As expected, the Braves activated southpaw Drew Smyly from the 10-day injured list in advance of his scheduled start tonight against the Diamondbacks. Infielder Sean Kazmar Jr. was optioned to the alternate training site to create 26-man roster room for Smyly. Outfielder Cristian Pache is also headed to the alternate site after being activated from the 10-day IL.
Smyly will make a relatively quick return after hitting the IL on April 16 (retroactive to April 13) with left forearm inflammation. While the injury wasn’t thought to be overly serious, any sort of forearm problem had to be seen as a concern given Smyly’s lengthy health history, including a past Tommy John surgery that kept him from pitching in either the 2017 or 2018 seasons.
The IL stint could perhaps serve as a bit of a reset for Smyly, who had a quality start in his Braves debut on April 6 before struggling in his second outing on April 11, allowing five runs in five innings against the Nationals. Smyly signed a one-year, $11MM free agent deal with Atlanta last winter, scoring a nice payday in the wake of a bounce-back 2020 season with the Giants.
A groin injury sent Pache to the injured list on April 14, so he’ll return after a minimal absence, though he is no longer on the MLB roster. Pache has been heralded as one of baseball’s top prospects over the last few years, though he has only barely gotten his feet wet at the big league level, with 13 games and 35 plate appearances in 2020-21. Pache is still only 22 years old and had played in only 26 Triple-A games in 2019, so the Braves clearly want him to get some more minor league seasoning in order to sharpen up his skills at the plate. Pache is seen as a future Major League regular based on elite glovework alone, and becoming even an average hitter will raise his ceiling to a potential All-Star level.
Kazmar’s return to the majors ends after two games and one plate appearance, though it was enough to seal one of the more extraordinary comeback stories in recent baseball history. Kazmar played in 19 games with the Padres in 2008 and didn’t make it back to the big leagues until this season, keeping his career going through years of grinding in the farm systems of four different organizations (Padres, Mariners, Mets, Braves).
Any “expert” who still has Pache as a top 20 prospect in baseball should take a lap. The man flat out can’t hit. Amazing fielder but a younger Kevin Pillar is not a blue chip prospect.
Lighten up Francis. He’s 22 & last year was a lost year. Not every top 20 prospect turns into Bryce Harper.
If Braves fans didn’t over hype the heck out of every young player they have just because Acuna and Albies are great, you wouldn’t see comments like mine. Their fans went nuts here when I said Dansby is not good, AA hoards prospects and should have sold on Pache. He doesn’t have to be Bryce Harper but can he at least competent with a bat?
He is 22 and “experts,” said he is good, so it must mean he is good.
I’m still waiting to see the amazing defense. See nothing.
Still a self hating fan I see. What a pathetic existence that must be.
Not as pathetic as watching this team collapse/lose in the postseason every season they are in it and more importantly, do nothing to fix it because they are attached to their prospects who have a high probability of failing.
I mean you’re saying us Braves fans overhype prospects, which I guess bugs you because it’s an extreme? Yet you saying Dansby isn’t good is also an extreme because it’s blatantly false. Dansby is good. Is he the best in the game, no. But he’s good. To say he’s not is a ridiculous comment.
Yeah tell me how great Dansby and his 85 career OPS+ is.
The Braves have a good prospect track record.
OPS is flawed, for one. You’re mashing up OBP with slugging percentage, and they don’t carry the same weight.
Second, I really don’t care what his saber stats say. The guy can play. Jeter statistically never matched up to ARod, but in no way was he a lesser player.
More to the game than numbers alone.
OPS+ which is park adjusted is certainly not flawed. If you have to say that then the player you are defending is not any good. Swanson is a project for a rebuilding team. He has nowhere near the production of his fellow SS. Saying “the guy can play” while dismissing stats isn’t the insult you think lol. The Braves need a new SS upgrade by 2022. Dansby is not the answer. ARod was a significantly better hitter than Jeter although tainted by PEDs. The stats are not even close.
But, it is flawed. I understand it’s park adjusted. It’s a mash up of two different stats, with two varying degrees of importance. I don’t care enough to argue with you though any more because you seem dug in. ::shrug::
The Braves do not need a SS upgrade. Dansby is perfectly capable. I mean 3B has been largely abysmal in Atlanta since Donaldson departed, but you feel like SS needs the upgrade? Interesting, and perplexing.
