SUCCESS, Arizona – The season, which officially started in Rookie-level play at the Braves facilities in North Port, Florida, and saw Darius Vines advance to the Major League level twice, has made its most recent turn towards the west to play in the Arizona Fall League.
The team’s No. 10 prospect, Vines, made his Salt River debut on Tuesday night at Surprise Stadium. In a 5-1 victory, he struck out nine batters over 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball. Following his training as a member of the team’s taxi squad in Atlanta during the National League Division Series, the 25-year-old is prepared to tackle his most recent professional challenge: the elite prospect circuit in baseball.
Toeing the rubber in a game setting for the first time in 20 days, Vines utilized his four-pitch mix to dice through the Surprise lineup. Deftly changing speeds and keeping batters off balance, he yielded just four hits and the only run he allowed came on a double-steal. His nine punchouts ranked as the second-most in the Fall League through two-and-a-half weeks of game action.
Vines remarked, “I felt like I was making progress, throwing a lot of first-pitch strikes.” “Making these guys swing, throwing a lot of good strikes, a lot of swings-and-misses when I was behind in the count.”
He was hitting 15 of 21 hitters with first-pitch strikes and accumulating 20 swings and misses while throwing 54 of his 75 pitches for strikes, but Vines sensed something was off the California native proves difficult.
Vines had a familiar face behind the catcher’s mask in fellow Braves prospect Tyler Tolve, with whom he last collaborated during Spring Training, in his debut start amidst a sea of unfamiliar names and skills.
According to Vines, “He knew automatically what pitch I wanted next.” Simply keeping pace with the times. He called an excellent game. You know, I would attribute a portion of his success to him.
Vines’ season debut was delayed until late June due to right shoulder soreness, even though he was protected prior to the Rule 5 Draught of the previous year. After moving up to Triple-A Gwinnett in 2022, he made a comeback to the level in July and performed well enough in five starts that when a spot opened up in the Braves’
The 25-year-old has a quality low-80s mph changeup that he can throw in any count, and a low-90s four-seam fastball that big league hitters found challenging to square up, with the latter batting just.130 against it in five outings. Despite this, his stuff won’t light up a radar gun. Add in his unique cutter and slider, applying firm pressure consistently versus.
rotation in late August – to pitch at Coors Field, of all places – Vines got the call that he was headed to The Show
“It’s been surreal,” he said. “Especially making my debut this year after being [in Florida] for the first two months of the year and, you know, it’s hard. [Rehabbing,] you see a lot of guys get the chance and you’re not mad or jealous, you just wanna be there with them and just really try to do everything and anything in your willpower to get there.”
Both of Vines’ starting opportunities with Atlanta resulted in quality starts. He also worked in a bulk relief role during September, showcasing his pitchability amidst a pennant chase, finishing with a 3.98 ERA across 20 1/3 Major League innings.
Even though Vines was never given the opportunity to join the big league team during its NLDS game against Philadelphia, he believed he had more in him for 2023. After being eliminated, Vines was headed for the desert, but the Braves wanted to keep him ready for as long as their postseason run went.
Now, he gets the chance to work towards securing a long-term position on Atlanta’s pitching staff as the team’s seventh-round pick in the 2019 Draught. After right shoulder surgery last week, Kyle Wright is anticipated to miss the whole 2024 season. Charlie Morton has a $20 million club option for the next season, which the Braves will need to decide on.
In summary, Vines will be difficult to overlook if they make an impression against a few of baseball’s best prospects and again in the spring. For the duration of his employment with Salt River, he is delivering a straightforward motto to the hill:
“[The ball] is out of your control the moment it leaves your hands.” See what transpires.
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