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Atlanta Braves Top 100 Prospects: #37 Connor Lien

By Benjamin Chase

Mar 5, 2016; Lake Buena Vista, FL, USA; Former Atlanta Braves player Dale Murphy poses for a photograph with infants before the start of a spring training game at Champion Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 5, 2016; Lake Buena Vista, FL, USA; Former Atlanta Braves player Dale Murphy poses for a photograph with infants before the start of a spring training game at Champion Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports /
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Atlanta Braves Outfielder Connor Lien

Who Is He?

Lien was drafted by the Braves in the 12th round in 2012 out of high school in Florida. He started out his draft season with the GCL team, and in his first season, he hit .228/.352/.383 in 180 plate appearances with 15 stolen bases and a 19/49 BB/K ratio.

The Braves moved Lien up to Danville in 2013, and he added some power to his game, at the expense of the other things he did well in 2012, going .226/.298/.401 in 236 plate appearances, hitting 6 home runs and 4 triples, but only stealing 10 bases and struggling to a 14/70 BB/K ratio.

The Braves moved Lien to full-season A-ball Rome in the South Atlantic League in 2014, and his contact skill began to show much better. He hit .275/.337/.398 with 5 home runs and 16 stolen bases over 345 plate appearances with a 21/84 BB/K ratio. In Rome, he first moved out of center field, and the Braves began to see that while he was a solid center fielder, his performance in the corner outfield spots defensively, specifically right field, was borderline elite.

Next: Lien's scouting report

In 2015, the Braves moved Lien to high-A Carolina, and he had a “breakout” season, though he really produced at a similar level to his time at Rome over a full season. He hit .285/.337/.415 with 9 home runs and 34 stolen bases in 504 plate appearances with a 33/129 BB/K ratio. He was frequently graded as an elite outfielder regardless of whether he was in center or right, and his arm began getting tons of praise, as Lien racked up an astonishing 21 assists from the outfield over the season. He finished the year in the Arizona Fall League, though his time there was less than stellar, hitting .189/.220/.221 in 77 at bats with one home run and 4 steals but a worrisome 4/35 BB/K ratio.

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