On the up and up: Fast-rising Braves' No. 7 prospect dominates in third High-A start
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In less than two months, Briggs McKenzie has moved through three Minor League levels. And at every stop, he has delivered the goods.
The Braves' No. 7 prospect tied a career high with eight strikeouts over 4 2/3 innings in one of his best starts of the season en route to High-A Rome’s 3-2 loss to Greensboro on Thursday at AdventHealth Stadium. The outing lowered McKenzie's ERA for the season to 2.08.
After Grasshoppers scored an unearned run on a couple of hits and an error in the first inning, the 2025 fourth-round pick settled in nicely for the remainder of his outing.
McKenzie retired the side on just 13 pitches in the second, and his swing-and-miss stuff really started to flash when he returned to the bump in the third. Against the top of the Greensboro lineup, the left-hander struck out the side. And of the final 10 batters he faced, six were retired via the K.
The 19-year-old fanned four prospects ranked in the Pirates' Top 30 -- Sammy Stafura (No. 10), Easton Carmichael (No. 16), Murf Gray (No. 17), Yordany De Los Santos (No. 18).
The southpaw's arsenal generated a 36.1 percent whiff rate (13 whiffs on 36 swings). A bulk of those swings-and-misses were produced by his 60-grade curveball, a pitch that already shows strong signs of being a plus offering.
In a small 9 2/3-inning sample against High-A hitters, who are 4 years older than McKenzie on average, he sports a 13.03 K/9.
In 26 frames over Rookie, Single-A and High-A levels, opposing hitters are mustering just a .575 OPS vs. him this season. And the North Carolina native hasn't just been a thorn in the side of left-handed hitters, who are hitting .206 against him this season. McKenzie has held righties to a .180 average as well.
A Top 100 prospect in the 2025 Draft, the Braves pulled McKenzie away from an LSU commitment by offering him a first-round-caliber signing bonus of $3 million. With a 10.73 K/9 over his first seven professional starts, McKenzie has certainly lived up to that billing to start his career.