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Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports
While unlikely to take a second baseman early, there are plenty of solid choices down the board for the Braves to choose from. In what is a very top-heavy position in the upcoming MLB draft, second base probably won’t be a position the Braves target — at least very early on. With Ozzie Albies under a team-friendly deal for a few more seasons, there’s no reason to take a second baseman with a higher draft pick unless Atlanta’s scouts are just absolutely enamored with a player.
Still, there are plenty of intriguing candidates that should be available on the second and third days of the draft, and there is always a slight possibility some of the top guys could slide relative to their projected draft picks giving the Braves some solid value at the 24th overall selection.
Why the Braves will or won’t draft a second baseman early
As we’ve already mentioned, Albies has second base locked down. There have been sprinkles of rumors via social media — albeit not very credible ones — that the Braves could shift Albies over to his prior position of shortstop sometime in the future. Personally, I don’t buy those rumors for one second, just because Albies’ defense at second is too valuable to let go and he also does not possess the necessary arm strength to play an efficient shortstop.
In terms of second base depth throughout the rest of the Braves system, the story is a bit different. Atlanta doesn’t possess a true top-tier second base prospect, which isn’t out of the ordinary for a system that focuses primarily on stockpiling arms over bats.
Nacho Alvarez Jr. could hypothetically see time at second base, but has really only suited up at shortstop and third base for the majority of his professional career. Geraldo Quintero has primarily played second base, but due to a lack of power and any other plus tools, he profiles more likely as a solid bench piece at best. There is the possibility of younger guys like Jose Perdomo, Ambioris Tavarez and Mario Baez making the shift from shortstop to second base. But that scenario would likely only happen if all three fail to produce at the plate or struggle defensively.
Without much depth at the position, there is the possibility the Braves take a second baseman; I just wouldn’t expect it to be in the early rounds.
The top guys
This year’s draft is headlined by a plethora of bats, a few of which are either true second basemen or guys who could spend a bulk of their career there.
The top two guys — Oregon State’s Tracis Bazzana and West Virginia’s JJ Wetherholt — are locks to go inside the top-10 barring some kind of epic collapse. While Wetherhold split time between second and short, Bazzana was a true second baseman for the Beavers. Unless there is some sort of freefall in their draft stock, expect both Bazzana and Wetherholt to be long gone by the time the Braves pick.
Tennessee’s Christian Moore is a guy who is projected to go as high as eighth overall, with some scouts projecting him as a late first rounder/early day two pick. There’s a lot to like with Moore’s offensive profile as he swatted 31 homers for the Volunteers en route to a national title this season. However, like Albies, Moore possesses a lackluster arm, so he would most-likely be limited to second base or center field.
If there’s a middle infield player to like for the Braves in this draft, Texas high schooler Theo Gillen may be that guy. Gillen possesses a plus bat and excellent raw power from the left side and he uses his 6’2 frame to really get a lot of momentum behind the ball and push it to all fields. Again, arm strength is a negative for Gillen so he also may be limited to second base. However, unlike the previous names we’ve mentioned, Gillen is young enough to where he most-likely would be too far away from the big leagues to cause any real type of logjam with Albies.
Day two/three targets
After Gillen, there is a tremendous dropoff in terms of top-tier talent at the second base position. Now, that’s not to say there isn’t some tremendous value lurking around in days two and three. So we’re going to take a look at some of those potential steals.
Peyton Stovall, Arkansas
Stovall is a guy who had a very successful career with the Razorbacks, helping Arkansas to the College World Series in his freshman season. While his bat is consistent and he uses all fields to his advantage, there isn’t much power in his game and he has struggled with various injuries during his collegiate career including a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. All-in-all, Stovall might be a fast mover through the minor leagues, but I don’t think he’s projected as the kind of impact player the Braves would target unless they plan on moving him to another position or feel they can tap into more power while getting him at a lower draft pick.
Jay Abernathy, North Cobb High School (GA)
If there was a day two or three guy who had “Braves” written all over him, it’s Abernathy. The 18-year-old is a product of North Cobb High School, which is only a 30 minute drive from Truist Park.
