The Best Braves Prospects to Never Make Our Top 30

BIRMINGHAM, AL - APRIL 24: Luis Vargas #60 of the Columbus Clingstones looks on during the game between the Columbus Clingstones and the Birmingham Barons at Regions Field on Friday, April 24, 2026 in Birmingham, Alabama. (Photo by Hannah Bachman/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)

Every season, a couple of times a year, we rank our Top 30 prospects in the Atlanta Braves system. However there are still prospects within the Braves system who have never made a Top 30 prospect list that are still interesting prospects to some extent. While a couple of these guys seem headed for our next Top 30, some of these guys might not have the highest upside, but they still have the tool(s) and/or production which could get them to Atlanta at some point.

In order to be eligible for this list a prospect has to have never appeared on a Battery Power Top 30 prospects list (that’s why Patrick Clohisy won’t be included). I am also excluding players who have not yet reached Low-A ball yet, as those guys don’t quite fit into what this article is about and will still have plenty of chances to make a Top 30 at some point in their careers. I am also going to exclude players who were never on a BP Top 30, but would have made a Top 30 for a previous team in their career (Jordan Groshans, Cade Doughty)

Cristobal Abreu, RHP

Cristobal Abreu is a 20-year-old pitcher who missed last year injured, but has intriguing stuff. He opened the year in Augusta and has spent his time between there and the FCL. To date he has thrown 29.1 innings (27 with Augusta), and pitched to a 2.76 ERA, though his WHIP is 2.49 thanks to the fact that he has 42 walks in those 29 innings. Abreu hasn’t missed bats the way his stuff should this year, with just 21 strikeouts, but if he is able to harness his stuff he could start to get interesting. Abreu has gone over 96 MPH with his fastball in games this year, and I have seen him over 98 MPH in workouts, and he’s got a promising slider as well. He is going to need work on that command and time to get there, but the arm is quite talented.

Daniel Brooks, RHP

I’ve been talking a lot about Daniel Brooks lately, but that’s because he is on an incredible run right now. An undrafted free agent from last year, Brooks opened this year as a FCL reliever, got promoted to Augusta, eventually earned himself a starting job, and just this past weekend made his first start with Rome. With a pair of pitches that both get whiffs, a fastball that is 92-93 with a Stuff+ grade of 100 due to the movement and extension, and a slider with a Stuff+ grade of 127, Brooks has allowed three total runs in 31.2 innings between Augusta and Rome, striking out 52. Brooks is a very strong candidate to make the next updated Top 30 list because of both the stuff and the results. His ceiling is still to be determined as we haven’t seen the rest of his arsenal yet and he is pitching on fairly low pitch counts due to being stretched back out into a starter role, but he does have a change and curve that could get used more frequently next season. Even if starting doesn’t work out, he just might be the best relief prospect in the Braves system right now – but it looks like they are going to give him a chance to start because of his dominance.

Aiven Cabral, RHP

In the 18th round last year the Braves took Aiven Cabral from Northeastern, after he was the ace of the team who made a surprising run in the NCAA Tournament. He didn’t make his pro debut until this year, where he has spent half the year split between both Augusta and Rome. His Augusta numbers are slightly better than the Rome numbers, but they are fairly similar. Combined he has a 3.01 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, and 79 strikeouts in 104.2 innings. His stuff isn’t big, but he’s a pitchability guy who excels at pitching to contact. The hope with him is that his stuff might tick up as he moves into a future bullpen role for shorter stints. His three-pitch mix is all mostly fringy to average, but he is comfortable with switching between his pitches and moving locations. If his fastball could gain another 1-2 MPH from topping out at 93 MPH, he might have a chance in a relief role.

Logan Forsythe, RHP

Logan Forsythe was the Braves 13th round pick out of Louisiana Tech last year. He previously pitched at Mississippi State, but never got much playing time there because of struggles with his command. Forsythe is a power armed reliever, though one with command question marks to answer. In Augusta this year he has a 4.03 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, and 55 strikeouts in 51.1 innings. He has also walked 45 hitters in that time. When he’s on he can be hard to make contact against, as his 6.3 H/9 ratio shows, which makes him worth tracking. This year his fastball has been up to 96-97 MPH with a sweeper that also gets swings and misses, and he could possibly be holding back a little bit on his stuff in order to be able to command it better. What he could become is fully dependent on where he is able to improve the command to, but he is worth the team taking a flier on.

Kevin Kilpatrick Jr., OF

A toolsy outfielder, Kevin Kilpatrick Jr. is in the middle of his best pro season for Columbus. As of today he is hitting .247/.328/.373 with six homers, 19 extra base hits, and 27 steals with 27 walks to 76 strikeouts in 287 plate appearances. Those numbers may not jump off the page, but since May 29th he is running a .774 OPS after a slow start to his season. Kilpatrick is going to turn 26 this winter, so he is probably not going to hit enough to end up as a big league regular. However if the gains he has made with the bat can make some additional progress, he would have a chance to be a fourth or fifth outfielder. That is because he is a speedy player with a little bit of pop in his bat and is capable of playing all three outfield spots. It’s not the sexiest profile, but he could potentially work his way to the big leagues.

Carter Lovasz, RHP

Carter Lovasz was an eighth rounder out of William & Mary l...

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