Atlanta Braves 2015 Top 10 Prospects: Where Are They Now?
We look back five years at the Atlanta Braves top 10 prospects of the 2015 season and where they are now
We’ll be using the Baseball Prospectus’ Top 10 Prospects List for our five-year check-up to see how the Atlanta Braves top 10 prospects are doing now.
10. Mauricio Cabrera
Mauricio Cabrera -RHP
Acquired via International free agency in 2010 out of the Dominican Republic.
2014 Stats: 5.73 ERA, 1.455 WHIP, 33.0 IP, 31 SO, 21 BB (A+-RK)
Projected Major League ETA: 2017
Actual Major League Debut: 2016
Oh, the hype around a guy that can hit 103 MPH on the radar gun. Baseball Prospectus highlighted the weaknesses that plagued Mauricio Cabrera as arm slot issues, being inconsistent with his delivery, mechanical issues, poor command, tips his breaking balls, and he can’t control the curveball…but he throws hard.
The thing is, when a guy throws as hard as Mauricio, you have to hope he can learn to harness that heat.
Despite posting a 5.59 ERA in 2015, Cabrera was promoted to Double-A Mississippi. Once he got to Mississippi his walks per nine rose to an atrocious 9.3.
Between the two levels in 2015, he combined for 5.7 walks per nine and 8.5 strikeouts per nine. Somehow Cabrera was struggling to turn his 103 MPH fastball into the type of strikeout numbers one might expect.
Despite all his struggles the previous three seasons, something clicked in 2016. Through 25 games in Mississippi, Cabrera posted a 3.21 ERA in 33.2 innings pitched. His 1.248 WHIP was an incredible improvement over previous stops, which routinely hovered between 1.50 and 1.80.
Cabrera was still struggling with the walks as he put nearly six batters per nine frames on base with free tickets. However, the strikeouts continued to creep up to 9.4 per nine.
Cabrera would pitch in 38.1 innings for the Atlanta Braves that season, earning 6 saves and 2 wins. He finished his first major league season with a stellar 2.82 ERA but he walked an alarming 19 batters in 38.1 innings.
Five-Year Checkup
In 2017, Mauricio found himself toiling in the minor leagues again, posting a 5.27 ERA in Double-A Mississippi and an even worse, a 7.86 ERA in Triple-A Gwinnett.
Cabrera bounced all over the Braves’ system in 2017, playing between four different levels of minor league teams. Despite a solid ERA in his first major league season, the command issues lied beneath the surface.
The writing was on the wall for the flame thrower.
Two-thousand-and-seventeen ended with Cabrera combining to walk over nine batters per nine and striking out only 7.8 per nine.
The man who could throw 103 MPH finished the season with 46 walks and just 39 strikeouts in 45.0 innings pitched. He walked more batters than he struck out.
Cabrera was released by the Braves in 2018 and last pitched for the White Sox Double-A affiliate, striking out 67 batters in 48 innings in 2019. He also walked 47 batters.
9. J.R. Graham
J.R. Graham – RHP
Acquired via 2011 Draft by the Braves in the fourth round.
2014 Stats: 5.55 ERA, 1.472 WHIP, 71.1.0 IP, 50 SO, 26 BB (AA-Mississippi)
Projected Major League ETA: 2015
Actual Major League Debut: 2015
J.R. Graham was taken by the Minnesota Twins in the Rule-5 Draft after these rankings were issued and prior to the season.
Baseball Prospectus seemed to be very high on Graham as they had him rated as a potential 3-4 starter.
Graham was a two-way star in college, mostly working as an outfielder/third baseman and the closer for the University of Santa Clara.
Despite only making five starts in college, the Braves saw his talents as a better fit for someone to open the games rather than close them.
He rung up 52 strikeouts in Danville his first year, going 5-2 and walking only 13 batters in his 57.2 innings pitched.
Graham continued his ascent through the minors, reaching Double-A in his first full season in 2012. Graham combined for a 2.80 ERA in 148 total innings. Graham showed great control, posting a 1.06 WHIP and walking only 34 hitters in that time.
He appeared to be on the fast track to the big leagues.
Prior to 2013, he had rocketed his way up Baseball America’s rankings, coming in as the number two prospect in the Braves organization, just behind Julio Teheran.
Five-Year Checkup
His 2014 season with the Braves was an injury-riddled mess. Plagued by shoulder issues, he posted a 5.55 ERA and was left off of the 40-man roster prior to 2015.
The Twins scooped him up in the Rule 5 Draft and traded him to the Yankees.
In all, Graham pitched in 65.1 major league innings and posted a 5.10 ERA. He played his final professional game in 2017 and is currently a 30-year-old free agent.
8. Kyle Kubitza
Kyle Kubitza – 3B
Bats: Left
Throws: Right
Acquired via 2011 Draft by the Braves in the third round out of Texas State.
