As we close in on the second Opening Day in the minor leagues, the one where all of the full season levels beyond Triple-A get started, the Augusta GreenJackets have released their first roster of the season. There are a few surprises, but none too big. Let’s take a closer look at this exciting young roster for the Atlanta Braves Low-A affiliate.
Pitchers
The pitching staff doesn’t have any of the Braves biggest prospects, but Landon Beidelschies, Ethan Bagwell, and Luis Arestigueta are among the intriguing prospects on the roster. Beyond them there are guys like Davis Polo, Aiven Cabral, Zach Royse, Cristobal Abreu, and Logan Forsythe who are among the arms of note on a pitching staff that is filled with prospects, even if there isn’t a true premium prospect here for the first time in what feels like forever.
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Bagwell may be the biggest surprise of the pitching staff, as he was excellent here last year. Injury limited him to just 10 starts, but he posted a 2.88 ERA and 0.98 WHIP over 50 innings, though with only 30 strikeouts. Beidelschies is also a bit of a surprise, as the sixth round pick out of Arkansas is used to facing tough competition in the SEC. He made two starts here after signing last year. Arestigueta made 12 decent appearances here last year, though saw his season end in early-July. Those three are easy bets to be in the starting rotation, with Aiven Cabral, an 18th round pick from Northeastern who is yet to make his pro debut, and potentially Davis Polo as the other two. Polo has received some attention as a prospect, but due to injury hasn’t pitched since 2024. He was up and down here that year in 15 appearances, but was just 19 at that time. Kendy Richard will also be a candidate after splitting last year between Augusta and the FCL, and making six starts among his 10 appearances with the GreenJackets a year ago.
Among the other options are Cristobal Abreu, a talented arm who hasn’t pitched since 2024 due to injury. Abreu has flashed big stuff, but his results in 35.2 innings in the DSL and FCL for his career don’t match the stuff. Logan Forstyhe was the team’s 13th rounder out of Louisiana Tech last year, and the former Mississippi State reliever has huge stuff, but still needs to improve his feel for command. Zach Royse (7th), Carter Lovasz (8th), Mathieu Curtis (14th), and Ryan Heppner (19th) were all drafted last year, and made little to no appearances after signing. Royse and Heppner in particular were starters in college, and could be candidates to start here.
Two undrafted free agents from last year, who were once thought of as bigger prospects earlier in their careers, Drew Christo and Jaylen Paden, are also here. Christo passed up big money out of high school, but never quite developed at his hometown school in Nebraska. Paden was once thought to be a big arm at Georgia Southern, but after a series of injuries and a transfer to Georgia Tech, has seen his stock fade a bit. Derek Vartanian was also an undrafted free agent, though he signed in 2024 and hasn’t pitched since due to injury. Lewis Sifontes is back after closing his 2025 season here with three appearances out of the pen late in the year. Styven Paez is making a full season roster for the first time, and returned last year after missing all of 2024.
Catchers
The headliner here is Nick Montgomery, as the overslot pick from 2024 tries to rebound from a disappointing 2025 season where he posted a .524 OPS. Manuel Dos Passos and Tanner Smith are also here. Dos Passos may sound familiar because he was just included on the Spring Breakout roster, after the now 19-year-old posted a .687 OPS in the FCL last year. Smith signed as an undrafted free agent out of Miami last year, formerly Oregon State, and hit two homers in five games before a quick three game stint in Rome at the end of the year.
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Infielders
This is maybe the most exciting group on the team with Tate Southisene, Alex Lodise, and Jose Perdomo, leading the way, plus Luis Sanchez, Cooper McMurray, and Joe Olsavsky. Lodise is the biggest surprise, as the second round pick from Florida State went right to Rome for 25 games last year. It’s likely the Braves want him to work on his approach with the Augusta coaching staff before a quick promotion back to Rome. Southisene was the team’s first round pick last year, and spent 15 games here posting a .539 OPS – though he did look better in spring action, including the Spring Breakout. Perdomo was the team’s big international signee two years ago, but injuries have limited his time and performance in his first two years of pro ball. He showed up to camp in great shape, and we can only hope to see the guy who drew strong reviews from scouts two and a half years ago.
McMurray was also an undrafted free agent last year, and the former Auburn slugger is starting off here after struggling in a 21 game look with Rome last season. Sanchez is back after splitting last year between Augusta and Rome, plus one game for Gwinnett, posting a combined .580 OPS. Olsavsky is a versatile infielder who split last year between Augusta and Rome, and he posted a .797 OPS in 49 games with the GreenJackets.
Outfielders
The bigger story is the fact Diego Tornes is not here. He wasn’t really expected to open in full season ball, but it was seen as an outside possibility based on his skill set. Conor Essenburg, Luis Guanipa, Junior Garcia, Dallas Macias, and Caden Merritt are here however. Essenburg was the overslot fifth round pick last year, and the former prep two-way star has impressed after signing despite not yet making his pro debut. Guanipa is back here for the third year in a row, as injuries have really kept him from seeing the field much in each of the past two seasons. Garcia is back after seeing 40 games here last year, then spending all of last year in the FCL. He is still just 20-years-old, and is hoping for a better run in Augusta than what we saw in 2024. Macias was the 15th round pick out of Oregon State last year. He had been seen as a guy capable of going about ten rounds higher, but struggled his way through the season in both college and after signing with the Braves. Merritt is a speedy outfielder who signed as an undrafted free agent out of high school last year, following a stint in the MLB Draft League.
Stay tuned for the Rome Opening Day roster release and also check out the Columbus Clingstones roster release as well.
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