2017 Danville Braves Review

2017 Minor League Recaps
DSL
GCL

Kevin Maitan and manager Nestor Perez | Tommy Poe, Walkoffwalk.net

Last week marked the end of the Danville Braves' 2017 season. They finished 36-32, matching their expected win-loss record. It wasn't enough for Danville to return to the playoffs as they finished well behind Pulaski for the second East Division postseason spot, but it was the third time in four years Danville has finished with a .500 or better record. The season was noteworthy for its many promotions with guys like Isranel Wilson and Leudys Baez leaving the team to test their talents in the South Atlantic League while hotshot prospects like Kevin Maitan, Drew Waters, Jeffrey Ramos, and Juan Carlos Encarnacion joined the team a month or so after the season began.

The biggest moment this season for the D-Braves came on August 8. In Game 1 of a doubleheader, Bruce Zimmermann walked the second batter he faced. He would retire the next five in order. Jake Belinda set down a dozen straight hitters before John Curtis got two strikeouts and a flyout to end the doubleheader shortened game with a 5-0 win. Oh, it was also the team's first no-hitter since 2009.

Speaking of the Danville pitching staff, with an ERA of 3.71, the Braves took home the Team ERA title in a league where the average ERA was 4.48. Danville also surrendered 32 home runs, nine fewer than second place. The D-Braves were hurt by a defense that committed the second-most errors (111) and caught just 23% of potential base stealers.

Offensively, Danville was essentially the league average as they finished in the middle of the pack in a variety of categories. Drew Lugbauer nearly took home to APPY League home run title, which would have been quite an accomplishment considering he was with Danville for only half of the season before a promotion to Rome. He finished one homer short of the league-lead.

Let's focus in on some of the Danville standouts. I'll skip over some of Danville's prospects who received more playing time with a different minor league squad.

Danville Pitcher of the Year - Dilmer Mejia
It wasn't a good start to the 2017 campaign for Mejia, whose prospect status has waned over a few injury-shortened seasons, but Mejia turned it around in August. He was used more as a piggyback reliever, only starting one of the five games he pitched that month, but he still tossed 22.2 innings and more than anything, the hits stopped falling, giving him an ERA of well under 2.00 for the final month of action. It dropped his season ERA a shade under 4 at 3.91. All season long, Mejia flashed tremendous control (just ten walks in 50.2 innings) and finished with a career-high 9.2 K/9. It's not enough to get him back into the discussion as one of the top pitching prospects in the system, but Mejia only turned 20 in July so his season might keep him in the Braves' good graces moving forward as the now four-year veteran finally gets a shot in Rome.

Danville Player of the Year - William Contreras

Jeff Morris - Follow on Twitter

While many Danville stars moved up the ladder to play with Rome, Contreras remained - in no small part because the catching situation is packed ahead of him. The only D-Brave to be named a postseason All-Star, Contreras slashed .290/.379/.432 over 198 PA this season with ten doubles, a triple, and four home-runs. And while questions might continue to remain about his bat, the skills behind the plate continue to blossom. Contreras only caught 23% of base stealers this year, though Danville pitchers rarely did him any favors. He'll continue to clean up his footwork, but the arm strength and accuracy is not in question. I'm not a scout, but if I had to attach a grade to his arm, it'd be at least a 70-grade. Contreras also shows good athleticism behind the plate, which gives me some degree of confidence to suggest that his glove will probably be good enough to get him to the majors. Again, people remain split on his offensive potential, but this year opened some eyes. He showed very good plate discipline and pitch recognition while flashing impressive power for a 19-year-old. He's going to be a guy to watch in 2018 as he makes the jump to full-season ball and if my opinion means anything (it doesn't), I wouldn't be shocked to see Contreras soar up the prospect rankings into the Top 20 or even Top 15 by this time next year.

Other Names to Remember
Kyle Muller, LHP - I saw a number of D-Braves games this season, but sadly, none of the games I saw included Muller. Drafted with Joey Wentz, Ian Anderson, and Bryse Wilson last year, Muller hasn't been on the same trajectory as that trio. While they were serving as the backbone of the Rome staff, Muller was struggling through an uneven season in Danville. The strikeouts were solid, but he rarely had a really nice outing. He also was shut down for a few weeks in early August. Like I said, I didn't get to see him pitch and I'm not down on him, but he's clearly behind the other three top prep arms selected last June. He'll try to get his prospect status humming again in the right direction next spring in Rome. To put a bow on his season, the Danville defense had issues for most of the year - especially early on - and that likely played some role in limiting Muller's effectiveness.

Kevin Maitan, SS - Let's just throw out his triple slash of .220/.273/.323. Seriously, toss it in the trash. We're talking about a 17-year-old hitter in a league where the average pitcher was 20.7 years-old. Also, Maitan did start to figure it out some toward the end of the season, slashing .259/.318/.414 over his final 15 G (66 PA). I watched Maitan a few times during the season and you can definitely see a guy who is in a heavier weight class than he should be right now. At the same time, you also see glimpses of the player that was ranked #77 in the Baseball America preseason Top 100 before he had even swung a bat professionally. He's bulked up noticeably compared to the lean kid that signed last year and contrary to what really smart people on twitter might say, it appears to be all muscle. He whiffed a lot as he was catching up to professional speed fastballs, but when he connects, he hits the ball as hard as anyone I saw this year in the Appalachian League. So, with Maitan right now, you kind of have to throw most of the numbers in the trash and look for those glimpses to see when he starts to figure it out. As the season progressed, those glimpses became more common. Defensively, Maitan seems destined to outgrow shortstop. I feel the instincts are there, but the range isn't. He does flash a good arm, though. The Braves are aggressive with promotions and despite the fact Maitan won't turn 18 until February, you have to imagine he's penciled in right now to begin 2018 in Rome. Again, that might be a bit too much for him, but when the light switch gets turned on for Maitan, watch out!

Drew Waters, OF - Similar story to Maitan. Waters had a bit more success with a .255/.331/.383 line and I saw him smash a homer the other way in a park that isn't so easy to hit homers. But I also saw the bad. In the first game I saw him play, he struck out four consecutive times on a hot July day. He looked absolutely befuddled at the plate and even lost grip on his bat twice in the same plate appearance. Again, he was looking better late in August than in mid-July when he joined Danville, hitting .266/.329/.453 over his final 15 games (70 PA). Waters looks very comfortable in center field and I think the range is solid enough for him to stick in center moving forward. He's going to have to make a lot more contact in the future, but that 5-tool talent is something to be excited about. A lot of smart people are convinced that by midseason next year, Waters will be the top Braves outfield prospect left in the minors.

Cruz | Jeff Morris - Follow on Twitter

Derian Cruz, 2B - The Braves moved Cruz away from shortstop and he responded with better defense. Unfortunately, the bat just never showed up this season for Cruz, who began the year struggling in Rome before joining Danville. Nobody played in more games this year for the Braves than Cruz, but he only slashed .235/.281/.315 as a D-Brave. Cruz was initially rated higher coming out of the 2015 J2 class than Cristian Pache, but it's safe to say that right now, Cruz's stock is falling while Pache's is rising. All of that said, Cruz won't turn 19 until October 3 so while he has a bit more experience than Maitan and Waters, he's still very young. The Braves will likely give Cruz a chance to bounce back with Rome to open 2018 as other infielders push their way into the mix in Danville. I'm not convinced he'll ever live up to his pre-signing hype, but it's way too early to write him off.

Justin Smith, OF - One of my favorite players that the Braves drafted after the top three picks in June, Smith is a former Miami Hurricane who found himself at junior college level. He's got good size, athleticism, and some pop that, unfortunately, we didn't see enough of while in Danville. That said, eight of his 28 hits went for extra bases, including three homers, and I think Smith has sleeper written all over him heading into 2018. The at-bats for Rome in the outfield could be tough to come by with Waters and Jeffrey Ramos heading there along with a couple of players I haven't mentioned yet in this recap, but if Smith spends the winter training wisely for the 2018 season, he could surprise some onlookers. Not me, though. I'm already on the bus.

Gary Schwartz, OF - As Bradley Keller and Lugbauer moved on to Rome, Schwartz received more playing time, becoming the regular right fielder, and bashed five homers and seven doubles in 73 PA in August. He walked 13 times to 11 strikeouts and OPS'd over a thousand, which made his full-season numbers jump to .281/.398/.531. In a three-game run after a promotion to Florida, he went 1-for-9 with 5 K's, but I imagine an assignment with Rome is more likely next year. Drafted a few months ago in the 16th round, Schwartz is an alum of Grand Canyon University, the same school that once produced Tim Salmon. So, there's that. I like Schwartz if only because his name invites scores of Spaceballs commentary.

