Drake Baldwin: The Braves Next Star

Among Braves breakout candidates this season, there isn’t one more exciting than top prospect Drake Baldwin, who FanGraphs recently ranked the 11th best prospect in all of baseball.

The former third-round selection out of Missouri State in the 2022 MLB Draft got off to a bit of a slow start in Mississippi last season, but he’s not the first to experience down numbers in the Southern League. Once Baldwin got the call to Gwinnett, everything changed.

In 72 games for the Stripers, he hit a hair under .300 with 12 homers and 26 total extra-base hits to go along with 55 RBIs. However, what might be most impressive is that he did all of this while walking (52 times) nearly as much as he struck out (54 times).

Offensively, Drake Baldwin is a complete product. He’s not the most powerful guy, standing at just 5-foot-10 and 210 pounds, but he can drive the ball to all fields effortlessly and should become a 20-30 homer guy at the major-league level. As a catcher, who has improved significantly defensively, there aren’t many that possess that kind of ability with the stick, especially considering Baldwin doesn’t give up contact for that power.

In another organization, Baldwin might be included on the Opening Day roster. His bat is major-league ready today and could certainly help any team lead to more wins. The problem the Braves have to start this season is managing his playing time.

Atlanta felt comfortable parting ways with Travis d’Arnaud, in part because they believe Sean Murphy will perform better with fewer off-days. At least, that is what his track record suggests dating back to his days in Oakland. The Braves invested a ton into Murphy when they traded for him a couple of offseasons ago and handed him a long-term extension. Even after a piss-poor 2024 campaign, they aren’t just going to give up on him.

Drake Baldwin is clearly the second-best catcher in the organization today, but the Braves aren’t going to start him in Atlanta so he can catch a couple of times a week behind Sean Murphy. To begin the season, it’s best Baldwin continues to get as many reps as possible to develop, both offensively and defensively.

However, eventually, whether he forces the Braves’ hand or an injury arises, his time will come in 2025, and if he hits in Atlanta like he has in Gwinnett, Sean Murphy’s days as the starting catcher may be numbered.