The Braves already have the best outfield asset going forward in Ronald Acuna Jr., but more help is on the way. Austin Riley could be a vital piece on the 2020 club, and they have two young prospects who reached AAA in late 2019 who are top prospects.
Cristian Pache has gotten a ton of love, but many executives believe that the other prospect, Drew Waters, is being overlooked. According to a poll of multiple executives who were interviewed, 15% of them named Waters the most underrated prospect, and that was good for the majority of votes.
It is easy to live in the shadows of Acuna and Pache, but real Braves fans have been excited about Waters, a local kid out of Etowah High School since he was drafted. Waters has a very well-rounded game and has the tools to be a great all-around ballplayer. He has a great switch-hitting contact bat to go along with his speed, arm, and defense, and one would assume that more power should come in time given his frame. He has been an absolute extra-base hit machine his last two years in pro ball with 113 of them to go with 29 steals. His performance last season was good enough to earn Southern League MVP honors.
The Braves will deploy Adam Duvall and Nick Markakis in a platoon, and Ender Inciarte in center, but barring any moves, there is a good chance come playoff time the 21-year old Waters has debuted and is starting to make an impact at the major league level. This also sheds light on how other teams may value him in prospective future deals. However, we will be hoping that we will see Waters, a friend of the site, in Atlanta for a very long time. If you would like to listen to our interview with him during last season, I have dropped that link below. Enjoy!