Yes, A-Rod was the better hitter, btw. No he was not the better player, though
The Braves having a bigger hole at 3B is not an excuse for having a bad SS. Pick any stat you want with Dansby, his numbers are not good. As for Jeter and Arod, the steroids throw a wrench into that debate. But if you ignore all that and just look at performance Arod was better by a mile.
You are blind then
I mean, the guy didn’t show an 85 last year. You do realize that Jose Bautista had a career OPS+ of roughly 90 before hitting 54 bombs in 2010 and entering a decade with an OPS+ of 136 and roughly 300 Homers, right?
@amk1920 dude Dansby threw up a 2.7 WAR in 60 games last year. That on a 2.5 multiple ofr full season is 6.75. How is that not good?
Yo’….check ESPN. Dansby had 2.6 WAR by them. That leads ALL MLB SS’s…even Tatis at 2.5.
Once again reassurance is everything for these people.
It’s the same boring and useless argument when they say, “look at Maddux, Glavine, Smoltz early years.”
The team is not good and will never be with their GM and ownership. We have been hearing the same tired arguments since 2018 when the rebuild was over. There approach and mindset to win now is no different from when they were in the middle. Get a piece here and there but don’t go all in. Results speak for themselves.
Yea. It’s definitely too early to erase his prospect pedigree, not to mention most top 20 prospects don’t pan out anyways. So labeling him as such, is meaningless. And not to make too many excuses, but in 2019 he barely seasoned in AAA at all, 2020 was a waste year, and suddenly he’s expected to hit big league pitching? He wasn’t exactly crushing it in AA when he got called up and didn’t spend a lot of time there either. Point being, it’s hard to say he can’t hit major league pitching, when there is a lot of development that has yet to happen. Maybe you’re right… and clearly today he is overmatched. But if you put most top 20 prospects that should arguably be in AA ball, would clearly struggle against major league pitching. If that’s the case, then no prospect deserves the rank they are given. It’s all about projection…
Any fan who judges a player on 35 PAs should take a lap because your probably a 300 lbs Cheeto eating moron. You could use it.
I am judging him off his entire minor league track record where his bat has never been anything special. And it turns out I was underselling him. MLB.com has him at #11 overall. LOL there are so many players ranked below him who you would rather have. You are the epitome of the crazy Braves fans who cant handle any criticism about their team. I’m willing to back up my stance. The fact you make up insults proves deep down you know I am right. ATL fans still can’t tell me why he deserves to be ranked that high.
it is called reassurance. It’s an ego thing to calm distance themselves from reality.
I am not a Braves fan, bro. He can be a league average hitter and still be a top prospect due to his defense. Prospect ranks don’t mean future superstar ranks. They mean likelihood of being everyday regulars. He has a high likelihood as all has has to be is an average or even a below average hitter and he will still be an above average player.
Thats a completely fine valuation that I actually agree with, but the top 20 prospects all have superstar ceilings and his is nowhere near that. My issue is not with thinking he can be average. Its that with fans thinking he is some untouchable and the idea of AA trading him at peak value is ludicrous. AA also being a prospect hoarder has something to do with it too. At some point its too much. They could move a very uninspiring ceiling in Pache and still have Waters.
Your insight is clearly flawed just like the dummies on here giving up on adell. Sober up people. Steve Nebraska gave you a very legit clear answer as to why your over reacting and making something out of nothing. Clearly the Braves org wants Pache to develop more but that doesn’t take away from pedigree and the ceiling in which the entire point of prospects is based on. You seem to be bashing on him because you think he needs to be an instant acuna, he’s not we know that, but ask any real MLB insider with knowledge and Pache is ranked properly off his defense alone. He’s an instant gold glove contender and he’s had a whole whopping 35 at bats in the last season and this season. It’s funny the rays have Kevin k and his whole game is based on his defense but hey according to you if they can’t hit there is no value. Clueless evaluation by two fans clearly not in the loop how prospects work and how MLB ppl not silly fans evaluate prospects
If your not a Braves fan then clearly you don’t see why this logic Is flawed.
Pache has a bigger ceiling then waters. And AA has had to hoard prospects since the Braves have been handcuffed with international signings and no other great way of keeping the farm stocked pretty simple logic really. Can’t gut all you have an expect to keep being this good and still have trade bait. Again sober up
Kevin K was never a top 11 prospect in baseball and he really came out of nowhere. The Rays also want to get rid of his contract, at this point so he doesn’t have much value. Keep fawning over every prospect just because they have a Braves hat on. You’re the type of person to say the franchise is still in a “learning experience” mode after their 4th straight year of a playoff exit. I love how sensitive Braves fans are at protecting their supposed blue chip prospect who really is a designated fielder. I’ll be back next year when he still has done nothing. Wonder what the excuse will be then.