Michel | Jeff Morris - Follow on Twitter

Shean Michel, OF - Also referred to as Raysheandall or simply "Ray," Michel was one of the pop-up prospects that literally seemed to come out of nowhere. Michel has actually been in the organization for three years, but didn't impress much in a 26-game run in the GCL last year or his start at that level this season over five games. But when the former NFL player Sanders Commings basically gave up on his baseball dream, it opened up some playing time in Danville for Michel and he took off. Over 145 PA, he hit .326/.378/.424 with nine doubles, two triples, and seven steals. He also showed good range all over the outfield with a nice arm. Grade-wise, Michel won't stand out - especially at the plate. That said, I've seen this guy smack the ball the other way so he's not all dink-and-dunk in the batter's box. Like Smith, Michel is one of my guys that I probably like more than others. Also like Smith, I can't wait to see what he does at Rome next spring.

Bradley Keller, OF - It took him three years, but we finally saw some of the reasons the Braves made Keller their 15th-round selection back in 2015. Over 33 games in Danville, the right-hand hitting outfielder slashed .306/.360/.597 with six home runs. With Keller already having experience both in Rome and Danville before this season, the Braves had reason to believe that Keller's production would be sustainable following a promotion back to Rome to end the season. That hope ultimately wasn't realized. His OPS fell nearly .400 points over 25 games in the South Atlantic League. That's probably not so promising. That said, there's a good deal to like about Keller as a sleeper-type outfielder, but outside of this year's 33-game run with Danville, we just haven't seen it enough. He'll likely return to Rome to open 2018 and try to improve on the .169/.219/.312 triple slash he's put up in the SALLY over the last two years (78 G).

Odalvi Javier, RHP - I saw more of Javier than any other pitcher this season and came away impressed - especially with his bulldog nature on the mound. He's not going to reach the majors on his stuff, but on his pitchability. He has a good fastball and some decent secondary pitches, but I wouldn't attach a plus 50-grade to any of them and also don't see a lot of projection for the pitches as he ages. That said, Javier knows what he's doing on the mound and is stubborn and tenacious. He hit a league-high 11 batters this year despite solid control and that's largely due to the fact that he understands he'll have to pitch inside to get out the opposition. He was also a workhouse for Danville, throwing the fourth-most innings in the league. I don't like doing comps, but something about Javier reminds me of Luis Avilan, though the latter was left-handed. Regardless, both pitched themselves into promotions without the kind of skill set top prospects have because they were confident hurlers with a chip on their shoulder. I can tell you that Javier is a guy I'll be watching next year.

Bruce Zimmermann, LHP - Though he made eleven starts, Zimmermann is a reliever and was treated as such (23.1 innings). He responded with great strikeout numbers and good enough control moving forward. A fifth rounder out of Mount Olive College (Go Pickles?), Zimmermann is the type of player the Braves have had good success at developing over the last few years: Small college relievers with big-time stuff. Zimmermann has that and it'll be interesting to see what kind of push he gets. The Braves are aggressive with college picks so I wouldn't be shocked to see Zimmermann jump Rome if there's room in Florida next spring.

Jaret Hellinger, LHP - Similar to Javier, Hellinger gets by on pitchability. He's not as aggressive as Javier, but the Braves have long liked his arm. I'm wondering if he's one of the guys who gets moved to the pen next year as the Braves try to find enough starting spots for all of their pitchers next spring. Hellinger puts up decent numbers across the board, but nothing really stands out.

Huascar Ynoa, RHP - Acquired in the Jaime Garcia trade, Ynoa matched his pre-trade ERA with a 5.26 run, but I think the Braves have a nice piece here just the same. The Twins worked with Ynoa to limit his pitch offerings to aid his control. It worked but also took away from of his specialness. The Braves opened him up more to use more pitches and his cutter was especially difficult on hitters. Ynoa's results aren't where anyone wants them, but I like his pitches a good deal and wouldn't be shocked to see him take a big step forward next year.

Jasseel De La Cruz, RHP - Speaking of guys whose results didn't match their stuff - compared to guys like Javier where the opposite is true - De La Cruz came up from the GCL level and had a few decent outings, but mostly struggled with the Braves. His mechanics can come out of whack, but he's another one of those lottery tickets that could turn into a useful pitcher.

Zach Rice, LHP - One of the few holdovers from the 2016 roster, Rice made a huge jump in control. After walking a batter an inning last year, he cut it down by more than half and, unsurprisingly, threw more innings as a result. His one saving grace from last year, a strikeout rate of 10.2 per nine, only improved with better control as well. An 18th-rounder in 2016 out of UNC, Rice looks primed to take on the challenge of Rome next year.

John Curtis, LHP - There were times this year where the D-Braves would use four pitchers in a game and all of them were left-handed. Curtis screams LOOGY. Great deception on the mound and a heavy fastball that can be difficult to barrel up. Another one of the 69 left-handers the Braves drafted back in June, Curtis was a guy that I would have liked to see in Rome before the season ended. He had the feel of a pitcher stuck at a level below him.

Dyals | Tommy Poe, Walkoffwalk.net

Cutter Dyals, RHP - Looking for the future Peter Moylan? It could be Dyals. He drops down and throws a fastball with plenty of life. I believe he also has a slider, but am not positive. Whatever it was, it got a good deal of late movement on it. I'm not sure he'll be good enough against left-hand batters as he progresses, but he's fun to watch.

Landon Hughes, RHP - Picked in the seventh round out of Georgia Southern, Hughes is hard to miss with his curly blonde hair. On the mound, though, he was one of the APPY League's top relievers. Over 15 games, 10 of which he finished with 5 saves, Hughes logged 21.1 innings and gave up just four runs. That's something you're capable of doing when you only walk five. He also struck out 27. Hughes throws quality strikes with a purpose and has enough natural stuff to possibly be a relief arm that makes quick work of the Braves' minor league system. He did appear once in Rome and was uncharacteristically wild, walking three over 1.1 ING. Despite that, I wouldn't be shocked if Hughes is in Florida to open 2018.

Quick Stats
36-32, 6th-most in RS, 2nd-fewest runs given up

Leaders
RS - Derian Cruz, 32
H - Cruz, 50
2B - Bradley Keller, 14
3B - Isranel Wilson, 3
HR - Drew Lugbauer, 10
RBI - Lugbauer, 27
SB - Cruz, 11
AVG - Ray Michel, .326
OBP - Garrison Schwartz, .398
SLG - Keller, .597
ISO - Lugbauer, .330
wOBA - Keller, .445
wRC+ - Keller, 144

(min. 30 ING for rate stats)
W - Jacob Belinda, 6
G - Kelvin Rodriguez, 19
GS - Odalvi Javier, 13
SV - Landon Hughes, 5
IP - Javier, 63
BB - Javier, 22
BB% - Dilmer Mejia, 4.7% (lowest)
K - Mejia, 52
K% - Mejia, 24.4%
ERA - Javier, 3.14
FIP - Mejia, 2.87

Danville Braves Observations From a Dramatic Double Header

On Wednesday evening, I got out of the house for a change and drove the 50 or so minutes to get to American Legion Post 325 Field for a doubleheader between the Greenville Astros and Danville Braves. The Braves won the first game - an exciting affair that ended with a runner gunned down at the plate and a near-fight. The nightcap was lost 2-1 in extra innings. I had some thoughts.

Danville's WOW Midseason Top 50 Prospects 
Like most of Atlanta's minor league teams, you first want to see them for their star power. Each team with the exception of the DSL squad has seen one of our Top 10 prospects play for them. Danville currently has six in our Top 50 and five of them played Wednesday.

Maitan | Tommy Poe, Walkoffwalk.net

4. Kevin Maitan
It was Maitan's third game with Danville following his promotion. He got the start at shortstop and hit fifth. As part of Danville's big six-run fourth, Maitan laced a ball the opposite way and later scored in the inning. It was his only hit in four trips to the plate and he also struck out. At the plate, Maitan has a quick swing after hiking up his leg to drop his weight back. There's a lot of bad intentions when he brings all of his strength forward. Like most 17-year-olds, the pitch recognition and selection simply isn't there - yet. Maitan also corked a ball right off his shin, which he walked off to stay in the game. He wears a guard, but it looked as if he hit right between the guard and his knee. No worries as Maitan was back in the lineup last night. Defensively, I don't think he'll stick at shortstop. The Braves will let him stay there as long as he can, but his instincts and range probably will force the already-anticipated move to third base. Currently, he does have some decent speed. During the big rally, he looked like he might score on a base hit, but with Danville down big, they played it conservatively. Maitan got the night cap off.

