 7-for-24 with 3 RBI and 3 runs scored.
MISSISSIPPI:
The Mississippi Braves returned home this week after completing a two-week Alabama road swing, taking on the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Despite solid starting pitching, the M-Braves could not generate much offense and dropped four of the six games. Mississippi now takes a 9-18 record back to the road to Alabama to face the 13-13 Rocket City Trash Pandas.
The starting pitching was very good this week as they produced four quality starts while the other two starts were close to achieving that as well. The M-Braves starters had a 2.23 ERA with a WHIP of just 0.88. Luis De Avila had two of the quality starts as he gave up just four earned runs over 12.2 innings although he took a loss and a no-decision. Drew Parrish produced another fine start on Wednesday with six innings of two-run baseball while JJ Niekro gave up three runs over five innings on Friday. Hurston Waldrep had a very good start on Thursday as he gave up just one unearned run over 5.2 innings with five strikeouts, just one walk, and 50 of 80 pitches for strikes. Ian Mejia had the best start of the week with seven scoreless innings on Saturday night while striking out seven and allowing just four baserunners.
In the bullpen, LHP Hayden Harris continued his great start with two more one-inning scoreless appearances and now has a 0.93 ERA this season in eight appearances with 17 strikeouts in 9.2 innings. Rolddy Munoz made his first appearance for Mississippi after being promoted from Rome and tossed a scoreless inning with two strikeouts. RH Patrick Halligan had a scoreless inning during the week and now has a 0.82 ERA and 0.91 WHIP in seven outings with 18 strikeouts in eleven innings.
Mississippi’s offense generated just sixteen runs for the week and only four over the final three games. Shortstop Nacho Alvarez went just 5-for-21 but also had two doubles, three stolen bases, and five walks (.238/.385/.333). OF Brandon Parker played in just three games but went 4-for-11 with three doubles, a home run, and two RBI. IF Yolbert Sanchez had two three-hit games and was 7-for-16 with a double, home run, and two RBI (.438/.471/.688). One big reason for the lack of offense this week was a bad series for CF Cody Milligan, who was 0-for-18 with eight strikeouts and two walks.
GWINNETT:
The Gwinnett Stripers started a long homestand this weekend against North Carolina-based teams, first taking on the Durham Bulls. In an evenly matched series, the two teams split the series with Gwinnett narrowing outscoring Durham 24-23. The homestand continues Tuesday as Gwinnett brings in a 15-17 record against the 13-19 Charlotte Knights.
Gwinnett got their best starting pitching effort in the first game of Wednesday’s doubleheader to open the series as AJ Smith-Shawver had his strongest start of the season with five scoreless innings, giving up just three hits and a walk on 84 pitches. Ray Kerr got the start in game two for a bullpen game and gave up four runs in three innings, courtesy of three home runs. On Thursday, Dylan Dodd cruised through his first four innings before getting hammered in the fourth and fifth innings for five runs in five innings of work. Darius Vines had the lone quality start for the Gwinnett rotation this week as he gave up three runs over six innings on Friday. Allan Winans followed that up on Saturday with three runs over five innings of work.
In the Gwinnett bullpen, Ken Giles was notable in that he had back-to-back outings for the first time this season with two one-inning stints on Thursday and Friday with the lone blip being an unearned run in Friday’s extra-inning win. Jimmy Herget made his first appearance after being acquired from the Los Angeles Angels with a scoreless inning on Saturday with three strikeouts. Daysbel Hernandez had two scoreless outings covering 2.1 innings with four strikeouts while Darren Holmes continued his tremendous start to the season with 3.2 scoreless innings over two appearances with five strikeouts and a save. He now has a 0.63 ERA and 0.91 WHIP in 14.1 innings.
