The Braves’ midseason prospect picture has changed a lot since the start of the year, and the timing matters. This list comes a week before the trade deadline in a season when Atlanta is expected to be active, which means a few of these names could end up moving onto the Top 30 before long.
That backdrop makes the honorable mentions worth a closer look. These are the five players who just missed the cut, but several of them are pushing hard enough to force a tougher conversation soon.
Jorwin Pulido has already made a strong impression after signing out of Maracay, Venezuela. The catcher received the fifth-largest bonus in the Braves’ 2026 international free agency class, around $350,000, and he has quickly turned that investment into real buzz.
At 17, he is one of the youngest players in the organization and will not turn 18 until after the season. Behind the plate, he has drawn praise for a 1.8 pop time, accurate throws to both second and third base, and his work receiving pitches and blocking balls in the dirt, though there is still room for growth.
The bat has been even louder. In 22 games with the DSL Braves, Pulido hit .324/.402/.437 with an 11.5% walk rate and just a 5.7% strikeout rate.
That performance earned him a promotion to the FCL, where he has been even more dangerous, slashing .389/.542/.556 in six games. His strikeout rate there has climbed to 16.7%, but that is still excellent, and his walk rate has also risen to 12.5%.
For an organization looking for catching help, Pulido stands out as a real bright spot.
Dixon Williams has taken a different path this season. He opened hot, then ran into the kind of regression that can flatten a prospect’s line in a hurry.
Even so, the overall production still pops: .210/.322/.405 with 12 home runs, 14 doubles and 20 stolen bases. The walk rate remains solid at 12.2%, and the power is clearly part of the package.
The problem is the hit tool. Williams is striking out at nearly 30%, and while his .266 BABIP suggests a little bad luck is in the mix, the bigger issue is the swing-and-miss in his game right now.
If that can come down, there is still plenty to dream on because the on-base ability and power are both there.
Jose Perdomo’s season never really got going. After a rough 2025 in which he hit just .223/.275/.270, he arrived in better shape and was given a chance to reset the story of his career.
The Braves even sent him to Augusta to start the year despite his subpar FCL numbers. But his 2026 ended almost as soon as it began, as he landed on the full-season injured list after only two games.
He is technically heading into his fourth season of professional baseball in 2027, but he has played only 64 games. Next year will bring major expectations, and Perdomo will need to prove he can stay healthy and make major gains across the board to remain on the list.
Juan Mateo has given the Braves a steadier season. Signed as an international free agent in 2024, the shortstop has put together a solid 2026 campaign and shown real progress from last year.
He is a contact-first player, but he has already added two home runs this season, and there is still reason to think more power could come as his frame fills out. For now, he looks like the kind of versatile utility option who can move around the field.
Mateo is hitting .250/.323/.336 with a 9.7% walk rate, a 19.1% strikeout rate and 17 stolen bases. He has not had the exact season many expected, but he has improved on almost every number from 2025, which is a meaningful step forward.
Cole Dennis is the newest name here, and he has not thrown a professional pitch yet. Still, the fourth-round pick from this year’s MLB draft lands in the honorable mentions because the arm talent is obvious.
He has reached 96 mph at the combine, though that velocity will need to show up more consistently. His curveball-slider combination has the chance to become a plus pitch, and his low-spin changeup gives him another intriguing weapon if he gets more comfortable using it.
Dennis will need time, but his size and arm strength give the Braves something to work with on the mound.
In Other News...
Braves May Have A Deadline Answer To Their Yastrzemski Problem
The Braves have been looking for a cleaner answer against left-handed pitching, and the trade deadline is giving them a chance to find one without overhauling the roster. Mike Yastrzemski has helped stabilize the outfield mix, but Atlanta still has to think about the best way to maximize him in a part-time role, especially if the goal is to keep the lineup balanced into the stretch run.
One name that fits the discussion is Spencer Steer, a versatile Reds utility player whose profile makes him an appealing platoon fit and a useful piece beyond this season. He has handled lefties well enough to stand out in that kind of role, and his team control gives any acquiring club a longer runway to justify the move. The real question now is what Cincinnati would ask for, and whether Atlanta is willing to pay that price for a deadline solution that could matter well past this year. [Read more 🡒]
Bryce Harper Just Validated What Braves Fans Are Starting To Believe
The Braves have spent much of the season trying to patch together a pitching staff that has had to absorb far more than its share of adversity, yet the club remains right in the NL East race. A big reason for that resilience has been Jeremy Hefner, whose work with pitchers has drawn notice for getting useful innings from arms that were not supposed to carry this kind of load in the first place.
Bryce Harper added another layer to that reputation this week when he weighed in on Hefners move from the Mets to Atlanta, a nod that only sharpened the sense around the division that the Braves may have landed one of the more respected pitching minds in the game. For a staff still searching for stability, and for fans watching the rotation survive on improvisation, that kind of outside validation matters even if the bigger question remains how far Hefner can keep pushing this group. [Read more 🡒]
Braves May Already Have A Trade Deadline Problem They Feared
The latest trade between Boston and Washington is the kind of move that can quietly reshape the market before the deadline even fully arrives. A controllable starting pitcher changed hands for a promising right-handed bat, and for clubs hunting offense, it offered a reminder that even a one-for-one swap can come with a meaningful price tag when the player on the other side is viewed as useful and under team control.
For the Braves, that matters because they have been circling the same kind of upgrade: a right-handed bat that can help stabilize a lineup still searching for more from several spots. If the market is already asking for a return that looks closer to a top-tier prospect package, names like Lane Thomas, Taylor Ward, and Spencer Steer suddenly become less about fit and more about how far Atlanta is willing to go to solve a problem it has been trying to avoid making bigger. [Read more 🡒]