The Braves are rightfully excited about their international class this year, headlined by a couple of really toolsy stars. Raudy Reyes — a 6-foot-4, 220-pound 16-year-old — is already making his rounds across social media because of his heater that is already touching triple digits, leading to the Braves dubbing him “a unicorn” prospect.
“He’s a unicorn,” Braves Latin American scouting director Jonathan Cruz said, via Mark Bowman of MLB.com. “He has an idea of command, surprisingly enough. We’ve just got to get the control there for him.”
Reyes received a significant $1.8 million signing bonus from the Braves, which was second only to Diego Tornes in this year’s class, another 16-year-old with a ton of project-ability.
“He’s lean, he’s athletic, he’s got size, and his swing is pretty short for the levers that he has,” Cruz said. “We’re pretty excited, and I think he’s going to bring value the next couple years. It’s going to be pretty exciting to see.
“This kid is something else.”
Tornes also has an incredible frame for somebody so young, standing six feet tall and a lean 200 pounds with a lot of muscle. He’s a switch-hitting prospect with a lot of raw power from both sides of the plate. The Braves are also excited about his recent developments in the field, believing he now has the potential to play centerfield.
“I saw Diego with a big sledgehammer, slamming at big truck tires and just sweating all over his body,” Cruz said. “You start dreaming and thinking, ‘All right, don’t give up on this kid yet.’ We just kept going back and we saw him get better consistently, and now we’re pretty confident he’s going to play center field.”
Both Diego Tornes and Raudy Reyes provide a ton of excitement for the Braves 2025 international class, which is a breath of fresh air given all of the international restrictions that have plagued the club in recent years.
However, it’s not always the most expensive prospects that turn out to be the most valuable. About a decade ago, the Braves offered Ronald Acuña Jr. a $100,000 signing bonus, and in just a few years, he was the top prospect in all of baseball before going on to win the 2023 NL MVP award, making history along the way.
Photographer: Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire
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