Atlanta Braves Scouting Report on Pitcher Caleb Dirks

The Atlanta Braves re-acquired righty Caleb Dirks from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the middle of the season and he dominated in Mississippi. Could he be a future impact reliever?

Who Is He?

The Braves originally drafted Dirks out of California Baptist University in the 15th round of the 2014 draft. They sent him to Danville originally, and he put up a sub-1.00 ERA before being promoted to Rome to finish out the year, and he pitched very well there as well. In total, Dirks made 21 appearances in his first pro season, throwing 32 1/3 innings, with a 2.23 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, and a 13/37 BB/K ratio.

The Braves returned Dirks to Rome to start the 2015 season, and he quickly earned a promotion to Carolina. He had yet to allow a single run at Carolina when the Braves made the decision to trade Dirks to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a move to acquire international spending money to sign guys like Cristian Pache and Derian Cruz that summer. He was assigned to Rancho Cucamonga in the high-A Cal League, and he threw very well there before being bumped up to Tulsa to finish the year. In all, he’d moved from low-A to AA on the season, never posting even a 2.00 ERA in any stop. His total numbers were 40 appearances, 50 innings, a 0.90 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, and an impressive 22/64 BB/K ratio.

The Dodgers sent him back to Tulsa to start the 2016 season, and he was nothing short of dominating in his time there in a hitters’ league before the Braves acquired him back from the Dodgers along with Philip Pfeifer in the deal that sent Bud Norris and Dian Toscano to the Dodgers. Dirks finished out his season in the power-laden Mississippi bullpen, and his overall numbers between Tulsa and Mississippi were 49 appearances, 61 innings, a 1.18 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and an 18/67 BB/K ratio.

Next: Dirks' scouting report