Atlanta Braves Expected to Call Up Top-30 Prospect

With the starting rotation set for the Tigers series this weekend, Lara should be expected to come out of the bullpen as opposed to the starting role he has had as of late.

Lara is a prospect many remain high on despite the overall stats. He currently has a 6.53 ERA in 28 appearances, nine starts, with Triple-A Gwinnett.

In the defense of Lara, he's looked much better when he's consistently pitching out of the bullpen as opposed to when he's a starter. Before he resumed the starting role in August, four of his last six relief appearances had been scoreless. It could be seen as a sign that he was turning the corner.

He posses a fastball and slider with high grades on his prospect report. On the 20-to-80 scale, his fastball is rated at a 55, which is considered above average, and his slider is rated a 60, which is considered plus stuff.

Command remains an issue, and that has been a sticking point since the beginning. He has a walk rate (8.12 per nine innings in Triple-A) and requires a high numbers of pitches to get through an inning (19.27 in Triple-A).

The hope will be that the command is good enough, combined with a velocity that gets into the upper-90s, to get the job done.

Lara signed with the Braves back in 2021 for $10,000. Each season, he has had a promotion to the next level, and this could be the first time we see him get a second one during the season.

The Braves recently auditioned relief pitching prospects Rolddy Muñoz and Hayden Harris. Both stuck around for a week earlier this month before they were sent back to Triple-A.

Like Lara, Muñoz has shown that he can give a team innings out of the bullpen, and that was the case when pitching in Atlanta too.

It would be ideal if Lara came into a situation where the team needs more than three outs before turning things over again to the next arm. It would help show his full capabilities, so the team can make note of it for next year.

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