Braves MiLB News: Top Prospects Heading to Spring Training

The Braves have undergone a complete overhaul this off-season, trading away three of their top four hitters on their roster. This has allowed them to stack up on prospects, and they now possess one of the better farm systems in the game.

Five of the top six prospects invited to Spring Training were acquired this off-season, reported by MiLB.com. It will be interesting to see who can make an early impression on their new club.

Hitters

Jose Peraza is arguably the top prospect in the organization, with the speed and contact ability to potentially be a future leadoff hitter. He’s a very aggressive hitter, and therefore doesn’t walk or strike out a whole lot. Adding some plate discipline to his game will be important moving forward, as his .364 OBP last season will be hard to sustain in the big leagues without hitting .339 again. His baserunning ability will certainly be transferable to the Majors, having swiped 60 bags each of the last two seasons. The 20 year old is a former shortstop moved to second base, so it wouldn’t be surprising if he were to become a Gold Glover at second.

Having played just 44 games above A-ball, it’s unlikely that Peraza will make the team out of Spring Training. A hot start in Double-A Mississippi could lead to a mid-season call up, but there really isn’t any rush to get him to the big leagues.

Rio Ruiz was acquired from the Astros in the Evan Gattis trade, and is probably the Braves’ third basemen of the future. He has the ability to hit 15-20 homers a year in the big leagues while maintaining a solid OBP, due to his patient approach at the plate. The lefty hits lefthanded pitchers very well, posting a better batting average than he did against right handers, albeit with less power. Just 20 years old, he has room to improve his defense at third base, but should get better as he matures.

Spending the entire year in Advanced-A ball means there is virtually no chance Ruiz breaks camp in Atlanta. A jump up to Double-A ball with Peraza is probably in the Cards for the third basemen. We should expect him to make his Major League debut in 2016.

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Cuban born Dian Toscano signed with the Braves for $6 million over 4 seasons, so the club obviously expects him to make an impact right away. Not much is known above the 5 foot 11 outfielder, other than that he appears to be a high contact, high speed type of player. He lacks the arm strength to play center so he has played mostly left field in Cuba. He is obviously a complete unknown at this point; if he plays well in Spring Training, there’s a good chance he can make the club. If he struggles, than a start in Double-A or Triple-A may be necessary until he gets settled in. He could be a future starter for the club.

Pitchers

Mike Foltynewicz was the centerpiece in the Gattis trade, and could be the front runner for the 5th spot in the Braves rotation to start the season. The righty throws his fastball in the upper 90’s and has a quality curveball that has helped him post high strikeout numbers through the minors. Problems with his command and the lack of a third quality pitch led to some disappointing numbers this past season, raising questions of whether he should be a starting pitcher or reliever. As a reliever, ‘Folty’ would be incredibly effective, but the Braves clearly have higher hopes for him.

A quality spring will be crucial for the 23-year old to separate himself from veterans like Wandy Rodriguez and Eric Stults and earn a rotation spot. It would be safe to say that he will log some big league starts this season, but that might not come until improving his command in the Minors first.

Acquired from the Cardinals in the Jason Heyward trade, Tyrell Jenkins gets the invite to Spring Training after an impressive performance in the Arizona Fall League last season. Coming off shoulder surgery that forced him to miss some of the 2013 and 2014 campaigns, Jenkins found somewhat of a groove in Advanced-A ball at the end of last year. His strikeout percentages have been fairly low the past couple of years, but that should rise back to his 2011 and 2012 form once he fully recovers from injury. The 6 foot 4 righthander may have showed the Braves enough in the AFL to believe that they have a star in the making. He posted the lowest ERA among pitchers that threw over 20 innings, against mostly Double and Triple-A competition.

The 22 year old might be closer to the big leagues than we realize, but even if he has a spectacular spring, I’d expect him to start the year with Mississippi. The Braves probably won’t have much reason to promote him to their big League bullpen, so he may be kept in the Minors to focus on starting. Improvement this season could give him a good shot at a rotation spot in 2016.

Acquired from the Yankees for two relievers, Manny Banuelos offers a high upside, low risk move for the Braves. A former top prospect, injuries derailed the lefty’s improvement, sitting out the 2013 season and pitching on a limited basis in 2014. He showed signs last season of why his potential was so high, especially late in the year when he was called up to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. This could end up being a signature move of the John Hart era if Banuelos can become a star in Atlanta.

Its unreasonable to have much expectation of the 23-year old making the team, but he has a chance to leave an impression that could lead to a call-up before long. At the same time, if Banuelos outpitches Foltynewicz and the veteran pitchers, who’s to say he can’t grab the 5th rotation spot? He’s had a prolonged life as a prospect, but 2015 could be the year he stays healthy and puts it all together.

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