Since we don't expect any last-second deals that would add or subtract prospects, we'll move forward with our “post-season” 2014 prospects list. Before you check the list, here are the big changes from our midseason list:
No. 10, Vic Caratini, was traded to the Cubs. No. 13, James Hoyt, went from hero to zero with his first crack at AAA. At age 27, not many such chances are forthcoming. 17. Felix Falcon, lost for season (TJ?) after one appearance. 18. Ian Thomas saw his year start so well, but wound up unable to bounce back from midseason injury.
21. Philip Gosselin is a major leaguer now.
24. Josh Elander had a season-ending injury, but was playing like crap when he was hurt. 25. Mauricio Cabrera, moved to bullpen, but has yet to find his comfort zone.
26. Tyler Tewell, caught back-to-back no-hitters, but went on the DL himself.
29. Edward Salcedo moved to outfield, but never hit in AAA.
1. Jose Peraza (20, 6-0, 165) SS (2 previously). Only a groin pull slowed him down in 2014. He continued to hit and run with impunity after moving to AA and finshed the year with a combined .339-2-44 with 60 stolen bases. You can quibble that he walked only 17 times in nearly 500 PA's but that's when you look again at the birthdate.
2. Lucas Sims (20, 6-2, 195) RHP (1). When your top prospect makes every start and has a share of a no-hitter, you figure he's had the kind of year you'd hope for. But no, not the case: 8-11, 4.19, winning only one of his last six starts. He did allow two or less runs in three of the final four, so the Braves will be happy to shut him down for the winter after 157 innings.
3. Christian Bethancourt (23 today!, 6-2, 210) C (3). This should be the last time CB appears on a prospect list. No longer a child prodigy at 23, he held his own in AAA (hitting .283 with eight homers) and quickly earned the confidence of pitchers during his big-league stint. How much he plays in Sept. will be the story behind the story.
4. Elmer Reyes (23, 5-11, 175) SS (4). He didn't make headlines, but Reyes continued to make each step look effortless. With his year split evenly between Miss. And Gwinnett, he was .303 at the former, .286 the latter for a .295-5-52 campaign. Blocked at short, he was a second baseman and can play third. Can he enter the mix?
5. Jason Hursh (22, 6-3, 200) RHP (8). His first full pro season was a huge success as part of the loaded Miss. Team: 12-8, 3.13. His hits allowed were on the high and his strikeouts weren't, but guys who can pitch a little can allow today's hitters to get themselves out. Hursh, a college guy, learned that secret somewhere.
6. Braxton Davidson (18, 6-2, 210) 1B-OF (7). His command of the strike zone was quickly evident, as he was moved from the GCL because he walked more than he was being allowed to hit. Now his power has to come. His move to Danville has made him a parttime player, but how he grows into his natural strength is the question. He wasn't drafted to walk; he was drafted because he was a power hitter who was willing to.
7. Ozhaino Albies (17, 5-9, 160) SS (NR). Not even Peraza generated this much excitement right off the, uh, bat. Signed last July, he did not debut utnil the GCL short season, but played his way (.381) to a loaded Danville roster. He ended his too-short season .364-1-19 with 22 stolen bases. He had eight three-hit games in his 57-game 2014. He's from Curacao, a country Braves fans are already fond of (Andruw, Jurrjens).
8. Kyle Kubitza (24, 6-3, 190), 3B (22). The future is now for the promising third baseman, who led the SL in on-base percentage this season while having virtually the same offensive season three years in a row – each a step farther along the ladder. This year, however, he added foot speed as he stole 21 bases for Miss. to go with his .295-8-55 season.
9. Johan Camargo (20, 6-0, 160) SS (28). His popularity is growing among fans and Braves brass alike. He earned a bump up to Lynchburg after hitting only .167 in April. He had 158 hits for the season, but the switch-hitter especially owned left-handers (.362). Errors (36) have got to come down, however.
10. Max Povse (21, 6-8,195) RHP (NR). The Braves' third-round pick was a bargain for his draft slot and even a better buy once he took the mound: 4-2, 3.42 at Danville. The big man throws hard, but has more to his game than that. Could be a draft-day steal.
11. Dilmer Mejia (17, 5-11, 160) LHP (NR). After being sucked in by the Felix Falcon mirage last year, we were reluctant to buy into Mejia's DSL season. But the Braves, did, moving him Stateside for the end of the year. His combined number belie his youth: 5-1, 2.07 in 14 starts with 60 strikeouts as opposed to 15 walks. Even more tasty: he's a lefty.
12. Alec Grosser (19, 6-2, 190) RHP (15). The ace of the Danville staff after a promising late-season debut in 2013, former Virginia ace was 4-3, 3.68 with 64 strikeouts in 63 innings. Notably, he also cut down on his walks, a problem in '13.
13. Kyle Kinman (23, 5-11, 185) LHP (NR). Maybe the best arm to come out of this year's draft, he was a lock-down closer the final month of the season for Danville. He allowed only one run over his final 12 appearances (two wins, four saves). He was 4-4 in saves with 43 strikeouts in 30 innings overall (3-0, 2.43).
14. Victor Reyes (19, 6-3, 175) OF (6). We think we detect some folks slipping off Reyes' bandwagon as his absence of power continues. Homerless when his injury filled season ended in July, he did everything else well enough (.259, 34 RBIs, 12 SB). A switch-hitter, he could still be growing into a ballplayer's body.
