Atlanta Braves prospects tend to impact the big league club more than other teams across Major League Baseball. Last season, Drake Baldwin entered spring training as the best prospect in Atlanta's organization, but most were unsure of his timeline to the majors. Unfortunate injury luck to Sean Murphy forced the Braves to begin the season with Baldwin, and the rookie never looked out of place against big league pitching.
Baldwin was one of Atlanta's most consistent hitters in 2025, and his fine work earned him National League Rookie of the Year honors in November. The Braves are not viewed as an organization flooded with rising prospects, yet they find a way to get production from rookies time after time. Atlanta's 26-man roster should be a winning group on paper, but in this article we will take a look at which prospects the Braves will need to step up, in order to successfully navigate the 162 game marathon.
4 prospects the Braves will be counting on in 2026
JR Ritchie
The 22 year-old RHP is Atlanta's no. 2 prospect, and a top 100 prospect (no. 86) according to MLB Pipeline. Ritchie's 2.64 ERA across three minor league levels last season sparked his ascension on national prospect lists. Ritchie's buzz is widespread throughout the organization, as many anticipate his promotion at some point in 2026.
Given how quickly a Major League regular season can burn through pitchers, assuming Ritchie will pitch in Atlanta in 2026 feels like a safe bet. From there it will be results focused to see if the former 35th overall pick can stick at the big league level.
Didier Fuentes
Much like Ritchie, no. 7 prospect Didier Fuentes will likely start the season at Triple-A Gwinnett. However, it is fair to expect a handful of Fuentes starts in 2026. Hopefully, Fuentes will showcase some growth after a rough Major League debut in 2025. To no fault of his own, the 20 year-old RHP clearly was not ready for Major League competition and after numerous injuries to the rotation the Braves didn't have anywhere else to turn.
Fuentes posted a 13.85 ERA in four big league starts, and was quickly sent back down to Triple-A to continue his development. In Fuentes' five starts with Gwinnett, he posted a much more respectable 3.63 ERA and 29 strikeouts in just over 22 innings of work. Fuentes may have soured some people's opinion of him with his rough big league work, but it is far too soon to give up on him as a real contributor in 2026.
Blake Burkhalter
Continuing the pitching theme here, Burkhalter is a 2022 draft pick who feels like it's now or never to discover his true value to the organization. Burkhalter was not protected in the Rule 5 draft, but thankfully went unclaimed. The former Auburn Tiger was limited to 103 innings last season, finishing the year pitching out of Gwinnett's bullpen. Burkhalter could be a bullpen candidate for Atlanta if he impresses in the spring.
Jhancarlos Lara
Perhaps the most electric arm in the organization, Jhancarlos Lara has swing and miss stuff primed for a late-inning role. However, as the case with many young pitchers, Lara's command is behind his stuff at the moment. Lara had an alarming 46 walks in 51 innings with Gwinnett last season, but down the stretch started to harness his control. Lara can touch triple digits with his fastball, and his slider has gotten remarks as one of best pitches in all of minor league baseball. Atlanta made excellent bullpen moves this winter, but should one of their top late-inning arms go down, don't be surprised in Lara is the name Atlanta calls on as a replacement.
Honorable mention: Will a real shortstop prospect please stand up?
The Braves are prepared to let Ha-Seong Kim handle the bulk of the shortstop reps in 2026, but life after that remains murky. Kim signed a one-year deal this offseason, and at risk of losing Kim next winter the Braves need one of their shortstop prospects to take a leap in 2026. This isn't a cry for one of the shortstop prospects to make the jump to Atlanta in 2026, but one of these guys need to give the team the impression they could be in play for 2027.
The options are not limited for Atlanta, as plenty of investments have occurred within the past few drafts and IFA signing periods. Alex Lodise, John Gil, Jose Perdomo, and last year's first round pick Tate Southisene all rank within the top 30 prospects of the organization. Each are on different timelines, but one of them flashing in 2026 would do wonders for the organization. Hopefully, by the end of next season, one of these shortstops have at least made a push for inclusion on one of the Top 100 prospects lists.