<img alt="Atlanta Braves v Washington Nationals" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/YW4nAPrLIaOuenkITQwKiseyqYc=/0x0:7080x4720/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73704337/2174051324.0.jpg">
Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images
The 2024 draftee only made one appearance, but carries excitement into 2025 Ethan Bagwell wasn’t the biggest prep player the Atlanta Braves drafted in 2024, but he still brings with him loads of talent and excitement.
How acquired
Bagwell attended Collinsville High School in Illinois, and was selected by the Braves with their 6th round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. Bagwell received an over-slot signing bonus, signing for $825,000.
Draft Report Card
Bagwell was a day two pick by both selection and projection, with him coming in ranked as high as the 231st prospect by MLB Pipeline. Standing at 6’4” and 230 lbs Bagwell has the prototypical pitcher’s body, and his fastball velocity is starting to line up as he has touched 97 mph in games. Bagwell’s best secondary is a vertical slider and he has shown athleticism and some feel for a changeup, though he comes from a cold weather state and will be a project for the Braves.
What we saw in 2024
Short answer: Nothing. Bagwell pitched in one professional game, and to our dismay it was not streamed and we were not in attendance so there is no report from that game beyond the box score. Bagwell started the game and got off to a horrible start, allowing three hits and two runs in the first inning. However he bounced back, retiring five of the last seven batters he faced in the game and striking out two of those to run his total to three strikeouts.
2024 Outlook
Bagwell will almost certainly take the same path as other prep arms have, heading down to Single-A Augusta where he will open the season a month past his 19th birthday. The focus for Bagwell will be on his command first, and the Braves will also likely test his changeup as that tends to be a focus at that level. However, first and foremost we’ll go back to command, where Atlanta has had a tendency to have its Single-A pitchers focus on throwing their four seam fastballs up in the zone. That was the box that 2023 top draftee Garrett Baumann needed to tick as he excelled in the second half of 2024, and they will likely take a similar approach by having Bagwell focus on fastball up and changeup down while mixing in a slider that should be his best pitch. Bagwell will spend most if not all of the 2025 season in Single-A, but the Braves have shown a willingness to move the top performers up to High-A to end the year.
<img alt="Atlanta Braves v Washington Nationals" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/YW4nAPrLIaOuenkITQwKiseyqYc=/0x0:7080x4720/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73704337/2174051324.0.jpg">
Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images
The 2024 draftee only made one appearance, but carries excitement into 2025 Ethan Bagwell wasn’t the biggest prep player the Atlanta Braves drafted in 2024, but he still brings with him loads of talent and excitement.
How acquired
Bagwell attended Collinsville High School in Illinois, and was selected by the Braves with their 6th round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. Bagwell received an over-slot signing bonus, signing for $825,000.
Draft Report Card
Bagwell was a day two pick by both selection and projection, with him coming in ranked as high as the 231st prospect by MLB Pipeline. Standing at 6’4” and 230 lbs Bagwell has the prototypical pitcher’s body, and his fastball velocity is starting to line up as he has touched 97 mph in games. Bagwell’s best secondary is a vertical slider and he has shown athleticism and some feel for a changeup, though he comes from a cold weather state and will be a project for the Braves.
What we saw in 2024
Short answer: Nothing. Bagwell pitched in one professional game, and to our dismay it was not streamed and we were not in attendance so there is no report from that game beyond the box score. Bagwell started the game and got off to a horrible start, allowing three hits and two runs in the first inning. However he bounced back, retiring five of the last seven batters he faced in the game and striking out two of those to run his total to three strikeouts.
2024 Outlook
Bagwell will almost certainly take the same path as other prep arms have, heading down to Single-A Augusta where he will open the season a month past his 19th birthday. The focus for Bagwell will be on his command first, and the Braves will also likely test his changeup as that tends to be a focus at that level. However, first and foremost we’ll go back to command, where Atlanta has had a tendency to have its Single-A pitchers focus on throwing their four seam fastballs up in the zone. That was the box that 2023 top draftee Garrett Baumann needed to tick as he excelled in the second half of 2024, and they will likely take a similar approach by having Bagwell focus on fastball up and changeup down while mixing in a slider that should be his best pitch. Bagwell will spend most if not all of the 2025 season in Single-A, but the Braves have shown a willingness to move the top performers up to High-A to end the year.
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