16. Kyle Muller
Didn't play as he was scheduled to pitch Thursday's game. He did catch a ball from a local dentist as the ceremonial first pitch of the game.

Waters | Tommy Poe, Walkoffwalk.net

22. Drew Waters
First, let me talk about the good because there isn't much of it. Waters looks comfortable in center field and shows good range and solid instincts. He had a few hard-hit balls his way that were difficult to immediately read, but he did very well getting to them. And that's the good. The bad was Greenville had his number. Of their eight strikeouts during the first game, half were of Waters. There are some who call that the Golden Sombrero. He was swing-happy and was struggling with Kit Keller Syndrome, named after a character in film history who couldn't hit the the high fastball, yet couldn't lay off of it. Unlike Keller, Waters didn't prove the scouting report wrong at any point. Twice in the same at-bat, he swung at a pitch and lost his bat. The first time, it actually went up the tunnel in the D-Braves' dugout. The second time went high into the stands. This was Waters' worst professional game. He'll bounce back, though. Like Maitan, he sat out the night game.

27. Derian Cruz
Of his first 47 games played this year - including 29 at Rome - Cruz has played shortstop all but three times and that trio of appearances came as a DH or PH. When Maitan joined Danville, Cruz moved to second base. Even though Cruz played the night game without Maitan in the lineup, he stayed at second base. He had a nice sequence in the second inning. The first batter of the frame hit a squibber that Cruz had to range both in and to his right on to field it. With no time to settle himself, he threw to first to get the runner with Hagen Owenby making a nice stretch. After a walk, a flyball to right field was misplayed by Gary Schwartz. Alertly, Cruz retrieved the ball and got the runner at second for the force. He just seems more comfortable and confident at second base. I still wonder if he has soft enough hands to play the infield, but I do like him better at second base. At the plate, Cruz went 0-for-4 with a good deal of weak contact.

Lugbauer | Tommy Poe, Walkoffwalk.net

44. Drew Lugbauer
The former Wolverine started the first game behind the plate. Defensively, I'm just not seeing it. Not that he can't play the position better moving forward, but he just doesn't look like a natural behind the plate. Perhaps he can do a passable enough job to be a backup option behind the plate with the versatility to play elsewhere. I will say that the Braves got a good deal of called strikes with him behind the plate that the Astros batters definitely disagreed with. That could suggest some good framing or a minor league umpire doing a minor league umpiring bit. At the plate, he has an open-stance without a lot of wasted movement. Quickly, he pushes back with a brief leg kick before pushing forward. There does appear to be a bit of an uppercut in his swing. His big swing led to his one hit during the game. The CF immediately went back and couldn't recover in time to get to the ball.

50. William Contreras
Every time I see Contreras, I come away more and more impressed. I ranked him #46th in the midseason rank, but he could reach Top 30 in my book by the end of the season. He has a cannon for a right arm and he knows it, too. He doesn't like to lolly-pop a throw when he can come up firing. After strikeouts, he would throw the ball to third with a pop as if he was trying to throw out a fictional runner. He also likes to throw down to first to keep runners honest, though he bluffed more than threw partly because of the first baseman, Owenby, is a catcher learning the position and wasn't thinking along with Contreras. He did "give up" a steal, but I don't see how. The throw was there with plenty of time for Cruz to tag the runner. Either his tag was late or the ump missed the call. Contreras's throw, though, was right on the money. He's smooth behind the plate and looks to be decent at framing. Can you tell that I like him a lot? He had two of Danville's three hits in the night cap and was the only hitter who really looked good during the evening for the D-Braves. His swing gets through the zone quickly and makes a lot of solid contact for liners into the outfield.

Other notables
Starters: Jasseel De La Cruz and Odalvi Javier

De La Cruz | Tommy Poe, Walkoffwalk.net

-De La Cruz was wonderful before the promotion from the GCL, but he didn't look good in game one of the twin-bill. He worked around a double in the first and walked two in the second before getting a talking-to by Kanekoa Texeira, the first-year Danville pitching coach. He struck out the final batter in the inning to strand a pair in scoring position before breezing through the third with two strikeouts. That inning was easily his most impressive frame and gave me some hope for a strong finish for his Danville debut, but he went to pieces in the fourth. An error to open the inning didn't help, but De La Cruz wasn't able to retire one batter in the inning. He left with the bases loaded and five runs in. Sidearmer Cutter Dyals did him a solid by getting a double-play, which helped to shorten the inning.

Conversely, Javier looked wonderful. I saw him pitch a couple of weeks ago and he struggled with his control that game. Not so much in Wednesday's start. He doesn't have great stuff, but he comes at hitters and isn't afraid to pitch inside. In fact, many times, he had Astros' players moving out-of-the-way. Javier kept them uncomfortable throughout his five innings. The only run he allowed probably shouldn't have been allowed at all as came after the "steal" on Contreras I already mentioned. The next batter doubled in a run. Other than that, Javier was wonderful and even got a pair of strikeouts looking.

Dyals | Tommy Poe, Walkoffwalk.net

Relievers: I mentioned Dyals already and the job he did to save De La Cruz from even worse damage - though he allowed one of the two runners he inherited to score while inducing an inning-shortening double play. He was replaced by Jesus Heredia, who made his fourth consecutive shutout outing. Heredia is a guy with some iffy mechanics. The ball seems to drag behind him and he's always trying to get his release point just right. He did get a pickoff after throwing over three consecutive times. Good move to first and good velocity otherwise. Landon Hughes picked up a save, but his outing was rocky and he was bailed out by two big defensive plays (I'll get to that in a second).

In the second game, John Curtis entered to throw two really impressive innings. An 8th rounder last month, Curtis does a wonderful job hiding the ball and is very deceptive in his delivery. He throws a low-90's fastball, but it appears to jump at hitters because they pick it up late. He also threw what I believe was a curveball that got a batter looking. In fact, all three of his strikeouts were of the backward K variety. Of the Danville pitchers I saw during the evening, Curtis was the most impressive. Finally, there was Kelvin Rodriguez. Time to talk about why you don't make things harder on your pitcher. Rodriguez had runners on second-and-third and two outs. The Braves intentionally walked a batter to load them. I get the strategy side - create a situation where there is an out at every base. The problem is you give your pitcher no margin for error. Predictably, Rodriguez walked in a run next. The inning could have been worse, but he got a liner back to him to end the inning. Greenville set the D-Braves down in order next to win the game. Would have liked Nestor Perez to let his pitcher at least get a chance to get the hitter out before giving the Astros first base.

Special Focus: Shean Michel...Only three Danville players were in both games and Michel did quite a lot with his playing time. In the first game, he walked and stole a base. He also put the D-Braves on top in the sixth. He lined one the other way and it landed in fair territory. He never stopped running and reached third for his second triple of the year. A wild pitch scored him for the go-ahead run. Like I said, he also played the second game.

But before that, let's talk about the seventh inning of the first game. I mentioned Hughes a second ago. I've seen him twice this year and the first time I did, he was uber-impressive. He threw the ball with confidence and overpowered his opponent that day, the Princeton Rays. This time, he seemed to let the idea of getting a save get the best of him. He overthrew quite a few pitches and only got strikes on 9-of-19 pitches. After a leadoff walk and a K, he gave up a double to Patrick Mathis. Leudys Baez, playing right field, retrieved the ball and - with his momentum taking him toward foul territory - made a tremendous throw from the warning track to Griffin Benson, who turned and gunned down the runner at home for the second out. The next batter, Ruben Castro, hit a hard single to left field. Michel charged and unloaded to the plate, beating Mathis. Lugbauer blocked the plate and tagged the runner out - who also tried to go for the glove. Lugbauer pushed him and with the game over, both benches emptied and a few words and shoves were exchanged, but nothing too bad.

Michel also had one of Danville's three hits in the night cap. After Derian Cruz was retired next, Contreras singled to center field. Michel cut the second base bag and hustled to third. The CF considered a throw to third but ultimately threw it into second. However, the throw was at the cut-off man's feet and got by him. It then skipped past the catcher, allowing Michel to score. It was the only way the D-Braves could plate a run in that game. Michel also got an outfield assist in the night cap to match his first-game one (though much less dramatic). Playing center field, Michel backed up on a diving attempt by Justin Smith, who was playing left. Smith missed, but Michel got the ball and threw it into the infield, picking up the cut-off-man Riley Delgado, who threw to third to get the guy who had originally hit the ball to begin with.

