Atlanta Braves Midseason Top 50 Prospects: 40-31

40. Alejandro Salazar, SS, Low-A Rome

Salazar was signed by the Braves out of Venezuela in 2013 with a strong defensive reputation, with many comparing Salazar to Johan Camargo, and the size comparison is obvious, as is the skill comparison. Salazar even followed Camargo’s example by putting up a big season in the DSL, going .303/.355/.361 with 4 triples and 6 steals while playing incredible defense at short and showing the type of arm that had the Braves even trying him at third base.

Last season, the Braves moved Salazar to the GCL, and he continued to play very well, hitting .284/.352/.361 with 8 stolen bases, but not a lot of power. He did show very good range at shortstop, drawing very impressive reviews when I began doing calls for my offseason top 100. One call I made put Salazar behind only Ozzie Albies defensively at shortstop in the entire system. Another said his arm was the best at the position in the entire system.

In Rome in 2016, Salazar has continued his tremendous defense, and while the power still hasn’t developed, he’s continued to show a solid contact stick, hitting .275. However, his eye that was a positive before has fallen off strongly, with a walk rate nearly half of what it was last season in the GCL. His strikeout rate has also risen by 3%, but not to any sort of unlivable level by any means.

Salazar has exhibited excellent ability to put the bat to the ball, and he’s only 19 through all of this season, so he’s playing very well in full-season ball. His glove has continued to be excellent. I worry about the lack of power in his swing as he seems to get the bat knocked out of his ball by elite velocity or hard breaking stuff. It’s a batting profile that I find similar to

without Peraza’s elite speed, but with the elite defense Peraza never had.

39. Andrew Thurman, RHP, AA Mississippi

Thurman was drafted by the Astros in the second round in 2013 after having a velocity spike in his last year of college and being a “helium” pick before the draft. He came out into the short-season A-ball league and over 39 2/3 innings had an 11/43 BB/K ratio.

He had growing pains with his new-found velocity and finding command AND control of his pitches in 2014. He did well controlling the pitches, keeping his walk rate at nearly the same level as he put up in his excellent 2013 season, however, his command of those pitches was not sharp, as he frequently missed his spot, leaving the ball in a hittable spot within the zone, and hitters were able to hit him hard, pounding balls all over the field to a 5.40 ERA.

The Braves acquired Thurman as part of the Evan Gattis trade, and they moved him to Carolina. Before the infamous bus crash, Thurman was arguably the most dominant pitcher on the entire staff, with a 2.51 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP, but even more impressive was that in half of his 6 starts before the crash, he allowed no earned runs. He missed nearly two months after the crash, and afterward, it was as if he could not find the legs under him, whether due to lingering injury or what it was, but he was never right the rest of the season.

Thurman credited his increased velocity to increased leg strength, and it’s notable in his delivery how much he relies on his legs when he’s going well. However, this season, I’ve noted that he’s been out of that “good” delivery a lot, and the results have been fairly obvious, as he’s walked nearly double any previous season. He’s still got a very good fastball that can reach 96-97 with movement along with a slider and curve that can both be effective. However, that is all predicated on him having those legs under him in his delivery, and that has simply not been the case this season.

If he can get his delivery back in line, he could very quickly move up to AAA as a reliever with power stuff, which is where his future is most likely without a major overhaul to his delivery.

Next: 38, 37