2014 Stats: .295/.405/.470 // 529 PAs // 440 ABs // 31 2B // 11 3B // 8 HR // 55 RBI // 21 SB // 6 CS // 77 BB // 133 Ks
Projected Major League ETA: 2015
Actual Major League Debut: 2015
At best, Baseball Prospectus projected Kubitza to be an average major league player. They saw him as a high-floor type of player. His floor was high enough that he was ranked as the Braves’ eighth-best prospect on their list prior to the 2015 season.
He profiled to be a solid hitter with extra-base power and an above-average defender at the hot corner.
He was coming off a season in which he blasted 50 extra-base hits, including an excess of 27 doubles for the second consecutive season. He had improved his average from .260 to .295 and increased his on-base percentage from .380 to .405.
Following these rankings and prior to the season, Kubitza was traded from the Braves to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in exchange for Ricardo Sanchez and Nate Hyatt.
Five-Year Checkup
Kubitza ended up raking 43 doubles for the Angels Triple-A affiliate in 2015. He made his major league debut in a June callup with the Halos. He played in 19 games hitting .194/.256/.194.
Kubitza would never see the major leagues again. He bounced between three minor league systems the following season before being picked up by the Braves for one last shot.
He spent 2016 in Triple-A Gwinnett, this time only hitting five doubles and slashing .241/.333/.346 before the Braves released him.
Kubitza spent his age-27 season playing independent ball for the popular Atlantic League team, the Sugar Land Skeeters.
Kyle was set to graduate from Texas State in 2019, where he was also an assistant coach for his alma mater.
7. Alex Grosser
Alec Grosser – RHP
Acquired via 2013 Draft by the Braves in the 11th round.
2014 Projected Major League ETA: 2018
Actual Major League Debut: N/A
2014 Stats: 3.68 ERA, 1.288 WHIP, 22 Walks, 63 Strikeouts, 63.2 IP (Danville)
At just 19-years-old, Alec Grosser pitched in just 13 games for Danville.
Baseball Prospectus had him projected as high as a number three starter, which shows real potential.
Grosser placed this high on the list purely on speculation as he had only logged just over 91 professional innings to this point. However, his only two seasons came at ages 18 and 19 and he put up very good numbers against older competition.
Alec posted a 7.17 ERA in 2015. As the competition increased, he wasn’t able to adjust to Low-A. He finished the year with 85.1 innings pitched and 65 walks. Despite striking out about one batter per inning the previous season in Rookie Ball, he saw his total drop to 50 in 2015. He had 15 more walks than strikeouts.
Five-Year Checkup
In 2016, at just 21-years-old, Grosser found himself back in Rookie Ball in Danville. Grosser gave up 7 earned runs in just 3.1 innings before being traded as the “player to be named later” in the deal that sent Bud Norris to the Dodgers.
Despite his struggles in 2015, he was still considered a top 20 prospect for the Braves prior to being traded to the Dodgers.
Grosser never pitched in a game for the Dodgers’ farm system.
6. Ozzie Albies
Ozzie Albies – SS
Bats: Switch
Throws: Right
Acquired via International free agency in 2013 out of Curacao.
2014 Projected Major League ETA: 2019
Actual Major League Debut: 2017
2014 Stats: .364/.446/.444 // 239 PAs // 198 ABs // 7 2B // 3 3B // 1 HR // 19 RBI // 22 SB // 5 CS // 28 BBs // 23 Ks
Young Ozzie was coming off of his first season of professional ball in the Appalachian League at only 17-years-old. Ozzie posted a stunning .446 on-base percentage as a child in his first professional experience in 2014. It didn’t take long for people to realize that this kid was going to be something special.
In just 57 games he stole 22 bases, all while not even being allowed to go to a casino or buy a cigar. Albies had the presence of mind to take 28 walks in 239 plate appearances while barely being old enough to see an R-Rated movie without a parent.
Baseball Prospectus pegged him as on a “Jose Peraza-type path” but with more power. That’s a fair projection considering what everyone seemed to think Peraza would end up being.
They projected his ceiling as a first-division player and as you know, Albies currently ranks among the best second basemen in the game.
His talent accelerated his ascent to the majors, beating the projected ETA by two years.
Albies broke in at age 20 and hasn’t looked back.
Five-Year Checkup
There isn’t a whole lot I need to say about this one. He currently resides at the keystone in Atlanta, where we hope to see him for a long time.
Albies is in the midst of a deal that could keep him with Atlanta through the 2027 season. He was an All-Star in 2018 and won the NL Silver Slugger at second base in 2019.
5. Garrett Fulencheck
Garrett Fulenchek – RHP
Drafted in the second round of the 2014 Draft by the Braves out of Howe High School in Howe, Texas.
