We decided to go with a new format for the prospect list. Braves writers Harrison Coburn and Jake Gordon will both give their personal list and the site’s official list will be a consensus of the two. So without further ado, let’s see how the list(s) have shaken out:
Jake Gordon’s List:
- Mike Soroka
- Kyle Wright
- Ian Anderson
- Austin Riley
- Touki Toussaint
- Cristian Pache
- Drew Waters
- William Contreras
- Kolby Allard
- Joey Wentz
- Luiz Gohara
- Greyson Jenista
- Bryse Wilson
- Kyle Muller
- Freddy Tarnok
- CJ Alexander
- Tristan Beck
- Patrick Weigel
- Isranel Wilson
- Trey Riley
- Derian Cruz
- Huascar Ynoa
- Dustin Peterson
- Tucker Davidson
- Jaseel De La Cruz
- Alex Jackson
- Thomas Burrows
- Travis Demeritte
- Caleb Dirks
- Jefrey Ramos
** Note #1, if Carter Stewart had signed, I would have him slotted 6th on this list.
** Note #2, Before the Gausman Trade: Bruce Zimmerman Ranked #14, Juan Carlos Encarnacion Ranked #19, and Brett Cumberland Ranked #29
Harrison Coburn’s List:
- Mike Soroka
- Kyle Wright
- Austin Riley
- Kolby Allard
- Ian Anderson
- Drew Waters
- Joey Wentz
- Cristian Pache
- Touki Toussaint
- William Contreras
- Greyson Jenista
- Luiz Gohara
- Bryse Wilson
- CJ Alexander
- Kyle Muller
- Freddy Tarnok
- Patrick Weigel
- Tucker Davidson
- Tristan Beck
- Wes Parsons
- Trey Riley
- Dustin Peterson
- Alex Jackson
- Huascar Ynoa
- Travis Demeritte
- Thomas Burrows
- Caleb Dirks
- Corbin Clouse
- Brandon S. White
- Drew Lugbauer
Consensus List:
- Mike Soroka
- Kyle Wright
- Austin Riley
- Ian Anderson
- Drew Waters
- Kolby Allard
- Touki Toussaint
- Cristian Pache
- Joey Wentz
- William Contreras
- Luiz Gohara
- Greyson Jenista
- Bryse Wilson
- Kyle Muller
- CJ Alexander
- Freddy Tarnok
- Patrick Weigel
- Tristan Beck
- Trey Riley
- Tucker Davidson
- Dustin Peterson
- Huascar Ynoa
- Alex Jackson
- Isranel Wilson
- Wes Parsons
- Derian Cruz
- Thomas Burrows
- Travis Demeritte
- Caleb Dirks
- Jaseel De La Cruz
Biggest Risers:
Jake – I had a nice big write-up on Bruce Zimmerman ready to go that I had to throw out. CJ Alexander has been the most pleasant surprise of 2018, 20th Round Picks aren’t supposed to hit .391 in their first quarter season. For the sake of parity, I’m going to go with Drew Waters and Touki Toussaint.
Waters showed flashes of the five-tool status he had in high school last season, but he’s been on a new level this year. The Georgia product is slashing .303/.513/.867 with 47 XBH (9 HR) and 21 Walks. He’s shown a great balance with highlight reel plays on defense and 20 stolen bases. Waters can do it all, don’t be surprised if he’s the #1 man in this system before the end of 2019.
Touki Toussaint has been nothing short of a revelation. I was a lot lower on Touki than most, his inconsistencies drove me mad. After going 6-13 with a 4.53 ERA in 2017, many wondered if he was going to be sent to the bullpen full time. Toussaint responded in a big way. After cruising through AA to the tune of a 2.93 ERA, he’s taken a step forward in AAA with a 1.78 ERA with 24 Ks in 25.1 IP. Even with Gwinnett’s rotation flush with talent, some wonder if Toussaint will be the next man up in Atlanta.
Harrison – My two biggest risers are the two young bats making a name for themselves in the lower levels of the minors: Greyson Jenista and CJ Alexander.
Jenista has been on a complete tear from the second he stepped on a pro field for the first time. Though drafted just weeks ago, Jenista has already earned a promotion to Rome. In his first 130 at-bats in Danville and Rome, he has hit .315 with 4 homers and 23 RBI, good for a .839 OPS. The big and powerful Jenista has been giving Braves fans a reason to be optimistic about a draft class that lost its star talent in Carter Stewart.
Alexander has been crazy impressive as well. The 20th rounder has hit .391 in his first 24 pro games. Though it is a small sample size, this type of performance has put him on the map early, and we are hopping on the bandwagon before anyone else here. It will be interesting to see if he can take over Jean Carlos Encarnacion‘s spot at the hot corner in Rome soon.
Biggest Fallers:
Jake – Alex Jackson has no doubt been the biggest disappointment in 2018. After hitting a respectable .267 with 19 HRs in 2017 and absolutely dominating the AFL, he’s responded by hitting a paltry .201 between AA and AAA with 6 Home Runs and 93 strikeouts in 77 games. Once billed as the catcher of the future, it seems Anthopoulos is going to push A-Jax and see what happens. It’s obvious the “catcher of the future” honors now belongs to William Contreras
And even though he disappoints us ever year, I’m gonna take this time to single out Braxton Davidson. Slashing .182/.383/.688 with 156 (!!!) Strikeouts at 22 playing in High A, he’s been one of the worst draft picks in recent memory. To me, he’s always going to be the guy we took one pick ahead of Michael Kopech and 2 picks ahead of Jack Flaherty. Thanks, Frank Wren.
Harrison – The two biggest fallers are the two biggest disappointments this season, Luiz Gohara and Alex Jackson. In the case of Gohara, his struggles are understandable. It is hard for a kid his age to deal with losing his father and his mother has had health issues as well. Now, I do believe in the talent and am willing to wipe the slate clean for Luiz. However, what really worries me is his weight for his age. Gohara should still be held in high regard, but there are question marks and other talented arms waiting in the wings.
Alex Jackson has seemingly regressed back to his old ways. He had an incredible bounce-back season when traded to the Braves last season but has followed that up with a forgettable 2018. The Braves rewarded him with a promotion to AAA despite hitting just .200 in AA. Jackson looked like a top 10 prospect in the system a year ago, but it is harder to buy into him now, and it appears William Contreras is the backstop of the future for this organization.
On The Cusp:
Jake– I think a good breakout candidate is Kyle Muller. He’s already ranked pretty high in our system, but I think he’s a guy who could make the leap towards the top tier of MLB prospects by the end of 2019. The 2nd round pick had a bit of a “mechanical breakdown” last season and has bounced back with a 7-2 record to go with a 3.01 ERA and 102 K over 110.2 IP. A 6’6 Lefty rounding into form? Muller could make a big leap in the rankings.
Keep an eye on Patrick Weigel coming back from Tommy John as well.
Harrison – My best bet for a guy to break out between now and the end of the season is Freddy Tarnok. He finally has established a starting rotation spot for Rome and will not have to worry about coming in for the sporadic 3-inning half-starts they would have him doing. Letting him get settled in and develop a starting pitcher’s mentality could go a long way. Tarnok has a lot of talent, and this second half could be his chance to make his name known among the other headliner pitching prospects the Braves have.