This is Michel's third season since signing out of Curacao. He spent a year-and-half in the DSL before earning a promotion mid-summer last year. Strangely, he's struggled the most in the GCL, hitting close to .200. He was pushed up the ladder to Danville to replace the former NFL player, Sanders Commings, a few weeks ago and has done nothing but hit .390/.444/.512 over his first 45 PA. He won't keep up that level of success, but he's worth continued coverage.

Other notable players...Nick Shumpert is fast and scores highly in baseball instincts. As part of the game one comeback, Shumpert was dancing up the line at third base. Facing Lugbauer, Ian Hardman threw a hard breaking ball in the dirt. The ball squirted away less than ten feet, but Shumpert rushed home and beat both the pitcher and the ball as the catcher tried to make a play. He doesn't score without taking a big lead off the bag. Shumpert probably doesn't have the profile to be a starter in the major leagues and is a little stretched at third base - Danville really lacks a natural third baseman (well, there's Maitan...) - but Shumpert does have a lot of little tools that could get him to the bigs in a reserve role. He's fun to watch regardless

Hagen Owenby made a lot of people's sleeper list coming out of the draft among those selected by the Braves for some plus power and skills behind the plate. I have yet to see him catch, but the ball does jump off his bat. In an earlier game this year, he hit a long fly ball to right field that could have been an out had the outfielder not crashed into the wall so hard that it dislodged the ball. The outfielder later had to be removed and the opposite-field smash turned into an inside-the-parker and not because Owenby has any wheels to speak of. Owenby joined Michel and Delgado as the only players to play both games and like both of them, Owenby played a pair of positions - DH and 1B. He looks uncomfortable at first base for the most part but with so many young catchers, except him to keep getting starts elsewhere.

Luis Mejia played third base in the second game. In his third year, Mejia can play all over the infield but didn't really shine on defense. He looks like a strong character/strong leadership player. The physical skills really aren't there, but you can tell the team respects him and follows his lead. He had one fun moment in the game. On a stolen base attempt, he was beat clearly by the throw, but slid past the bag without getting tagged and then reached back to get the bag before the fielder could get him. Ultimately, the next player walked which made the whole thing unnecessary, but it received a good ovation from a rapidly decreasing crowd.

Ballpark Thoughts

Maitan with Nestor Perez | Tommy Poe, Walkoffwalk.net

Considering a game in Danville? Here are some overall thoughts about the park. It's right off Highway 29, which makes it very convenient. It's also in a recreation park with other fields and even a skateboard park - along with trails - so on a nice day, you could spend a day at the park and catch a game in the evening.

They run deals throughout the week (dollar menu Monday, $2 tickets/hot dogs/drinks Tuesday, Kids Free Wednesday, etc.). I was actually rather lucky as it was a Danville Dental Associates night at the ballpark and a guy was handing out unused vouchers for tickets. The prices for tickets are cheap, but it's even cheaper when you are handed a free ticket as you go up to purchase one. A free ticket to a double header? Like I needed any more reasons to be happy to be at the ballpark.

If you go a dollar or two extra, you can get a reserved seat. That puts you under the roof and gives you a chair with a back. Most of the seating is bleacher-style seating going up both the first-base and third-base lines. The sun sets behind third base. Netting extends from the ends of one dugout to the other so if you are hoping for a foul ball, you have to sit beyond the dugout - or just do as I did as a kid and stay in the parking lot. Eight-to-ten feet tall fencing extends from the dugout all the way to the bullpens, further limiting chances at foul balls. Sight lines can be bad in places a few places, but as you can tell by the pictures I took from a crappy cell phone camera, you're right on top of the action and can get a good seat on less-busy nights fairly easy.

The PA system is used frequently. Beyond just the walk-up music and names of players, they'll use sound effects and other clips of music to go along with what is happening during the game. You get the typical minor league ballpark staples like "Sweet Caroline," "YMCA," and "Cotton Eye Joe" between innings along with more current selections. The PA announcer will occasionally point out big things in the game such as "that diving catch was made by Justin Smith" or "and your Danville Braves take the lead!" They also let a kid do player introductions for a half-inning each game. Oh, and if you're into the racist hand thingy, Danville will implore fans to do the chop. The speaker down the third base line sounded like it had a short in it, which added to the rookie league feel, to be honest.

There are your usual between-inning games for fans - dizzy bat race, steal a base in 20 seconds, race the mascot. They also do a "Let's Make a Deal" where a fan gets a choice between receiving something for sure or taking their chance on the treasure box. Wednesday evening, Megan could have had a Kevin Maitan-autographed ball but chose the treasure box. She got a hot dog. Megan is dumb.

Speaking of concessions, they are pretty standard and overpriced, but to a lesser degree than you might see at other minor league parks. There are some BBQ sandwiches and Chic-Fil-A along with a Braves minor league staple, the bologna burger. The lines can get pretty bogged down - especially for random minor league games during the week. There's only one true concession area, though there is another one for ice-cold snacks and another drinks-only area that carries bottled-drinks and beer. There's a small gift area where you can purchase hats and so on and a bouncy house area that also has a place to throw a baseball at a batter/catcher cut-out, but be aware - it costs $5 per child. I had my kids with me last time and shelling out $10 for them to bounce for 20 minutes before the game was a bit much.

The crowd was weird. I don't know if many knew there was a double header, but the crowd was sparse at 5:00 when the first game began. The park started to fill up by the fourth inning for a good-sized crowd - in no small part because of the Dental Associates event. By the fourth inning of the second game, the crowd began to get smaller and smaller.

All told, it was a fun night for baseball even though the heat was nearly unbearable for much of the first game.

Transaction Tuesday: What a Week It Was!

It was a very eventful week for the Atlanta Braves' system so no dilly-dallying. Let's dive in.

*The moves covered in this edition of Transaction Tuesday cover July 10 to July 17. A number in parenthesis represents the player's ranking in the midseason WOW Top 50.

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Atlanta
Activated: Sean Rodriguez...From a possibility to miss the season to making his Braves debut on July 17. Say what you will about the Braves, but their players don't seem to miss as much time as other teams. Much has been made about Sean-Rod's brief and ultimately unproductive rehab stint for the Braves as he went 3-for-39 with 12 Ks. But don't get caught i[ in the stats too much when it comes to rehab stints. It's all about timing and the Braves likely felt his timing was back - plus he didn't have much time left available to rehab. Moving on, where does Rodriguez fit in? When originally signed, Rodriguez looked like a possibility to share time at second base and third base - along with filling in elsewhere as needed. The Braves now have Brandon Phillips at second base and either Freddie Freeman or Johan Camargo available to play third base. Regardless, Rodriguez should be used frequently when a left-hander is on the mound (.332 wOBA, 111 wRC+ against LHP the last three years). That could mean playing third base like he did yesterday evening or spelling Nick Markakis, who hasn't hit lefties much at all over the last two-and-a-half seasons. Rodriguez is a great player to have on your bench for what he brings to the team and fortunately, this version of the Braves can use him properly as previous year's teams would have overexposed him from playing him too often.

Activated: Danny Santana...During his three-game rehab stint, Santana enjoyed his stay with Gwinnett. In the second game, he went a spectacular 5-for-5 with a double and a steal. He added two more hits the next day before returning to the Braves. Santana has been better with the Braves than he was with the Twins, but much of that is due to Santana being awful with Minnesota to open the season. Santana is a decent enough fit for the Braves, though. He's a switch-hit bat who can play a number of positions and provides a little bit of a speed factor off the bench. Plus, for fans of the Braves, it helps that his name isn't Emilio Bonifacio.

Transferred from 10-day DL to 60-day DL: Armando Rivero (strained right shoulder)...We haven't heard from the hard-throwing righty all year. Some of this may be gamesmanship, but Rivero has been stuck on the DL since early this spring and there has been almost nothing written about it. No ramping up for a rehab stint. No updates on progress. Nothing. Don't plan on seeing Rivero this season.

DL: Jason Motte (back strain)...The Braves have been fortunate this year with a number of players who've had results that were much more favorable than their metrics. Motte is one of those players. With a 3.76 ERA over 31 games, one might say he's been serviceable. When you add in his 18% strikeout rate, 9% walk rate, 17% HR/FB rate, and 30% hard-hit ball rate...you start to get concerned when you see him get the call from Brian Snitker. And to be honest, Motte has been this guy ever since Tommy John surgery took him out of commission in 2013 while with the Cardinals. In the three years before 2017, spent with three different teams, Motte had an 18% strikeout rate, a 7% walk rate, a 12% HR/FB rate, and a 35% hard-hit ball rate. His ERA during that time was 60 points higher. The smart money is on Motte's ERA getting that high again.

