The Purge is Complete: Kyle Wren Traded

When Frank Wren was fired near the end of September from his post as Braves’ General Manager (his brother was also relieved of his duties), the natural speculation extended to the fate of son Kyle, who had a break-out year as center fielder for the Mississippi Braves.

Today we know:  Wren the Younger has been traded to Milwaukee in a move that seems to complete the removal of All Things Wren from the Braves.

About Kyle Wren

Kyle Wren as a Mississippi Braves, Aug 2014. Mandatory credit: Alan Carpenter, tomahawktake.com

Kyle Wren, 23, was selected in the 8th round of the 2013 draft out of Georgia Tech.  He has been marching through the minor league ranks with deliberate speed reaching the AA level earlier this year.

Wren hit .283 at AA Mississippi in 2014, stealing 13 bases.  He had 33 steals at Lynchburg (hitting .296) prior to his call-up.

It is Kyle’s defense that really shines, and that defense already seems to be major league ready, evidenced both from scouting reports and personal observation.  Opinions are mixed on whether he will hit enough to stick in the majors, or relegate him to that “4th outfielder” status.  When I saw him at the end of the 2014 AA season, I saw 8 at bats:  he was 7-for-7 to start that string, slapping the ball to all fields – lines, gaps, everything.

My personal opinion is that this move is a large disappointment.  It also suggests to me that the depth of organizational angst with the Elder Wren reached far and wide, as the Braves have apparently been unable to separate the player from the perpetrator.

Kyle Wren is (was) a top ten Braves prospect.  In a system that was fairly thin on talent, particularly in the outfield, he was essentially best outfield prospect aside from 2014 1st rounder Braxton Davidson (I’m not bullish on Todd Cunningham – though others are).  To move him out like this is a trade made out of spite – finishing the purge of the Frank Wren regime, as it were.  I had hoped that the Braves could get past that for someone they still needed in the system.

What Did We Get Back?

Zach Quintana, RHP, was a 3rd round Brewers pick out of an Arizona high school.  I finally found somebody’s chart that had him listed 21st on a Brewers’ prospect chart – back in 2012.  John Sickels had him buried somewhere in the ‘also mentioned’ section in 2013… maybe around 30th.

Though just getting ready for his 3rd full year of pro ball in 2015 (he’ll be 21), Quintana is already a reclamation project.  His ERA stats so far?  5.82 / 6.95 / 5.70.  He walks far too many (1 every other inning) and K’s less than one per inning.  His WHIP numbers average about 1.75.  He is a non-prospect at this point.

Even Quintana’s size suggests trouble:  he’s 5’11” and somehow was getting 92-96 mph on a fastball (see the first link above).  This is the very definition of a “max effort” guy who has to put everything into his throws to generate that kind of speed (think J.R. Graham).  Trouble is, his stuff must be either too wild (the walks) or too straight (averages at least a hit every inning).  I can only hope that some Braves’ scout saw something that could turn Zach into a serviceable reliever, for this trade looks even worse now.

Thus, Kyle Wren was dumped for essentially nothing.