IP | 21.2 |
---|---|
ERA | 4.57 |
WHIP | 1.25 |
BB/9 | 4.15 |
SO/9 | 7.48 |
- Full name AJ Smith-Shawver
- Born 11/20/2002 in Fort Worth, TX
- Profile Ht.: 6'3" / Wt.: 205 / Bats: R / Throws: R
- School Colleyville Heritage
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Drafted in the 7th round (217th overall) by the Atlanta Braves in 2021 (signed for $997,500).
View Draft Report
Smith-Shawver had a wealth of options when it came to his college plans. He had Division I offers as a three-star recruit at quarterback. He topped 400 yards in passing in two separate games last fall while leading Colleyville (Texas) Heritage High to the Texas 5A regional semifinals. On the diamond, he’s a legitimate two-way player. His pro potential is most likely on the mound, where he’s touched 94-95 mph and has shown feel for spinning a mid-70s curveball that has good shape but needs some tightening up. But in college, he could also help as a third baseman at Texas Tech. He has solid all-fields power potential and his arm plays in the field as well as on the mound.
Top Rankings
Organization Prospect Rankings
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BA Grade/Risk: 55/Extreme
Track Record: Smith-Shawver was a quick-twitch, multi-sport athlete in high school who was a college prospect as a hitter and pitcher, but the Braves loved his arm enough to sign him for just under $1 million in the seventh round in 2021. Smith-Shawver spent 2022 with Low-A Augusta, where he showed perhaps the highest upside in Atlanta's farm system.
Scouting Report: Smith-Shawver is a powerful and athletic righthander who has shown legitimate frontline starter stuff, according to scouts both inside and outside the organization. It all starts with his four-seam fastball, a beast of a pitch that averaged nearly 95 mph and peaked at 98. It has excellent life, with 20 inches of induced vertical break and both cutting and running action at times. He's still developing his command of the pitch, but when he's hitting the zone, it can be overpowering. Similarly, Smith-Shawver's slider has the potential to be a wipeout offering. It's an upper-80s pitch with short and hard biting action that disappears at the bottom of the strike zone when it's on. Smith-Shawver throws a changeup in the same velocity range that remains a work in progress. The pitch flashes solid fading life, but he has below-average feel for it presently. Smith-Shawver has reduced the violence of his delivery since high school, but there are still needed refinements. His arm speed is electric, but it's such that he's not often synced up, and he also features plenty of cross-fire action and a heavy fall-off to the first base side--all of which will limit his control and command.
The Future: The Braves will likely take the Spencer Strider approach with Smith-Shawver, prioritizing fastball command and slider consistency. If his command doesn't improve, his stuff could play in a big league bullpen.
Scouting Grades: Fastball: 70 Slider: 70 Changeup: 45 Control: 50 -
Track Record: A twitchy, multi-sport athlete out of high school, the Braves took a chance on Smith-Shawver’s explosive arm speed, signing him to just under $1 million in the 7th round.
Scouting Report: Given Smith-Shawver’s current stuff, athleticism and arm speed, there are officials in Braves camp who think the 6-foot-3 righthander could be one of the top prospects in the system in a few years. There’s some refinement that needs to happen—particularly with his command—before that, and he did struggle in a brief pro debut but the toolset is tantalizing. Smith-Shawver touched 94-95 during the spring but with Atlanta he’s been sitting in that range, getting up to 97 mph with solid vertical life. The spin on both his breaking balls is impressive as well. He threw a mid-80s gyro slider more frequently this summer than a 7 o’clock tilt, downer curve in the upper-70s—but both pitches have a chance to be above-average. On top of that, Smith-Shawver showed feel for a mid-80s changeup that was well beyond his years and experience level on the mound, forcing hitters well beyond his level to ground out on ugly swings in live at-bats.
The Future: Smith-Shawver was a prep quarterback and hasn’t spent much time focusing on pitching, but Braves officials rave about his early progress and believe he is a potential breakout candidate.
Draft Prospects
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Smith-Shawver had a wealth of options when it came to his college plans. He had Division I offers as a three-star recruit at quarterback. He topped 400 yards in passing in two separate games last fall while leading Colleyville (Texas) Heritage High to the Texas 5A regional semifinals. On the diamond, he’s a legitimate two-way player. His pro potential is most likely on the mound, where he’s touched 94-95 mph and has shown feel for spinning a mid-70s curveball that has good shape but needs some tightening up. But in college, he could also help as a third baseman at Texas Tech. He has solid all-fields power potential and his arm plays in the field as well as on the mound.
Top 100 Rankings
Scouting Reports
-
BA Grade/Risk: 55/Extreme
Track Record: Smith-Shawver was a quick-twitch, multi-sport athlete in high school who was a college prospect as a hitter and pitcher, but the Braves loved his arm enough to sign him for just under $1 million in the seventh round in 2021. Smith-Shawver spent 2022 with Low-A Augusta, where he showed perhaps the highest upside in Atlanta's farm system.
Scouting Report: Smith-Shawver is a powerful and athletic righthander who has shown legitimate frontline starter stuff, according to scouts both inside and outside the organization. It all starts with his four-seam fastball, a beast of a pitch that averaged nearly 95 mph and peaked at 98. It has excellent life, with 20 inches of induced vertical break and both cutting and running action at times. He's still developing his command of the pitch, but when he's hitting the zone, it can be overpowering. Similarly, Smith-Shawver's slider has the potential to be a wipeout offering. It's an upper-80s pitch with short and hard biting action that disappears at the bottom of the strike zone when it's on. Smith-Shawver throws a changeup in the same velocity range that remains a work in progress. The pitch flashes solid fading life, but he has below-average feel for it presently. Smith-Shawver has reduced the violence of his delivery since high school, but there are still needed refinements. His arm speed is electric, but it's such that he's not often synced up, and he also features plenty of cross-fire action and a heavy fall-off to the first base side--all of which will limit his control and command.