Every top 20 prospect does not have a superstar ceiling, hate to break it to you. Also the “top 20” is a revolving thing. Just because someone graduates from top 20 prospect status doesn’t mean number 21 gets bumped to superstar status suddenly.
This isn’t a video game, these guys don’t have overall ratings and often times their growth is not linear. I do agree with the person above though, and one who judges a 22 year old based off of a few handfuls of at bats is a fool at best.
My point is Kevin k has had a career based entirely on his elite glove so even by writing off pache’s bat you can’t act like there isn’t a high ceiling.
Why win a championship in a small window when you can have prospects come in by the dozen. Even better, they are cheap! The Braves way!
I think a good example is Byron Buxton. He was the consensus number 1 prospect for 2 years in a row. He was really bad offensively for 2 years, but the Twins stuck with him due to his speed and defense. They knew the bat would take longer to develop and they were fine letting him bat 8 or 9 and playing gold glove D until he figured it out. Now that he has, he is silently becoming one of the best players in baseball (as long as he can stay healthy). I’m not saying Pache is Buxton, but I am giving you a reasoning as to why a team has a higher value on his defense than the average fan might think.
Buxton took an extremely long time to break out and the Twins were not in the Braves position as a franchise. Not to mention as a team the Twins had a lot of unatheltic power hitters. Buxton is a decent complement to the makeup of the team. Braves have plenty of speed and capable CF’s. Even if they had traded him at peak value, Buxton’s current breakout wouldn’t be making MIN regret it. He is already 1 year away from free agency.
I’m still waiting for a breakout from Buxton unless one month of baseball is enough.
I bet he won’t!
If you don’t think the last 600 PAs of Buxton’s career doesn’t count as a breakout, then you’re not a fan, you’re a zealot.
We already know Ian isn’t a fan. He’s a curmudgeon.
You do realize that 29 of the 30 teams don’t win the World Series and only a fraction actually make the playoffs. So why do you keep calling the Braves out for “4th straight playoff exit”? Is that a compliment intended as an insult?? According to your logic unless you win the World Series every year than you a bum team with bum GM and bum prospects.
@amk- Pache gets his ranking for his glove at his age. It’s an elite skill now. His bat is largely projection; and if it becomes close to league average he’s an occasional All-Star. All prospects are projection though. Why does a rankers opinion upset you so much?
In buxton’s last season’s worth of games, he has a WAR of about 7. That’s pretty good
An .814 OPS as a 20-year-old in AA is pretty good. May not want to write him off just yet.
Pache also showed some power development in AA in 2019. I don’t know what you’re following. It may be line items, but it doesn’t show you the progress. The kid is clearly overmatched at every level he’s been at…but that’s because his defense is excelerated. He’s had less then 100 PA’s anywhere over AA, and some of those came in the playoffs for gods sake. I’m not saying his bat is sure fire….but let the kid fail first.
Wait….who are these “plenty of CF’s” Atlanta has?
Cause Acuna, while serviceable, macimizes his value in RF, clearly.
Hey dont you dare disparage the good name of 300 lb Cheetos eating morons by comparing us to that idiot.
That’s “Mr.” 300 lb Cheetos eating moron to you, sir.
Waaaaay too early to say Pache cannot hit. That said, he wasn’t an elite batter at AA. He was a good batter at AA and elite defender.
I’m sure he is better than you Felicia
Uh oh, the “you can’t discuss baseball unless you play it professionally” person is here.
Dude, you don’t even understand prospect rankings. You think a high number represents their superstar level. It doesn’t.
The Brave spin doctors are out in full force today! Pache is ranked #11. Anyone ranked that high is supposed to have a high ceiling. Ya’ll can pretend he is a high floor guy all you want. It doesn’t justify a mediocre hitter being ranked where he is. If you were presented the opportunity to trade him 1 for 1 for any position player in the top 20 you would do it in a second. Pretending otherwise is comical.
Ranked #11 by whom? If he is ranked that high on one of the national ranking systems, say MLB pipeline or Baseball America, then the people dong the ranking are not Braves brass but a panel of people who are paid to follow minor league teams and players.
