House That Hank Built
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One year after sanctions, Atlanta Braves are moving forward

By Benjamin Chase

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 15: Commissioner of Baseball Rob Manfred appears at a SiriusXM Town Hall at The Library of Congress on July 15, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Larry French/Getty Images for SiriusXM,)
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 15: Commissioner of Baseball Rob Manfred appears at a SiriusXM Town Hall at The Library of Congress on July 15, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Larry French/Getty Images for SiriusXM,) /
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The Angels pick up a trio

Easily the biggest name that the Atlanta Braves lost was Kevin Maitan, the top bonus player from the big Braves 2016-17 signing class. Maitan had come into his first pro season in horrific shape and, though he worked hard through the year to improve that shape, he was not the guy he was as an amateur due to his body change. He hit .241/.290/.340 with 2 home runs over 42 games with the Braves GCL and Appy League teams in 2017.

The Angels sent Maitan to the Pioneer Level, at the advanced rookie level, equal to the Appy League. Even though he was repeating the level, he did not hit much better, putting up a .248/.306/.397 line with a 19/66 BB/K ratio over 262 at bats, hitting 8 home runs. Maitan was moved to third base due to his rapidly growing body. In plenty of early drafts of Angels top prospect lists, Maitan doesn’t even crack the top 10, which says a lot about just how far he’s fallen.

While he’s not a top 10 Angels guy himself quite yet, Livan Soto made incredible impressions in 2018. After hitting .225/.332/.254 with the Braves in the GCL in 2017, Soto moved up to Orem alongside Maitan, hitting .291/.385/.349.

Soto will never be a big power hitter, but he has good bat control and he has excellent speed, allowing him to impact on the bases. His biggest impact, however, is with his glove, where Soto is already receiving note as one of the 3-5 top defensive shortstops in the entire minor leagues. That’s a big, big thing to have lost in an Atlanta Braves system now sorely lacking in middle infield depth.

Hard-throwing righty Juan Contreras ended up the last player who went to a new team to sign, inking a contract on February 22nd with the Angels. He was injured this season and did not play the entire year. Contreras exhibited a big fastball in his first pro season in 2017, throwing 19 2/3 innings, with a 5.95 ERA and a 1.93 WHIP, posting a 21/12 BB/K ratio.

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