The Braves have promoted top pitching prospect Mike Soroka to take the ball in tonight’s contest, per a club announcement. Though Soroka had to be added to the 40-man roster, there were openings available.
In a corresponding move that was completed yesterday, righty Chase Whitley was optioned to open a spot on the active roster. The Braves still have eight arms available in the pen.
Soroka, 20, entered the season as one of the game’s most-hyped pitching prospects. By consensus, he placed among the game’s top thirty-five or so pre-MLB players. Baseball America is among the most bullish outlets on the young righty, ranking him 27th on its board.
Thus far, Soroka has done nothing but increase the anticipation with his first four starts at the Triple-A level. In 22 2/3 innings this season for Gwinnett, he sports an attractive 1.99 ERA wih 9.5 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9. He’s also drawing grounders on an eye-popping 69.0% of the balls put in play against him.
Needless to say, it’s an exciting time to be a Braves fan. The organization is off to a nice start and has already welcomed top overall prospect Ronald Acuna, who has knocked the cover off the ball early on.
Now, the club will get a look at perhaps its most exciting young arm. The 28th overall pick in the 2015 draft, Soroka has breezed through the Braves’ system. While he has not typically carried his current strikeout or groundball rates over full seasons, all the tools are there for a front-of-the-rotation starter.
It’s worth noting, too, that Soroka ought not to face many restrictions on his workload this year. He threw 143 frames in 2016 and 153 2/3 last year at Double-A, so he should be clear to handle about as many as the team likes in 2018. If he can hold down a MLB roster spot the rest of the way, Soroka would put himself on course to reach arbitration as a Super Two player after the 2020 season. Regardless, he cannot pass six years of major-league service until after the 2024 campaign, at the earliest.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Acune, Soroka, Albies, and Swanson. The future is bright in Atlanta. Throw in one of the most underrated olayers in baseball in Freeman. The Braves are set up to be a perennial playoff contender in the very near future.
And they should have money to throw at some top free agents this winter. Not a Braves fan, but I see them looking better next year. Doubt they make Playoffs this year but a future force
Greg Maffei – the Braves owner – looted $391 million in fiscal 2012.
That’s more than three years of Braves payroll in just one year.
Google: Greg Maffei Highest paid CEO
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You going to post this on every braves thread?
If you know anything about the Braves ownership situation then you’d understand that his finances have no relevance whatsoever.
The Braves and Red Sox own the same size market.
Why do the Braves operate like a triple-A team owned by the Red Sox?
The Red Sox triple-A team had a payroll near the Braves with Rusney Castillo and Allen Craig at Pawtucket.
You want the answer to that then look no further than the Braves tv contract.
That’s what the Braves and everyone else should do,right? Spend $54 Million on a AAA team with a .472 winning percentage?
Is spending $22 Million on Craig and Castillo in 2017 something to be proud of?
Can we please get this troll removed? I’m tired of seeing his crazy conspiracy theory’s
I doubt it. They only have $40-$50 million to spend and they have needs at 4 positions possibly including a pitcher. They don’t even have catchers coming back. how does this give the Braves enough to spend on big names ? They could if they expand their payroll but that’s doubtful. They absolutely have refused to increase the payroll significantly despite the fact they brought in an increase of 50% on revenue since the opening of Suntrust. There’s no way all that money went to running the park. They could do big things if they increased the payroll to $145 million which I know they can afford based off published information.
I think they’ve been waiting out when exactly to increase the payroll..which next year is now looking like a good time.
The Braves haven’t had a real payroll since the selling of the team by Ted Turner.
That’s the difference: Ted Turner vs Greg Maffei
Increased does not automatically equal increased payroll. Don’t forget the team had overages in the cost of STP and the Battery. Not to mention to new stadium down in North Port Fla which has almost doubled in cost since being approved. 130 million dollar payroll is more than enough. 38m is already committed, 13m to arb players (est), and another 10m to pre arb guys= 61mil roughly with needs at 3b, OF, SP, BP and C. Some creative deals, not to mention maybe extensions with some of the young guys and there you have the 50-60 ish to spend. Plus we don’t have to spend all of it as there may be in season needs that have to be filled..
youre actually painfully clueless.
