This is our 4th installment for our Braves Top Prospects List. If you’re behind, utilize the below links to get caught up!
Braves Top Prospects, #15: Dylan Dodd, LHP, 25, MLB, 2024
Will the real Dylan Dodd please stand up? Is he the guy who struggled to break 90 and walked
an obscene number of guys in the majors because he didn’t trust his stuff? Or is it the guy going
92-94 with a Bugs Bunny change and a wacky breaker in the Fall League who looked like a 10
year veteran #3 MLB starter? That first guy is essentially worthless while the 2nd may be a part
of Braves rotations for awhile. If I actually believed the AFL results (which to be fair consisted
of one 1 great start and a whole lot of meh otherwise) he would rank higher. Everybody from here
on has some serious warts – but are not necessarily without potential.
Braves Top Prospects, #14: Cade Kuehler, RHP, 22, A-, 2026
Our 3rd pick from this year’s draft out of Campbell. Kuehler was the pick of the small school
pitchers coming into this year but dropped about 1 round in the draft as teams shied away from
that demographic, hopefully to the Brave’s benefit. He is a small (6 foot even) rightie with plus
pitches in his fastball and slider, a badly shaped curve, and a workable change that needs
development. The team expects to assign him to Rome in 2024 and while a starter for now, may
choose to move him into relief in which case he could move quickly.
Braves Top Prospects, #13 Douglas Glod, OF, 19, R, 2027
Keeping the 2 big money guys from 2022 together here, Glod is currently listed in center (which
he has the speed for) but his arm is better suited to left. He is of fairly short and stocky build –
think Kirby Puckett if you are old enough – and scouts describe him as already near his final
physical form so there isn’t as much projection here as with others. Still, what he currently has is
incredible bat speed and a good eye at the plate although the strikeouts (31%) are concerning.
Braves Top Prospects, #12, Diego Benitez, SS, 19, R, 2027
Our big money international player in 2022, Benitez is a rangy kid with insane tools including
double plus hit and plus future power. While he is very likely to grow off short as he packs on
more adult muscle, scouts are confident he can stay on the dirt as the arm will play. Diego had a
less than inspiring 91 OPS+ in Florida this season but that is actually pretty good for a kid from
Venezuela who started the year as a 17 year old. Keep in mind that with the elimination of the
Advanced Rookie level of the minors, the average age of players in the complex has gone up by
almost a full year.
Braves Top Prospects, #11, Drake Baldwin, C, 23, AAA, 2025
Baldwin started the season in high A and spent most of the summer there before getting cups of
coffee in AA and AAA to finish the season. A decent defender with a 31% caught stealing and
only 3 passed balls, he really wowed on the offensive side putting up an .845 OPS with 16
homers – which is virtually impossible in Rome. For context, Riley hit 20 in his season there in
about 70 more plate appearences. Reportedly, pitchers do not like throwing to him so I suspect
his actual receiving skills and framing need work. Oh, and someone should tell that Maddux guy
that Javy Lopez turned out pretty good anyway. Expect him to start in Mississippi in 2024.
Jose Perdomo signs for $5M and immediately goes into the top 5 on our prospect list.
The bonus pool is $5.925MM so if any of you are reading the Braves official release on their site, ignore the number. It’s wrong.
Braves can acquire up to 60% of their int’l money, which would be an extra $3.55MM. One way to acquire some $ would be to essentially give David Fletcher away.
Just going to put this here:
International Signing
Jose Perdomo, Venezuela
Perdomo is a 17 year old well built kid (although slightly stocky) with all the tools. Standing 6’1” 195, scouts used to think he was about to grow off shortstop but this year’s amateur games have convinced a vocal minority otherwise.
On the tools I am giving the grades scouts put on his future as current grades of a 17 year old are stupid. MLB.com and Fangraphs have widely diverging opinions on lots of guys so I’m listing both:
Hit – currently graded at 55/60 although some scouts go as high as 65/70
Power – 50/55, although the Braves see 65 future, 55 is the industry consensus although MLB.com lists him as a 50.
Run – 55 as scouts expect him to slow down with maturity
Field – 50/55 as a shortstop
arm – 50/55
These grades are equivalent to someone who would normally be taken 6-10 in the draft with bonuses of $3-6M. Perdomo’s $5M slots in here nicely!
Quote from MLB.com https://www.mlb.com/news/braves-2024-international-prospects-signings
“The teen’s bat-to-ball skills are above-average, and he ranks among the best hitting prospects in the class. He has a good feel for the strike zone and his swing continues to improve. Scouts have noted his ability to drive offspeed pitches and fastballs to all fields with relative ease, and he has a knack for making hard contact. He rarely strikes out and always puts the ball in play.”
Quote from Fangraphs https://www.fangraphs.com/prospects/the-board/international-players
“He has easy pull-side power, with deft, precise control of the barrel working together to generate big all-around offense, enough that Perdomo could profile as an everyday bat even if he ends up in a corner. Perdomo does some slick things at shortstop, he’s just rather stocky and slightly stiff compared to most typical top-of-the-class prospects. His vertical barrel variability is incredible for a player his age, though his front side is a little stiff through contact and he might be tested by pro breaking stuff in the bottom third of the zone.”
Excellent summary. This sounds like the total package. I wonder if we considered Vlad’s other Jr. Those genes seem like a terrific bet.
Here’s the rest of the list, as of right now.
https://x.com/JustinCToscano/status/1746998715649233174?s=20
If Perdomo puts on the 20 good pounds he probably will, then he can still stick at short while hitting for power. He could Wander Franco if Wander didn’t diddle kids.
I’m really exciting we’re able to fill the farm system even while being really good. AA is a wizard.
Thank goodness we put our money where our mouth was. This system is looking thinner than Juan Cruz.
Informal poll for Falcons fans: Harbaugh, Belichick, or neither?
Between the two, Harbaugh. I’d be more excited about the “neither” option if it resulted in somebody who isn’t an unproven coordinator. I think I’ve had my fill of that for the time being. It has unreservedly worked once in my 30-35 years as a Falcons fan, and even that hire (Mike Smith is who I’m talking about here) ended badly.
Harbaugh can coach. I would definitely hire him if I was a NFL team. That dude is just done with the CFB bullshit, and I don’t blame him.
I also prefer Harbaugh. If it’s a coordinator, I would choose the Lions coordinator, Ben Johnson. I like offensive guys as head coach, and he did seem to elevate his players. I personally think they should’ve just promoted Raheem Morris 3 years ago–not that he was an exciting option, but he did seem to coach up the team after Quinn was fired, and he has improved defenses wherever he has gone. His failed tenure with TB was not really his fault IMO. So if they end up hiring Morris, it won’t be exciting, but you can do a lot worse.
Jordan Luplow is back. Signed to a minor league deal.
BA ranked Smith-Shoves-It 42nd and Waldrep 49th in their top 100.
I wasn’t blown away with AJSS’s stuff last year. When he came up I was expecting him to throw as hard as Strider but he isn’t close to that. He seems like a sell high candidate to me.
New thread.