So what does #11 mean? First, the answer depends on the quality of players in that particular class. Is it a strong class or weak class? Second, I doubt #11 means a sure fire superstar based on the fact that Pache path in the minors has been a good, not great, offensive player (numbers show that) and an elite defender. The latter is not revealed solely by numbers but by watching him play defense on a regular basis.
I have followed Pache’s offensive numbers over the years and know him to be a good, not great, offensive player in the minors. Unfortunately, I don’t get to watch Pache play in the minors, so I’ll have to take the word of these ranking services when they say he is an elite defender.
Common denominator where everyone telling you your opinion about Pache is off the mark, for a variety of reasons, is…you.
@amk- who dictated someone with a high floor/lower ceiling can’t be ranked that high? Aren’t you just trying to implement your own criteria, same as the rankers?
I am very used to being outnumbered by emotional Braves fans it’s nothing knew. My past arguments have been about Swanson not being what he was hyped up to be, AA not being aggressive enough, Ozuna/Will Smith contracts not being a “steal” and Riley being the typical average hitter with power but not some amazing future star. Every time Braves fans get more emotional and I’m always proven right. It’s fine, I’ll remember this one too.
I wish we could preserve this comment somehow. ROFL! Every time you’re proven right?! Can we let most of these things like mature and play out before you claim your victory?
How much Braves baseball do you watch, btw?
Enough to know their entire offense runs through a select few players and the bottom of their lineup basically has 3 pitchers spots.
Just like the common denominator with all your lame comments and ill-fated predictions is you.
…
:^)
If the Braves get a healthy Byron Buxton, Kevin Keirmaier, Austin Slater type player teams will take that.
Average bat and elite defense will get you 10+ years in the mlb.
What a stupid take. Probably the dumbest thing I’ve read in a long time
Username checks out. Can’t dare say a Braves prospect is overrated.
Where is this hypothetical 1:1 trade for Pache? The reality is the Braves have a weak farm system and don’t have a ton of money to address holes in their roster. They can’t really afford to deal their best prospects for short term acquisitions if they want to stay competitive deep into this decade. Look what happened to the Theo Epstein Cubs. Remember lots of Braves fans really wanted to deal Albies for Sonny Gray and Dansby for Jose Quintana before we were even good. Some fans would rather have a team that wins one world series, then sinks back into mediocrity for 15 years than a team that is dominant for 7 or 8 year stretches. Stop caring what other people think so much. It has no impact on what actually happens.
According to March 21 (2021) farm system ranking by MLB pipeline, Braves have the 15th best farm system in MLB. That has dropped some from a consistent top 10 ranking for several years but it’s still middle of the pack. The Braves farm may currently be average after graduation from the list of guys like Soroka, Acuna, Albies, Wright, Wilson, and Riley but the farm isn’t ranked in the weak category by any means.
Braves have 2 quality catchers on the farm, Contreras and Langeliers. Ian Anderson and Pache still qualify as prospects (top 50). Drew Waters is a top 50 prospect and there are additional pitchers who may eventually stick with the big club, Muller, Davidson and DeLa Cruz for example.
Hopefully we haven’t seen the last of Sean Kazmar
They need to leave Pache down and he plays a full minor league season at Gwinnett.
I agree that it would do Pache some good to have a full year at AAA. He spent just a few weeks at AAA in 2019 were he was having some adjustment issues. Then he was at the alternate training site last season before being called up late and for post season, where he wasn’t bad at all on offense, somewhat surprisingly.
I think it’s a little soon to call Pache a bust. 34 AB’s doesn’t mean anything. He definitely needs more time to develope in the minors but lets not bury him yet…
Pache came into the Braves org as a bona fide defensive star. His offense has steadily progressed as he spent more time in the minors. That’s why he was ranked so high. His defense gave him a high floor and his offensive progress hinted at his ceiling.
Sorry Kazmir was sent down. That was a real feel good story for the team. Hope he gets another call up. Seems like he can play since he has hung around in AAA so long.
Apparently they like what Heredia is giving them right now, so they sent Pache down.
The guy I would like the Braves to lose is Luke Jackson. Totally unreliable.
Unreliable is a good word. He can be very effective one game. then blow up the next.
Kazmar.
We know what you meant.
Sooo tired of seeing Jackson, Jones,Dayton come in and issue free passes. Team is not hitting but seem to be coming around as of late. That being said they are going play in tight games so you need a lock down BP to secure wins. Strike throwing pitchers that make they guy in the box earn it. This will bite this team in the long run.
