Drake Baldwin, Hurston Waldrep named Top 101 Prospects according to Baseball Prospectus

Drake Baldwin’s 2024 campaign saw him all the way to #37 on the newest Top 101 prospect list.

The sensational season turned into a sensational year for Atlanta Braves top prospect Drake Baldwin as he was named the #37 prospect in all of baseball according to Baseball Prospectus.

Drake, drafted in third round in 2022, embedded his name amongst baseball’s top prospects thanks a breakout 2024 campaign. Drake appeared in 52 games for Double-A Mississippi where he slashed .244/.313/.337 in the cavernous Trustmark Park. He was promoted to Triple-A Gwinnett where his stock really took off as he hit .298/.407/.484 fueled by a 15.6% walk rate, and .185 ISO.

He was joined by Hurston Waldrep who slides in at 93 overall after an up and down 2024. Hurston got off to a great start in Double-A Mississippi where he appeared in 9 games and had a 2.92 ERA and 8.76 K/9. He was promoted to Triple-A Gwinnett where his control took a step back as his walk rate jumped up to 5.40 BB/9 (up from 3.10 in AA). Hurston also made a pair of starts for the Atlanta Braves that were rather disastrous as he struggled with fastball command leading to a robust 10.29 BB/9 ultimately resulting in a 16.71 ERA and 11.74 FIP.

The 2025 campaign will be an interesting year for Hurston as there are some clear things he needs to work on with the main one being his fastball command. As is there is not much deception in the pitch leading it be hit hard by major leaguers, so finding success with that pitch, or a different type of fastball, is imperative for his development so that hitters aren’t waiting for his superb splitter.

The two Top 100 prospects are surely in line to compete for a big league spot in Spring Training, make it one of the more intriguing Spring Training’s in recent history.