Atlanta Braves top 100 Prospects: #55 Mauricio Cabrera

Atlanta Braves Right Hander Mauricio Cabrera

Who Is He?

The Braves signed Cabrera out of the Dominican Republic in 2010. He started in the Dominican Summer League in 2011, making 19 appearances, 9 of them starts, throwing 52 1/3 innings with a 4.30 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, and 24/36 BB/K ratio. His control needed work, but the pure velocity drew definite notice.

The Braves brought Cabrera state side to advanced-rookie Danville in 2012. He made 12 starts, pitching 57 2/3 innings, posting a 2.97 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and 23/48 BB/K ratio. He climbed up a ton of Braves rankings. John Sickels ranked him #6 in the system, as did Baseball America, while Baseball Prospectus rated Cabrera #4 in the Braves system.

Cabrera threw for his full-season league with Rome in 2013. He made 24 starts, throwing 131 1/3 innings, posting a 4.18 ERA and 1.44 WHIP, but with a notably poor 71/107 BB/K.

The Braves moved the 20 year-old Cabrera to high-A Lynchburg to start 2014, and the control finally caught up to him, with a simply putrid performance. He was even sent to the Gulf Coast League team in an attempt to get him right. Overall, he posted a 5.73 ERA between the two levels over 22 appearances (5 of them starts) spanning 33 innings. He posted a 1.46 WHIP and a 21/31 BB/K ratio.

Next: Cabrera's scouting report

Cabrera was moved full-time to the bullpen in 2015. He started the season with high-A in Carolina and finished with Mississippi. His numbers were uninspiring, posting a 5.59 ERA and 1.59 WHIP over his 36 games and 48 1/3 innings with a 35/53 BB/K. His velocity was eye popping, but the fastball was often straight. The Braves sent him to the Arizona Fall League, and he turned heads with the fastest pitches of the entire league, topping out at 102mph. His numbers, however, were still poor in the AFL with a 6.17 ERA and 1.80 WHIP over 9 appearances and 11 2/3 innings with a a 7/15 BB/K ratio.