The Braves lost 13 prospects after Major League Baseball imposed penalties on Atlanta under former GM John Coppolella, but so far, it has mostly been inconsequential. The Braves suffered from the inability to spend on prospects, which has impacted the depth of the farm system. However, of the prospects that they lost, very few have reached the majors, but RHP Guillermo Zuniga has signed a deal with the Cardinals.
Zuniga wasn’t one of the big-name prospects, and although he posted a 4.77 ERA and 1.41 WHIP for the AAA Tulsa Drillers, the Cardinals are looking to him for some bullpen help. These guys were all pretty young when the Braves were penalized, so I’m not surprised a few of them are finally getting a shot to contribute in the majors. This is his evaluation from ProspectsLive:
Big reliever with an average fastball and a solid slider. Stuff and top end velo is there (touches 96), but lack of consistency and control limit the profile in a big way. There’s a chance that some optimization will unlock another level, he already looked much better after moving to the pen, but it’s unlikely to change the profile much.
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