Atlanta Braves high-A Affiliate Florida Fire Frogs Official Roster and Preview

The Florida Fire Frogs prepare for their first season as an Atlanta Braves affiliate. What kind of team will they be?

The Atlanta Braves own each of their full season affiliates except for their high-A affiliate, and that has led to the team bouncing around affiliations in the last few years, from Lynchburg to Carolina, and now completely out of the Carolina League to the Florida State League.

Let’s take a look at the roster, starting with the offense:

Hitters

Catchers – Alex Jackson, Jonathan Morales, Wigberto Nevarez

I’d heard all offseason how the team wanted to see Morales get plenty of reps, and this might be the perfect way to do that and also get Jackson some reps behind the plate. Jackson should be able to get plenty of reps at the plate as DH, which is good as his bat needs some significant work as well.

Infielders – Carlos Castro, Alay Lago, Omar Obregon, Austin Riley, Alejandro Salazar

This is basically the Rome infield, except for one change, and one that could be quite intriguing, with defensive wizard Omar Obregon present, but likely Cuban import Lago going to get the opportunity to show his stuff at second base.

Lago went under the radar as an offseason signing when the Braves signed him on December 1st. He’s played third and second with a bit of pop in his bat and a solid arm.

Outfielders – Ronald Acuna, Braxton Davidson, Ray-Patrick Didder, Tyler Neslony

Davidson repeats the level, and he could see plenty of DH along with Jackson (who could get some outfield reps as well). Acuna and Didder form one of the best defensive 1-2 punches any minor league outfield can hope for.

Analysis

This should be a very solid lineup with balance up and down with good contact guys in Didder and Salazar, good power guys in Riley and Castro, a couple guys who have some big upside in Jackson and Davidson, and, of course, a rising superstar in Acuna.

The Florida State League is a notorious pitchers’ league, so the team may need to utilize the gap hitting skill

Next: Pitchers