Sunday, September 20

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ATLANTA --  AJ Gracia has only been a part of the Braves’ organization for a week. But the first-round selection has already found a way to endear himself to his new fanbase. 

“Growing up in Jersey, I had a lot of friends who are Mets fans,” Gracia said. “Hopefully, I can torture them.” 

Taken with the ninth overall selection, Gracia is just one of the many talented players the Braves have added within the past three MLB Drafts. The 21-year-old outfielder will likely be one of the three members of this year’s Draft class who is ranked among the Top 10 Braves prospects when the list is updated in a few weeks.  

The Braves’ Top 10 prospects are currently led by a pair of players taken in the 2024 Draft. Cam Caminiti is the club’s top prospect and MLB’s No. 42 prospect. He was taken with the 24th overall selection two years ago. Eric Hartman ranks as Atlanta’s No. 2 prospect and MLB’s No. 76 prospect. He was taken with the 611th overall pick in 2024. There were a total of 615 picks that year.  

Hartman has hit 21 homers, collected 31 steals and produced a .880 OPS through 82 games with High-A Rome. How did the Braves get such a great steal in the 20th and final round? MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo provided a detailed look at how former Braves reliever Cody Martin played a big part in Atlanta taking a chance on this Canadian player.  

The Braves’ farm system has been regarded as one of the game’s weakest over the past few years. This had something to do with the international signing bans that were part of the sanctions MLB levied after the 2017 season. There was a lingering effect, especially from a depth standpoint. 

But at the same time, when you have two NL Rookies of the Year Michael Harris II (2022) and Drake Baldwin (2025) and a runner-up Spencer Strider (2022) within the past four seasons, you’re doing fine in the development department, regardless of what the farm system rankings might have said. 

Still, it’s pretty impressive to look at how significantly the farm system has improved courtesy of the past few Drafts. 

Tate Southisene (Braves No. 3 prospect), Alex Lodise (No. 4) and Briggs McKenzie (No. 6) were all taken during the 2025 MLB Draft. Southisene is holding his own as a 19-year-old at the High-A level. He could find himself in MLB’s Top 100 Prospects list at some point. 

The gems from this year’s Braves Draft class include Gracia, second-round pick Kaiden McCarthy and third-round pick Jensen Hirschkorn. They are the most likely of the recent selections to find themselves within the Braves’ Top 10 prospects list when it is updated. Another intriguing selection was seventh-round pick Jack Brenner, a catcher who had been committed to Oklahoma.  

Gracia’s willingness to accept a signing bonus that was well under the assigned slot value for the ninth overall pick allowed the Braves to give Hirschkorn the largest signing bonus ever given to a player taken after the second round in MLB Draft history. His $3,997,500 bonus persuaded him to back out of his commitment to pitch for LSU. 

“There's not a whole lot [Hirschkorn] can’t do,” Braves vice president of amateur scouting Ronit Shah said. “He's athletic. He’s a big-time basketball guy. We're really excited to see what he can do. He throws a ton of strikes. We saw him in the summer at a big-time event, the Area Code Games. He struck out nine guys in three innings. It’s hard to do better than that." 

Gracia also agreed to a $3,997,500 signing bonus. The slot value of the No. 9 pick was $6,675,300. He posted an OPS over 1.000 each collegiate season, peaking at 1.121 this past spring. He also hit 43 homers (14, 15 and 14 again) and 39 doubles on a .317 average over his career. 

McCarthy ranked as MLB Pipeline’s No. 61 Draft prospect. The 17-year-old hurler has an incredibly gifted arm that garnered more notice after he reclassified to graduate from high school a year early. He had been committed to pitch for Tennessee. 

Chris Sale has a 2.06 ERA through his first 18 starts. Who holds the Braves record for the lowest ERA posted during an age-37 season or older (min. 20 starts)? 

A. Phil Niekro

B. Warren Spahn

C. Tom Glavine

D. John Smoltz

The Braves are scheduled to begin the 2027 season at Dodger Stadium on March 25. After a three-game series in Los Angeles, they will head to Milwaukee for a three-game set. The home opener is set for April 2 against the Astros. 

The Pirates will be in Atlanta during Memorial Day weekend (May 28-30), and the Yankees will be in town on Father’s Day weekend (June 18-20). Fourth of July celebrations will coincide with a three-game series against the Angels (July 2-4).

Braves manager Walt Weiss has said he hopes Ronald Acuña Jr. returns before this homestand ends on Thursday. But his latest update on Sunday created a reason to think a Friday or Saturday return might be more realistic.

“He’s still got some days ahead of him,” Weiss said. “We just want to make sure he doesn’t have to try to figure it out or struggle up here. We’ve seen that with guys, right? It’s tough to have patience because these guys move the needle. A guy like Acuña is an aircraft carrier. He moves the needle for our team. But we have to use good judgment there.”

The first 15,000 fans in attendance for Wednesday’s game against the Padres will receive a Jermaine Dupri bobblehead celebrating one of Atlanta's own! Fans are also encouraged to arrive early to enjoy a live DJ set in The Battery Atlanta before the game by Dupri himself and the So So Def food truck with menu items inspired by some of JD's biggest hits. Get tickets here.

B. Spahn

Spahn posted a 2.60 ERA over 33 starts during his age-42 season in 1963. He also ranks third in this category with the 2.96 ERA he constructed over 40 appearances (36 starts) in 1959. Niekro is the only other Braves pitcher 37 years or older who has posted a sub-3.00 ERA in a season that included at least 20 starts. He had a 2.88 ERA over 42 starts in 1978.

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