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Braves part ways with former top international prospect

Originally posted on SportsTalkATL | By Chase Irle | Last updated Jan 20, 2026 3:51 PM ET

The Atlanta Braves parted ways with several minor leaguers today as Spring Training approaches, with the biggest name being former top international prospect Diego Benitez.

Benitez signed with the Braves back in 2022 out of Venezuela for a massive $2.5 million signing bonus — roughly half of the club’s entire international bonus pool at the time — and quickly became one of the more hyped signings in the organization’s system, even drawing early comparisons to Manny Machado.

“Benitez, who has been compared to a young Manny Machado, can already drive the ball out of the ballpark and he hits line drives to all fields with authority. He shows good bat speed and a solid approach at the plate,” Jesse Sanchez wrote for MLB.com at the time of the signing.

“He’ll have to work on plate discipline and pitch recognition as he advances through the Minor Leagues, but that’s common for all young prospects. On defense, he shows good footwork, soft hands and a strong arm that has plus-plus potential. He has a chance to be an above-average runner as well.”

Benitez was the 10th-ranked international prospect in his class, but he’s barely hit over the Mendoza Line in the minors (.201), and the power Sanchez described when Benitez was coming out of Venezuela never showed up, as he has just 10 homers in 776 plate appearances. Now 20 years old, it appears the Braves have seen enough to determine he doesn’t have a major-league future.

This is far from unusual, even for highly touted prospects. Most of these kids are signed when they’re just 16 or 17 years old, which makes projecting their futures incredibly difficult. Several of the Braves’ current stars, like Ozzie Albies ($350,000) and Ronald Acuña Jr. ($100,000), were signed for well under half a million dollars coming out of Latin America. That’s part of what generates excitement for this year’s international class, where the largest signing bonus handed out was $1.5 million from the Braves’ $6,679,200 international bonus pool.