Braves 2021 Farm Report: Week 2 features another potential outing for Gwinnett’s Kyle Wright

Getting Minor League Baseball back this year has been awesome, for it doesn’t truly feel like baseball season without minor league action and the daily following of Braves prospects. Last week was a great Week 1 for the league. Especially Atlanta’s organization, as numerous players — many that were perhaps under the radar — put up big numbers for their respective teams.

The minors aren’t just about prospects, sometimes it’s the journeymen or veterans playing past their primes that are making the highlights, and for the Braves, it feels as if they have plenty of those types this season.

With one six-game series down and 19 more to go in 2021, here’s a brief preview of this week’s Braves minor league slate…

*All series begin on Tuesday and end on Sunday, with an off day every Monday. All times are ET.

 

AAA – Gwinnett Stripers (5-1 / t-1st)

vs. Louisville Bats

• Tue, May 11 – 7:05 PM 
• Wed, May 12 – 7:05 PM
• Thu, May 13 – 7:05 PM
• Fri, May 14 – 7:05 PM
• Sat, May 15 – 6:05 PM
• Sun, May 16 – 1:05 PM 

The Stripers offense has been incredible so far this season, thanks to the trio of Orlando Arcia, Johan Camargo, and Aberham Almonte. Gwinnett’s lineup is scoring a ridiculous 9.6 runs per game through its first six contests, and all those runs have enabled the team to tie the Durham Bulls for first-place in Triple-A’s Southeast division.

The 25-year-old righty, Kyle Wright, is tentatively scheduled to start the Stripers’ first game on Tuesday versus Louisville. However, with the major league Braves pushing Max Fried back a day from his scheduled start against Toronto, Wright could find himself making a spot start for Atlanta at Truist Park.

Last week versus Charlotte, Wright was tagged with the loss as he allowed four runs (three earned) from eight hits in 4 ⅓ innings of work. He struck out five and walked two.

 

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AA – Mississippi Braves (2-4 / 3rd)

@ Biloxi Shuckers

• Tue, May 11 – 6:35 PM
• Wed, May 12 – 6:35 PM
• Thu, May 13 – 6:35 PM
• Fri, May 14 – 6:35 PM
• Sat, May 15 – 6:35 PM
• Sun, May 16 – 1:05 PM 

It took the M-Braves offense until the fifth game of the season to score more than one run in a game when Mississippi lost 3-2 on Friday against Pensacola. Granted, the Blue Wahoos were a talented team that rosters two top-100 prospects (JJ Bleday, OF and Max Meyer, RHP), so the M-Braves were tasked with a rather difficult matchup to begin the year. Hopefully, Week 2 will feature more than 2.6 runs per game for Mississippi because this is a talented club that includes numerous top-30 prospects.

 

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A+ – Rome Braves (4-2 / t-1st)

@ Greensboro Grasshoppers

• Tue, May 11 – 6:30 PM
• Wed, May 12 – 12:00 PM
• Thu, May 13 – 6:30 PM
• Fri, May 14 – 6:30 PM
• Sat, May 15 – 6:30 PM
• Sun, May 16 – 2:00 PM 

Like Gwinnett above, Rome opened up the season with a hot offense, scoring over 5.5 runs per game last week as it currently is tied for first-place in High-A’s East division. This is already an exciting lineup, featuring recently drafted outfielder Jesse Franklin, up-and-coming top-tier prospect Michael Harris and the power-hitting first baseman Bryce Ball.

Week 2’s series versus Greensboro is sure to be a tough one for Rome. The Grasshoppers currently roster three top-100 prospects in infielders Nick Gonzales and Liover Peguero, as well as pitcher Quinn Priester. This Pirates affiliate includes three more prospects currently listed within Pittsburgh’s top 30 rankings. 

Rome’s A.J. Puckett is slated to start Game 1 on Tuesday. Puckett went just 3 ⅓ innings versus Winston-Salem last week, allowing one run from four hits to go with three strikeouts and three walks. 

 

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A – Augusta GreenJackets (3-3 / 2nd)

@ Myrtle Beach Pelicans 

• Tue, May 11 – 7:05 PM 
• Wed, May 12 – 7:05 PM
• Thu, May 13 – 7:05 PM 
• Fri, May 14 – 7:05 PM 
• Sat, May 15 – 6:05 PM 
• Sun, May 16 – 6:05 PM 

The GreenJackets have a couple of strong arms in righties Alec Barger and Roddery Munoz. When you combine those two with the bats of outfielder Willie Carter and catcher Ricardo Rodriguez… you have yourself a solid Single-A club, currently in second place in the East division. 

Augusta played .500 baseball in Week 1, but they have a chance to do even better this week while playing the division’s worst team, Myrtle Beach. This team has the offense and the pitching to win a ton of games in 2021. 

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