Son of Longtime MLB Player Projected to Make Braves Opening Day Roster

There's still plenty of time for the Atlanta Braves to add pieces in free agency. But with the team beginning spring training in less than a month, MLB.com's Mark Bowman took an early stab at predicting who will make the Braves Opening Day roster.

One of the more surprising predictions Bowman made in his Braves roster projections on Jan. 13 was including minor league infielder Christian Cairo. Bowman predicted Cairo, who is former MLB second baseman and Chicago White Sox manager Miguel Cairo's son, to be Atlanta's fifth infielder to begin the season.

"Cairo, the son of longtime Major Leaguer Miguel Cairo, was selected out of the Guardians’ system in the Rule 5 Draft," wrote Bowman. "This means he would be placed on outright waivers if removed from the 26-man roster at any point this year.

"If he clears waivers, the Braves would have to offer him back to Cleveland for $50,000 before gaining the option to outright him to the Minors."

Because the Braves would lose Cairo if he doesn't make the Opening Day roster, Bowman worked under the assumption that Cairo will be on the team to begin the 2025 season.

In the Guardians minor league system last year, Cairo hit .241 with a .680 OPS. He performed best at Double-A Akron, registering a .252/.353/.344 slash line with seven extra-base hits, 9 RBI, 14 runs and 14 stolen bases in 156 plate appearances.

At Triple-A Columbus, he hit .233 with a .670 OPS, 10 extra-base hits, 30 RBI, 34 runs and 12 steals in 257 plate appearances.

The then Indians drafted Cairo out of high school in the fourth round of the 2019 MLB Amateur draft. He began rookie ball in 2019, but his minor league career was then delayed until 2021 due to COVID.

Across five minor league seasons, he's hit .221 with a .673 OPS. His Baseball Reference page lists him as a second baseman, third baseman and shortstop.

If the Braves only keep one extra infielder, they will need that type of versatilty. Veteran Whit Merrifield filled the utility role for the Braves late in 2024, but Bowman wrote Merrifield could retire before the 2025 season.

Should the Braves elect to have Cairo on the MLB roster to begin the season, that could mark the end of Luke Williams' time in Atlanta. Bowman predicted the Braves to keep Cairo and Eli White instead, and Williams is out of minor league options.

White can play second base, so while Bowman projected him as one of the five outfielders on Atlanta's Opening Day roster, White will also be the Braves' sixth infielder.

In the outfield, Bowman predicted the Braves to have Garrett Cooper and Bryan De La Cruz along with White, Michael Harris II and Jarred Kelenic on the first 2025 roster.