The further down we go, the slimmer the pickings. There are some good players in Rome, the Braves High-A affiliate, but it’s much harder to find them. While this month’s list is short, it also includes another prospect that will likely climb the rankings rather quickly. If you missed our last 2 updates, here are the links:

Gwinnett Stripers Players of the Month

Mississippi Braves Players of the Month

Rome Braves Players of the Month

Pitchers

Tyler Owens: 11.2 IP, 2.31 ERA, 8H, 4BB, 9K, 1.03 WHIP

Owens is putting up a strong season overall and is seemingly getting better the deeper into the season he goes. IMO, he’s on the verge of a push to Pearl.

Edit: He’s in Pearl according to Outfield Fly Rule guys.

Miguel Pena: 8 IP, 2.25 ERA, 9K, 7H, 3BB, 1.25 WHIP

Pena has an electric arm, but has had a career long struggle with the strike zone. He started the year at AA, but was sent back to A+ for…you guessed it, command issues. He’s pitched much better this go-around and, like Owens, could be headed to Pearl when the Braves start their mass promotions.

Darius Vines: 4.2 IP, 1.93 ERA, 3H, 1BB, 5K, 0.64 WHIP

It’s important to put Vines in here, because he’s back on the mound and pitching well. He had previously been at the FCL and my theory, as you all likely know already, is that he was working on something specific and wasn’t necessarily “injured”. He’ll likely continue to climb up the ladder where his final resting place will be Gwinnett and it might feature a spot start in the bigs.

Hitters

Ignacio Alvarez: 96 PAs, 30H, 6 2B, 5 HR, 10BB, 17K, 1.010 OPS

Let’s clear the air, first. NO ONE calls him IGNACIO. He goes by the name Nacho and dammit, I hope he lets that name ride if he makes it to the bigs. Nacho is the player I referred to as a “fast riser” in the org. He’s always carried a brilliant eye, strong glove, good arm, and an ability to get on base, but he’s never really shown power. If you recall, Ozzie Albies had a grand total of 1 home run in 678 PA his first 2 years in the Braves org. Ignacio wasn’t that much different as he only had 2 in his first 399 PAs. While I don’t know what got into him, Nacho went nuts after that and now has 6 dingers on the year to go with his .411 OBP and 14 SB. He’s only 20 y/o, but I’d put good money on Nacho getting to Pearl before the year is over.

Geraldo Quintero: 82 PAs, 23H, 2 3B, 11BB, 9K, .806 OPS

Geraldo has been in the Braves org since 2017 and can play a multitude of positions, but has never shown the ability to consistently do anything at an above average rate for a long period of time, and unfortunately his bat is going backward since last year’s promotion to High-A.

Thanks for reading Rome Braves Players of the Month. Come join us at the bar for a chat about this piece and more!