Takeaways from Atlanta's Spring Breakout matchup against the Detroit Tigers

The Braves prospects dropped their matchup today, but the observations are much more important than the final score

The Atlanta Braves prospects dropped their matchup against the Detroit Tigers prospects, 6-3, in North Port’s CoolToday Park on Sunday.

Here’s what you need to know about from the contest.

Ritchie’s stuff took a leap this offseason

JR Ritchie returned from Tommy John last summer and showed good (but not great) stuff - the fastball velo was a bit down and his slider was a bit loose and slurvy.

Today was better.

Ritchie sat in the upper-90s early, touching 98 and 99 in the first inning as he took down Max Clark (flyout), Kevn McGonigle (flyout) and Thayron Liranzo (strikeout) in the first.

In a post-start interview, Ritchie said that he had a normal offseason for the first time in two years, allowing him to really focus on his lifting and training. He also thanked the organization’s medical staff for their help with coming back from the surgery - smart kid.

His slider looked to be a little crisper (and came in around 85, my sweet spot), getting good drop and lateral movement as well, while the changeup continued to show its promise. While both Clark (double) and McGonigle (single) managed to get hits their next time up, he navigated the rest of the lineup cleanly. The stuff did drop off a bit late, though, so that depth in his outings will be something to watch in 2025.

When/if Drake Baldwin and AJ Smith-Shawver graduate from prospect status this season, there’s going to be a handful of guys considered for Atlanta’s top prospect. If Ritchie continues to flash the same caliber of stuff as he showed today, he’ll be the #1 prospect by the end of the season

Gil’s physically matured a bit

John Gil is listed at 6’1, 175 on Baseball Reference, but that’s clearly outdated. He’s added strength and size but managed to retain his speed and agility. He started a smooth double play early and beat out a grounder deep down the left side in the third inning.

The inexperience came through, too - he took a big turn on Luke Waddell’s single up the middle and was backpicked by centerfielder Max Clark for the final out of the inning, killing a budding Braves rally.

But overall, there was nothing to dissuade us from thinking that he could be the organization’s top shortstop option. While it’s a bit concerning that he left the game in the sixth with a lower-body injury, it might have just been a cramp - something similar happened to outfielder Isaiah Drake last year.

Baumann’s added velo, but not a slider

Garrett Baumann’s also been an interesting prospect for me - he was measured at 6’8, 245 out of high school but sat just 93-94 last year.

Yeah, about that.

He popped 100 against the Tigers today, although it was clear he was overthrowing and his control suffered as a result.¹ He’s definitely not a finished product - he didn’t throw a single MLB-caliber breaking ball today - but having 100 in your pocket and playing a changeup off of that can definitely get you through a lineup at least once.

I’m torn between trying to give him a curveball as a third pitch and just leaning into the power profile with both a cutter and a sinker - given that arm angle, I feel like some sort of two-seamer would just be savage for the big hurler.

I was disappointed in Guanipa

There’s not a ton of great outfielders in the Braves system, but Luis Guanipa has consistently been one of most highly-regarded options out on the grass. It’s largely a function of his pedigree as a seven-figure bonus baby out of the 2021 J-15 class out of Venezuela, but he’s seen as having the highest ceiling of the lower-level outfielders.

It’s wondering if it’s time to retire that talk.

Guanipa, who hit a combined .219 between rookie ball and Single-A Augusta last year, continued those struggles today. He finished 0-2 with a strikeout and struggled defensively. He seemed almost hesitant in the field, getting a fly ball taken away from him by the right fielder and just being in poor position a time or two in the grass.

If there’s an organizational weakness after not having very much depth at shortstop, it’s definitely in the outfield.

Promising arm on the rise

Didier Fuentes pitched the final three innings and showed the stuff to be a future major league starter. Facing eleven batters, he picked up seven strikeouts (five strikeouts swinging), including on each of the fastball/slider/changeup trio. Finished with ten whiffs and two groundouts.

While the changeup’s the distant third of his arsenal, just stabilizing it as a 45 pitch can give him a potent enough arsenal to be effective at the major league level. He threw only a few today, but it looked good enough to be more than just competitive.

After an amazing season in Augusta last year - 2.74 ERA in 17 starts with 98 strikeouts in 75.2 innings - look for him to start his age-20 season in Rome and maybe make it to Columbus before the end of the year.

1. Of his four walks, I think three of them had two strikes, telling me he was trying to finesse too much instead of just trusting his stuff in the zone