On the field, Abernathy checks all of the boxes when it comes to positional prep prospects the Braves like to target. Much like fellow Georgia high school alumni Isaiah Drake, Abernathy’s athleticism jumps off the screen as he possesses a solid glove with great range in addition to being a plus-runner. The one thing holding Abernathy back from being a sneaky first rounder is his bat, which was the same issue Drake had. While Abernathy’s offense is a good bit ahead of where Drake’s was coming out of high school, he still needs to retool a few things with his swing. If he makes the proper adjustments and continues to fill out his frame, there’s a good reason for a team to take a chance on him with a relatively high pick.
If the Braves like Abernathy enough to take him, they’ll probably have to do so fairly early on day two and they’ll also have to pay an overslot price most-likely to pry him away from his Tennessee commitment.
Daunte Stuart, Memphis/Randy Flores, Alabama St./Zach Selinger, Fairfield
While Abernathy would be an excellent choice for the Braves, selecting prep guys who profile as a second baseman isn’t exactly this front office’s MO. However, Alex Anthopolous and company haven’t shied away from taking older college guys to fill out positional prospects late in the draft; and that’s exactly where Stuart, Flores and Selinger come in.
Stuart is an older draft candidate at 23-years-old and spent a majority of his time with Northwestern State University and Memphis at second base. In his senior year with the Tigers, Stuart posted a .963 OPS with eight homers. However, he was nearly two years older than the competition and due to the lack of a better offensive profile, Stuart projects more as a bench piece down the line.
As for Flores, there is no doubt he’ll be able to field his position and be an efficient baserunner at the big league level. However, the biggest knock against the undersized utility man — who has spent a large chunk of time at second base — has been his bat. But last season, Flores did all he could to squash those concerns, slashing .341/.424.558 with nine homers. Flores would be a sneaky-good senior sign if the Braves could make it happen.
The final guy we’ll talk about in this preview is Fairfield’s Zach Selinger. A fifth-year graduate, Selinger also fits the bill as an older guy with plenty of defensive versatility, a good feel for the strike zone but an underwhelming amount of pop to go along with it. Like Flores, Selinger could be a low-risk, high-reward guy as someone who controls the zone and makes loud contact.
<img alt="NCAA Baseball: Kentucky Super Regional" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/hr4XGEUdjiwNcBPcygGHH7EKpb8=/0x0:3991x2661/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73453287/usa_today_23512983.0.jpg">
Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports
While unlikely to take a second baseman early, there are plenty of solid choices down the board for the Braves to choose from. In what is a very top-heavy position in the upcoming MLB draft, second base probably won’t be a position the Braves target — at least very early on. With Ozzie Albies under a team-friendly deal for a few more seasons, there’s no reason to take a second baseman with a higher draft pick unless Atlanta’s scouts are just absolutely enamored with a player.
Still, there are plenty of intriguing candidates that should be available on the second and third days of the draft, and there is always a slight possibility some of the top guys could slide relative to their projected draft picks giving the Braves some solid value at the 24th overall selection.
Why the Braves will or won’t draft a second baseman early
As we’ve already mentioned, Albies has second base locked down. There have been sprinkles of rumors via social media — albeit not very credible ones — that the Braves could shift Albies over to his prior position of shortstop sometime in the future. Personally, I don’t buy those rumors for one second, just because Albies’ defense at second is too valuable to let go and he also does not possess the necessary arm strength to play an efficient shortstop.
In terms of second base depth throughout the rest of the Braves system, the story is a bit different. Atlanta doesn’t possess a true top-tier second base prospect, which isn’t out of the ordinary for a system that focuses primarily on stockpiling arms over bats.
Nacho Alvarez Jr. could hypothetically see time at second base, but has really only suited up at shortstop and third base for the majority of his professional career. Geraldo Quintero has primarily played second base, but due to a lack of power and any other plus tools, he profiles more likely as a solid bench piece at best. There is the possibility of younger guys like Jose Perdomo, Ambioris Tavarez and Mario Baez making the shift from shortstop to second base. But that scenario would likely only happen if all three fail to produce at the plate or struggle defensively.
Without much depth at the position, there is the possibility the Braves take a second baseman; I just wouldn’t expect it to be in the early rounds.
The top guys
This year’s draft is headlined by a plethora of bats, a few of which are either true second basemen or guys who could spend a bulk of their career there.