Gwinnett

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Promoted from Mississippi: Ronald Acuna (#1)...This one was a biggy. Acuna began the year in Florida and after a month of doing well (but not overwhelming awesome), he received a bit of a surprising promotion. He followed that up by destroying the Southern League to the tune of .326/.374/.520. At the ripe old age of 19, he was a Double-A All-Star and if you weren't already paying attention, he put a show on in batting practice at the Futures Game and in the field during the game. Acuna only played 40 games in Low-A last year and now, he could be an injury away from being called up to start in the Show. Not one to rest on his laurels, Acuna went 6-for-21 over his first five games at Triple-A with two doubles and a pair of home runs. It's easy to overhype prospects, but Acuna keeps reminding us that occasionally, the prospect deserves the hype.

Rehab: Arodys Vizcaino...Placed on the DL last week with an index finger strain, Vizcaino's rehab assignment is not planned to last long. He threw a perfect inning to start Monday's game and struck out one. Returning to Atlanta healthy and productive won't just help the Braves, but also revisit some early July rumors about Vizcaino being a target for contending teams. Vizcaino has closer experience, the ability to reach triple digits on the gun, and has great composure on the mound. Surely someone will be interested in him provided he's good to go. Of course, Atlanta might not be anxious to trade him depending on how the next week goes.

Activated: Caleb Dirks (#40)...Dirks hasn't been as lights-out as he was before this season. His 3.59 FIP would be a new full-season high and he's already surrendered four homers this season after giving up just seven over three seasons. That said, he's still carrying a 29% strikeout rate and a 8% walk rate and that's very impressive. His activation ends a nearly month-long stay on the DL. It was just his second trip to the DL since joining the organization following the 2014 draft. Dirks has routinely posted very solid numbers in the past and could be in line for a shot at the bigs very soon.

Recalled and Optioned: Jason Hursh (#42)...Five times. That's how many times Hursh has been optioned to the minors this season. His latest call-up of three days wasn't even the shortest one of 2017 for the righty. All the while, he's thrown 5.2 innings while allowing one run, two unintentional walks, and four Ks while a member of the Braves bullpen. He also appeared in 23 games between Gwinnett and Mississippi with five saves and is flowing with a 3.11 ERA and a similar FIP as well. Personally, I would like a much longer look for Hursh. It's difficult to know which of these borderline prospects are keepers with so little time to impress before being passed over for higher-rated prospects. They need to get their chance and show something very quickly. Hursh has done well when called upon, but can't seem to stay in the majors long enough to establish himself. The longer this continues, the more likely it is for Hursh to get lost in the shuffle.

Optioned: Micah Johnson...With Johnson healthy, but no spot for him in the majors, he was optioned to Gwinnett. Acquired in a trade in mid-January with the Dodgers, Johnson was on his way to make the roster this spring before a fractured left wrist on a dive took him out of the competition. He's appeared nine times since beginning his rehab stint and has looked fairly good (11-for-31, 2B, 3 BB, 8 K, 5 SB). A former second baseman, Johnson has only played the outfield this season. As the Braves cycle Acuna all over the outfield, Johnson will likely be the guy playing center when Acuna isn't.

Optioned: Jace Peterson...For the third time this season, the Braves option Peterson to the minors. He's been tremendous with Gwinnett so they are happy to have him back. His most recent appearance in the majors includes three games as a pinch-hitter. He made the final one a memorable one, smacking a ball into the Chop House for his first homer since last August 21. That one was pretty memorable, too, as it was a walk-off bomb off Shawn Kelley to beat the Nationals. Despite his mammoth homer on Saturday, he just hasn't done enough to justify a spot in the majors. He's a useful player when an injury opens a spot as he can play all over, but he's earned an AAAA label right now.

Outrighted and traded: Chaz Roe...It's bad enough to be waived and have no teams claim you. But Roe's frustrations grew Monday night as he was charged with three runs as the Braves wasted an excellent Lucas Sims non-start (6 ING, 3 ER, 11 Ks in relief of Vizcaino). Roe broke camp with the team this spring largely because he was out-of-options. After a trio of ugly appearances, he landed on the DL with a lat strain. He made four appearances in the minors over two rehab stints (a flare-up stopped his rehab once), but the Braves passed on bringing back to Atlanta. (Update...today saw Roe traded to Tampa for cash.)

Mississippi
Promoted from Florida: Tyler Neslony (#46)...A ninth rounder drafted largely because the Braves needed to cut some corners to sign higher-rated prospects, Neslony was a surprising force at the plate for the Fire Frogs. He slashed .309/.378/.442. Included was an attempt to teach the former Texas Tech star first base. That didn't go so hot (9 errors in less than 200 innings), but Neslony will continue to move up the ladder. To this point, Neslony has shown a knack for hitting righties (.310/.377/.457) and could develop into a platoon bat who can play the outfield corners and the occasional first base. He's off to a 4-for-16 start in Double-A with a double, a walk, and two strikeouts since the promotion. He's played only outfield so far.

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Promoted from Florida: Austin Riley (#13)...A lot of the high-profile promotions last week made sense, but Riley's was a bit confusing. He wasn't exactly lighting it up at Florida and, at 20-years-old, was still young for the level. Nevertheless, Atlanta promoted the strong third baseman for a trial-by-fire in the Southern League. With Florida, Riley was hitting .252/.310/.408 with a dozen homers. He's yet to show improved plate discipline, though he did shave off 5% off his strikeout rate from last season. His ISO was also down 50 points so there's that. Honestly, this is the one promotion I absolutely don't understand. Riley's first five games included four hits, including a home run last night, and two walks along with five K's.

Promoted from Florida: Jacob Webb...Needing a new challenge, Webb heads up to the Southern League. In 22 games with Florida this year, Webb K'd 48 in 41.1 innings with a 1.74 ERA. For Webb, he's making up for lost time. After being plucked in the 18th round all the way back in 2014, Webb was solid in 33.2 innings in the GCL. He was a rising prospect before feeling a pop in his elbow on the first day of minor league spring training in 2015. After the dreaded TJS, Webb returned in 2016 to throw 13 innings before being unleashed this season. For more on Webb, check out my Random Prospect Sunday column from early March.

Demoted from Gwinnett: Enrique Burgos...Gwinnett has a blog that regularly gives updates on the team. Last week, they profiled Burgos. Acquired the same day the Braves picked up Matt Adams, Burgos was struggling in the Arizona system. However, he's been nothing but great with Gwinnett. In 13 games, he's allowed a single run in 14 innings. For that matter, he's only allowed three hits. Add in the seven walks and 17 strikeouts and you have a reliever who is flourishing. So why the demotion? The Gwinnett bullpen is getting quite full with veterans.

Demoted from Gwinnett: Stephen Gaylor...This is the eleventh Transaction Tuesday I've done this season and Gaylor has shown up four times. Such is the life of organizational depth. Gaylor has split 30 games between Double-A and Triple-A and actually has slightly better numbers in Triple-A. His value to the Braves is in his defense, speed, and the fact the Braves trust him to just do his job no matter how much they jerk him around. These guys don't get a lot of love in prospect rankings, but they serve a purpose for the organization.

DL: Jesse Biddle (#47)...The former top Phillies prospect has been quietly solid for the M-Braves. Over 27 games, all out of the pen, Biddle has struck out a quarter of all batters while displaying the best control of his career. No word on what pushed him to the DL. He did reach 49.2 innings in fairly quick order. If he doesn't miss much time - or isn't on too restrictive of an innings limit - Biddle could be in line for a promotion if the Braves are so inclined.

DL: Bradley Roney...On-and-off the DL. That's been Roney's season. The good news is that he's striking out a ton of batters for Mississippi. And I mean a ton. 35.3%. Of course, with Roney, it always comes down to the but. In this case, it's a "but, he's also walked 17%." Now 24-years-old, Roney has logged just 18 total games this year - 15 in Double-A. He has yet to show any significant advancement. You can't strike out everyone and you certainly can't get by walking every fifth batter.

Florida
Promoted from Rome: Justin Ellison...A toolsy 12th rounder back in 2015, Ellison was easy to forget about heading into 2017. Last year, his first above rookie-level, the outfielder batted .247/.304/.370 while showing decent range and good speed (18 steals). However, the triple slash and presence of guys higher on the depth chart kept him in Rome to open this season. His 45-game run in Rome was hardly noteworthy and he was in the midst of some struggles at the time of his promotion, but in his defense, he did flash some strong overall numbers against righties (.271/.321/.481) and was humming before the All-Star Break stopped his mojo. Ellison has worked to cut down on his swing, but it's still long and with a pronounced uppercut. There are some qualities here that deserve second and third looks, though. He's a project, but with plus athletism already in his toolbag.

