The Braves have a new decision-maker in charge, but they didn’t drift from their roots.
They selected high school pitcher Carter Stewart with the No. 8 pick in the 2018 MLB draft. It was the organization’s first pick under general manager Alex Anthopoulos.
Stewart hails from Eau Gallie High School in Melbourne, Fla. He posted a 0.91 ERA with 128 strikeouts across 61-2/3 innings. Stewart threw four complete games.
The righty is lauded for his devastating curveball. His fastball velocity hovers in the low 90s. He’s considered by some evaluators as having the highest ceiling of all the arms in this class.
It continued a longtime trend for the Braves of loading up on pitching.
The Braves selected Kyle Wright last season after investing their first two picks on pitchers in 2016 (Ian Anderson, Joey Wentz). They drafted Kolby Allard and Mike Soroka in the first round the year before.