Do everyone a favour and actually educate yourself about the ownership situation. The Braves operate independently of the owners. They can’t dictate the payroll.
They don’t need any of the top free agents
I’m still not big on Swanson but Albies and Acuña are looking like stars
Very exciting
Very hyped for his start tonight. On a somewhat tangential note, for non-Braves fans who are interested in what he’s like overall, look up some of his interviews over the past few years. They’re VERY worth reading overall.
Albies, Soroka, Acuña, Freeman, Swanson, Inciarte. This is incredible. This is what the rebuild was for.
They’re stacked with even more starting prospects. Ian Anderson, J.B. Bukauskas, Joey Wentz, Kyle Wright, Max Fried, Luiz Gohara, and more. And then Austin Riley, Christian Pache, and more on the position side. Good god.
Hoping he comes up and forces the Braves to keep him up by pitching well. Been ready to see him for a while …
The most ready to produce now pitching prospect the Braves have. That includes some guys that are and have been up like Newcomb, Fried, and even possibly Gohara.
Braves bullpen is weak. If they don’t have any relief prospects to bring up they should convert a starter prospect with a big arm to the pen for this year.
Nothing wrong with starting out in an MLB pen.
Fried currently pitching out of the pen and Minter is still a rookie and one of the best out there. Pen, other than Ramirez, has not been that bad
I don’t think it’s as weak as you think. There are several pitchers who simply need to get over the early season jitters or whatever it is. They have guys who are not known for walking batters throwing too many balls. Their top 5 relievers are decent and should stick around.
“jitters” haha. Seriously what is with the excuses? Most of them have been frustratingly inconsistent. Carle has been the biggest bullpen surprise so far, so hopefully he keeps it up. Gohara has been terrible in AAA and looks to be another overrated Braves pitching prospect behind Newcomb and Folty.
In response to Cas, I will still to this day believe Folty will end up in the bullpen eventually. He reminds me a lot of Archie Bradley.
Gohara is overrated after 1 bad start? Folty has a 2.53 era and Newcomb has shown flashes of being a TOR guy, this is his 2nd year.
Folty has absolutely no mental game necessary to be a good top of the rotation starter, none. His ERA is irrelevant and you will see it be in the high 3s or 4s eventually.
Newcomb will NEVER be a TOR guy with the walk rate he has, NEVER!
Have your even watched a game this year? Folty has been much stronger mentally and Newcomb has shown that he can control his walk rate.
No, Folty has yet to prove that. The evidence is his high pitch counts, lack of going deep into games, and his over 4 BB/9. Likewise for Sean Newcomb.
We have a lot of good relief pitching prospects who will be ready to produce soon. Jon Kennedy just jumped from A+ to AAA and Jacob Webb, Corbin Clouse and Devan Watts are destroying AA., plus Troy Bacon and Chad Sobotka at A+. Coppy’s strategy of drafting interesting college arms in the middle rounds is going to pay off huge.
so braves now have the 3 youngest players in the majors with acuna, Albies, and soroka. #exciting
Rhys Hoskins is five months younger than Bryce Harper.
okay
CaseysPartner is a troll and should be ignored. Always stirring the pot. Get a life man.
Pickles are cucumbers with a mental illness.
Water is not wet.
Let’s not forget Riley who is tearing up the minors and looks to be close to MLB ready with legit power in his bat. They also have Gohara coming back to the majors hopefully soon, and he looks like a solid #3 at least. They have more prospects too, but those are guys who I think are also very very close.
Soroka pitched a great game for his first taste of the big leagues. You can’t ask for much better.
This guys gonna be a good one, atl and phillies will battle it out in this division for the next decade. Nationals time is done when most of there high priced free agents start to take up to much payroll and not produce. Harpers gone aswell. Happy for the braves, great organization.