For a while, the Braves farm was all about Eric Hartman and Tate Southisene. Hartman, a 20th-round pick who has turned his career into a history-making run, put together a 20/30 first half and shot from unranked to No. 25 on Baseball America’s list of the best prospects in baseball. Southisene, last year’s first-round high school pick, has climbed into the Top 100 after a strong first full pro season, batting .297 with eight home runs, 36 stolen bases and a .929 OPS before moving up to High-A Rome.
But the hottest name in the system right now is Alex Lodise.
Lodise was taken in the second round and came out of a strong Florida State career, so his slow start in Augusta raised a few eyebrows. That hasn’t lasted.
Over the past month, he has hit just under .300, launched 10 home runs and posted nine multi-hit games, all while carrying an OPS well above 1.000. On the season, the 22-year-old shortstop has 18 home runs in 81 games with an .822 OPS, and a promotion could be coming soon.
The bigger picture is just as important. This isn’t the old Braves farm system that used to sit near the bottom of the league. Atlanta now has impact talent spread across the levels, and a draft class led by two first-round picks is still on the way.
That changes the conversation heading into the trade deadline. The Braves are in a position to move young talent without feeling like they’re emptying the cupboard, and that gives them room to be aggressive in the coming weeks as they look to address some obvious holes on the major-league roster.
In Other News...
Braves Suffer Another Outfield Shakeup In The Middle Of Draft Night
The Braves outfield picture shifted again in the middle of draft night, with the club making a fresh round of roster moves as the MLB Draft was unfolding. Atlanta recalled Brewer Hicklen from Triple-A Gwinnett to help fill the vacancy, while also bringing up right-hander Owen Murphy and moving James Karinchak back to Gwinnett.
The shuffle did not stop there. Jose Azocar was outrighted to Triple-A, and AJ Smith-Shawver had his rehab assignment transferred to Gwinnett, leaving the Braves to juggle several moving parts at once while fans were still waiting on the teams first pick. It was a reminder that even on a night built around future talent, the present-day roster keeps demanding attention. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Fans May Be Surprised By These Alex Anthopoulos Draft Busts
Alex Anthopoulos has built plenty of goodwill in Atlanta by turning trades into roster upgrades, but the Braves recent first-round draft record is a reminder that even sharp front offices can miss on premium picks. Braden Shewmake, Jared Shuster and Ryan Cusick all arrived with expectations that never quite matched the billing, and each one has since moved on from the organization in one form or another.
Shewmake was sent to the White Sox in the Aaron Bummer deal before last season, Shusters rocky major league introduction only deepened concerns before he was dealt in the 2024 offseason, and Cusick is now trying to find his footing in the Phillies Triple-A system. For a club that has usually found ways to patch holes elsewhere, the draft has been a less reliable path, and it leaves open an uncomfortable question about how much margin for error Atlanta really has when those early selections do not hit. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Bet Big On AJ Gracia With Premium First Round Pick
The Braves used a premium first-round pick on AJ Gracia, taking the Virginia outfielder ninth overall in the 2026 MLB Draft and signaling a clear belief in his bat. Gracia arrives with a reputation built on steady offensive production and real defensive value, the kind of profile that can move quickly if the tools keep translating against better pitching.
His college path has already shown plenty of adaptability, beginning at Duke before following coach Chris Pollard to Virginia for his junior season. Across that run, Gracia stacked up the kind of numbers and honors that keep him near the top of draft boards, and Atlanta is betting on a left-handed hitter with impact power, a disciplined approach and enough athleticism to give the club options in center field as he begins the next stage of his career. [Read more 🡒]