Gwinnett’s offense was mostly consistent this week in scoring between two and five runs in every game. 1B-DH Yuri Gurriel went 7-for-19 with an RBI but had no extra-base hits or walks. Outfielder J.P. Martinez had another good week in going 7-for-19 with a double, stolen base, and two walks and now has a .294 batting average and .814 OPS. Outfielder Forrest Wall was 5-for-19 with a stolen base, three walks, two home runs, and three RBI (.263/.364/.579). Andrew Velasquez had three multi-hit games in going 7-for-17 with a home run, two stolen bases, and five RBI (.412/.444/.588). Alejo Lopez hit Gwinnett’s first home run in two weeks during Wednesday’s doubleheader and was 7-for-20 with a double, home run, three stolen bases, and three RBI for the week (.350/.458/.550).
POSITION PLAYER of the WEEK:
PITCHER of the WEEK:
Transaction Round-Up
- 4/29/2024: IF Cam Magee placed on the 7-day injured list by A Augusta
Augusta’s middle infield depth is being tested by injury, first to Leiker Figueroa, and now Magee.
- 4/30/2024: RHP Rolddy Munoz assigned to AA Mississippi from A+ Rome
It was a little bit of a surprise that Munoz didn’t get assigned to Mississippi straight out of spring training but he instead made 7 appearances with the Emperors. While the results weren’t there for him in Rome (7 runs allowed, 6 earned, in 10.1 innings), he stuff looked fine and he showed improvement with his control as well.
- 4/30/2024: C Jose Marcano assigned to A Augusta from FCL Braves; C Luis Parababire assigned to FCL Braves from A Augusta
Parababire got scant work behind Augusta regular catchers Alexander Martinez and Jacob Godman. Marcano provides more positional flexibility, able to play in all four corners of the field as well as behind the plate.
- 4/30/2024: OF Michael Martinez signed to a minor league contract, assigned to DSL Braves.
Martinez was a 17-year-old Dominican amateur. Now he’s a 17-year-old Dominican professional.
- 5/2/2024: MLB Los Angeles Angels trade RHP Jimmy Herget to MLB Atlanta for cash considerations; optioned to AAA Gwinnett
The side-arming, 30-year-old Herget is a former Cincinnati prospect who made his major league debut with the Reds in 2019. He spent parts of the next two seasons with the Rangers before securing his released. He signed as a minor league free agent with the Angels and has been up-and-down with that club the last two seasons. He has a 3.47 ERA in 121 games in the majors, a weird arm angle and spin rates, and most importantly for the Braves he has an option remaining.
- 5/2/2024: RHP Jhancarlos Lara assigned to A+ Rome
Lara is a top-20 Braves prospect who was slowed at the end of spring training by an oblique injury. He will slide into the Emperor’s already formidable rotation.
- 5/3/2024: RHP Anthony Vizcaya assigned to AA Mississippi from AAA Gwinnett
- 5/4/2024: RHP Peyton Williams released by AA Mississippi
Vizcaya drops down to double-A to make room for Herget, while Williams exits the organization to make room for Vizcaya.
Williams had a 1.08 ERA in 6 appearances for Mississippi this season, but that hides some weaknesses; he allowed 3 out of 4 inherited runners to score and has walked 7 in 8.1 innings. Overall the 2019 20th-rounder has a 4.85 RA in 110 minor league appearances.
- 5/4/2024: MLB Atlanta selected the contract of RHP Jackson Stephens from AAA Gwinnett; placed RHP Pierce Johnson on the 15-day injured list (right elbow inflammation); transferred LHP Angel Perdomo from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list
Neither Johnson nor the Braves believe what Johnson described as “lingering soreness” will require a long stint on the IL. Instead of calling up Ray Kerr, Daysbel Hernandez, or newly acquired Jimmy Herget however the Braves have selected Stephens, who has given up 8 runs (4 earned) in 9.1 innings pitched for the Stripers.
- 5/5/2024: OF Eli White activated from the 7-day injured list for AAA Gwinnett
The Stripers will have to juggle a lot of outfielders, most of whom have been broadly productive, between White, Forrest Wall, J.P. Martinez, Leury Garcia, and Luis Liberato. They also have Skye Bolt on the injured list.
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