Looking Back: Braves Top Prospects of 2010 Review
With the season winding down, I thought it would be appropriate to look back at my 2010 top prospect lists and see how I did in my projections and how each team’s farm system held up over the course of the season.
This needs to be emphasized: the list below reflects each prospect’s status prior to the 2010 season. This is not a new list. Please keep that in mind.
The next team up is the Atlanta Braves:
1. Jason Heyward | RF | Age – 20 | Grade – A
Baseball’s No. 1 prospect heading into the season has lived up to the hype.
2. Julio Teheran | RHP | Age – 19 | Grade – B+
I aggressively ranked him as the 19th best prospect in baseball and this year he has rocketed through the system, ending up in Double-A where he has dominated since a shaky debut start.
3. Arodys Vizcaino | RHP | Age – 19 | Grade – B
I rated him as the 49th best prospect in baseball heading into the year. He’s had an uneven season…not quite as dominant as many expected him to be…elbow injury is a concern even though he has come back healthy to end the season.
4. Freddie Freeman | 1b | Age – 20 | Grade – B
Rated as the 59th best prospect in baseball to start the season, Freeman has had an outstanding year, highlighted by a tremendous last three months of the season. When I scouted him, I came away impressed by what I saw. Click here for that report and click here to see his performance against Reds pitcher Aroldis Chapman.
Now, I still don’t see him as an elite first baseman simply because of how good you must be to become one. But I do see him as a very good big league player for a long time.
5. Craig Kimbrel | RHP | Age – 21 | Grade – B
The 91st rated prospect in baseball heading into 2010, Kimbrell still walks too many, but he also continues to overpower hitters. I still very much believe in him as a potential top line reliever.
6. Christian Bethancourt | C | Age – 18 | Grade – B-
Not a good showing offensively, but he’s still very, very young.
7. Randall Delgado | RHP | Age – 20 | Grade – B
A breakthrough season for Delgado. His command has improved each year as a pro.
8. Mike Minor | LHP | Age – 22 | Grade – B-
Another breakthrough pitcher for the Braves. Underrated by everybody except the Braves heading into the 2009 draft. Click here for my updated report on Minor.
9. Zeke Spruill | RHP | Age – 20 | Grade – B-
Strikeouts are way down and that’s a red flag.
10. Adam Milligan | OF | Age – 22 | Grade – B-/C+
He’s been on the shelf for most of the year because of shoulder surgery.
11. Robinson Lopez | RHP | Age – 19 | Grade – C+
Traded to the Chicago Cubs. Lopez started off the season really strong. Check the splits and look at the months of April and May. Once June hit, his strikeouts just plummeted and I’m unsure why.
12. Dimaster Delgado | LHP | Age – 21 | Grade – C+
Car accident has kept him out all season.
13. J.J. Hoover | RHP | Age – 22 | Grade – C+
Nothing special, but he’s had a good season and he’s ending well.
14. Cody Johnson | LF | Age – 21 | Grade – C+/C
Simply put, he doesn’t make enough contact.
15. Brett DeVall | LHP | Age – 20 | Grade – C
Need him to miss more bats.
HONORABLE MENTIONS (in no particular order) – Mike Dunn (LHP) | Cole Rohrbough (LHP) | Jose Ortegano (LHP) | David Hale (RHP) | Richard Sullivan (LHP) | Brett Oberholtzer (LHP) | Cory Gearrin (RHP) | Chris Masters (LHP) | Tyler Stovall (LHP) | Caleb Brewer (RHP) | Thomas Berryhill (RHP) | David Francis (RHP) | Brandon HIcks (SS) | Jeff Lyman (RHP) | Scott Diamond (LHP) | Riann Spanjer-Furstenburg(1b) | Cory Rasmus (RHP) | Luis Valdez (RHP)
Of the Honorable Mentions, Mike Dunn has emerged as a nice lefty power arm out of the bullpen. But other than that, I don’t see too many breakout performances in this group, though Brett Oberholtzer intrigues me.
Now, they did have some guys emerge that weren’t mentioned at all. Steve Kent has been around for a long time after signing with the club in 2005 out of Austrailia and he was mentioned as a legit signing at the time. But here he is after missing the 2009 season and he’s been toying with the Sally League so far this year. Chasen Shreve was drafted in 2009 and he intrigues me a bit. But the big guy to come out of nowhere has definitely been Brandon Beachy. The right hander has dominated both Double and Tripe-A pitching and he’s not doing it with smoke-and-mirrors.
The Bottom Line
Not a lot of depth to this system, but you have to consider this a successful season for the Braves’ farm system simply because of how well the top-8 guys have done. Nobody but Christian Bethancourt has really put a dent in their stock and most of them have actually had their stocks rise a great deal. The system does need some more depth and I think the 2010 draft class will address some of those concerns.
