Michael Harris II of the Atlanta Braves graduated from prospect status a couple of nights ago. He is an early candidate for the Rookie of the Year Award, starting his career slashing .293/.329/.489 and playing elite centerfield defense.
Harris was the lone Brave on MLB’s new Top 100 prospect list. However, one Brave prospect was snubbed from the Top 100 — Vaughn Grissom
While MLB ranks Grissom as the Braves fifth best prospect, his performance this season earns him better consideration. Former Top 100 prospect Drew Waters has underwhelmed again in AAA, and 2019 first round pick Braden Shewmake has struggled in Gwinnet as well.
Grissom, on the other hand, has been tearing up high-A ball.
After hitting for an .848 OPS in low-A ball last year, Grissom has been even better in Rome, slashing .309/.396/.484 this season. He has reached base safely in 33 consecutive games and slashed an otherworldly 360/.431/.581 for a 1.012 OPS over that span.
The most impressive thing about Grissom is the emergence of his power. In 328 plate appearances between low and high-A last year, he hit seven home runs. Grissom has hit seven home runs during his on-base streak in 153 plate appearances.
The 21-year-old plays all over the infield including shortstop. With Dansby Swanson’s excellent 2022 likely meaning he’ll be earning a big paycheck in the offseason, it will be interesting to see if the Braves think Grissom might be his future replacement.
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