The Braves announced 25 non-roster invitees to spring training. The list is as follows:
Pitchers
Thomas Burrows
Jason Creasy
Carl Edwards Jr.
Daysbel Hernandez
Kurt Hoekstra
Connor Johnstone
Nate Jones
Nolan Kingham
Freddy Tarnok
Victor Vodnik
William Woods
Catchers
Logan Brown
Shea Langeliers
Jonathan Morales
Infielders
Ehire Adrianza
C.J. Alexander
Bryce Ball
Sean Kazmar
Jason Kipnis
Pablo Sandoval
Braden Shewmake
Outfielders
Justin Dean
Michael Harris
Trey Harris
Drew Waters
Bolded are prospects, meaning I have a written report on them or they have enough tools to garner a mention.
The top three are Waters (55 overall), Langeliers (50) and Ball (45+). Shewmake is a 45 and Michael Harris is a 40+ for me right now, while acknowledging the Harris grade could jump after I get looks this season.
This is an important spring training for Waters, who had a productive 2020 at the alternate site but needed a full season at Triple-A to gain more comfort and adjust to the advanced level. If Waters produces this spring and looks comfortable in the box against major league pitching, that could be a boost toward the solid season he needs at Triple-A with an eye toward an everyday role in 2022.
Langeliers is looking to get another year of pro ball under his belt as he rises in the system. He looked good last spring and impressed the major league staff. The big focus was a more developed bat than first expected out of the draft, which rounds out a solid everyday catcher profile. Look for more of the same before he’s assigned to High-A or Double-A.
Ball, of course, made news for being huge and hitting the ball a mile in BP last spring. But what has impressed me since a late 2019 look is the ability to control the bat head, cover the zone and work counts, and that included a few at-bats against advanced pitching last spring. I’m interested to see if the Braves are aggressive with his assignment out of camp, perhaps Double-A, but first it’s worth seeing how he handles major league pitching the second time around.
Shewmake’s brief looks last spring and in summer camp were iffy because he seemed to be pressing at times. He has a track record of controlling the barrel and making solid contact to all fields, so we’ll see how he handles another spring invite before his assignment to Double-A or Triple-A.
The Braves are super high on Harris for the tools and projected feel to hit. He looks the part in the box based on a fluid swing and projects for a natural ability to consistently barrel the ball. My grades remain conservative until I see him perform against pro pitching and unleash the swing a little more. This is a good opportunity for the young outfielder to get some looks on the major league field before an assignment to High-A or Double-A.
Tarnok’s invite is a sign that we will probably see the 22-year-old start to get pushed a little more now that he’s filled out, has worked through some developmental challenges and has almost 200 pro innings. The range of possibilities for Tarnok’s future remains extremely wide between major league starter and upper-level depth. There’s no denying the upside of solid major league arm. The 2021 season will be an important one toward figuring out what he will become.
Vodnik is a favorite of many for pumping mid-90s with a smaller frame. I think he’s a long-term reliever but has the stuff and mentality to be a good one. We will likely see the Braves loosen the reins and let him work a larger load this year, perhaps in Double-A at some point. The spring invite is a nice opportunity for him.
Woods is the pop-up guy who is suddenly hitting upper-90s from a super athletic frame. He earned an alternate site invite last year, which further acknowledged what he has quickly developed into, and this spring invite continues that. He’s a likely reliever but has lively stuff.
It’s good to see Hernandez get acknowledged with an invite. He’s a legitimate reliever prospect who was stuck in High-A in 2019 despite performing with good stuff. Hopefully he will earn a more aggressive assignment this year. Hoekstra’s invite is cool to see. He’s a former position player who saw time at several positions but didn’t hit much, and he transitioned to pitching full-time in 2019. He has shown a lively mid-90s fastball and has performed all the way up to Gwinnett, so this is a nice reward for the 27-year-old.
Alexander is on the verge of losing prospect status, perhaps more so because of bad injury luck and the lack of a 2020 season. It’s a bit of a now-or-never scenario for him in 2021; he needs to perform at Double-A or higher to stay on the map as a potential bench piece in the future.
Trey Harris’s situation isn’t as urgent as Alexander’s, but he is 25 and needs to perform at Triple-A to stay on the map as a potential platoon or bench guy. The spring invite was expected, but perhaps the better move for his career would be a chance with a second-division team.
Dean is an interesting invite name and shows that the Braves are perhaps a little higher on him than I realized. The tools are there; he’s a burner with maybe the best speed in the system, and he covers ground in center. The bat is a bit light for me, so I’ve kept him on the Others list as fourth-outfielder upside and likely depth. But it will be interesting to see how the Braves handle his assignments this year.
There are no overly surprising absences from the non-roster list. Recent draftees like Jared Shuster or young lower-level guys like Vaughn Grissom just aren’t there yet. The one notable omission based on my prospect list is Greyson Jenista. This could be a matter of keeping the numbers as low as possible on the invite list, or it could be a sign of where he stands in the system. I think he’s in a similar boat as Alexander and, on paper, there’s an argument to be made to include him instead. But I don’t have inside thinking on that. We’ll see where Jenista ends up in a month or so.
As an added note, remember this list is for non-roster players, meaning those who aren’t on the 40-man. Those still considered prospects on the 40-man will be at major league spring training and are as follows:
Ian Anderson
Tucker Davidson
Jasseel De La Cruz
Kyle Muller
Phil Pfeifer
Patrick Weigel
Bryse Wilson
Huascar Ynoa
William Contreras
Alex Jackson
Cristian Pache
Great stuff, David!