The 2020 MLB Draft was cut down to just five rounds due to COVID, but the Braves still managed to land a couple of big-time contributors in Spencer Strider and Bryce Elder, who were taken in the final two rounds. However, it’s possible that class has one more trick up its sleeve, with undrafted free agent Ethan Workinger making a ton of noise on the farm.
For a whopping $20,000, Workinger was the seventh and final UDFA the Braves signed back in 2020. A group consisting of only two guys still today considered pro baseball players (first baseman Bryson Horne is the other), Workinger has quietly been putting together a pretty solid career thus far. He is not a household name, and may never be. But once again, the outfielder is absolutely raking to start the season, finishing Thursday night with a three-homer game (including a grand slam) for Double-A Columbus. That’s four home runs in his last two games and six in his first 18 games in 2025.
Ok, but what about the two-run homer? 😏@Braves prospect Ethan Workinger has THREE HOMERS — a solo tater, a three-run jack and a grand slam — so far tonight for @GoClingstones! pic.twitter.com/rXqGQbOP3W
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) May 2, 2025
Workinger has played well before. In fact, in every season since 2023, he’s basically looked like a legit prospect in the Braves organization. In 2024, he hit .324 with 10 XBHs during the month of April; and back in 2023, he stayed scolding hot for literally three-straight months, featuring an .810 OPS, 12 homers and 17 doubles in his first 84 games through June. The bottom-line is this kid has plenty of ability and can get incredibly hot for pretty consistent spurts,
And fortunately, despite being drafted nearly five years ago, Workinger won’t turn 24 until October. He’s still relatively young, especially if he can prove he can hit high-minors pitching. In 2024, Workinger got his first taste of the Double-A level and it didn’t go too well. He hit just .207 in 30 games there to end last season, and it’s like his power completely disappeared as he finished with only one home run during that stint, compared to 11 long balls in 98 games at High-A prior to that.
For Workinger, the storyline will be whether or not he can actually sustain this type of success long-term. It’s one thing to have a good month, or even three. But can he continue to produce night after night once these Double-A pitchers begin figuring him out?
Whether his recent power stroke with Columbus is for real or not, it’s always easy to root for players like Workinger. Even for noteworthy prospects, the grind of playing minor league ball for a substantial length of time has to be difficult, and guys like him are doing so with essentially zero attention or any guarantee that all of this work will even pay off in the end.
It’s not like Workinger has some huge signing bonus as a form of financial security for when his playing days are over. This kid is literally playing ball simply because he loves it, which makes his big night on Thursday that much more enjoyable. Workinger is definitely a player worth keeping tabs on in 2025.
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Photo: Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire
