Hurston

Waldrep

It’s been a really tough season for the 23-year-old this season, who has a 6.35 ERA, 1.75 WHIP, and 56/34 K/BB ratio in 51 innings at Triple-A this season. The first-round pick in the 2023 draft is unlikely to get a crack at big league innings this season unless he can figure out some of his command issues.

It’s easily his best performance since his season debut on April 1. Waldrep didn’t even make it out of the first in his previous start, and he entered yesterday with a 7.04 ERA and a 21/18 K/BB in 23 innings.

Waldrep struck out five but also walked four against the Orioles’ Triple-A squad. The ceiling for Waldrep remains high, but the command remains an issue. He’s now alternated between one good start and one poor start to open the season, so we’ll see how he responds next time out. There is a chance he could fight for a rotation spot over the summer, but he’d need to show more consistent success at Triple-A.

It was a strong season debut for Waldrep, who only handed out one free pass while generating 14 swinging strikes. The 23-year-old righty has battled control issues throughout his career and was hit hard last year in a handful of big-league outings. The ceiling is massive, if he ever puts it all together, which makes him one of the more intriguing pitching prospects in the fantasy landscape. He’ll continue to develop as a starter for now, but he’d make a lights-out reliever, if the Braves ever wanted to explore that possibility.

No real surprises among the first batch of cuts from Braves camp. Waldrep struggled last year in his first taste of the majors but still boasts some of the most intriguing stuff of any pitching prospect in the game. The 22-year-old former first-round pick figures to make a fantasy impact at some point down the road given his astronomical strikeout potential.

Barring a late callup, Waldrep’s season is probably over. He allowed just two runs in his final three starts for Gwinnett to finish with a 3.38 ERA in eight Triple-A starts. Overall, the 2023 first-round pick had a 3.47 ERA and a 97/45 K/BB in 93 1/3 innings in the minors. He had a 16.71 ERA in his two major league starts for the Braves back in June.

It was a bit of a mixed bag on Friday evening for Waldrep as he managed to hold Norfolk’s experienced lineup without a hit over five frames, but it came with a staggering six free passes. The 22-year-old top pitching prospect could probably help Atlanta right now at the highest level in shorter bursts as a reliever, but they appear committed to his development in a starting role. The omnipresent control issues at the real bugaboo in an otherwise stellar fantasy profile. Only time will tell if he’s going to solve them.

Waldrep could have been left on his rehab assignment longer, but the Braves wanted him off the major league IL in case he has a setback, which could have huge ramifications in terms of service time. Waldrep, out since mid-June with elbow inflammation, allowed five runs over four innings in two rehab starts. It’s possible he’ll yet be a factor for the Braves down the stretch, but we wouldn’t count on it.

Waldrep struck out a pair of batters in his first outing since landing on the injured list back in mid-June with right elbow inflammation. Additional testing on the 22-year-old top pitching prospect’s elbow didn’t reveal any structural damage and there’s a possibility he could make it back to Atlanta at some point down the home stretch, most likely as a multi-inning relief weapon. We’ll see.

That was the original diagnosis, and tests apparently ruled out anything more serious. Waldrep will likely be optioned back to the minors once healthy. Assuming that his elbow problem truly is minor, he still might help the Braves in August and September.