Promoted from Rome: Brandon White...With back-to-back picks, the Braves selected a pair of Brandon White's. This particular one is the 12th-round variation. The 13th-round one was cut and last played for Southern Illinois in the Frontier League. A righty out of Lander University in South Carolina, Brandon Steven White was solid for Danville last year and so far this season, he's built on that success while serving as Rome's closer. His ten saves is five more than second place in the organization. He also struck out nearly a batter an inning and showed solid control. In his first outing with Florida, he surrendered a solo home run and struck out two over a pair of frames.

Demoted from Mississippi: Andrew Daniel...Signed near the end of June, Daniel went 2-for-21 with Mississippi, but his demotion was about the guy he effectively replaces in the Florida lineup - Austin Riley. After a good debut in the Pioneer League back in 2014, Daniel hasn't shown much offense since. He'll try to change that with Florida.

Promoted to Mississippi and Demoted Back: Junior Rincon...Speaking of recent signees, Rincon was part of this column last week. He made one appearance during a stay in the Southern League and allowed a run in one inning. His only outing with Florida, which came before the promotion, saw Rincon surrendered three runs over 1.2 ING.

Rome
Promoted from Danville: Ryan Schlosser...Ryan Thomas Schlosser is the oldest-looking 21-year-old I have ever seen. A 32nd rounder a year ago, Schlosser was used as a closer with the GCL squad before a late-season promotion to Danville. He started this year with the APPY club and looked decent enough in six games before this promotion. Schlosser is a sinker baller we are still trying to get a good handle on because we haven't seen much out of the big kid from the small college. I will say this - he's a fun guy. Danville recently did a fidget spinner giveaway and he traded a bat to a kid for one of them.

Promoted from Danville: Izzy Wilson (#41)...Is there a faster outfield in the minors than Cristian Pache, Randy Ventura, and Izzy Wilson? Possibly, but these guys are flyers. Izzy came onto the scene with a big GCL campaign in 2015 where he belted ten homers in just 48 games. He also walked a bunch - along with striking out a whole lot. A lot was hoped for when the 2016 season opened for Danville, but Wilson was marred in a season-long slump that ended with a .591 OPS and just two homers. A return assignment was given to Wilson and he did not disappoint. He continued to strike out a lot but got on base at a .338 clip with a nearly .300 ISO over 17 games. The Braves took pity on the Appalachian League pitchers and brought Wilson to Rome. Four games in, he's struck out seven times. He's also doubled and swiped a pair of bases. Wilson is a fun prospect because there is a lot here to like. Can he put it together enough to be a Top-30 or Top-20 prospect for the Braves? He'll have to clean up his game (career .215 hitter so far with 129 K's in 107 games), but the power and speed combination - along with good defense - should keep Wilson in the discussion.

Danville
Promoted from GCL: Walter Borkovich...Undrafted out of Michigan State, Borkovich was a four-year performer for the Spartans. He was a control artist who didn't get many strikeouts while in school, which predictably didn't grab much draft attention. Signing with the Braves after the draft, Borkovich appeared twice in the GCL and tossed four scoreless innings. His first outing in Danville resulted in his first professional win as he went 2.2 scoreless innings with 4 Ks. He's not a big prospect by any means, but Borkovich was clocked in the mid-90's in college so he's not just throwing junk up there. He didn't do enough to get drafted, but the Braves have a knack for finding undrafted kids and turning them into something useful.

Promoted from GCL: Jasseel De La Cruz...A late addition to the 2014-15 signing class, Cruz struggled in 2015 before shaving off three-and-a-half runs off his ERA last year in a second stint in the DSL. His success warranted a promotion to the Gulf Coast League to finish 2016 and he was dominant with 15 scoreless innings, four hits allowed, a walk, and 12 Ks. It's a bit surprising he returned to GCL to open this season, but there was a method to Atlanta's madness. They wanted to change him over to a starter and over four starts, Cruz had a 1.89 ERA. Atlanta ran out of reasons to keep him in the GCL and he heads to Danville. Cruz could be a guy who climbs up the prospect ladder with some strong numbers in Danville.

Promoted from GCL: Kevin Maitan (#4)...Well, that was quick. After just nine games in the GCL, the Braves send the 17-year-old switch-hitter to Danville to continue his professional career. Did we learn anything in the GCL? Well, Maitan did strike out ten times in 37 PA. That's not great. He also reached base 13 times, which is pretty good for the first nine games of your career. Through two games in Danville, Maitan is 2-for-8 with 3 Ks. He's also mercifully moved Derian Cruz over to second base, which might be a better spot for the 2015-16 top signee. Between the two, the Braves have spent $6.25M. They'll gladly spend more if they progress to the majors - especially with Maitan, who is one of those "the sky is the limit" players.

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Promoted from GCL: Drew Waters (#22)...Maitan got nine games in the GCL - Waters received 14. Regardless, the do-everything outfielder was explosive, hitting .347/.448/.571 with three doubles, a triple, and two home runs. He stole a pair of bases and walked seven times. Not too shabby for the switch-hitting prospect. He added three more hits, including a double, in his two-game run with the D-Braves so far. Our own Stephen Tolbert is convinced Waters will soon be the Braves' best outfield prospect once Acuna graduates to the majors. So far, he looks right on.

GCL
Demoted from Danville: Gilbert Suarez...Roster spots were needed and Suarez returns to the GCL, where he's spent the two last two years following his 18th round selection back in 2015. Suarez was excellent for GCL a year ago with only two earned runs in 23.2 ING but was absolutely lit up in six games with Danville. As a team, the D-Braves have allowed 15 home runs. Four have come on pitches from Suarez. His ERA was 12.60 in 10 innings. So, this wasn't just a roster numbers thing in regards to Suarez. The righty came into professional baseball with a low-90's fastball, a good-looking curve, and what may have been a changeup. But in his third year, his inability to figure out the APPY League is troubling. Worse, his first game back in the GCL didn't go so hot as he was saddled with two earned runs in an inning and a third - tying the amount of ER he gave up in 23.2 innings last year.

Demoted from Danville: Ramon Taveras...Just promoted, Tavarez returns to the GCL without toeing the mound for the D-Braves. This is his fourth year of professional ball and he's yet to appear in a game for Atlanta's top rookie-league team - let alone progress into A-ball. Nothing really stands out about his numbers. He's been mostly a reliever and not a very successful one. At this rate, it would be shocking to see Taveras in 2018 for the Braves unless he starts to build some momentum quick.

DSL
All quiet on the Dominican front.

Walk-Off Talk 1.7: Talking About the Midseason Top 50 Prospects

To add context to this year's Midseason Top 50 Prospects, the Walk-Off Walk contributors sat down for an informal discussion about their picks, some of the surprises, and a few of the guys who could rocket up the charts by the end-of-the-year countdown. Tommy Poe, new contributor Stephen Tolbert, and Ryan Cothran are all part of today's Walk-Off Talk.

It might help to have this year's Top 50 open in another window to provide context. If you think we ranked one guy higher than the next, feel free to chime in with a comment.

One last note. All but one of the pictures in this article come via Jeff Morris. Remember to follow him on Twitter for continued superb pictures to attach faces to many of the prospects.

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Kyle Wright

Tommy Poe: Let’s get right into this and start with #1. Officially, Ronald Acuña took home the top spot in our rankings as he was the only player to rank first or second on all three lists. However, he only made #1 on Stephen’s. Ryan had Ozzie Albies as his top guy while I went with Kyle Wright. This trio of players easily pulled away from the field with an average ranking between 1.67 and 2.33. Fourth place averaged 5.00.

My first question is how did you arrive at your choice? And being the nice guy I am, I’ll answer first.

Let me start by saying that each of these incredibly talented players is majorly deserving of such an honor. The sky's the limit for Acuña and that might be selling the guy short. Ozzie Albies is a trade away from taking over second base, a position he may hold for the next decade. Having three legitimate players for an organization’s best prospect is a testament to both how deep this organization is and how off-the-charts talented this trio is. To hype these guys up just a little bit more - all have a legitimate shot to be in the majors by the end of 2018.

