Tomahawk Take’s Top 20 Atlanta Braves Prospects: #15-11
12. Manny Banuelos
– by Brandon Woodworth, Tomahawk Take Staff Writer
Who He Is
Manny Banuelos has come a long way since being a near untouchable Top 50 prospect with the Yankees in 2010 and 2011. Many injuries have hampered him along the way: an appendectomy, Tommy John surgery, and his latest being another less serious elbow injury that required the removal of a bone spur in his pitching elbow. But make no mistake, the lefty is still a potential valuable asset, and might be overlooked by some after the arrival of heralded arms like Aaron Blair and Sean Newcomb. Banuelos was acquired last offseason for David Carpenter and Chasen Shreve, which could end up being a steal as Carpenter was terrible in New York, released, and then injured, but now is back again with the Braves in camp on a minors deal. Shreve was stellar in New York, but if we’re talking talent, Banuelos definitely has the higher ceiling of the two.
His 2015
Banuelos came out swinging in 2015, as his major league debut was stellar: 5.2 IP with no walks and 7 strikeouts, surrendering just 2 hits. He left that game after hitting two Nationals in a row. Turns out his hand and calf had cramped up from dehydration. This guy can’t catch a break.
But that wouldn’t last, as he never escaped the 5th inning in any of his other starts. It turns out the bone spur was the culprit, and after trying to rehab and making 2 failed starts in September, he was shut down for the year. He underwent the surgery on September 17th.
2016 Projection and Future
He will have an outside shot at cracking the big league rotation if proven healthy, but I believe that he may be heading to the bullpen to start the season if his velocity isn’t back in full. I believe he will likely split time between the rotation and bullpen. I can see him maybe getting 7-10 starts in Atlanta with a handful of bullpen appearances, probably topping out around 75 innings with the big league club.
Next: Prospect Number 11
He’s always been a fantastic strikeout pitcher, but as cliché as it is, has a little trouble with walks as well. I’m predicting around an 8.0-8.2 K/9 with a 3.8-4.1 BB/9 rate, which will probably land his ERA in the high 3’s (let’s go bold and say a 3.83 ERA). The real test is on his health in 2016: not only to stay on the field, but to see if his velocity can return enough to make him a viable rotation piece going forward. Any easy comparable in stuff and makeup is Mike Gonzalez(and no, not just in ethnicity). If he’s healthy, he can be lights out, but it’s still a very real question going forward.