Earlier this season, I mentioned hard throwing Braves prospect J.R. Graham as a prospect to watch going forward.

He has now the top prospect in the Braves organization according to John Sickels, ahead of Julio Teheran.

1) J.R. Graham, RHP, Grade B: I really like him and I'm actually more confident that he'll reach his ceiling than Teheran will reach his, which is why I've got him a shade above Teheran although Teheran is younger. Plus stuff, very athletic, good statistical profile add up for me.


For his complete list, visit: http://www.minorleagueball.com/2012/...pects-for-2013

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We missed Graham in the Prospects Report. But here's the lowdown on Teheran:

Julio Teheran, SP/RHP (TY 13) (LY – 4)
(2/27/1991)

Teheran advanced quickly through the minors during his first few seasons as a professional. However, he has struggled to live up to his lofty prospect status for the better part of the past year. His struggles have been especially surprising given his maturity and feel for pitching. Teheran posted a 2.55 ERA and threw 144 1/3 innings at Triple-A Gwinnett in 2011 at the tender age of 20, but struggled in a late-season audition with Atlanta toward the end of that year. This past season didn’t go well for the longtime elite prospect. He tallied an unimpressive 5.08 ERA and saw his strikeout rate drop for the third straight season. Teheran has now pitched a total of 26 innings for Atlanta with uninspiring results (5.19 ERA, 5.2 K/9, 3.12 BB/9). Struggles aside, Teheran is still a very good (and young) pitching prospect. He throws four pitches: a low-to-mid-90s fastball, an excellent changeup that’s almost as good as his heater, a solid low-80s curveball and a decent slider. His inconsistent mechanics and command have caused Teheran to stall as a prospect, but he’ll get every chance to break into the Atlanta rotation in 2013.


Upside - Josh Johnson (3.75 ERA, 190 innings pitched, 175 strikeouts)
Certainty (MLB; Upside) - 99%, 65%
Expected arrival – 2013


To like Graham better than Teheran is a bold statement

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I joined a keeper baseball league last year, our inaugural season and we have a minor league roster (much like hockey leagues). I remember Teheran getting drafted but not Graham. Thanks for the heads up. Someone to keep my eye on when we draft again this offseason.

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Stamkos, Tavares, Hall, Couture, Hanzal, Wheeler, Stastny, Versteeg, Fisher, Hornqvist, Eriksson, Hodgson, Setoguchi, Turris, Steen, Letang, DRoy, Yakupov, Grabner, Byfuglien, Baertschi

G-Rask, Halak, Schneider

Mike Schmidt says this about him:

"He took a step forward this season after being considered a raw prospect that needed work, but the consensus is he's a future reliever because of his lack of size. While he's not considered a future candidate to close in the majors, it'll be interesting to see what he can do in 2013 against more advanced minor league hitters. "

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DobberHockey Rules
14 Team Keeper, points only, best 12 skaters 2 dman 2 G count. Playoffs count.
F - Crosby, C.Smith, Wheeler, Parenteau, Hudler, Clowe, Grabovski, Atkinson, Frolik, S. Kostitsyn, Marchand, Peverley, Tavares, Read, Brouwer, Bickell, Gionta, Setoguchi
G - Anderson, Hiller, Markstrom, Brodeur
D - Letang, Del Zotto, I. White, Kronwall, Brodin, Nikitin

He still has the kind of upside that makes him worth owning, especially in deeper leagues.

Graham was named the minor league pitcher of the year by the Braves organization.
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?...k_atl&c_id=atl

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I thought you guys would be interested in this.

"We saw him earlier pin his ear back and try to throw it 100 [mph]," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "The last couple of outings out, he has been able to mix his pitches a lot better. When he does that, he almost becomes unhittable."

Graham was re-assigned to minor league camp, but threw nine scoreless innings and gave up only six hits during Spring Training.

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