Braves Prospect Year in Review: Jim Jarvis' Strong Arrival From Detroit

The Atlanta Braves acquired another shortstop at the trade deadline, and he has looked promising once he was under the organization's developmental umbrella

Jarvis looked solid after he arrived at the trade deadline | GREG WOHLFORD/ERIE TIMES-NEWS / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It’s the 2025 MLB Trade Deadline, and the Atlanta Braves shipped off relief pitcher Rafael Montero to the Detroit Tigers. In return, they netted a minor league shortstop, Jim Jarvis. He remains unranked as a prospect, but he was acquired at the deadline. It can't hurt to see what he could bring to the table.

His stats with Double-A Erie didn’t stand out. However, knowing who the Braves were giving up, it was fine to get a minor leaguer, who may become something with some work, in return. Lo and behold, during Jarvis’ move to the Braves system, he saw instant improvement at the plate. 

Here is the comparison in his slash line between the two Double-A affiliates:

• 77 games with Erie: .242/.316/.336 (.652 OPS)
• 21 games with Columbus: .265/.344/.361 (.706 OPS)

It was the best he had looked since he was down in Single-A with Lakeland. The sample size was smaller, but it was a nice step in the right direction. How he did after that also shows evidence that that could be the case. 

He saw three games in Triple-A and saw the ball well (3-for-9, two doubles, two RBIs). However, he spent time on the seven-day injured list, effectively keeping him out the rest of the minor league season. 

A slow start during action in the Arizona Fall League could be attributed to shaking the rust off after not seeing action for over a month. Once he got going, he had a strong finish. Ultimately, Javis posted a .259 average and an .820 OPS in 16 games during action out in Arizona. Again, overall improvement is shown at the plate. 

Something that stood out was where he succeeded in the lineup. Erie was trying him everywhere in the lineup, and he tended to do better at the top of the order. Both Double-A Columbus and Triple-A Gwinnett exclusively used him second in the order, according to Baseball Savant. 

It’s possible that when he can simply focus on his at-bat and not driving runners in, it helps his overall production. Next season, whether it’s during spring training or the early minor league season, we can get a better idea of where he fits best in the lineup. 

Jarvis will likely start the next season in Triple-A. He had already been promoted, and he’s still officially assigned there. He’s not major league-ready quite yet. 

It’s going to be necessary to see him at that level for a bit. Again, he played there for three games, and then his regular season came to an end. Once he starts to show something consistent, the discussion on a major league call-up can begin.