Baseball America was the first to drop new prospect lists for every team this season, and it should surprise no one that more than half of last year’s top 30 prospects are no longer on the new Atlanta Braves list of top prospects.
- AJ Smith-Shawver, Spencer Schwellenbach, Drake Baldwin, and Dylan Dodd graduated,
- Cade Kuehler and Ray Kerr drop off the list after UCL surgery
- Sabin Ceballos went to the Giants in a trade,
- Luis da Avila, Darius Vines and Jesse Franklin are out of pro-ball, while
- Isaiah Drake, Diego Benitez, Cody Milligan, Ian Mejia, Douglas Glod, and Keshawn Ogans fell off BA’s list.
Six 2025 draftees join BA's Braves top 30 prospect list including three in the top 10
Baseball America hasn’t released its new farm system rankings, so there’s no way to know how the new additions will affect how outsiders see the Braves’ system. The system remains pitching heavy, but newly selected everyday players grab two of the top ten slots. The countdown starts at 30.
McCabe and Perdomo Down, Harris and Bagwell Up
30 - David McCabe: Fourth round, 2022. After missing most of 2024, McCabe is hitting for average and getting on base at a .370 clip for Columbus, but his power stroke hasn’t returned.
29 - Dixon Williams: Fourth round, 2025. Williams is struggling to find his groove as he transitions to A-ball, which isn’t a surprise, since he’s only appeared in five games.
28 - Ethan Bagwell: Sixth round, 2024. Bagwell moved quickly from Rookie ball to Augusta, where he’s pitched to a 2.45 ERA in 29 1/3 innings over six starts.
27 - Adam Maier: Seventh round, 2022. Maier has made 17 starts in 18 appearances for starts for Rome and one emergency start for Gwinnett, and pitched to a 6.34 ERA.
26 - Luis Guanipa: International free agent 2023. The Braves gave Guanipa $2.3 million at 17 because of his combination of power and speed. So far, those tools haven’t appeared, but he’s only 19.
25 - Raudy Reyes: International free agent January 2025: The Braves gave Reyes $1.8 million because, as Eric noted in the linked post, “Reyes is now piping fastballs over 100 mph and appears to be built like a linebacker.” Reyes is 16 and pitching in the DSL.
24 - Davis Polo: International free agent 2022. Baseball America calls the 20-year-old righty, “a reliable strike-thrower (whose) advanced command gives him starter upside. Polo is on the 60-day IL with an undisclosed injury.
23 - Hayden Harris: Undrafted free agent 2022. As a reliever, Harris pitched to a 0.79 ERA and struck out 37 in 22 2/3 IP for Columbus, then moved to Gwinnett, and pitched to a 0.59 ERA and struck out 25 in 16 2/3 IP.
22 - Jose Perdomo: International free 2024. Perdomo spent 2024 in the DSL and is now with the FCL-Braves.
21 - Conor Essenburg: Fifth-round 2025. Essenberg hasn’t played this year.
The Middle Tier: Hackenberg Stumbles, Sinnard and Burkhalter Climb
20 - Jhancarlos Lara: International free agent 2022. Lara, 22, started the season with Columbus as a starter, but moved to the pen after his promotion to Gwinnett. Three of his 22 appearances for the Stripers skewed his ERA to 4.15. However, in his other 19 appearances, he pitched to a 0.96 ERA in 28 IP.
19 - Landon Beidelschies: Sixth-round 2025. Beidelschies has yet to play a game for the Braves.
18 - Rolddy Munoz: International free agent 2019: The 25-year-old righty reliever has pitched to a 2.17 ERA in 31 1/3 IP for Columbus.
17 - Luke Sinnard: Third-round 2024. Sinnard pitched to a 0.92 ERA in 29 IP (7 starts) and struck out 41 while walking 12, to earn a promotion to Rome.
16 - Blake Burkhalter: Second-round 2022. Burkhalter pitched to a 3.13 ERA with Columbus to start the season before his promotion to Gwinnett early in July.
15 - John Gil: International free agent 2023. The 19-year-old speedster’s batting .240/.334/.340/.674 and stolen 41 bags in 53 attempts this year.
14 - Drue Hackenberg: Second-round 2023. After a strong 2024, Hackenberg is back at AA Columbus and struggling to regain his 2024 form.
13 - Diego Tornes: International free agent 2025: Tornes is a speedy center 16-year-old fielder currently batting .279/.395/.402/.796 and 24 for 28 in steals for the DSL Braves.
12 - Herick Hernandez: Fourth-round 2024. The 5-10, 205lb lefty started 2025 slowly, but in his last 11 starts for Rome, Hernandez pitched to a 2.73 ERA in 56 IP, striking out 62 and walking 38.
11 - Garrett Baumann: Fourth-round 2023. Baumann opened his second full season with Rome by giving up 12 runs in his first two starts, but settled in to pitch to a 3.42 ERA in 82 2/3 IP, striking out 77 and walking 20.
The Top Ten: First Rounders Rule
10 - Lucas Braun: Sixth-round 2023. Braun gave up a lot of runs early in the season, but pitched to a 3.90 ERA in 60 IP in his last 12 starts, striking out 60 and walking 20.
9 - Briggs McKenzie: Fourth-round 2025. McKenzie hasn’t played since signing.
8 - Tate Southisene: First-round 2025. Southisene hasn’t played since signing.
7 - Owen Murphy: First-round 2022. Murphy slipped down the list from four to seven because he had UCL replacement surgery. But since returning to Rome, Murphy’s thrown 8 1/3 scoreless innings in two starts, struck out 13, and walked one. That, as they say, will play.
6 - Hurston Waldrep: First Round 2023. We’ve seen enough over Waldrep’s last two starts for Atlanta to know he’ll contend for a spot in the rotation next year.
5 - Nacho Alveraz Jr.: Fifth-round 2023. Alveraz can pick it at third, but his bat isn’t ready. No one believes he’s a middle infielder, so he looks like a utility man going forward.
4 - Didier Fuentes: International free agent 2022. Fuentes made three starts for Rome and five with Columbus before joining Gwinnett in June. He made four starts for Atlanta games, but while his stuff was good, he wasn’t ready. He’s young, and with more experience, his stuff should be good enough to start.
3 - Alex Lodise: Second-round 2025. The Braves started him with Rome he’s expected to move quickly through the system. He has only eight his six games, but four of those were extra-base knocks.
2 - JR Ritchie: First-round (35th) 2022. Ritchie dominated at Rome, pitched to a 3.49 ERA with Columbus, and is now with Gwinnett, where he’s thrown 22 innings over four starts and pitched to a 4.50 ERA.
1 – Cam Caminiti: First-round 2024. Caminiti is dominating batters at Augusta, pitching to a 2.55 ERA in 25 1/3 innings over nine starts, striking out 51 while walking 15.
That’s a Wrap
The Braves’ 2025 draft went well. According to BA, the Braves’ top-ten prospects include three players from the 2025 draft and five players selected by the Braves as their first pick in the draft.
That can’t be a bad thing.