A former top prospect of the Atlanta Braves has been cut by his current MLB team.
Atlanta is in the midst of a series against the Washington Nationals, and during their game, a former prospect could be back on the open market.
The Braves are atop the NL East and are coming off a 9-5 loss to the Nationals on Tuesday in the first game of a two-game series.
Braves Top Prospect DFA’d by Royals
The Kansas City Royals announced on Wednesday that they designated outfielder Drew Waters for assignment. The move comes just one day after Waters was promoted to the MLB with the rosters expanding.
The Braves selected Waters in the second round of the 2017 MLB Draft with the 41st overall pick and signed him for $1.5 million, forgoing his commitment to Georgia.
Waters became a top prospect in the Braves system and looked like he would be a key part of their future. He was the team’s second-ranked prospect in 2020, according to MLB Pipeline, and third-ranked in 2021 and 2022.
Atlanta traded Waters, CJ Alexander, and Andrew Hoffmann to the Royals in exchange for the 35th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, a competitive balance pick that Atlanta used on JR Ritchie.
It was a surprise trade, as Waters still had some hype as a prospect. But the Braves opted to move him for a pick they used to select Ritchie.
Waters made his MLB debut on August 22, 2022, and has since appeared in 208 games over four seasons. He didn’t appear in a game this year as he was called up on Tuesday and DFA’d a day later.
In his MLB career, the now 27-year-old is hitting .234 with 14 home runs and 65 RBIs.
Atlanta Right Now
The Braves have been struggling as of late, as the Philadelphia Phillies are now back in contention for the top spot in the NL East.
Atlanta is just 3 games up on the Phillies and is coming off a blowout loss to the Nationals.
“Our record is what it is,” manager Walt Weiss said. “We’ve been really good this year. But every once in a while you have games like this. It’s just, I think, magnified when you get to September and you’re in a pennant race. So we’ll play better moving forward, but tough one tonight.”
The Braves still control their own destiny, but are set for a pivotal weekend series against the Phillies on the road.
“As long as we win games, we control our destiny,” said Michael Harris II. “Obviously, the team that is right behind us, we play them next. And yeah, it’s a key series coming up. So as long as we handle business, that’s all we can do.”
Atlanta is 82-57 and 3 games up on the Phillies entering play on Wednesday.
Former Braves Top Propsect Cut by MLB Team Just 1 Day After Promotion