Atlanta Braves: Tyler Flowers has bloomed – you just haven’t noticed
By Seth Carter
The Atlanta Braves have had one of the best catchers in the league since 2016. His craft doesn’t involve copious amounts of towering home runs but consists of subtle greatness, inconspicuous to the untrained eye.
Tyler Flowers was born in Roswell, Georgia. He grew up an Atlanta Braves fan and was drafted by the Braves…twice.
That’s right, the Braves drafted Flowers out of high school in 2004 in the twenty-seventh round. Flowers went onto Chipola College in Florida for a year before the Braves drafted him again in 2005.
Growing up, Flowers lived in Marietta, GA. He spent his days in Shaw Park with his family playing baseball and other sports right there in Cobb County.
Flowers’ dad coached him until he reached high school. He starred at Blessed Trinity High School in Roswell, GA before being drafted by the Braves the first time.
Staying Home… for a While
Tyler Flowers started with the Atlanta Braves organization in 2005 when he was drafted in the thirty-third round. Flowers, who was born in Roswell, Georgia, was tickled to be drafted by the hometown Bravos.
He made it to their A+ level before being traded to the White Sox in 2008 as part of a huge deal bringing in Javier Vazquez. In 2009, he began the season in Double-A for Chicago. Flowers was promoted to Triple-A for thirty-one games and made his debut with the big-league club later that season.
He played ten games with the White Sox in 2009, eight games in 2010, and made one last stop in Triple-A in 2011 before becoming a fixture with where the big boys play.
Flowers played with the White Sox through the 2015 season. His finest campaign came when he played in a career-high 127 games, logging 407 at-bats and crushing 15 home runs and 50 RBI as a backstop. His .241 average was by far the highest of his career.
Following the 2015 season, Flowers was non-tendered and granted free agency. Shortly thereafter, he found himself signing back home with the rebuilding Atlanta Braves.
Flowers has been a different player since his return to Atlanta.