The Braves #2 prospect and 2023 1st round pick is set to open in Double-A.

The Mississippi Braves have just released their Opening Day roster. The headliner for the Atlanta Braves Double-A team is Hurston Waldrep, the team’s first round pick in 2023 and the #2 prospect in the organization according to MLB Pipeline.

Pitching

The big name is Waldrep, and he is the only pitcher on the roster who ranks among the Top 30 in the Braves system according to Pipeline. Waldrep may be set to open in Mississippi, but if you are hoping to see him with Mississippi, you may want to go sooner rather than later considering he is a potential promotion candidate. After a solid 25 starts here last year Luis de Avila is back in Mississippi, and Ian Mejia was the club’s 11th round pick in 2022 and the pair will join Waldrep in the rotation. Trey Riley, Domingo Gonzalez, and Hayden Harris are a trio of relievers who have the ability to rack up strikeouts when everything is on for them. Zach Logue is another guy of note as he has some big league experience in the last couple of years, both starting and coming out of the pen.

Position Players

The big names here are Nacho Alvarez and Drake Baldwin, and Geraldo Quintero also ranks among the Top 30 prospects in the system. Alvarez is the #6 prospect according to pipeline, and the Braves are hoping to see a little more power from the shortstop after he posted a .395 OBP and .391 SLG in Rome last year. Baldwin got a brief stint in Mississippi last year and even finished with three games in Triple-A, and the catcher posted a .845 OPS with 16 homers between three levels last season. Quintero is hoping to bounce back a bit following a 2023 season that saw his power take a dip in Rome. Speaking of potential bounce back seasons, former Top 30 prospect Cal Conley is back in Mississippi and hoping to put a forgettable 2023 season behind him and prove that can keep moving up the ladder to Atlanta.

Among the guys not in the Top 30 prospects, Cade Bunnell hit 16 homers here last year and Cody Milligan stole 23 bases in half a season here. They’ll be joined by catchers Tyler Tolve and Javier Valdes, outfielder Justin Dean, and infielder Keshawn Ogans, who are all prospects with some potential that did not make the Top 30. Outfielder Brandon Parker and first baseman Bryson Horne will add some power to the lineup, and infielder Yolbert Sanchez brings a good amount of Triple-A experience with him.