15. Wes Parsons (22, 6-5, 190) RHP (11). The free agent find of a year ago had a mostly lost season due to injury this year, but finished strong. Expect him to start in AA next year with rapid movement possible.
16. Joey Meneses (22, 6-3, 190) 1B-OF (14). At midseason, Meneses was an emerging power hitter. But after missing more than a month, he came back with mixed results, including no more homers. But he hit for the cycle and had eight in 45 games when injured, so many eyes will be on him early next year.
17. Jordan Edgerton (21, 6-1, 190) 3B (NR) No one came out of the draft better prepared for the pro game than the Braves' ninth-round pick. He hit .439 in June with 17 RBIs in just 11 games and wound up third in the Appy League in ribbies. But he has a decent eye with only 34 strikeouts (43 RBIs) in 59 games.
18. Cedric Hunter (26, 6-0, 195) OF (NR). This is an off-the-wall selection, but he was a rock solid part of the M-Braves all year and earned a Southern League all-star selection at year's end. The Georgia native was .295-14-72 with only 52 strikeouts opposed to 56 walks. Defensively, had only two errors in 101 games while playing all three OF positions.
19. Brandon Cunniff (25, 6-0, 185) RHP (27). The Braves confirmed his consistent excellence with an AFL roster spot – rare for an indy league salvage project. At Lynchburg and Mississippi combined in 2014, was 4-0, 1.58 with 3 saves in 42 games and is still unbeaten (14-0 in 173 games) as a pro.
20. Blair Walters (24, 6-0, 200) LHP (NR). Call me crazy, but the guy's a stud that the Braves spirited away one day after being the starting pitcher in the Frontier League all-star game. Upon arriving at Lynchburg, he was 6-1, 2.33 and went into the sixth inning in every start. In 2011, he began his pro career by going 9-0 in rookie ball.
21. Cody Martin (24, 6-3, 233) RHP (9). A year of wheel spinning in AAA when a more consistent year could have easily earned him a promotion. He was 7-8, 3.52 in 26 starts, allowing 17 homers – double his previous high. He did strike out 152. He also put on close to 20 pounds.
22. Juan Jaime (27, 6-3, 250) RHP (17). Wild as a march hare and just as able to walk 'em loaded as opposed to striking out the side, he's been in the big leagues three times this year, including this September (10 games, 0-0, 4.50) in additon to 18 saves in AAA. But guys who can throw strikes at 100 MPH are prospects.
23. Kyle Wren (23, 5-10, 175) CF (16). His speed and defense are unquestioned, but it took a late-season turnaround for Wren to offset a couple of summer slumps. Overall, he had a solid .290-0-43 with 46 stolen bases with all-star caliber defense. How soon does he knock at the door?
24. Aaron Northcraft (24, 6-4, 230) RHP (5). We had him at a soaring No. 5 in midseason after going 7-3, 2.88 at Mississippi to earn a promotion. What followed was an 0-7, 6.54 in the same number of starts. The Braves, no doubt as confused as they are concerned, are giving him another shot at the AFL this year, where also struggled.
25. Chasen Shreve (24, 6-3, 190) LHP (19). Could easily be higher, having earned his first MLB time this season (1.50, 6 IP, 9 K, 2 BB) after getting a chance to be a closer for the first time. But he is sort of back to the drawing board after being bumped back to AAA. Overall, a nice season: 46 games, 5-3, 2.67, 9 saves.
26. Chad Sobotka (21, 6-7, 200) RHP (23). Still in suspense waiting for his pro debut after overcoming back problems. He's closer material, saving 19 in two college seasons as closer. He was tabbed his conferences' preseason pitcher of the year before being injured.
27. Yenier Bello (29, 5-11, 225) C (NR). No 29-year-old American player would be allowed within a mile of a prospect list, but Bello is a CUBAN REFUGEE. He was slow getting a visa from his new home country, but once in camp, he was .308-1-4 in 15 games, was errorless behind the plate and threw out 50 percent of the runners in Lynchburg (5 of 10).
28. Jacob Shrader (23, 6-2, 215) 1B (NR). I just have a feeling about a guy who was doing it by himself early in the year when Rome was worse than bad, then picked up where he left off after more than a month on the DL. He still led Rome in homers and RBIs (11 and 55 in 84 games) and hit .290 after a .229 April.
29. Elias Arias (20, 6-1, 180) SS (NR). He hit .297-2-33 in the DSL despite ending the year with a 2-for-17 slump. He also stole 21 bases in the ultra competitive league as the Braves' leadoff hitter much of the season. We don't often rate DSL players, but he was clearly the best they had.
30. J.J. Franco (22, 5-9, 180) 2B (NR). He deserves a higher rating, but after being the Braves' 38th-round pick this June, it just seems right. While loftier pick Luke Dykstra more attention early on, the late-arriving Franco owned the FSL at .347-1-14 with 10 walks and only 14 strikeouts. He had 12 multi-hit games in 31 played.
Just missed: another DSL player, Daniel Castro (Mexican 2B), Alejandro Salazar (still only 17); Carlos Salazar, Mauricio Cabrera (still young), Danville catcher Tanner Murphy; Gwinnett CF Todd Cunningham.
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Originally Posted by nsacpi
