Jhancarlos Lara has a chance to be a future closer after a full time move to the bullpen
We’re at the midway point at our look at the top Atlanta Braves prospects, and in this part of the list some of Atlanta’s highest upside offensive talent and near-MLB pitchers are cutting their teeth. The teens of a top 30 list are often where you see the most polarizing prospect in an organization’s farm system, and in the Braves case that is certainly applicable. Many have had rough or inconsistent campaigns in 2025, have faced injury, or haven’t quite lived up to their expectations when signing. Yet it’s also the part of the list that often determines the future of the system. If a couple of these players progress and break out it strengthens a system significantly. If you’ve just started following along you can check here for the previous posts.
19-24 | 25-30 | Honorable Mentions
18. Lucas Braun – RHSP
How he got to the Braves: 2023 MLB Draft, 6th Round
Lucas Braun has had a mixed bag of a season thus far as we enter August.
The 2023 sixth-round pick has predominantly been a starter up to this point before being moved to a bullpen role to presumably manage his workload. For the better part of his career to this point, Braun has been absolutely solid. In 25 appearances — 24 of which were starts — Braun posted an ERA of 3.26 for the Braves after getting drafted. As for this year, Braun has struggled a bit. Through the month of April, Braun carried a five-start ERA of 2.76 through 29.1 innings of work. However, for the month of July, Braun has posted an ERA of 4.15 in 23 innings thus far.
Braun finished the 2024 season at double-A, but has unfortunately stalled out there this season. Braun will need to show that he can continue to develop in the rotation to remain a top prospect. His ERA and his innings are good enough to compete, but his strikeout numbers have not been what the Braves brass have presumably hoped to see from Braun. If he’s able to find a way to get more strikeouts or more groundballs, Braun could easily be a candidate to join the Atlanta pitching staff at some point in 2026. However, there’s still a ways to go before he reaches that point.
17. Luis Guanipa – OF
How he got to the Braves: 2023 International Free Agent
Luis Guanipa was a top international signing who got off to a great start in the DSL after signing in 2023, posting a .744 OPS and four homers and 16 extra-base hits. Unfortunately things have stalled out since then, mostly due to health and he had only combined to hit two combined homers since then.
He opened last year in Augusta and quickly got injured. When he returned he wasn’t effective and continued to battle health stuff. He ended up playing 52 games between Augusta and the FCL, slashing a combined .219/.286/.291 with two homers and eight extra-base hits.
He came back there to start this year, and almost immediately went down to injury again. After missing a chunk of time he again struggled, but has seemed to get things going a little more of late. Overall he has played in 30 games with a slash of .250/.339/.298 with five doubles between his time there and a short rehab stint in the FCL. That .637 OPS, including .610 in Augusta doesn’t tell the whole story as he has slashed .326/.380/.348 over his last 13 games, striking out just five times in 50 plate appearances.
Guanipa represents a toolsy player, but with the lack of power he has shown over the last two years you have to wonder if he isn’t going to come into as much power as he had initially expected. Still he is just 19 until December, has made real strides with the bat lately, has plus speed, and can also be a quality defender in the outfield.
16. Luke Sinnard – RHSP
How he got to the Braves: 2024 MLB Draft, 3rd Round
In terms of Atlanta prospects who are among the more tantalizing, Sinnard — and his counterpart who we will talk about next — are near the top of the list.
After being selected by the Braves in the third round of the 2024 MLB draft, Sinnard missed his opportunity to make his professional debut in 2024.
Since appearing in a Braves-affiliated uniform, Sinnard has been downright excellent. In 11 games pitched — all starts — Sinnard has posted a collective ERA between Augusta and Rome of 2.28 in just 47.1 innings pitched this season.
While he’s issued 16 walks on the year, the 6’8 righty has only given up one homer on the year.
Overall, Sinnard has shown that the Braves had some type of vision when they drafted him a year ago. He has shown an ability to command the zone and keep the ball in the ballpark — both traits that clubs deeply value. It’ll be interesting to see how the Braves handle Sinnard’s development. If they decide to keep things as they are, Sinnard will be on the fast-track to double-A. However, given his success and his age, it’s not out of the realm of possibility for Sinnard to reach Columbus by the end of the season.