2014 Projected Major League ETA: 2019
Actual Major League Debut: N/A
2014 Stats: 4.78 ERA, 1.487 WHIP, 37.2 IP, 29 SO, 22 BB (Rookie)
In his first professional season at the age of 18, Fulenchek went 0-7 in 10 starts for the Braves’ Gulf Coast League Rookie team.
Fulenchek brought a low-90s sinking fastball and command issues. Baseball Prospectus liked what they saw at age 18 and projected him as high as a number three starter. They assumed he’d need some seasoning with his young age and lack of command of secondary pitches. He also had trouble keeping the fastball out of the middle of the zone.
At 6’4”, 200lbs, the 18-year-old looked like he could blossom into a frontline starter. Tomahawk Take even ranked him 17th among Braves’ prospects and said that he “screams future ace.”
His bowling-ball sinker gave him the look of a future ground ball artist. He just needed to work out the kinks.
In July of the 2015 season, Fulenchek was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays for two international bonus slots. In essence, the trading of Fulenchek was a necessary step in finalizing the deals with international players Derian Cruz and Cristian Pache.
Five-Year Checkup
Fulenchek never made it past low-A with the Tampa Bay Rays and pitched his last professional baseball in 2017.
He finished with a career 5.14 ERA and never found that command everyone hoped he would find, posting a 1.943 WHIP, walking nearly nine batters every nine innings.
Braxton Davidson – OF/1B
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Acquired via 2014 Draft by the Braves in the first round out of T.C. Roberson High School in Asheville, NC.
2014 Projected Major League ETA: 2019
Actual Major League Debut: N/A
2014 Stats: .224/.387/.299 // 186 PAs // 147 ABs // 9 2B // 1 3B // 0 HR // 11 RBI // 0 SB // 0 CS // 31 BB // 42 Ks
Braxton Davidson was the 32nd overall pick in the 2014 Draft. He profiled as a power-hitting lefty. He already possessed the size and strength, and even showed patience at the plate at just 18-years-old.
He was projected, at best, as a first-division player with a floor of an average major leaguer.
Davidson’s game was based around being a patient hitter, having a good eye, and hitting the ball far. Defense was not his area of expertise.
In 2015, he showed a glimpse of the power he was drafted for, hitting 23 doubles and 10 home runs. He also drew an impressive 84 walks in 494 plate appearances in Single-A Rome.
Five-Year Checkup
The following season, his numbers were very similar to his 2015 season. The power wasn’t surfacing as he slugged .381 in 2015 and .344 in 2016.
At age 21 in 2017, he only mustered 13 doubles and 7 homers with a slash line of .213/.339/.312. Something needed to happen soon for the prospect.
The strikeouts were alarming for Braxton Davidson. Not only was the power not showing, but he struck out 135,184, and 155 times respectively between 2015-2017.
Finally, in 2018 he busted out 20 homers in 121 games, he also tagged on an unfortunate 213 strikeouts. However, he was heading in the right direction.
Davidson was playing very well in the 2018 Arizona Fall League, slugging .530 with six homers in just 18 games.
In an unforgettable moment, Braxton clubbed a walk-off homer in the tenth inning to win the Arizona Fall League Championship.
What makes this moment even more memorable was the broken foot he suffered when he rounded third base during his home run trot. Trainers had to help him off of the field.
He missed all of 2019 with the injury and looks to return and put his blossoming power on full display in 2020 for the Braves.
3. Christian Bethancourt
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Acquired via 2014 Draft by the Braves in the first round out of T.C. Roberson High School in Asheville, NC.
2014 Projected Major League ETA: 2019
Actual Major League Debut: N/A
2014 Stats: .224/.387/.299 // 186 PAs // 147 ABs // 9 2B // 1 3B // 0 HR // 11 RBI // 0 SB // 0 CS // 31 BB // 42 Ks (MLB)
While his slash line doesn’t jump off the screen at you, Bethancourt was a very solid hitter in Triple-A for a defense-first catcher.
He appeared in one game in 2013 and played in 31 games in 2014 when the Evan “White Bear” Gattis went on the DL. In his 117 plate appearances, he hit .248 with three double and zero homers.
Once Gattis was healthy, Bethancourt was sent back down for the remainder of the season.
The Braves had high hopes for Bethancourt in 2015. In spring training, he secured a spot on the Opening Day roster alongside veteran A.J. Pierzynski.
After just 29 games in 2015, the Braves sent him back down after hitting .208/.231/.297. His defense failed him as well, he ranked among the league’s worst in passed balls and other defensive metrics at the time he was sent back down.
He didn’t make it back to the major league roster until late August. The following offseason he had surgery and the Braves traded him to San Diego.
