A few days ago, Justyn-Henry Malloy was promoted from Mississippi to Gwinnett for the final few weeks of the season. Malloy began the year in High-A Rome, the same place Vaughn Grissom started the season, and like Grissom, Malloy hasn’t stopped hitting every step of the way.
With Rome, Malloy smacked ten homers and recorded an .888 OPS. In Mississippi, he had another stellar .824 OPS. And so far through three games with Gwinnett, he’s hitting .333 with a 1.129 OPS, including this home run in his Gwinnett Stripers debut.
Another exciting aspect of his promotion has been where he’s playing. While he’s listed as a first baseman, he made his Stripers debut in left field, which will make it easier for him to join the Braves whenever he is deemed ready.
A Georgia Tech graduate, Justyn-Henry Malloy has a chance to be the latest prospect to rocket through the Braves system and contribute to the major-league club. It won’t happen this year, but if there’s one hole on the current team, it’s in left field.
The Braves have some options next season. Eddie Rosario and Marcell Ozuna are under contract for next season. Whether they will be retained and what their role will be is an entirely different conversation. The Braves also need to find a spot for Vaughn Grissom, as Ozzie Albies should be 100% healthy to begin next season. It’s a good problem to have, but Justyn-Henry Malloy is quickly becoming part of the conversation. I don’t think he will begin next year in Atlanta, but there’s a good chance he makes his MLB debut at some point in 2023.
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