We move our look at Minor League numbers to High-A, starting with the South Atlantic League. The list of statistical standouts from the South Atlantic League included some marquee names, including Miguel Sime Jr., Edward Florentino, Caleb Bonemer, & Dylan Brown, among others.
The traditional numbers
Greensboro was a home run paradise in 2026.
Infielder Jhonny Severino, whom the Pirates acquired several years ago from Milwaukee for Carlos Santana, hit 31 home runs to lead the South Atlantic League. Severino was one of four Grasshoppers in the top six in that category, alongside Tony Blanco Jr., Edward Florentino, and former LSU first baseman Jared Jones (not the current Pirates pitcher, obviously).
Ely Brown of Winston-Salem was the SAL hit king with 120 over 116 games. Brown finished three hits ahead of George Wolkow, also of the Dash. However, how the two got there was very different stories.
Brown (as you’ll see later on) had one of the lower swing-and-miss rates. That wasn’t the case for Wolkow, who finished with the most strikeouts (179) in the South Atlantic League.
Rays infield prospect Tony Santa Maria led the circuit in total stolen bases (55). Astros infield prospect Zach Daudet had the most walks (96).
As for the pitchers, 11 had at least 100+ strikeouts in the South Atlantic League. Among them were Yoel Tejada, Dylan Brown, and JT Quinn, all of whom had breakout leads. Yankees prospect Luis Serna struck out 140 to lead the SAL.
Whiff rates
Alright, let’s get into the top swing-and-miss pitchers in the South Atlantic League:
Miguel Sime Jr. had a monstrous campaign in High-A. After blowing away hitters in the Carolina League, the Brooklyn, New York pitcher punched out 76 in just 46 innings. He walked 39, which should give you an idea of the kind of pitcher Sime Jr. is. However, he only allowed two home runs and posted a clean 2.15 ERA.
The list includes some other notable names, including Seth Hernandez, who, like Sime Jr., has a blistering fastball that can reach the triple digits, and Cole Hertzler. Braeden Sloan had a great year out of the Frederick bullpen with a sub-2.00 ERA. Jojo Ingrassia was fantastic for Greenville before he was traded for Jahmai Jones in the summer.
Mavis Graves and Jesus Gamez are two Rule 5-eligible pitchers. Gamez averaged over a walk per inning for Hub City, making it more likely he doesn’t get protected and/or taken. Graves, on the other hand, is a prime Rule 5 candidate.
Now, let’s move to the pitchers with the lowest swing-and-miss rates in the SAL:
Next, let’s move to the hitters that had the lowest Whiff%:
The list includes some very notable names.
Dylan Palmer, who we wrote a little bit about in the Florida State League numbers overview, had the lowest swing-and-miss rate. Right behind him were Adrian Santana and Emilien Pitre, two now-former Rays prospects. Both were shipped out for Liam Hicks and Freddy Peralta, respectively.
Kaeden Kent, the son of Jeff Kent, made a lot of contact with Hudson Valley before he was traded to the Giants in August.
Lastly, the hitters with the highest Whiff%:
Elijah Green, a former first-round pick, topped that list. The Nationals ultimately pushed Green along to Double-A in 2026. But before then, Green finished with 168 strikeouts in 90 games for High-A Wilmington, second-most behind Wolkow.
Victor Figueroa, who hit 22 home runs for Frederick, is here. As is former second-round pick Wyatt Sanford, who slashed .292/.423/.551 (.974 OPS) with 17 home runs and 33 stolen bases for Greensboro.
Most patient hitters
We move on to swing tendencies, starting with the hitters who tended to take the most:
Kyle Lodise being here shouldn’t be a shock. Lodise walked 92 times in 111 games for Winston-Salem, the second most in the South Atlantic League behind Zach Daudet. Daudet, by the way, clocked in at #7 here with a Take% just above 64%.
Xavier Neyens, one of the top take hitters from Low-A, walked 35 times in 35 games with High-A Asheville.
Now, a look at the hitters with the lowest take rates in the South Atlantic League:
Some unsurprising players here.
Caden Bodine was a plus contact hitter in the Minors this year. He didn’t walk much with Bowling Green but Bodine hit .341 in High-A.
Maxton Martin hit 21 home runs for Hub City this past season. But he only walked 38 times in 116 games, resulting in a .291 on-base percentage. Jhonny Severino, the SAL home run leader, walked just 33 times in 113 games.
The pull-heavy hitters
Caleb Bonemer, Edward Florentino, Gleider Figuereo, and Jhonny Severino were among the top home run hitters in High-A.
Bonemer didn’t spend much time with Winston-Salem — and he didn’t have to. The White Sox infield/outfield prospect hit 18 home runs in just 61 games for the Dash.
Florentino, meanwhile, is a bat whom the Pirates can dream on. A left-handed slugging outfielder, Florentino hit 24 home runs with the Grasshoppers. And with that pull-side mentality, he could do pretty well in PNC Park.
Groundball machines
Lastly, we’ll talk about pitchers with the highest groundball rates in the South Atlantic League:
Former Georgia Bulldog JT Quinn led the pack here. Quinn struck out 106 batters over 93 innings for High-A Frederick. But interestingly enough, he did give up a good amount of well-hit contact; Quinn conceded 15 home runs with the Keys.
Dylan Brown had a breakout year in the Minors. Brown struck out 111 over 83 innings, missed a lot of bats, and only allowed four home runs with the Drive.
Check out more of our Minors coverage.