Alongside outfielders, the catcher position is one that the Atlanta Braves have traditionally done
an excellent job at developing. Javier Lopez, Brian McCann, and recently, William Contreras are
notable players who have come through the Braves’ organization and developed into All-Stars.
Accordingly, Atlanta may have their next homegrown household name at the position in Drake
Baldwin, the team’s top prospect.
Baldwin, a 23-year-old native of Madison, Wisconsin, was selected by the Braves in the third
round of the 2022 MLB Draft. In 2023, he quickly went through the rankings of Atlanta’s farm
system before appearing in three games with the team’s AAA affiliate, Gwinnett Stripers. He
spent most of the 2024 season in Gwinnett, accumulating a 0.298 batting average, a nearly
14% walk rate, a 0.898 OPS, and 12 home runs. Baldwin also improved defensively, throwing
out 23 runners between his time in Gwinnett and with the Mississippi Braves (AA).
Thanks to his performance last season, Baldwin has gained traction as one of Major League
Baseball’s top prospects. Major League Baseball’s official website ranked him 63rd overall,
while Fangraphs ranked him 11th, the highest ranking a Braves’ prospect has received since
Christian Pache in 2021 (eighth overall). Although he will likely begin the 2025 season in
Gwinnett, The Athletic’s David O’Brien believes that Baldwin will be catching in the Major
Leagues very soon, possibly as soon as this summer. Only time will tell, but it seems like the
Braves have again developed another quality Major League catcher in Drake Baldwin.
