Thank you for joining me again this week for Dynasty Directives Atlanta Braves Prospects.
I will take a look at the Atlanta organization and then provide some insights for Dynasty league purposes.
I also like to keep myself up to date with the Dynasty Market, and my favorite place to start is with Dave Eddy's Dynasty Baseball Rankings.
Dynasty Directives Atlanta Braves Prospects
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Spencer Strider, MLB Atlanta Braves, Starting Pitcher, 23 yrs 8 mo
The Atlanta Braves seem to have one of the better prospect pipelines currently. Aside from Spencer Strider, there may not be an elite prospect currently but there are several interesting players in their organization. Michael Harris does seemingly carry a high floor as well. The Braves are also fortunate to have the majority of their higher-impact prospects in AAA. Some of them already contributing at the MLB level.
Spencer Strider is the best prospect in the Braves organization with just over 40 career innings he is about to exhaust prospect eligibility. I recommend acquiring him before his price drastically shoots up, which will happen with a few more strong starts in the Braves rotation. Spencer Strider incites the mantra "ALL GAS NO BRAKES," as he throws absolute laserbeam four-seam fastballs and mixes it up with a Slider that hss the opposing hitter finding nothing but air.
I would encourage browsing Strider's Baseball Savant Page to get a better indication of his repertoire. He is currently averaging 98.3 MPH on his four-seam fastball which he throws a little over 71% of the time and currently possesses a phenomenal 1.99 FIP with a solid 2.82 xFIP on the season to go along with his incredible 36.77% Strikeout rate.
Spencer Strider, Elevated 99mph ⛽️ pic.twitter.com/gdbQQYLknT
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 10, 2022
I'm betting on Spencer Strider in the Highlander Dynasty Invitational as I will make Strider my first Underdog Selection on June, 15th 2022. Make sure to follow along with one of the most exciting Dynasty Leagues in the Fantasy Baseball Industry.
Spencer Strider is the prospect that I am advocating you acquire now.
Michael Harris, MLB Atlanta Braves, OF, 21 yrs 3 mo
Michael Harris is now contributing at the MLB level with the Atlanta Braves. Some very smart fantasy analysts have been touting Michael Harris for a while now. A couple of people high on him include James Anderson and Jesse Roche. Harris was a bit overshadowed by Christian Pache and Drew Waters. Over the past couple of seasons, he has really made a name for himself.
June 13, 2022
Michael Harris II hit his first big-league home run. The Braves expect him to hit many more. pic.twitter.com/LE5R03k6e2
— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) June 14, 2022
The Braves appear to be poised to give Michael Harris every chance to succeed after adding him to the 40-man roster, then promoting him to play every day. He looks the part of a starting MLB outfielder in a small sample.
At this point, everything you point to suggests that he is a very strong target. Proximity being particularly valuable in my opinion, coupled with his early success and vote of confidence from the Braves, I would be willing to part with most prospects to acquire him in trade.
Drew Waters, AAA Gwinnett Stripers, OF, 23 yrs 6 mo
Drew Waters is on the cusp of contributing at the MLB level, he is also very athletic a switch hitter, and an above-average defender. He seemingly needs to just work on making a little more contact and striking out a little less. The Braves being in the position to compete for a title means they probably will want to see some improvements before they give him too many chances with the big club.
Waters is someone I'm still keeping an eye on and I am most definitely not ready to give up on the possibility of him contributing with the Braves. That being said this is a player you don't want to invest too much draft or trade capital in as we have to play the game with logic and reason. At the appropriate cost, he is a great addition to any minor league system with great age and proximity factors.
Braden Shewmake, AAA Gwinnett Stripers, SS, 24 yrs 7 mo
Braden Shewmake is a solid player on both sides of the ball. He also possesses a good pedigree, unfortunately, Shewmake has seemingly stalled a bit with his progression as a hitter. He simply needs to make more meaningful contact to have a long-term future with the big club.
Baseball is an incredibly difficult sport and Braden has already come so far as a player that it is certainly not out of the question he is only an adjustment on offense away from unlocking his potential. He is definitely someone that I am still keeping my eye on even if it is on my watchlist.