The top two guys — Oregon State’s Tracis Bazzana and West Virginia’s JJ Wetherholt — are locks to go inside the top-10 barring some kind of epic collapse. While Wetherhold split time between second and short, Bazzana was a true second baseman for the Beavers. Unless there is some sort of freefall in their draft stock, expect both Bazzana and Wetherholt to be long gone by the time the Braves pick.
Tennessee’s Christian Moore is a guy who is projected to go as high as eighth overall, with some scouts projecting him as a late first rounder/early day two pick. There’s a lot to like with Moore’s offensive profile as he swatted 31 homers for the Volunteers en route to a national title this season. However, like Albies, Moore possesses a lackluster arm, so he would most-likely be limited to second base or center field.
If there’s a middle infield player to like for the Braves in this draft, Texas high schooler Theo Gillen may be that guy. Gillen possesses a plus bat and excellent raw power from the left side and he uses his 6’2 frame to really get a lot of momentum behind the ball and push it to all fields. Again, arm strength is a negative for Gillen so he also may be limited to second base. However, unlike the previous names we’ve mentioned, Gillen is young enough to where he most-likely would be too far away from the big leagues to cause any real type of logjam with Albies.
Day two/three targets
After Gillen, there is a tremendous dropoff in terms of top-tier talent at the second base position. Now, that’s not to say there isn’t some tremendous value lurking around in days two and three. So we’re going to take a look at some of those potential steals.
Peyton Stovall, Arkansas
Stovall is a guy who had a very successful career with the Razorbacks, helping Arkansas to the College World Series in his freshman season. While his bat is consistent and he uses all fields to his advantage, there isn’t much power in his game and he has struggled with various injuries during his collegiate career including a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. All-in-all, Stovall might be a fast mover through the minor leagues, but I don’t think he’s projected as the kind of impact player the Braves would target unless they plan on moving him to another position or feel they can tap into more power while getting him at a lower draft pick.
Jay Abernathy, North Cobb High School (GA)
If there was a day two or three guy who had “Braves” written all over him, it’s Abernathy. The 18-year-old is a product of North Cobb High School, which is only a 30 minute drive from Truist Park.
On the field, Abernathy checks all of the boxes when it comes to positional prep prospects the Braves like to target. Much like fellow Georgia high school alumni Isaiah Drake, Abernathy’s athleticism jumps off the screen as he possesses a solid glove with great range in addition to being a plus-runner. The one thing holding Abernathy back from being a sneaky first rounder is his bat, which was the same issue Drake had. While Abernathy’s offense is a good bit ahead of where Drake’s was coming out of high school, he still needs to retool a few things with his swing. If he makes the proper adjustments and continues to fill out his frame, there’s a good reason for a team to take a chance on him with a relatively high pick.
If the Braves like Abernathy enough to take him, they’ll probably have to do so fairly early on day two and they’ll also have to pay an overslot price most-likely to pry him away from his Tennessee commitment.
Daunte Stuart, Memphis/Randy Flores, Alabama St./Zach Selinger, Fairfield
While Abernathy would be an excellent choice for the Braves, selecting prep guys who profile as a second baseman isn’t exactly this front office’s MO. However, Alex Anthopolous and company haven’t shied away from taking older college guys to fill out positional prospects late in the draft; and that’s exactly where Stuart, Flores and Selinger come in.
Stuart is an older draft candidate at 23-years-old and spent a majority of his time with Northwestern State University and Memphis at second base. In his senior year with the Tigers, Stuart posted a .963 OPS with eight homers. However, he was nearly two years older than the competition and due to the lack of a better offensive profile, Stuart projects more as a bench piece down the line.
As for Flores, there is no doubt he’ll be able to field his position and be an efficient baserunner at the big league level. However, the biggest knock against the undersized utility man — who has spent a large chunk of time at second base — has been his bat. But last season, Flores did all he could to squash those concerns, slashing .341/.424.558 with nine homers. Flores would be a sneaky-good senior sign if the Braves could make it happen.
The final guy we’ll talk about in this preview is Fairfield’s Zach Selinger. A fifth-year graduate, Selinger also fits the bill as an older guy with plenty of defensive versatility, a good feel for the strike zone but an underwhelming amount of pop to go along with it. Like Flores, Selinger could be a low-risk, high-reward guy as someone who controls the zone and makes loud contact.
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