The Future: The Braves will likely take the Spencer Strider approach with Smith-Shawver, prioritizing fastball command and slider consistency. If his command doesn't improve, his stuff could play in a big league bullpen.
Scouting Grades: Fastball: 70 Slider: 70 Changeup: 45 Control: 50 -
BA Grade/Risk: 55/Extreme
Track Record: Smith-Shawver was a quick-twitch, multi-sport athlete in high school who was a college prospect as a hitter and pitcher, but the Braves loved his arm enough to sign him for just under $1 million in the seventh round in 2021. Smith-Shawver spent 2022 with Low-A Augusta, where he showed perhaps the highest upside in Atlanta's farm system.
Scouting Report: Smith-Shawver is a powerful and athletic righthander who has shown legitimate frontline starter stuff, according to scouts both inside and outside the organization. It all starts with his four-seam fastball, a beast of a pitch that averaged nearly 95 mph and peaked at 98. It has excellent life, with 20 inches of induced vertical break and both cutting and running action at times. He's still developing his command of the pitch, but when he's hitting the zone, it can be overpowering. Similarly, Smith-Shawver's slider has the potential to be a wipeout offering. It's an upper-80s pitch with short and hard biting action that disappears at the bottom of the strike zone when it's on. Smith-Shawver throws a changeup in the same velocity range that remains a work in progress. The pitch flashes solid fading life, but he has below-average feel for it presently. Smith-Shawver has reduced the violence of his delivery since high school, but there are still needed refinements. His arm speed is electric, but it's such that he's not often synced up, and he also features plenty of cross-fire action and a heavy fall-off to the first base side--all of which will limit his control and command.
The Future: The Braves will likely take the Spencer Strider approach with Smith-Shawver, prioritizing fastball command and slider consistency. If his command doesn't improve, his stuff could play in a big league bullpen.
Scouting Grades: Fastball: 70 Slider: 70 Changeup: 45 Control: 50 -
BA Grade: 55/Extreme
Track Record: A twitchy, multi-sport athlete out of high school, the Braves took a chance on Smith-Shawver's explosive arm speed, signing him to just under $1 million in the 7th round.
Scouting Report: Given Smith-Shawver's current stuff, athleticism and arm speed, there are officials in Braves camp who think the 6-foot-3 righthander could be one of the top prospects in the system in a few years. There's some refinement that needs to happen—particularly with his command—before that, and he did struggle in a brief pro debut but the toolset is tantalizing. Smith-Shawver touched 94-95 during the spring but with Atlanta he's been sitting in that range, getting up to 97 mph with solid vertical life. The spin on both his breaking balls is impressive as well. He threw a mid-80s gyro slider more frequently this summer than a 7 o'clock tilt, downer curve in the upper-70s—but both pitches have a chance to be above-average. On top of that, Smith-Shawver showed feel for a mid-80s changeup that was well beyond his years and experience level on the mound, forcing hitters well beyond his level to ground out on ugly swings in live at-bats.
The Future: Smith-Shawver was a prep quarterback and hasn't spent much time focusing on pitching, but Braves officials rave about his early progress and believe he is a potential breakout candidate.
Scouting Grades: Fastball: 60. Slider: 60. Changeup: 40. Control: 45. -
Track Record: A twitchy, multi-sport athlete out of high school, the Braves took a chance on Smith-Shawver’s explosive arm speed, signing him to just under $1 million in the 7th round.
Scouting Report: Given Smith-Shawver’s current stuff, athleticism and arm speed, there are officials in Braves camp who think the 6-foot-3 righthander could be one of the top prospects in the system in a few years. There’s some refinement that needs to happen—particularly with his command—before that, and he did struggle in a brief pro debut but the toolset is tantalizing. Smith-Shawver touched 94-95 during the spring but with Atlanta he’s been sitting in that range, getting up to 97 mph with solid vertical life. The spin on both his breaking balls is impressive as well. He threw a mid-80s gyro slider more frequently this summer than a 7 o’clock tilt, downer curve in the upper-70s—but both pitches have a chance to be above-average. On top of that, Smith-Shawver showed feel for a mid-80s changeup that was well beyond his years and experience level on the mound, forcing hitters well beyond his level to ground out on ugly swings in live at-bats.
The Future: Smith-Shawver was a prep quarterback and hasn’t spent much time focusing on pitching, but Braves officials rave about his early progress and believe he is a potential breakout candidate.
-
Smith-Shawver had a wealth of options when it came to his college plans. He had Division I offers as a three-star recruit at quarterback. He topped 400 yards in passing in two separate games last fall while leading Colleyville (Texas) Heritage High to the Texas 5A regional semifinals. On the diamond, he's a legitimate two-way player. His pro potential is most likely on the mound, where he's touched 94-95 mph and has shown feel for spinning a mid-70s curveball that has good shape but needs some tightening up. But in college, he could also help as a third baseman at Texas Tech. He has solid all-fields power potential and his arm plays in the field as well as on the mound.