Minor League Baseball

The Atlanta Braves Have Not Had a Starting Pitcher This Young in 55 Years

Didier Fuentes will start for the Braves on Friday night in his major league debut. He turned 20 three days ago.
Jami Leabow|
A general view of the cap and glove of Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson (28) on the dugout steps in the ninth inning against the Miami Marlins at loanDepot park in Miami on Aug. 13, 2022.
A general view of the cap and glove of Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson (28) on the dugout steps in the ninth inning against the Miami Marlins at loanDepot park in Miami on Aug. 13, 2022. | Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images

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Atlanta Braves

When he makes his Major League Baseball debut on Friday night, right-hander Didier Fuentes will reach milestones not seen in years.

The Braves prospect, called up from Triple-A Gwinnett to start against the home Miami Marlins, had a birthday on Tuesday. At 20 years and three days, he will be the youngest starting pitcher in the majors since Julio Urias made his debut start for the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 27, 2016. He was 19 years, 289 days.

And it was on June 23, 1970, that Mike McQueen started for the Braves against the Dodgers at 19 years, 297 days, according to MLB.com. Fuentes, therefore, becomes the youngest Atlanta starting pitcher in nearly 55 years.

MLB Pipeline ranks Fuentes as the No. 10 prospect for Atlanta. He has risen through the ranks this season, moving from High-A Rome to Double-A Columbus to Gwinnett.

At Triple-A, he made one start in a losing effort and gave up on run in 4.2 innings. However, across all three stops, he is 0-7 with a 4.81 ERA. He has struck out 48 batters in 39.1 innings.

The Braves needed a spot starter to line up their pitching rotation heading into a key road series next week against the New York Mets. Enter Fuentes. His stay in Atlanta is expected to be short, even though Braves manager Brian Snitker has heard good things about Fuentes, as he told MLB.com.

“It sounds like he’s a kid who is above his years, as far as maturity and throwing strikes,” he said.

Here’s the MLB Pipeline analysis of Fuentes, an international signee whom the Braves will hope to see in Atlanta to stay one day.

“While Fuentes isn’t the biggest guy in the world at six-foot even, he’s athletic and has the makings of a starting pitcher’s mix and the command to go with it. Not only does he throw his fastball for strikes at a 72 percent rate, he misses a lot of bats with it. It averaged 93.6 mph last year and topped out at 97 mph, playing up thanks to a low release and impressive VAA (vertical approach angle). His 84-85 mph slider is a solid breaking ball and his best secondary offering. He has a splitter as an offspeed choice but doesn’t throw it often.”

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Jami Leabow
JAMI LEABOW

Jami Leabow is the managing editor of Minor League Baseball on SI. Her love for the game began when her parents bought season tickets to the then-California Angels.

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