But, and forgive me for saying so, I’m the only one who made the Wright choice. (/ducks)

I won’t disagree with you guys that either Acuña or Albies has a higher ceiling than Wright. What I will say is that Wright has the highest floor of any draft choice the Braves have selected since Bob Horner. Now, the Braves have absolutely no reason to rush him to the majors like they once did with Horner, but in my mind, we don’t just reward projection, but the floor a prospect has and especially when that floor is quite elevated. Acuña and Albies should be - and I think will be - excellent players in the major leagues, but they cannot match the likelihood of reaching their potential like Wright.

The man comes into professional baseball with three plus pitches and a strong possibility of taking his weakest pitch, a pretty decent changeup, and transferring it into a plus pitch as well. His simple-and-easy mechanics are repeatable and don’t put undue stress on him. Mark my words, gentlemen - the Braves will look back at the 2017 draft and thank their lucky stars four other teams passed on Wright.

Both of you ranked him third on your lists. Why did your guy - either Albies or Acuña - get your pick as the number one prospect in the system?

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Ronald Acuna

Stephen Tolbert: Hey guys! Glad to be a part of the team.

Let’s start with this; I love Kyle Wright. Getting him at 5 in the draft was thievery. For my money, he’s the best pitching prospect in the system. And in this system, that’s quite an accomplishment. But Wright has two things working against him being at the top.

One, he hasn’t thrown a pitch in pro ball yet and until I at least see some work against other pro’s, I can’t crown him #1. Two, he isn’t Ronald Acuña.

When I think about the number one overall prospect, I think “who can be the best player in the game?” “Who has that type of potential?”  And among the 3 obvious choices, Acuña was the only one who fit that profile. A 19-year-old, legitimate 5-tool player already destroying Double-A is as rare as it is impressive and when you have that guy in your system, he’s #1. Now, he's headed to Triple-A to unseat Albies as the youngest player in the International League.

And if you watched the Futures Game, you saw it all on display. The show he put on in BP had national writers tweeting about it, and then, once the game started, you saw the incredible defensive talent he’s going to be. Coming up as a CF with plus speed, he clearly has the skills to play all 3 OF positions and he showed off his 70-grade arm a few times during the game.

Maybe the most impressive part of the night, though, was the multiple 10+ pitch AB’s he put up against some of the nastiest pitchers in MILB. Taking 98-mph fastballs just off the plate. Spitting on hard-breaking off-speed pitches in 2-strike counts. Basically, he was doing things a 19-year-old shouldn’t do against pitchers that advanced.

Acuña is dynamic, powerful, advanced, and the most gifted overall player to come through this system since Andruw. Truly a rare talent. In my opinion, he’s clearly the #1 prospect in the Braves’ system and eventually, in all of baseball.

But I’m open minded--so Ryan, let’s hear why Ozzie Albies is really the top man in this incredible system.

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Ozzie Albies | Grant McAuley - Follow on Twitter - used with permission

Ryan Cothran: Hey you 2 scoundrels! I'm on Whidbey Island off the coast of Washington and maybe it’s just the island vibes soaking in, but man I love the heck out of Ozzie Albies. He's been my guy for quite a while (not in a Robert Baker sense) and I'm going to show him some love, but first off, it's slanderous for us to talk number 1 Braves prospect and not discuss Kevin Maitan. He’s already wreaking havoc in the GCL and maybe we look at this discussion in a year and think how big of buffoons we were for not including him, and that brings me to my next point and Stephen has already made it: Whether it's the Wright or Wrong call, I cannot give the number 1 title to a guy that hasn't thrown a professional pitch, or in Maitan’s case, limited exposure.  Sorry Kyle, your poise, promise, 3-plus pitches and potential power arm will have to settle for 3 on my rankings.

From there, it was a wash between Acuña and Albies, but what has been occurring in the past month for 20-year old Albies pushed my ranking: he's destroying the ball. Doubles, triples, home runs, he's hitting them and he's doing it from both sides of the plate thanks to Chipper! From the looks of him, I'd guess he's added 20 pounds of muscle in the last year, has put more emphasis on successful steals rather than just running because he's fast, and from what I've read and saw, he's developed some more arm strength. He's sharpened his game all around at the minors highest level and he still can't buy a beer in Georgia. I'm overly excited about what the Braves lineup could feature in 2018 with Albies in it and am very anxious for Brandon Phillips to move on so we can see Ozzie in the show I think he's a seasonal 4 WAR player that could be an all-star 4-5 times in his career.

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Tommy Poe: All valid arguments. I think we all agree that all three guys are going to help shape the future of the Atlanta Braves over the near future. The Top 5 was completed by the aforementioned Maitan at #4 and Kolby Allard at the fifth spot. Allard actually matched his fellow 2015 Draft Class member Mike Soroka for the fifth-best average, but gets the fifth spot due to a tiebreaker which I stole from Outfield Fly Rule’s Andy Harris. In the event of a tie, the player with the highest individual ranking gets the spot.

#7 was an interesting pick. Both Ryan and Stephen had Sean Newcomb around that spot in their rankings, but I went against the grain and stuck with my preseason belief that Sean Newcomb was underrated and put him in the fourth spot.

On Newcomb, since it was my pick, this is probably building on where I had him ranked preseason. At number two. As in, the top non-Dansby Swanson prospect in this system. Nobody agreed with that ranking at the time, but I felt the improvement he made over the second half of 2016 could not only be sustained, but built upon. I was little disappointed with some walk totals with Gwinnett as I felt he was improving in that regard, but I still hold firm in my belief that Newcomb's combination of power, stuff, and pitchability was being underranked by other sources. As such, I rank him as the second-best pitcher in my rankings - a distinction that only changed because of Wright.

His time in the majors has been mostly solid, though he ran into the buzzsaw known as the Astros and was charged with four runs against the Nationals over his last two starts. Nevertheless, he's reached the seven-strikeout plateau in half of his six starts and walked two or less in four of those games. That's something that the Braves can possibly build upon moving forward.

I do understand the criticisms, but control is the thing I'll give a break to when it comes to pitchers. Give me a guy who has issues sometimes finding the plate, but has the weapons to be a #2 starter (possibly #1) if he can find the plate more consistently and I'll be a fan. But the great thing about this organization is whether you want to go with Newcomb, Allard, or Soroka as your second-best pitching prospect in the system - as the three of us did - I believe you can make justifiable arguments about all three.

On the subject of pitchers, Stephen, you had Joey Wentz #17 in your rankings. Ryan and I both had him near the tail end of our Top 10. You were the only one to rank both Touki Toussaint and Kyle Muller ahead of him. Any particular reasoning or just liked him less?

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Stephen Tolbert: Before I jump back in, I do want to make the point that this system is almost unfathomably deep. Guys like Joey Wentz being in the 10-20 range shows how difficult it can to rank all these guys and that often, a guy is where he is because I like a different guy more, not because I like that player less.

Drew Waters

This is what happened with Wentz on my list where he came in at #17. There were a couple players I felt had higher ceilings that I had to put in front of him. A couple of those guys being Drew Waters and Cristian Pache - both tooled out OF who are having early success at their respective levels.

In general, I prefer position players to pitchers because of the severe volatility pitching prospects experience. That means when I get to a group of prospects I feel all around the same level, I lean towards the bats.

Joey is a terrific 3-pitch guy who probably has a bit more pitchability than some of the other guys in the system. But ultimately I see more of a mid to back-end SP as his career path and there were some other guys I project higher.

But being in the top 20 of this system means you're a serious player and very likely have a major league career ahead of you. So Joey at 17 on my list means I still think very highly of him. What surprised me was Ryan's ranking of Touki at #22. That down on him, Ryan, or just high on others?

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Ryan Cothran: I agree that it's pretty easy to rank a top-10 in this organization and have a near consensus 10 guys, whether they're up or down a few spots. After that, it's tricky. One ranking that I had that will likely draw criticisms by many is Touki at 22. Honestly, I just don't get it. He has a curve that’s known as the best pitch in the Braves system, a mid-90s fastball, a working change, and his ERA is pushing 6. Sure, his K-rate is up, his BB-rate down, but he's now in his 4th year in professional ball and the ERA is still going the wrong way. How is this happening? Sure..blame the defense, blame the umps, or just state the obvious and say he's developing, but regardless of the reason, I just cannot look at him and continue to think Starting Pitcher. With that in mind, Geez Louise, he could be a dominant bullpen stud but that just doesn't warrant a near top-10 ranking in the best system in the bigs. For whatever the reasons that Touki and Ricardo Sanchez have to not put it all together, there's guys like Bryse Wilson and Patrick Weigel who clicked and are big jumpers in the org. Hopefully, we will see the same click happen for the aforementioned two.