15. Garrett Baumann – RHSP
How he got to the Braves: 203 MLB Draft, 4th Round
Since he was signed out of high school in the fourth round of the 2024 draft, Garrett Baumann has oozed with potential. However, his results thus far have been a bit of an enigma.
In 19 starts in 2024 — 18 of which were with low-A Augusta, Baumann was simply brilliant. His season culminated in him making his first appearance at the high-A level, spinning seven innings of ball while striking out five on the night.
Baumann’s end to 2024 left many questions and plenty of hope for him to evolve into the next great pitching prospect for Atlanta.
In 2025, Baumann has posted an ERA of 3.89 in 17 starts across 83.1 innings pitched while striking out 81 batters.
The biggest issue for Baumann has been walks so far in his career. In an interesting split, the 6’8 right hander has issued 15 free passes to left handed batters compared to just eight for rightys.
Baumann possesses one of the things that cannot be taught — size — which the Braves love to try and utilize no matter the complications that accompany such a project. However, Baumann has developed into a pitcher, as opposed to simply being a “thrower’ when he was signed away from UCF three years ago.
There’s no reason to think that Baumann will finish 2025 in Rome with his early sights set on Columbus.
14. Jhancarlos Lara – RHRP
How he got to the Braves: 2021 International Free Agent
While Rayven Antonio was on prospect meteor watch as a starting pitcher, Jhancarlos Lara is as well, but as a reliever. On the season, the numbers are rough. In 2025 he sits at a 8.10 ERA (5.17 FIP, 3.99 xFIP) with a strikeout rate north of 13, but a walk rate north of 8 per 9. He especially struggled in Double-A, where he served as a starter, where he had issues with his breaking pitches. Fast forward to May, when Lara began his transition to becoming a reliever, and you can’t help but be incredibly encouraged about what’s to come.
There’s no denying Jhancarlos Lara is still a work in progress – when you look at the total numbers on a macro level, they still aren’t that great after moving in relief. But when you dig into some advanced metrics and look at the underlying numbers, you’re looking at a player on the cusp of becoming an absolutely elite talent in the majors. He’s still prone to losing his fastball command at times, and when that happens it looks like it impacts him mentally and he unravels with walk after walk, however the amount we’ve seen that happen has decreased dramatically.
While it’s easy to discredit the advancements because the walk rate is still a bit high, it’s important to point out that, that is primarily the only way players are getting on base against him now. He has now appeared in 20 games as a reliever, of which 11 of them he did not give up a single hit. If you take a look at the recently created Prospect Savant (www.prospectsavant.com), that only takes into account data from Triple-A,
and you get a view of someone that has enormous potential as an extremely high impact reliever in the majors. His slider has taken significant strides forward and grades out as one of the best pitchers in minor league baseball, and he combines that with a four seam fastball that has seen improved command – coming in around 98 MPH. The last reliever we had this high was AJ Minter, and there’s a reason for that as the risk with relievers is overwhelming. But when you look at Jhancarlos Lara, you love your chances.
13. Jose Perdomo – SS
How he got to the Braves: 2024 International Free Agent
Jose Perdomo came into the Braves system as the most hyped international signee since Kevin Maitan at the start of last season. Unfortunately last year never really got off the ground for him, as he started late in the DSL due to injury and never really got going in the short time he was on the field. He was limited to just 22 plate appearances on the year, going 5-20 with a pair of walks.
He moved up to the FCL this year and got off to a solid start, but cooled off to the point his OPS was below .500 for a stretch, and finishing the year off slashing .223/.275/.270 with a homer and seven doubles in 233 plate appearances. He also drew 14 walks to his 45 strikeouts and stole four bases in six attempts. For a guy billed for his advanced feel for hitting, this .544 OPS didn’t live up to the massive expectations.
At this point it’s safe to say some of the shine has come off Perdomo, but it is important to remember that literally everyone ranked him highly 18 months ago and he has a chance to be a shortstop that hits for both average and power at maturity. For now his season is done, but he is likely to head to Augusta to open the 2026 season.