#minor-league-performance

#minor-league-performance

The Braves signed Jhancarlos Lara back in 2021 as an international free agent. The team was still dealing with their international sanctions from the John Coppolella era at the time, significantly limiting what they could spend. So getting a real prospect in this time would require finding a diamond in the rough for almost no bonus - which is exactly what happened with Lara, as he signed for just $10k bonus.

The Cubs have not offered a clear timeline for Alcántara's recovery, but the surgery was successful, according to Lee, so there's no reason to believe this will affect his 2026 campaign. Corey Seager is a prominent recent example of a player who returned from sports hernia surgery. He had a hernia on his left side repaired in late January 2024 and recovered quickly enough to start at shortstop on Opening Day just two months later.

The Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball have interest in acquiring veteran right-hander Kenta Maeda, according to a report from Yahoo Sports Japan. Maeda, 37, indicated back in August that he plans to leave MLB and return to Japan for the 2026 season, where he hopes to find a role in NPB. The veteran's decision to leave MLB behind isn't exactly a surprise given how difficult the past two seasons have been for him.

The Braves have claimed righty Carson Ragsdale off waivers from the Orioles, per an announcement from the O's. Atlanta has not yet announced the move, but David O'Brien of The Athletic reports that outfielder Jake Fraley is being transferred to the 60-day IL to clear a 40-man roster spot.. Baltimore designated Ragsdale for assignment on Monday. Baltimore originally claimed Ragsdale off waivers from San Francisco following the trade deadline.

The Angels have sent first baseman/outfielder Niko Kavadas outright to Triple-A Salt Lake, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week. Kavadas, 26, was acquired from the Red Sox as part of the July 2024 trade which sent Luis García to Boston. The Halos added Kavadas to their 40-man roster a few weeks later.

He steadily climbed the minor league ladder in Houston until he reached the Double-A level in 2023. He hit a middling .220/.333/.397 in 122 games with Corpus Christi that year, and made a return to the level in 2024. Repeating a level for the first time in his career did not go especially well, as Stevens hit just .153/.242/.235 in 95 plate appearances before the Astros decided to release him in May of last year.

Garza, 31, still has a fairly limited big league track record. He has thrown 53 2/3 innings in the majors, but spread out over multiple seasons, having debuted back in 2021. That includes just 6 2/3 innings in 2025. On the whole, he has a 5.70 earned run average, 19.8% strikeout rate and 12.6% walk rate. His minor league track record is naturally greater in quality and quantity, though he has struggled on the farm this year.

The Atlanta Braves made a series of roster moves Tuesday, beginning with the activation of the recently acquired Ha-Seong Kim. The announcement was followed by Jurickson Profar's move to the paternity list, the promotion of Hayden Harris, and the demotions of Hunter Stratton and Wander Suero. In his Braves debut, Kim logged eight innings at shortstop and went 2-for-4 at the plate. Should he stay with the club, it appears Atlanta has solved the shortstop problem.

Alfaro, a CAA client, is signing a major league contract, Golden adds. The 32-year-old Alfaro hasn't appeared in the majors since 2023. He appeared in 82 games and tallied 326 plate appearances with the Brewers' Nashville affiliate in 2025, hitting .244/.285/.430 with 15 home runs and a dozen steals. Alfaro walked in only 3.4% of his plate appearances with Milwaukee's Triple-A club and also fanned at an alarming 36.5% clip.

There is some feeling within the Mets organization that right-handed pitching prospect could make his MLB debut before the 2025 season is up, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports. Tong only just made his debut with Triple-A Syracuse on August 16 and hadn't been projected as "a consideration for the Major League roster this year," Puma writes, but "that stance has changed in recent days."

His real breakout came in 2024 across two levels of the minor leagues. Between Kannapolis and a promotion to High-A Winston-Salem in 2024, Aldrin Batista was 10-5 with a 2.93 ERA in 110.2 innings. His 1.04 ERA in Winston-Salem turned some heads, and put him firmly among the Top 30 prospects in the White Sox organization. 2025 was supposed to be the season for Batista to climb the ladder even further and put his name in the mix for the future White Sox starting rotation.

Alvarez has hit really well in the minors, but has oddly struggled with fastballs, with a glaring inability to do much of anything with them.

Infielder/outfielder has elected free agency, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He was outrighted by the Pirates yesterday but has the right to reject that assignment since he has a previous career outright.