Bryce Elder, AAA Gwinnett Stripers, Starting Pitcher, 23 yrs 1 mo
No. 4 @Braves prospect Bryce Elder was almost unhittable over a career-high eight innings for the @GoStripers: https://t.co/FbY9ElvovW pic.twitter.com/AyvMLjq0E3
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 31, 2022
Overall the returns haven't been very good from Bryce Elder in 2022. As Elder has somewhat struggled at both the AAA and MLB levels this season. At AAA Gwinnett Elder has thrown 41.1 Innings for a 5.66 ERA and 1.18 WHIP and 41 Strikeouts. With the Braves, Bryce has a 4.74 ERA and 1.68 WHIP.
The fact that Elder has pitched for the Braves this year despite lackluster results at just the age of 23 certainly indicates a level of confidence that the Braves have in him regardless. This alludes to future opportunities as well. Ultimately, a lack of elite stuff may cap his ceiling as a future frontline starter but there is undoubtedly a high floor to work from here as well.
Kyle Muller, AAA Gwinnett Stripers, Starting Pitcher, 24 yrs 8 mo
Kyle Muller is a towering 6' 7" 250lb left-handed archetype for a starting pitcher's build. He has the benefit of added deception from his release point. His results so far have been pretty good at the minor league level, with one start at the MLB level ,where he struggled, lasting just 2.2 innings.
I'm not entirely sure where he is headed but the likely trajectories are of a long reliever or potentially a fifth man or swing starter. Both his Strikeout rate and walk rates are trending in the right direction over the last few seasons up with respect to strikeouts and down with respect to walks.
This season he currently has an 11.87 K/9 and a 3.42 BB/9 at Gwinnett.
Jared Shuster, AA Mississippi Braves, Starting Pitcher, 23 yrs 10 mo
Top @mbraves Performers:
wRC+ (min 100 PA)
1. Michael Harris II 129*
2. Jalen Miller 125
3. Riley Delgado 115ERA/FIP (min 20 IP)
1. Jared Shuster 2.06/3.19
2. Coleman Huntley 2.63/4.67
3. Hayden Deal 3.00/2.80*promoted to Atlanta
— Outfield Fly Rule (@OFRSports) June 1, 2022
Jared Shuster is seemingly someone with a very high floor already pitching at the AA level despite being drafted less than two full seasons ago. Unfortunately, it would appear that without changes in the overall grades of his stuff that his ceiling is probably that of a back-of-the-rotation starter. This could mean different things depending on the context of the league you're playing in.
Jared Shuster could be a sneaky target in a very deep league. While Shuster might be just blocking the spot of someone with more upside in shallower formats.
Vaughn Grissom, High-A Rome Braves, SS, 21 yrs 5 mo
Vaughn Grissom just might possess the highest upside of any Braves prospect that is currently in their minor league system. After Michael Harris, this just might be the prospect to gamble on to make the next significant impact on the offensive side of the ball.
We just might have to wait on that production until 2024 is the unfortunate part of the equation. Thankfully, his acquisition cost should still be reasonable in most leagues.
Ambioris Tavarez, Rookie Ball - FCL Braves, SS, 18 yrs 7 mo
If you want a player to dream on Ambioris Taverez just might be the one to stash in the Braves system. Just please keep in mind it is going to take him time to develop. More than likely it will be 2025 before we get a look at him against MLB competition. This is assuming he doesn't face many setbacks along the way.
Parting Thoughts
The Braves are always one of the better organizations to pay attention to and bet on in Dynasty Baseball leagues. I would have to say that Strider and Harris make for a very clear top tier. Currently, the Braves system is loaded with a lot of high-floor pitching prospects, perhaps making it a bit difficult to narrow down which one will ultimately make a lasting contribution after Spencer Strider.
I really like the upside of Vaughn Grissom and think that he makes a great target at a cheaper price. Aside from Strider, I think Jared Shuster is the Pitching prospect that I think has the best chance to stick in the rotation when he is eventually afforded the opportunity.
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