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Atlanta Braves Top 100 Prospects: 11. Austin Riley

By Benjamin Chase

Jul 21, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; A baseball is shown on the infield during batting practice before the game against the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 21, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; A baseball is shown on the infield during batting practice before the game against the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jul 21, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; A baseball, baseball glove and baseballs are shown on the infield during batting practice before the game against the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 21, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; A baseball, baseball glove and baseballs are shown on the infield during batting practice before the game against the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports /

2016 Outlook

I got a lot of crap in the off-season for my views on Riley needing at least a full season at Rome, if not even starting again at Danville, and while a month certainly doesn’t vindicate me or prove anyone else wrong, Riley certainly has some growing that needed to happen. The adjustment at the plate and the work on the defensive end were huge strides already, but so far the bat still hasn’t come alive this season. He’s still hitting the ball extremely hard, so I don’t have a doubt that the deep ball is still there, but it could take a full season at Rome this year, likely not in the development plans of many who wanted to see Riley jump up the ranks quickly.

Riley has an incredibly amount of power, perhaps as much as any player in the system. If he can remain able to stick at third while also tapping into that power, he’ll have a long future with the Braves.  He’s only 19, just having turned 19 in April, so he’ll still be a teenager this whole season. He’s got time to work his way up the system as he builds his pitch recognition and learns when and how to release that power.

Next: Braves Minor League Database

The future for Riley is still very, very bright, and I am a much bigger fan after seeing some of the very baseball-intelligent moves on the base paths and in the field that I certainly wasn’t expecting to see him make based on what I had heard, read, and been told about Riley.

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