Christmas in July continues as we roll into one of our favorite series of the year – our Top 30, midseason addition. After a strong draft in 2025, followed by adding a lot of good talent from the international free agency period, we now take a look at the state of the franchise following the 2026 MLB draft. As I’m sure you are all aware of the Braves selected 9th overall in this draft and had 21 overall picks thanks to Drake Baldwin winning Rookie of the Year in 2025, garnering a PPI pick for the Braves. To go along with those 21 picks the Braves bonus pool was valued all the way at $15.8M giving them a lot of ammo to work with.
To kick things off we have our honorable mentions, five players that just missed the cut. These five are especially important this season as we are releasing our list a week before the trade deadline in a year where the Braves are expected to make some moves so these are some names that can find themselves on the list.
C, Jorwin Pulido
Signed out Maracay, Venezuela, Jorwin received the fifth biggest signing bonus that the Braves gave out during the 2026 International Free Agency period value around $350,000. Not too much was known about the catcher, but his impact on the organization would be quite loud, quite quickly. At 17, he’s one of the youngest in the organization and won’t turn 18 until after the season ends. Behind the plate, Jorwin has impressed coaches with his 1.8 pop time, and accurate throws to both second and third base. Jorwin has received praise for his ability to receive pitches, as well as block pitches in the dirt – though there is still room for improvement. Offensively, he has had enormous success this season. He appeared in 22 games for the DSL Braves and hit .324/.402/.437 while walking 11.5% of the time and striking out a paltry 5.7%. With that combination of defense and offense, the Braves made the aggressive decision to promote him to the FCL where he has put up even more impressive numbers slashing .389/.542/.556 in 6 games. While his strikeout rate has risen to 16.7%, which is still fantastic, his walk rate has also increased to 12.5%. In an organization that is looking for catching help, Jorwin looks like a real bright spot and someone to follow.
2B, Dixon Williams
After starting off the season sizzling hot Dixon Williams was hit hard by the regression monster as his contact rate dropped significantly during the bulk months of the season. Still, on the season Dixon is hitting .210/.322/.405 so while the hit tool has fallen off a bit, the walk rate is still there (12.2%), as well as the slugging as he’s hit 12 home runs, and 14 doubles, to go along with 20 stolen bases. The issue has been the hit tool as he is swinging and missing far too much with a strikeout rate that approaches 30%. He has gotten slightly unlucky shown by his .266 BABIP, but the issue really points to the swing and miss that his profile currently exhibits. That being said, there is still tremendous upside with Dixon as long as the swing and miss declines because of his ability to get on base, and hit for power.
SS, Jose Perdomo
After a bit of a disaster in 2025 where he hit just .223/.275/.270, Jose showed up in great shape looking to change the narrative of his career. Jose was rewarded with a promotion to Augusta to start the season, despite the subpar numbers in the FCL, but his 2026 ended extremely quickly as he found himself on the full season IL after just two games in the season. It’s crazy to think but Jose will be entering what is technically his fourth season of professional baseball in 2027, but has played a total of 64 games. Expectations will be significant next season as Jose must not only show health, but mammoth improvements across the board, to stay on the list.
SS, Juan Mateo
An international free agent signing from 2024, Juan Mateo has had a very solid 2026 campaign. A contact first player, Juan has shown improvements from his 2025 campaign – including hitting two home runs this season. There is still reason to believe he will add more power because his frame is still light, but as is he possesses the skills to be a utility type of player that can play across the entire field. On the season Juan is hitting .250/.323/.336 with a 9.7% walk rate to go with a strikeout rate of 19.1% along with 17 stolen bases. While he hasn’t quite had the 2026 we expected, he has exceeded nearly all of his numbers from 2025 which is a huge positive.
RHP, Cole Dennis
Drafted in the fourth round of this years MLB draft, Cole Dennis debuts in our honorable mentions despite not having thrown a single pitch – thanks to a very intriguing pitching profile. As is, Cole has a big arm – having hit 96 MPH at the combine however he will definitely need make that a lot more consistent. His curveball/slider has the makings of being a plus pitch, and as you can see in the post below he has an extremely low spinning changeup that he will need to get more comfortable throwing, but has serious possibilities. Cole will take some time to develop but with his size, and arm potential, there is a lot to like about the fourth round pick and what he can do on the mound.
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