The Braves have had their share of draft-day wins under Alex Anthopoulos, and that matters here because the misses stand out even more when the overall track record is so strong. Atlanta has turned players like Drake Baldwin, Michael Harris II, and Spencer Schwellenbach into clear organizational successes since 2019, and the club has shown a willingness to move those high-round picks quickly once they look ready.
But not every call has landed. A few selections from the Anthopoulos era have aged poorly enough to earn the kind of label every front office tries to avoid. In a system that’s mostly done a good job identifying and developing talent, these are the three biggest draft whiffs.
Braden Shewmake was the Braves’ first-round pick at No. 21 in 2019, one of two first-round selections Atlanta made that year. The first one, Shea Langeliers, has gone on to become one of the best catchers in the sport.
Shewmake, a shortstop out of Texas A&M, was supposed to add strength to a wiry frame and grow into a useful big league infielder. That never really happened, and before the 2024 season he was among the players sent to the White Sox in the Aaron Bummer trade.
A year later, Atlanta went with another first-rounder and another pitcher who never quite matched the draft slot. With no second-round pick in 2020, the expectation was that the Braves would go underslot in the first round, and they did exactly that by taking Jared Shuster at No. 25 overall out of Wake Forest.
Shuster was widely seen before the draft as more of a third-round type of talent, and in hindsight even that may have been generous. He had a tough time proving he could handle a Major League role after debuting with the Braves in 2023, and his rough strikeout-to-walk numbers made him an easy piece to move in the 2024 offseason.
Then came another Wake Forest arm in 2021. Atlanta used the 24th overall pick on right-hander Ryan Cusick, but the fit never turned into anything close to a win for the Braves.
Cusick is now in the Phillies’ Triple-A system, where he has a 6.25 ERA. Atlanta did get ahead of the failure by including him with other prospects in the blockbuster trade that brought Matt Olson to Atlanta, which at least kept the miss from becoming a total dead end.
That’s the story of these three picks: all first-rounders, all expected to matter, and all ultimately unable to stick in Atlanta the way the organization hoped.
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 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 🡒]