Yea, the pen has to improve significantly if Braves want to make some serious noise in post season, IF they make post season. The pen was so much better last season but part of the reason is that guys they still have aren’t having a season (so far) as good as the one they had last year.
Andrew Jones only hit .217 with 29 so in 31 games his first season Braves should of kicked him to curb also right . ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Too many fans want instant success from their touted minor leaguers. Acuna is the exception and he was not just touted but at the very top of his minor league class. I’ve been dealing with Braves fans who thought Wilson/Wright/Ynoa/Anderson etc were over hyped trash so long that I quit interacting with them. Just wait. They’re young, I said over and over.
Now look at these guys rounding into form with some ML experience under their belts. Now it’s just an issue of figuring out which might be top of rotation studs or just solid pitching depth, which a team can’t have enough of.
And yet they’re one game out of first place. Time to fold the tent and go home, y’all.
I’m not saying not to be patient with Pache just seems he is over matched and missed a full year of minor league ball last year. We was called up to Gwinnett late in 19 and had a small “cup of coffee” with them. I think he needs day in day out play without the added pressure to BE Andruw Jones. On another note Alex Jackson needs to go there is no future for this kid as a ATL backstop the only Reason Contreras is at the alt site is because they are grooming him to be everyday starter. That kid is head and shoulders better than Jackson. Heck it rather have Flo back there than this guy.
And don’t give me that good ”pop time”, “cannon arm”, good framer” with good power blah, blah kid has never hit enough or played great defense to be the backup on playoff contending team.
It was obvious Pache needed more AAA time.
Dayton strikes again… This guy has got to go!!! Plenty of other lefty’s in the pen.
Time to put in L. Jackson and lose really big
Game 2, Smily gives a 5 spot, 11 mil for a small sample size last year. Just gave up another bomb. Pitching in SF is wayyyy different than Hotlanta.
Two shut-outs in one day against the D’Backs?
I know it’s only April, but I’m ready for AA to kicks the tires on Jose Ramirez.
Total Embarrassment. These guys are obviously pressing. I said before, I thought it was a mistake to give Smyly that contract based on that small sample size last yr in SF. 1 hit in 14 innings? SMH.
It is only April. You need to be more patient with the team. Dont forget they beat the Marlins and Reds in the postseason last year. That is enough to know this team is ready to win. They even almost beat the Dodgers, albeit they didn’t but they almost did…and we know that counts. Stop being negative. AA developed Acuna, Freeman, Soroka, Anderson. He has done so much for this team.
Alex (AA GM) didn’t develop Freeman. He was around long before Alex became GM. Acuna (and Albies) were signed to minor league deal way back when Frank Wren was GM. Soroka and Anderson were drafted when John Coppolello was GM. Alex is responsible for Ozuna, Smyly, Morton and several members of the pen. Current team was built through the effort of 3 GMs. John Hart was GM for just a year after Coppy was fired and served as interim until Alex was hired.. I don’t recall any player on current team that Hart signed but I could be missing someone, like in the pen.
Point is that this team came about through the efforts of multiple people in the front office.
I did some checking on who was GM when Freeman was drafted by Braves. The GM was Schuerholz in 2007. However, Schuerholz was replaced by Frank Wren later that same year. So Freeman developed in the minors and was called up to the big club during the management of Frank Wren.
Wren was fired in 2014 and replaced 1-year later (Hart served 1 yr interim) by Coppy who was charged with the rebuild. Coppy drafted most of the touted young pitchers on the team, including Soroka, Wright, Wilson, Anderson and Minter (reliever). Coppy traded to get Fried and Ynoa (also Newcomb and Touki). Coppy also acquired Riley through the draft but the draft pick used for Riley was acquired by trade, a compensatory pick at end of round 1.,
So Coppy did a very good job of bringing in young talent and essentially built most of the current team and much of the future team assuming these prospects stick with the club, but he was caught breaking the rules in the international draft and banned from MLB. Coppy was charged with the rebuild and essentially succeeded.
As I said above current GM, Alex, doesn’t yet have any draft picks on the big club (just a few free agents) but he does have some good prospects, notably Langeliers and Shewmake.
I mentioned above that Hart served a 1 year interim GM. He did have 1 significant signee, William Contreras, who could be Braves catcher of the future.