It has been a little more than two months since the June draft, and the Braves have had some time to get to know their latest group of prospects. Braves director of player development Kurt Kemp offered his thoughts on the progress of the players the team took in the early rounds.
He explained why the Braves haven’t made any position changes to some of their top picks, even though they drafted Matt Lipka, Todd Cunningham and Andrelton Simmons with thoughts of moving all three -- Lipka to center field, Cunningham to third base and Simmons to the mound.
“With these first-year guys, we haven’t really had time to spend with them on the learning part,” said Kemp, who said transitions are more likely to come in either instructional league or spring training. “You don’t want to jump the gun too early because we haven’t really had a chance to spend time with them.”
Matt Lipka
Draft: Supplemental first round, 35th overall
Position: Shortstop
Team: Gulf Coast Braves (rookie league)
Stats: Hitting .314 (48-for-153), with six doubles, two triples, one home run and 22 RBIs in 38 games. He has stolen 16 bases.
Comment: "He's a very, very high-energy player. His speed is one of his biggest assets. ... When he's at the plate, he puts a lot of pressure on infielders, even when he hits routine ground balls because he can really get down the line. And his speed on defense, you can see it when he's chasing a ball down or closing on a slow roller."
Todd Cunningham
Draft: Second round, 53rd overall
Position: Outfielder
Team: Rome (Single-A)
Stats: Hitting .267 (43-for-161) in 44 games, with seven doubles, three triples, one homer and 14 RBIs. He has 11 walks and a .350 on-base percentage.
Comment: "He's swung the bat better in the last few weeks. We sent him right to Rome. We felt like the success he had in winning the batting title in Cape Cod [wooden-bat league] last year that he could go there and swing the bat. He swings it from both sides of the plate. Plays center field very easy. Sometimes you don't even notice him out there because he's so good at running down all the balls that he's supposed to get."
Andrelton Simmons
Draft: Second round, 70th overall
Position: Shortstop
Team: Danville (rookie league)
Stats: Hitting .240 (42-for-175) in 45 games, with nine doubles, one homer and 15 RBIs. He has 11 walks, 11 strikeouts and 13 stolen bases.
Comment: "After swinging the bat fairly well, he has tailed off a little bit from a statistical average. But really the thing that has stood out is his ability to play shortstop. His athleticism really shines through. And he has very, very good hands. He has a plus arm, which we knew he had from our reports, but I was impressed with how, when that ball gets to his glove, it sticks in there. There's no bobbling. It is in that glove, and it's going over to first base. It's so hard to find shortstops in this game that can really play at the upper levels, and he can play."
Joe Leonard
Draft: Third round, 101st overall
Position: Third base
Team: Rome (Single-A)
Stats: After hitting .278 with one homer and five RBIs in 10 games in Danville, he was promoted to Rome, where he has hit .265 (26-for-98) in 26 games, with six doubles, two triples, three home runs and 17 RBIs.
Comment: "He's got an outstanding frame for a big guy [at 6-foot-5, 215 pounds]. I think his frame is going to hold more weight ... he has a chance to even get stronger. He plays third base very easy, throws very easy. He's got plenty of arm strength, but he doesn't have to go get it with every ounce of energy to get that ball where he needs to. He has a nice stroke. He just plays the game easy. I think that's a good sign. And there's power potential in there."
David Filak
Draft: Fourth round, 134th overall
Position: RHP
Team: Danville (rookie league)
Stats: He's 0-1 with a 2.25 ERA in seven games, including five starts. He has walked nine and struck out 22 in 20 innings, with a .188 opponents' batting average.
Comment: "There's nobody we've taken in the draft that has impressed us any more with the stuff that comes out of his hand -- the way his fastball comes out. He has an above-average, quality breaking ball. We're going to keep him at a limited number of innings through the rest of the year [two, three innings per start] to make sure he doesn't throw too much. ... His stuff is plenty good; it's just a matter of developing him and keeping him healthy."
Phil Gosselin
Draft: Fifth round, 164th overall
Position: Second base
Team: Rome (Single-A)
Stats: Hitting .327 (52-for-159) with seven doubles, three triples, one home run and 16 RBIs. He has stolen six bases and scored 20 runs in 43 games.
Comment: "Call him what you will, dirt dog, game rat, he is a hard-nosed, tough player that gives you a really good quality at-bat and has a good understanding of what he's trying to accomplish at the plate. He has a short, compact stroke, stays within himself, doesn't try to be somebody that he's not and is a scrappy, good player at second base. He's been fun to watch because he knows what he's doing and he plays hard. ... This guy is a baseball player."
Note: All statistics are through Thursday's games.
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