Braves prospects show promise in Spring Breakout
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- As Terry Pendleton prepared to serve as the manager of the Braves prospect team that played the Tigers prospect team in a Spring Breakout game on Sunday afternoon, he said fans should be patient with John Gil and Luis Guanipa, a pair of teenagers who have
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- As Terry Pendleton prepared to serve as the manager of the Braves prospect team that played the Tigers prospect team in a Spring Breakout game on Sunday afternoon, he said fans should be patient with John Gil and Luis Guanipa, a pair of teenagers who have experienced just one full season at the professional level.
“Both of them are young puppies, but you will continue to see them progress,” Pendleton said. “If they continue to grow the way they have, I think you will see them in the big leagues.”
Gil, who ranks as the Braves' No. 14 prospect, and Guanipa, who ranks No. 15 on the same list, were the two highest ranked Braves position player prospects to participate in this year’s event. Both should begin this season where they ended last season, with Single-A Augusta.
Both prospects produced a near .800 OPS in the Florida Complex League before receiving a promotion. With the elimination of short-season Rookie-level teams, they made the jump to the Single-A ranks and struggled. Guanipa had a .450 OPS in 32 games and Gil had a .552 OPS over 39 games.
This was a humbling experience for Guanipa, who received a $2.5 million signing bonus. Gil has successfully played the underdog role since receiving a far more meager $110,000 signing bonus.
“We knew what we were sending there,” Pendleton said. “We knew it was going to be kids that weren't going to get crushed by this. Some kids lose confidence and they're done. You have to be real sensitive with certain kids. You can't send them there knowing that if they fail or don't succeed, they're done. These two kids will fight you, too, until they’ve got nothing left, you know? We knew they would bounce back if they had success or didn't have success.”
Gil started at shortstop on Sunday and went 1-for-3 with an infield single. He exited under his own power after seemingly pulling a left leg muscle while attempting to beat out a grounder in the sixth. Guanipa batted ninth and went 0-for-2 with a strikeout while playing center field.
Three of Sunday’s pitchers ranked among the Braves’ Top 12 prospects. Here is a look at how they did:
RHP JR Ritchie (Braves No. 8 prospect): The 21-year-old right-hander’s parents were among the friends and family members who flew from the Seattle area to see him start this game. They were treated to seeing him work a perfect first inning against three players from MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list -- Max Clark (No. 6), Kevin McGonigle (No. 28) and Thayron Liranzo (No. 81).
📩 SUBSCRIBE TO THE BASEBALL TRAVELER NEWSLETTER
Ritchie ended the first inning by striking out Liranzo with a 97 mph fastball. The young hurler, who was taken with the 35th overall selection in the 2022 MLB Draft, allowed two runs, surrendered five hits and recorded a pair of strikeouts in three innings of work. He missed most of the 2023 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
“It was a great experience all around,” Ritchie said. “I loved it and I felt great. It was everything I thought it would be.”
RHP Garrett Baumann (Braves No. 9 prospect): The 6-foot-8 pitcher towers over Isaiah Drake, his 6-foot roommate last year. Drake playfully got under Baumann’s skin in the dugout last year. The tall pitcher responded with an impressive performance over the remainder of that outing.
“He wasn’t happy about what [Drake] did, so I asked him a question,” Pendleton said. “'Why don’t you take that to the mound with you?' You could tell what he has to offer. At times, it seemed like he wasn’t sure of himself. I said, ‘Hey we need to see that bulldog on the mound.'”
Baumann’s inexperience and nerves were on display as he walked five of the 10 hitters he faced on Sunday. He flashed his potential with a 98 mph fastball that he will try to harness as he likely begins the upcoming season with High-A Rome.
RHP Didier Fuentes (Braves No. 12 prospect): The 19-year-old hurler was added to Atlanta’s roster Sunday and he took advantage of the chance to shine. He flashed an upper 90s fastball while recording three strikeouts in a scoreless seventh and added two more strikeouts in a scoreless eighth. He finished his outing with two strikeouts in a scoreless ninth, finishing his day with a game-high 7 K's.
Supervising Club Reporter Mark Bowman has covered the Braves for MLB.com since 2001.
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between
Prospect Peña quietly drawing raves in Brewers' farm system
PHOENIX – Jesús Made was at the top of the Brewers’ lineup for Sunday’s 9-7 loss to the Reds in the finale of MLB’s four-day Spring Breakout, a fitting perch when you consider that the 17-year-old infielder is under a bright spotlight as MLB Pipeline’s No. 55 prospect. Made could
Brecht -- in 1st outing since '24 Draft -- wows at Spring Breakout
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Sunday's Spring Breakout showcase was the perfect unveiling for Rockies No. 5 prospect Brody Brecht. A right-handed pitcher from the University of Iowa whom the Rockies selected 38th overall last summer, Brecht had a nice collegiate resume, an interesting backstory as a former wide receiver for the
Yanks' Lagrange flashes triple-digit heat in Spring Breakout
SARASOTA, Fla. -- There was an audible “Ooh” from the crowd at Ed Smith Stadium, and Carlos Lagrange quickly glanced beyond the right-field wall, checking the velocity of the pitch he’d just thrown in Saturday’s 5-4 Spring Breakout loss to the Orioles. It had registered in the triple digits, and
Bradfield dedicates Spring Breakout performance to late friend
SARASOTA, Fla. -- It was about more than playing in the national spotlight. More than the dinner bet placed with an old college teammate earlier in the month. More than a game. As Enrique Bradfield Jr. slid home to score a run during the first inning of Saturday night’s Spring
'Hungry' Alcántara hoping to pounce on big league prey in '25
MESA, Ariz. -- The thing about jaguars is, you don’t want to see one when it’s hungry. So when Cubs legend Sammy Sosa spoke to the organization’s No. 6 prospect per MLB Pipeline -- and the No. 89 prospect overall -- the former slugger gave him some apt advice. “His
Rainiers broadcaster Pay talks historic role on MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Prospect Santos 'electric' in Spring Breakout start
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Malcolm Moore knew Winston Santos was locked in before he even threw a pitch. In the second annual Spring Breakout game, Santos -- the Rangers’ No. 5 prospect, per MLB Pipeline -- was throwing to Moore, the Rangers’ No. 4 prospect and highest-ranked catcher. The battery more
Switch-pitcher Cijntje deals from both sides in Spring Breakout
GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Jurrangelo Cijntje knew who’d be waiting for him in the batter’s box when he emerged from the visiting bullpen on Friday evening. The Mariners’ switch-pitcher had seen Guardians infielder Travis Bazzana recently at a card-signing event, to which they each joked, “I’m going to see you soon,”
Fans in this Minor League town are hungry for ... the Spicy Meatballs?!?
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Chandler adds mix to upper-90s heat in stellar Spring Breakout start
CLEARWATER, Fla. -- In the inaugural Spring Breakout game a year ago, as he was coming out to pitch the ninth inning, Bubba Chandler slammed a Red Bull and declared “let’s do this” before pumping upper-90s heat.