Entering Year 4 of the Great Rebuild, the Braves are still looking to turn the corner, and their inaction this winter would suggest they're hardly on the verge. In fact, their biggest offseason headline was the ousting of John Coppolella, architect of the rebuild, in an international signing scandal that also stripped them of a dozen prospects further down the pipeline.

But even after losing those prospects, not to mention graduating big names like Ozzie Albies and Sean Newcomb last year, most every publication still ranks their farm system No. 1, with the spoils of their "tanking" only beginning to trickle in.

For Fantasy purposes, Freddie Freeman is the clear standout here, offering first-round production even at a premium position, but Albies' per-game production in about one-third of the season suggests top-five potential at the weaker second base. And then there's Ronald Acuna, the consensus top prospect in baseball who has a lineup spot waiting for him but may have to spend the first couple weeks in the minors, a la Kris Bryant.

But it's the pitching staff -- the emphasis of the rebuild -- that has the most room for improvement. Newcomb and Luiz Gohara have only begun to flash their potential, and Mike Foltynewicz continues to taunt us with his 100-mph heat.

Braves in Scott's top 300
PlayerRoto RankH2H RankRoto Pos RankH2H Pos Rank
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Freddie Freeman ATL 1B
#13 #15 #2 #2
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Ender Inciarte ATL CF
#155 #192 #37 #38
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Ozzie Albies ATL 2B
#161 #176 #17 #17
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Ronald Acuna ATL CF
#163 #179 #41 #37
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Arodys Vizcaino ATL RP
#164 #173 #18 #19
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Luiz Gohara ATL SP
#239 #205 #67 #73
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Julio Teheran ATL SP
#247 #186 #69 #65
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Tyler Flowers ATL C
#269 NR #21 #21
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Kurt Suzuki ATL C
#270 NR #22 #22
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Dansby Swanson ATL SS
#297 #298 #24 #22
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Sean Newcomb ATL SP
NR #245 #91 #84
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Mike Foltynewicz ATL SP
NR #273 #84 #88

Players in Scott's Top 100 Prospects

Braves prospects
2Ronald Acuna
Acuna rocketed through the system last year, somehow improving at each of his three stops (most significantly with the plate discipline) to emerge as the game's undisputed top minor-leaguer -- and one for whom the Braves are already clearing a spot at age 20.
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: fighting this spring
18Luiz Gohara
Acquired from the Mariners last winter for a couple of ill-fitting parts, Gohara has quickly emerged as the best in a system loaded with pitching prospects. His five-start trial down the stretch doesn't appear special at first glance, but he had a strike percentage and swinging strike percentage on par with Clayton Kershaw , Chris Sale , Corey Kluber and Max Scherzer .
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: fighting this spring
30Kyle Wright
Four players were drafted ahead of Wright in 2017, but he figures to beat them all to the majors with an arsenal that shows the potential for four plus pitches, including a fastball that pushes triple digits. He's just getting started, of course, but he offers the ideal combination of upside and projectability.
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: cup of coffee
44Austin Riley
The rebuilding Braves seem to be keeping third base open for Riley, who took a big step forward after hitting .315 with a .900 OPS in 48 games at Double-A. While his power potential isn't in question, his approach is unremarkable, but he's awfully young to be so close to breaking into the bigs.
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: midseason hopeful
46Mike Soroka
A Zack Greinke comparison seems fitting for Soroka, who's lacking the high-90s fastball ubiquitous in today's game but is dripping with pitchability. At a mere 19 years old, he dominated Double-A with a two-seam/curveball combo reminiscent of Aaron Nola.
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: cup of coffee
48Kolby Allard
Allard's velocity dipped a little in 2017, which may have impacted his strikeout rate, but he was also a 20-year-old facing Double-A hitters -- with great success, I might add. Evaluators are divided over him, but with good command of a plus changeup, he might have a little Cole Hamels in him.
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: cup of coffee
66Ian Anderson
The third overall pick in the 2015 draft has been handled with kid gloves to this point, his accumulation of innings suggesting the Braves are in no hurry to get him to the majors, but the strikeout and ground-ball rates (just one home run in 122 2/3 professional innings) point to a high ceiling.
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: don't count on it
86A.J. Minter
The one true reliever on this list is the best to come through the Braves system since Craig Kimbrel and may soon occupy the same role if manager Brian Snitker can get around the fact that he throws lefty. He'll fill a high-leverage role of some sort after his absurd strikeout-to-walk ratio yielded a 0.96 FIP last year.
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: pencil him in
95Max Fried
The Fried hype would be even harder to understand if you only looked at the numbers, but the former seventh overall pick battled blister issues in what was his first full year back from Tommy John surgery. He went on to dominate in the Arizona Fall League, allowing one run on nine hits with 23 strikeouts in 19 innings, and flashes a wicked curveball.
Scott's 2018 Fantasy impact: fighting this spring (at SP)

Things to Know

  • With power, speed and emerging contact skills, Acuna is one of those prospects whose greatness seems like a foregone conclusion, especially given how he continued to improve as he climbed the minor-league ladder last year. But he is only 20, giving him a wide range of possible outcomes for 2018. Be careful not to overpay in single-season leagues.
  • The Braves still have to sort out what their starting rotation will look like at the start of 2018 -- an issue complicated by the acquisition of Brandon McCarthy and Scott Kazmir in an exchange of bad contracts this offseason. If those two are healthy, you have to figure they'll join quasi-ace Julio Teheran, and Mike Foltynewicz likely gets another chance to play out his what-ifs.
  • If there's one up-and-coming hurler you should be rooting for this spring, it's Luiz Gohara. He held his own in a late-season look last year and has the best stuff of those who've debuted so far, but Sean Newcomb, Max Fried and even Lucas Sims offer plus strikeout potential as well. And though they're both barely 20, Mike Soroka and Kolby Allard both made Double-A look so easy that they'll likely get their shot at some point this year, if not this spring.
  • Perhaps the most major league-ready arm among the Braves' bevy of pitching prospects is a reliever, A.J. Minter, who dazzled with 26 strikeouts to two walks in his 15 innings last year. Arodys Vizcaino should fare OK as a closer, but in leagues where saves are scarce, I'm betting he doesn't hold off this kid all year.
  • Johan Camargo, though a decent contact hitter, is merely keeping the seat warm for power-hitting prospect Austin Riley, who could debut at some point this year.
  • Though neither was a Fantasy standout on his own, Tyler Flowers and Kurt Suzuki combined for one formidable OPS, giving reason to wonder what might happen if either broke free from the other. Flowers is the better defender of the two, and his production seems more sustainable as well. But Suzuki has always made contact at a high rate and maybe can continue to hit for power in today's power-charged environment. It's something to keep an eye on.

Lineup & Rotation

Batting order    
                
1 Ender Inciarte CF
2 Ozzie Albies 2B
3 Freddie Freeman 1B
4 Nick Markakis RF
5 Tyler Flowers C
6 Johan Camargo 3B
7 Preston Tucker LF
8 Dansby Swanson SS
Pitchers                             
SP Julio Teheran
SP Brandon McCarthy
SP Sean Newcomb
SP Mike Foltynewicz
SP Luiz Gohara
CL Arodys Vizcaino
RP A.J. Minter
RP Jose Ramirez