Atlanta Braves 2018 Minor League Review: Right-handed starters
Rookie Ball
Entering the 2017 draft, the Atlanta Braves were very interested in selecting Tristan Beck in the 2nd or 3rd round as part of a big draft, but when Wright fell in their laps, but money wasn’t there to make it work. Beck went back to school, and the Braves got their chance to get their man in the 4th round this year. Beck only pitched a few innings for the GCL (4 2/3 innings, no runs, 2/7 BB/K) after a long year for Stanford, but he could move very quickly next year, likely opening the year with Rome and possibly finishing 2019 in the upper minors.
In his second year in the organization, one of the Atlanta Braves themes, a late-blooming Dominican arm that they snatched up, Jose Montilla, had success in 13 starts for Danville. Mixed reports on his ultimate ceiling, but many saw an average fastball, above-average breaker, and a change that flashed plus. That could be a back-end guy after tossing 70 innings with a 4.37 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, and a 19/53 BB/K ratio. He draws a lot of contact, but rarely a square contact by opponents.
Coming up to the GCL this year, Luis De Jesus showed well, though he may have gotten too late of a start to develop into a major leaguer. He is a late-bloomer that the Braves found that will be 20 next year, but his raw stuff gives him an excellent fastball and a slider that he can bend two ways and already draws plus grades.
Signed out of Westmont this summer as an undrafted free agent, Matt Hartman had plenty of success in his first year in the system, tossing 15 2/3 innings for Danville with a 2.87 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and a 10/8 BB/K ratio. He works in the low-90s with a high arm slot that allows his curve to play up.
After being drafted in the 11th round in 2016, Matt Rowland became the target of blame for many Braves fans as his contract that some felt cost the Braves others in the draft class. He made his first appearance on the mound after injury this year, and he was inconsistent but definitely talented. Rowland finished the year with 54 innings, a 3.83 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, and a 26/41 BB/K. It will be fun to watch him develop with the Rome staff next season.
Though he did pitch one game for Florida, Albinson Volquez is listed here. He’s a guy that I’ve had an eye on for a few years in the DSL/GCL. He’s 6’3″ and has the velocity to succeed, but consistency in his secondaries is a struggle, posting a 4.70 ERA and 1.50 WHIP over 59 1/3 innings with a 26/50 BB/K ratio.
Coming back from Tommy John surgery, Patrick Weigel just got in a few innings with GCL this year, but he should factor quickly into the 2019 plans in the upper minors and possibly even the major league bullpen. Weigel was able to toss 4 scoreless innings, striking out 6.
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Ronaldo Alesandro is 20 and spent his first year in the DSL this year, so his maturity likely allowed him to put up the big numbers (2.60 ERA, 47 K in 34 2/3 IP, though also 22 BB). He is physically projectable, but he is also already 20, so how much more fill there is to his body remains to be seen.
Long and lean with incredible ability to spin hard sinking stuff, Eudi Asencio spent a second season in the DSL at 19 this year. His velocity is not great, rarely topping 91, but he has a sinker/slider combo that is very tough to square, and his numbers showed well in the DSL this year (2.63 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 52 K, 61 2/3 IP).
Another older arm that had big success in the DSL this year was Jose Olague. He is bigger, more filled out at 6′, and while he is mostly low-90s, he has much more balance and consistency in his delivery. Using primarily a moving fastball, he was able to put up a 2.43 ERA over 66 2/3 innings with a 11/57 BB/K.
A number of young arms have a chance with loose arms but struggles to harness secondaries right now in the DSL like Oscar Nunez, Estarlin Rodriguez, and Rainiery Rodriguez.
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The depth of names here in the Atlanta Braves system is absolutely incredible. There are a half-dozen guys who could be back-end starters at the big league level, a handful with a chance at being frontline rotation members, and another handful that could fit in between in realistic projections. Add in the guys with more ceiling projections into those ranges, and that’s a ridiculous amount of talent in just one system, and that’s hand that’s considered the weaker one for the Braves.