Good morning. This is LEADOFF, today’s early look inside Atlanta sports.
The Braves are absent from MLB Pipeline's latest ranking of the game's top 10 right-handed pitching prospects, which may come as a surprise to fans of, say, Kyle Wright and Mike Soroka. But the Braves are extremely well represented in the same site's ranking of the top 10 left-handed pitching prospects, with Luiz Gohara ranked No. 4, Kolby Allard No. 7 and Max Fried No. 10.
MLB Pipeline, part of MLB.com, is in the process of releasing its rankings of top 10 prospects for each position. The right-handed pitching rankings were released Tuesday, the left-handed pitching rankings Wednesday. Other positions will be unveiled each weekday through Jan. 25.
Gohara is ranked behind the Padres’ MacKenzie Gore, the A’s A.J. Puk and the Yankees’ Justus Sheffield, who are Nos. 1 through 3, respectively, among left-handed pitching prospects. (The Braves passed on Puk, formerly a Florida Gator, in the 2016 draft, opting for high-school right-hander Ian Anderson as an under-slot selection with the third pick in the first round. Oakland took Puk with the sixth pick.)
If the hard-throwing Gohara performs well in spring training, he likely would open the season in the Braves’ starting rotation. He made five starts with the big-league team late last season.
Another young left-hander who could open the season in the Braves’ rotation, Sean Newcomb, wasn’t eligible for the latest rankings because he no longer has rookie status after making 19 starts for the Braves last season.
There was no mention of Braves arms in the ranking of the top 10 right-handed pitching prospects, a list topped by the Angels’ Shohei Ohtani, the Astros’ Forrest Whitley and the White Sox’s Michael Kopech. MLB Pipeline noted there “will undoubtedly be many more than 10 righties” on the overall top 100 prospects list, which will be unveiled Jan. 27. So you can look for Wright and Soroka there.
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Speaking of the Braves, single-game tickets for the 2018 season will go on sale Jan. 26, the team announced. More details here.
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MORNING READING …
> Mark Bradley evaluates what to expect from Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos over the next few weeks. See column here.
> Doug Roberson evaluates whether, in the world of soccer, $15 million is a lot for Atlanta United to spend for Argentinian midfielder Ezequiel Barco. See story here.
> Ken Sugiura describes how a Georgia Tech graduate has offered to put up $200,000 to challenge Yellow Jackets football fans to financially support a recruiting initiative. See story here.
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