Five-Year Checkup
Bethancourt played with the Padres the next two seasons and for eight games in 2017. He spent the majority of his 2018 season with the Milwaukee Brewers’ Triple-A affiliate. Bethancourt hit .297/.328/.506 over 104 games at age 26, making the Pacific Coast League All-Star team.
Christian Bethancourt was signed this offseason by the Philadelphia Phillies. He earned his way back to a major league organization after a successful stint in the Korean Baseball Organization.
The #Phillies sign utilityman catcher Christian Bethancourt to minor-league contract with invite to their #MLB training camp. Bethancourt played last season in Korea after playing in the big leagues with Atlanta and the #Padres, and was a PCL All-Star in 2018 with the #Brewers
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 27, 2019
Bethancourt was signed to a minor-league deal with an invitation to spring training.
2. Jose Peraza
Jose Peraza – 2B
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Acquired via International Free Agency in 2010 out of Venezuela.
2014 Projected Major League ETA: 2015
Actual Major League Debut: 2015
2014 Stats: .339/.361/.441 // 499 PAs // 469 ABs // 20 2B // 11 3B // 2 HR // 44 RBI // 60 SB // 15 CS // 31 BB // 42 Ks (A+-AA)
Jose Peraza was a highly regarded prospect, celebrated for his contact ability. He rarely struck out – as you may have noticed – with only 42 Ks in 499 plate appearances in 2014.
Despite being just 20 years old, Peraza had already completed four years in the Braves’ system following the 2014 season. In that time, he amassed 141 steals.
In 2015, Peraza got his first taste of Triple-A in Gwinnett. He still hit with a .294 average but was only able to muster 15 walks in 427 plate appearances. The stiffer the competition, the less steals he compiled. In 2015 he stole 34 fewer bags than the previous season.
Five-Year Checkup
Alas, the Braves were in the midst of a re-build and Peraza was a part of the 13-player super-duper trade. When the dust cleared, Mat Latos, Michael Morse, Alex Wood, Bronson Arroyo, Jim Johnson, Luis Avilan, and Jose Peraza were all sent to the Dodgers.
Hector Olivera, Paco Rodriguez, Zachary Bird, and a 2016 Competitive Balance Round A pick (from Marlins) now belonged to the Braves.
The Marlins received Kevin Guzman, Jeff Brigham, and Victor Araujo from the Dodgers.
Peraza has established himself as a major leaguer over the past five seasons, primarily with the Cincinnati Reds posting a very solid .273 career average.
He rarely ever takes a walk, his career-high for a single season came in 2018 when he took 29 free passes. Granted, it took him 683 plate appearances to get his 29 walks, but he did it.
The gaudy stolen base numbers from the minor leagues never materialized at the major league level. He’s posted -20 defensive runs saved at shortstop and +6 at second base, but he did have a nice 2018 season in which he nailed 49 extra-base hits.
Peraza is currently signed to the Boston Red Sox, where he will compete for playing time at second base in 2020.
1. Lucas Sims
Lucas Sims – RHP
Acquired via 2012 Draft by the Braves in the first round out of Brookwood High School in Snellville, GA.
2014 Projected Major League ETA: 2016
Actual Major League Debut: 2017
2014 Stats: 4.19 ERA, 1.296 WHIP, 156.2 IP, 107 SO, 57 BB (High-A Lynchburg)
This same pre-season, Sims was ranked as Baseball America’s 57th best prospect in the game, Baseball Prospectus’s 40th ranked prospect, and MLB.com’s 60th best prospect.
At the time, the Braves were in the beginning stages of their rebuild and so Sims was the top prospect in the organization (according to Baseball Prospectus).
Sims was coming off of his age-20 season in 2014, where he spent the entire season at High-A Lynchburg.
Baseball Prospectus projected him as high as a number two or three starter in the rotation, which is a high projection. His floor was a three or four starter in the rotation.
His numbers went the wrong way in 2015 as he walked a combined 5.2 hitters per nine innings and posted an ugly 5.05 ERA across three levels.
He continued to struggle until finally earning a shot at the big-league club at age 23 in 2017. He made 10 starts and appeared in 14 games for the Braves but struggled to handle major league hitting.
He finished his first big-league season with a 5.62 ERA in 57.2 innings pitched.
Five-Year Checkup
Lucas Sims still had value as of July 2018. He cruised to a 2.84 ERA in Triple-A Gwinnett over 73.0 innings when he was traded as a part of a package that brought slugger Adam Duvall to the Braves.
Sims is still with the Reds, where he pitched in 43.0 major league innings – mostly from the bullpen.
He is entering his age 26 season and is under team control until 2025.
Next. What the Braves Could Have Done Differently This Offseason. dark
That does it for the five-year checkup on the Braves top 10 prospects (according to Baseball Prospectus) for the 2015 season.