Hey Braves fans.

Just wanted to write a little about who'd off to a good/bad start. I don't even want to put AJ Smith-Shawver on this list cause he's been hotter than hot. We should mostly know just how good he's been. 20 years old and pitching well at AAA. Crazy at how much his fastball command has improved in one year.

Let me know who I missed.

HOT:

Cedric De Grandpre - The 21 year old JUCO pitcher has been one of the more consistently good pitchers in the Braves minors. Has a WHIP just under 1 for both April and May. It's only a matter of time before he gets bumped to High-A. The stuff isn't overpowering, but he throws strikes; we'll just have to see how it plays up at the higher levels.

May - 20.2 IN, 15 H, 6 R, 4 BB, 22 K 1.31 ERA

Jhancarlos Lara - 20 years old and from the 2021 IFA class. Lara is a hard throwing clocking around 95-99 mph. Looks like he's holding the velo well over multiple innings (just had a season high 4 innings in his last start). Mainly a FB/SL, but he's also holding his own very well over his first 7 appearances. Has not given up a HR yet.

May - 13 IN, 8 H, 7 R, 9 BB, 20 K 4.85 ERA, 1.31 WHIP

Jair Casanova - I debated not including him, but he has had a good month of May. It's really been a tale of 2 Mays. First half was brilliant, but the second half of the month has been a bit of a struggle. Still striking out too much, so that's gonna have to come down for any long term success. Struggles have also come when he was moved up in the order, so hopefully he can make the adjustment there too.

May - .298/.403/.579, 7 of 17 hits have been XB

Keshawn Ogans - Had a terrible April, but has turned it around in May. Striking out too much, but he's been one of few decent hitters at Rome.

May - .284/.430/.473, 8 of his 21 hits were for XB

Drake Baldwin - You just don't expect too much offense from a catcher, but his offense has been a huge plus so far in 2023. His defense also looks pretty solid too.

May - .264/.386/.569, 10 of his 19 hits have gone for XB, .984 FPCT, 19% CS%

Hayden Harris - Pitched ok at Augusta, but the Braves must have seen something cause he got promoted to Rome in May. And he's been very good at High-A. He is 24, so hopefully we see him moved up to AA if the continues his excellent performance at Rome. Only had one appearance where he gave up a run, but he ended up giving up 5 runs in that game so it skews his monthly ERA.

May - 9 IN, 7 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 15 K, 5.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP

Rolddy Munoz - Like his brother, he pitched so well in relief that he was moved into a starter role. He struggled at first, but has pitched much better the past few starts. His slider and change-up aren't quite as good as Roddery, and worse FB command, but he's showing flashes.

May - 17.2 IN, 14 H, 7 R, 7 BB, 19 K, 2.55 ERA, 1.19 WHIP

Tyler Owens - While he's been starting, he's going no more than 3 or 4 innings. However, he's pitched well. He's got a big time fastball and he can throw strikes.

May - 15 IN, 13 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 16 K

Drew Lugbauer - Dude has been crushing it in May. 11 XB that includes 6 HRs. Lots of walks. You just wish he could reign in the K-rate to even just 30%. I'd love to see him at AAA at some point just to see how he can handle it.

May - .254/.382/.651

Domino Robles - He's 25 and picked up by the Braves. Another great find. He's been dominant at AA.

May - 22.2 IN, 16 H, 8 R, 5 BB, 33 K, 2.38 ERA, 0.93 WHIP

Alan Rangel - It's not always pretty due tot he walks, but somehow he consistently throws 5 innings with respectable numbers.

May - 20.2 IN, 14 H, 6 R, 11 BB, 29 K, 2.61 ERA, 1.21 WHIP

Victor Vodnik - Love putting him here. Just 1 appearnce where he gave up any runs. He should probably be at AAA now.

May - 11.1 IN, 7 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 16 K, 1.59 ERA, 0.97 WHIP

COLD:

Ambioris Tavarez - Carried a 44% K-rate. .361 BABIP with a .186 BA. 71 wRC+. You almost want to forgive the poor offense cause he can be such a good defender. However, for all the amazing plays he can make, he committed 12 errors in just 33 games for a not good .917 FPCT. His play was so bad that he was demoted to the FCL. So it'll be a week or two before we see him again.

Jared Johnson - Repeating Low-A and still struggling. He'll look amazing one inning and clueless the next. He also struggles batter to batter as it seems he goes into deep counts against everyone. This just explodes his pitch count and keeps him from pitching deeper into games (has not pitched 4 innings yet). He's also susceptible to the HR ball as he has a 1.99 HR/9 (it was 1.86 in Low-A last year).

May - 13 IN, 11 H, 7 R, 10 BB, 21 K, 4.85 ERA, 1.62 ERA

Rome K-squad of Brandol Mezquita, Bryse Horne, Cory Acton, Eliziel Stevens, Kadon Morton, Stephen Paolini, and Brandon Parker. All hitting around .200 or worse and carrying K-rates over 35%.

Adam Zebrowski - After a torrid start in April, he's come crashing down in May.

May - .181/.272/.375

Geraldo Quintero - Tore up Low-A last year, but struggled a bit in High-A after the promotion. I think expectations were high, but not too high for Quintero as he'll be repeating High-A. It's not gone well as his numbers are actually worse than last year. Since getting to High-A, his ground ball rate has been hovering around 48%. It's just hard to survive with that high of a groundball rate. His walk rate has also taken a hit, so he doesn't have the OB to fall back on.

May - .200/.263/.267

Patrick Halligan - Honestly, his numbers are good enough to be on the HOT side, but he's struggled after moving into a start role, so that's why he's here. Still, I think he's a worthy find by the Braves scouts. He's just 23 years old and is a big hoss at 6'6" and 230 lbs. I'm still excited to see what he can do throughout the season whether it's in relief or starting.

May - 13 IN, 14 H, 11 R, 3 BB, 16 K, 4.85 ERA, 1.31 WHIP

Ian Mejia - He's so good the first time through the order, but so bad the second time through. It's really bad the second time through. I also think there are times when the command is fading and he'll get left in way too long. It might be one of those things where they are just trying to save the bullpen, but his overall numbers are still not great.

May - 20.2 IN, 23 H, 15 R, 3 BB, 22 K, 5.23 ERA, 1.26 WHIP

Ben Dum - It's his 3rd stint at High-A and he's 26 years old. I had hopes after last year, and while he's recently off the IL, he's not been good.

May - 6.1 IN, 7 H, 4 R, 5 BB, 5 K, 5.68 ERA, 1.89 WHIP

Landon Stephens - Unlike Lugbauer, the power hitting Stephens has been cold the entire season. It has not been pretty.

May - .151/.318/.340

Roddery Munoz - He's struggled since getting to AAA. The last 2 appearances have been good, so hopefully that turns into a trend.

May - 11.1 IN, 13 H, 10 R, 12 BB, 15 K

Tanner Gordon - the less I say the better. Dominated AA, but has been just torched at AAA. He should be transitioned to the pen at this point. He's just not a starter.

Shout out:

Didier Fuentes - Overall numbers don't look great, but he's 17 years old in Low-A and really holding his own. Although he's been giving up too many hits, he's not walking many batters and that's likely the main reason he's still in Low-A. He focuses too much at the bottom of the zone, so hopefully he'll learn to move the ball around the zone more as he matures.

Jorge Bautista - Repeating Low-A, but showing he can handle it. I would expect him to also get a promotion at some point this season. He's also 22 so really has nothing left to prove in Low-A at this point.

Tyler Tolve and Jesse Franklin are back! They are both off to cold starts though. They really need to start heating up.