Friday, I looked at how all the new Braves that were acquired at the trade deadline have performed since coming to Atlanta. It’s pretty hard to be disappointed with the strings Alex Anthopoulos pulled with the way the team has played in August. However, if a couple of the prospects the Braves traded turn out to be superstars, some might consider the Braves losers. I’m not one of those people; I believe these moves were necessary to give this team a legitimate chance at a World Series, and you can’t punt opportunities like that. But regardless, a lot of these moves will eventually be judged by how these prospects shake out in the majors. So let’s take a look at how they’ve performed since being moved.
Bryse Wilson
Wilson is by far the best player the Braves gave up at the trade deadline, and I believe he has the potential to blossom into a very good starting pitcher as he gains more experience. This trade really could go down as a win-win for both teams. The Braves needed relief help, and Wilson needed a new home because he was never going to get major-league experience with all the arms the Braves have coming through their system. Since being moved, Wilson’s made three starts for the Pirates, and he’s looked a lot like he did with Atlanta — inconsistent. After a couple of quality appearances, he surrendered four runs in four innings last time out. We’ll see if he’ll ever be able to string together some consistency, but this is a young man I’m rooting for.
Ricky DeVito
DeVito is the other prospect that went to the Pirates in the Richard Rodriguez trade. The 2019 8th round pick has really turned some heads since being drafted, but the sample size is minuscule. DeVito has yet to appear since being moved because of elbow soreness that occurred before the trade.
Alex Jackson
Finally, we have proof that Alex Jackson can hit a baseball. As Braves fans, we’ve heard about him crushing balls in the minors and in batting practice, but once he got to the majors as a Braves, he couldn’t hit water in the ocean. Since being traded to the Fish in the move that netted Adam Duvall, Jackson has gotten some valuable major-league experience, catching in 16 games and mashing three homers. He’s still hitting .160, so don’t feel too bad, Braves fans; Jackson has a long way to go before he etches a permanent roster spot on any major-league team.
Bryce Ball
Ball was a prospect all of us were bullish on after his 2019 season in which he dominated rookie ball and A-ball. He earned so much respect that the Braves even included him on their 60-man taxi squad last season. Unfortunately, the hype has diminished after a slow 2021. He only hit .206 with 6 homers before the Braves traded him, but he was willing to take his walks, which led to a much more palatable .745 OPS. However, he’s been even less productive on the farm for the Cubs. In 26 games since the trade, he’s batting just .182 with three homers, leading to a .669 OPS. It looks like the Braves may have done a fantastic job at selling high with Ball, but it’s still way too early to judge.
Kasey Kalich
Friend of the old SportsTalkATL podcast, Kalich is a former 4th round pick out of Texas A&M that projects to be a pretty good reliever one day in the majors. Before being traded, he boasted a 3.26 ERA with a 10.4 K/9 with High-A Rome. The Royals elected to let him continue to develop in High-A this season, and he’s been equally as effective, recording a 4.50 ERA with a 10.5 K/9 over six innings. It’s still way too early to tell for Kalich, but I believe the Royals got pretty good value for Jorge Soler.
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