5 surprising prospects who will shine at Braves spring training
Spring training is right around the corner and some less familiar names could make some noise.
It is fair to assume that the Atlanta Braves are probably pretty close to done making moves this offseason. While it wouldn't be crazy to see some minor moves made right before spring training for depth off the 40 man roster, the Braves' offseason checklist seems pretty well completed in the wake of the Braves trading for and extending Chris Sale in addition to the fact that Atlanta's payroll appears close to tapped out for the moment.
Reasonable people can disagree as to whether or not the Braves made the right moves as both Sale and Jarred Kelenic come with a fair bit of risk. However, we will all know soon enough the early returns as spring training is just a matter of weeks away.
Spring training this year will probably be mostly uneventful for the Braves this year outside of the competition for the last rotation spot. Most of the other roster spots are set in stone. However, what should be interesting is how some of the Braves' prospects look especially when they get a good amount of the playing time early on this spring before they are sent back over to minor league camp.
The goal here isn't to highlight the names that everyone knows. AJ Smith-Shawver has already seen real big league innings and plenty of people have written about Hurston Waldrep's potential at this point. This is a look at some of the lesser known prospects that could make some noise in spring training even if they (probably) can't make the team right out of camp.
Cody Milligan
If Cody Milligan was just at tad bigger or hit for a bit more power, a lot more people would be talking about him. Though he lost a big chunk of time due to injury in 2023, he still posted an .803 OPS while spending the bulk of his time at Double-A Mississippi while stealing 24 bases in just 71 games. He can hit to all fields, run, and is a strong and versatile defender.
That versatility is what is likely to stand out in spring training. Milligan isn't likely to hit 450 foot bombs, but what he can do is give quality at-bats every game and play literally anywhere on the field. Assuming he plays well this year, he could end up being an excellent utility knife bench piece for the Braves, although he may end up being more valuable as a trade piece than that especially to a team that could give him more playing time.
Drake Baldwin
The sad reality right now is that Travis d'Arnaud appears to finally be running out of gas. While some of his struggles last season could be attributed to the concussion he suffered early on in 2023, but the fact remains that TdA is 34 years old, doesn't really control the running game all that well, and has posted a sub-.700 OPS in two of the past three seasons. That is why it was decidedly curious that the Braves were so aggressive in promoting their third round pick in the 2022 draft, Drake Baldwin, last year.
In terms of pure upside combined with proximity to the major leagues, Baldwin is the surest bet to contribute in the big leagues that the Braves have. He spent the bulk of his time at high-A Rome in 2023, but he also made cameo appearances in Double-A and Triple-A last season where he played well. Altogether, he put up an .844 OPS with 16 homers. While he won't break camp with the team unless TdA or Sean Murphy get hurt and even a 2024 debut may be an optimistic guess, a strong spring training performance could cement his status as the frontrunner to be d'Arnaud's replacement when his time with the Braves comes to an end.
Drue Hackenburg
When the Braves picked Drue Hackenburg in the second round of the 2023 draft, it raised a lot of eyebrows as he wasn't a particularly highly regarded draft prospect by most publications and his college numbers weren't all that great. He throws in the low to mid-90's, has a good slider, and gets a lot of ground balls. On the surface, that isn't traditionally the recipe for a high draft pick.
However, he seemed to reward the Braves' faith in his pro debut with a 1.42 ERA in very limited time on the mound last season. Assuming Hackenburg gets a good look this spring, we should get some answers. If he shows out and continues to miss bats, the Braves will look very smart and he could move through the minor leagues quickly as a college arm. If not, the questions about why the Braves picked him so highly are going to get even louder.
Ignacio Alvarez
Ever since the Braves picked Ignacio "Nacho" Alvarez, he has been among the Braves most interesting position player prospects. He is an excellent defender, although he is better at third base vs. shortstop, and his bat to ball skills and approach at the plate are incredibly advanced. If there is a knock against him, it is that he often settles for poking the ball the other way instead of turning on pitches despite having some pop to his pull side.
Come spring training, Alvarez should get some early looks in the field. Showing that he can and will try to turn on pitches and impact the ball changes his long-term outlook tremendously. Right now, he is a curiosity as a prospect who gets on base at a good clip and has some defensive versatility in the infield. If he can show that he can drive the ball more, he could get to the upper minors in a hurry and the first step towards that goal is with a strong spring.
Spencer Schwellenbach
It is weird that folks seem to have forgotten that Spencer Schwellenbach was the Braves' second round pick in 2021. In fairness, part of the issue is that he missed the 2022 season as he was recovering from Tommy John surgery. However, the Braves also handled him very carefully last season as he didn't get any higher than high-A despite being a college arm and posting a 2.49 ERA in 16 starts.
Coming off a strong 2023 season, this season will be a pivotal one for Schwellenbach. He will be one year further removed from surgery and a strong spring could put him in position to rocket through Double-A and Triple-A. The biggest improvement to keep an eye on is to see how his stuff plays when he isn't pitching out of the stretch. If he still looks somewhat pedestrian pitching out of the wind-up, then he may need significantly more development and a transition to a relief role isn't out of the question. However, if he misses bats and looks good both out of the wind-up and pitching out the stretch, look out.
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