The Atlanta Braves big left-handed pitching prospect had a good run at the big league level in 2021. Can he make the adjustments in 2022 to stick around this time?
There is no shortage of pitching prospects in the Atlanta Braves system, but finding ones who can get over the mental hurdle at the big league level has been a problem.
It seems like the Braves have had several talented pitching prospects who dominated at the Minor League level in the past five years but never could figure it out at the big league level.
For Kyle Muller, he certainly found some success in his first cup of coffee. But once the league adjusted to him, he wasn’t able to — and not afforded the time to — adjust back.
That will be the key for him in 2022.
But the second-round draft pick in 2016 out of Dallas, Texas retains his prospect status after pitching just 36.2 innings for the Braves in 2021 and posting a 4.17 ERA in 9 games (8 starts) with 37 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.255.
Over five minor league seasons, he’s posted an ERA of 3.10 and a WHIP of 1.270 with a BB/9 of 4.1 and a K/9 of 9.5.
In 2019 at Double-A, he posted a 3.14 ERA in 22 starts with 120 strikeouts in 111.2 innings.
At Gwinnett in 2021, he had a 3.39 ERA and 1.356 WHIP in 17 starts with 93 strikeouts in 79.2 innings.
As I said, he’s proven he can handle the minor league levels. Now it’s just about finding a way to translate that into big league success.