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Atlanta Braves Prospect Makes Never-Accomplished History For MiLB Affiliate
A detail view of Atlanta Braves hat, sunglasses and glove in the dugout during the fifth inning at CoolToday Park on March 1. Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Atlanta Braves prospect E.J. Exposito made some special history on Saturday, becoming the first player in Rome Emperors history to hit for the cycle.

The Emperors are the High-A afilliate of the Braves. The franchise has seen a cycle as the Rome Braves, but that hadn't happened for a decade.

Exposito, 23, is not listed among the Braves' Top 30 prospects, per MLB Pipeline. He was a 16th-round pick of the Braves back in 2022 out of Long Island University.

A switch-hitting shortstop, he's hitting .348 this season (8-for-23) with two homers, five RBIs and one stolen base.

He's spent parts of four seasons in the big leagues, hitting .228 in all. He hit .238 for Rome last season with 13 homers and 50 RBIs.

At the big-league level, the Braves have been hot of late. After starting out the year at 0-7, Atlanta is now 12-14. They are also out of the basement in the National League East, sitting in fourth place entering play on Sunday.

They'll play the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday afternoon with first pitch coming at 4:10 p.m. ET. Youngster Spencer Schwellenbach will pitch for the Braves while righty Brandon Pfaadt goes for Arizona.

Schwellenbach, who has taken a bigger role in the absence of Spencer Strider, is 1-1 with a 2.56 ERA this season. Pfaadt is 4-1 with a 2.73.

As for Exposito, he and the Emperors will finish out a series with the Winston-Salem Dash on Sunday before taking Monday off, as is customary in the minor leagues.

This article first appeared on Minor League Baseball on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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