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Tommy Poe: I definitely do hope we see them start to put it together more as well, Ryan. For now, I want to spend a little time going over our individual rankings and what stands out compared to the rest. At #16, I had Alex Jackson, his lowest ranking. I don't doubt the offense is for real because I was on board with the trade when it happened considering he showed improvement last season. I thought the Mariners were short-sighted in the move. I do wonder if he'll stay behind the plate, though. From people I've talked to (non-scouts, I grant you), they aren't so sure and that's what prompted me to rank him a bit lower. If he's forced back to the outfield, he's still a good prospect - just not as hot. Still, to rank #16th in this system is a pretty nice accomplishment - especially when left for dead by the M's.

I also had Kyle Muller and Bryse Wilson a bit lower than you guys. Similar to why Stephen went with others over Wentz, I felt Muller and Wilson's ceilings are not as high as guys I put ahead of them. Either that rationale or, as was the case with Patrick Weigel and Lucas Sims, I valued their closeness to the majors over Muller and Wilson. I still love both pitchers, though, and look forward to being wrong.

Derian Cruz

I had the lowest rank of Derian Cruz, who I plugged in at #31. I think he's going to hit and flash very good speed, but I am really worried about his defense. From watching him a few times with Danville, he doesn't have soft hands and is frequently forced to rush a throw as a result. My placement is similar to Jackson's in that if he doesn't stay at his current position, his value declines. Right now, I'm looking for reasons to believe he'll stay at shortstop and I have too much concern he'll get shifted to the outfield.

Speaking of speedy guys - this time who already play in the outfield - Randy Ventura had one of the most diverse rankings in the whole thing. I had him #43, Stephen ranked him #34, and Ryan squeezed him into the Top 30 with a #27 placement. And here I was concerned I was ranking him too highly because he has slowed down somewhat as the season has progressed.

I didn't include recent draftees like Freddy Tarnok and Drew Lugbauer on my list. Both were guys who would have showed up if we went beyond Top 50's and because both landed on your lists, each gets a place in the WOW Midseason Top 50. I do like both, but I haven't seen enough of Tarnok to give him a Top 50 spot and Lugbauer might struggle to have a position moving forward. That said, in most systems in the majors, they would be consensus Top 50 prospects - if not Top 30.

I'm glad Jason Hursh made all of our lists, by the way. He's a guy who has shown a lot of improvement over the last year. I'm still not sure he'll be a high-leverage reliever, but there's something here now that I felt was gone when I left him off my preseason Top 50. Really want to see how his career develops moving forward.

Stephen, what are some of your observations about your Top 50 compared to Ryan's and my versions?

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Stephen Tolbert: First, just to respond to one thing you mentioned, I put  A. Jackson as high as I did because I love the bat and the arm. I haven't heard anyone reputable express any optimism that he can stay at catcher but his profile still fits a corner OF spot and man can he hit.

Ok on to mine. Looking at all 3 lists, the first thing that jumps out is Drew Waters. You and Ryan both had Drew 25 while I had him 15. If I'm being 100 percent honest, I almost had him in my top 10. Switch-hitting OF with speed, projectable power and, early on, what seems like a good feel for hitting. Yeah, I'm all aboard. My hot take/bold prediction for next year is once Acuña and Albies graduate, Maitan and Waters will be the 2 best hitting prospects in the system.

Another notable difference I see is you and Ryan both had Ray-Patrick Didder in the mid 30s while he didn't make my top 50. Yeah, I just don't see it with Didder. It's 20 power with a 27% strikeout rate in A ball. He gets by on some fluky HBP numbers that won't hold when he faces pitchers with better control at upper levels. Outside of that, I see an org OF who can run but really not do much else. In a lesser system, he may crack the top 50 for me, but certainly not the best system in baseball.

Alright, Ryan, who were the players you saw differently than Tommy and me?

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Ryan Cothran: Admittedly, I've seen very little of Waters, but have liked what I've seen. For me, it's the unknown that's near impossible to rank but I appreciate the boldness and sure hope your ranking turns to be the more accurate.

As far as my guys, I just cannot get enough of Bryse Wilson. Dude’s fastball stayed 93-96 throughout a complete game shutout and his positive demeanor has been discussed in numerous outlets both inside Braves fam and out. His arsenal is developing, he's striking out a lot of people while walking guys seldom, and he's only 19 years old. While he might have a bit more to learn in comparison to Allard and Soroka, he's right on their heels and I'd expect a promotion before year's end.

Another guy that I likely have an unhealthy fondness of is Randy Ventura. While he's cooled off recently, he can flat out hit. Combine that with above average speed, superior baseball instincts, and a good glove and he's likely a good 4th outfielder. However, that's not how I see him. I think there's some power there and room for growth in that body. I'd keep an eye on him these next few here's to see if 16-20 of those singles become doubles and  6-7 of those doubles and triples become homeruns. If that happens, there could be some serious under the radar hype here.

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Tommy Poe: Finally, I want to go over the five guys you feel might be climbing up the rankings by the end of this season. These can be guys who made your Top 50 or weren't on the list at all. You can also say how you feel they will rise up the WOW list as others come around on your way of thinking.

Bryse Wilson, #17 - I do believe I ranked him lower than you guys because he was ranked really low in my preseason Top 50. He jumped about 20 spots but probably didn't jump enough spots. He'll be an easy Top 20 guy for me by the end of the season and might be in the Top 15.

Drew Waters, #22 - Stephen's aggressive #15th rank might prove to be matched by my own by the end of the year. That's not only a product of my stealing from Stephen :), but the guy's talent is ridiculously high. I'm seeing some people put him as the third-best position prospect in the system behind Acuna and Albies. I'm not there - yet - but he's definitely climbing.

Abraham Gutierrez

Abraham Gutierrez, #34 - I had him ranked the lowest at #39th, but I do believe he'll be in the Top 30 by the end of the season. He seems like the catching prospect with the best chance to not only be a plus at the plate but also behind it.

Drew Lugbauer, #45 - Though I do have concerns about him finding a position, I'm also massively intrigued by the idea of a power-hitting righty-mashing utility player who can cycle from catcher-to-first-to-third. If he can also get some time in left here-and-there, I'm jumping on the hype train big time.

Jean Carlos Encarnacion, UR - First off, Encarnacion is why the Braves need another minor league team or two. I don't know if they truly believe he can't play shortstop anymore or can't find any playing time there for him while playing on a team with Livan Soto and Kevin Maitan. Either way, the current 1B/3B is off to an excellent start in the GCL with six extra-base knocks over his first 51 PA. He was a late signing in the 2015-16 international signing class and I think the Braves found yet another solid bat out of the DR who could rise in a hurry. He's got a big frame to grow in and one that might lead to a good deal of power.

What are some of the guys you think will climb the charts moving forward, Stephen?

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Stephen Tolbert: I like the Juan Carlos Encarnacion pick, Tommy. Here are my top 5 potential climbers:

OF Drew Waters, #22 - (see bold prediction above) Drew was #15 on my personal list but could easily be my top OF prospect in the system once Acuña graduates.

SP Max Fried, #21 - I think Fried has a much pure talent as any arm in the org but his results haven't shown it. If his second half this year matches his second half last year, he could be up in the top 10.

OF Dustin Peterson, #20 - Dustin would've easily made my top 15 coming into the year but the wrist injury in Spring Training has zapped him of his power which is a key part of his development. If he gets that back, he's probably closer to #10 than he is to #20.

C Lucas Herbert, #36 - Lucas has really progressed this year in all aspects of his game. The only reason I didn't have him higher is I just want to see more of it. If he continues at his current pace, he's a top 20 prospect.

OF Braxton Davidson, #38 - I still believe in Braxton. He hits the ball hard, he hits it in the air, and he knows how to take a walk. I love those three things in a prospect. He just needs to put it all together. If he does, the raw talent is there to be big time prospect.

What say you Ryan?

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Ryan Cothran: Man, I hope you're right on Max and D-Pete as they're two guys that are easy to like.

Izzy Wilson, #42 - Seriously talented youngster that could be the next big thing. Has had disciplinary issues in the past but if he can put his focus on baseball, Braves will have something.

Bryse Wilson, #17 - On the heels of all our other young pitchers but maybe not for long. Shelby Miller in the making?

Max Fried, #21 - Bad first half but has tools and talent to be a very good starting pitcher. Think we will see a rise in stock for the 2nd time.

Drew Waters, #22 - Could he be the Braves steal of the draft? Too early to tell, but if he keeps going at current pace, he'll be a serious mover.

Justin Smith, UR - Tommy and I both liked this pick in the draft and Matt Powers of Talking Chop did as well. A JUCO guy with the ability to do everything well. Look for him to adjust then explode.