The Braves are dipping into the Minor League prospect pool for pitching help. JR Ritchie, one of Triple-A’s best-performing pitchers over the first month of 2026 and a heavy ground-ball pitcher, will make his MLB debut on April 23 against the Nationals.
A Look at Ritchie
The Braves took JR Ritchie with the 35th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft. At the time, the Braves had an established rotation, thanks in large part to a pitching factory that was looking for more projects. However, it took a while for Ritchie to find his footing.
Ritchie required Tommy John surgery early in his professional career, and it wasn’t until July 2024 that the right-hander was able to get going after he made just nine pro starts over his first two seasons. He struck out 56 over 49.2 IP innings, making his way to High-A. Last year, he had a big breakout season in the Minors.
The now-22-year-old posted one of the highest ground-ball rates in the Southern League last season, a stepping stone in the middle of his 2025 campaign. Ritchie rolled through High-A and Double-A, en route to a 3.02 ERA with Triple-A Gwinnett. He didn’t make the Braves out of camp — but cracked through thanks to an impressive start back with the Stripers.
Currently, Ritchie is near the top of several major statistical categories in Triple-A. Ritchie is tied for seventh in total strikeouts (28) in the International League, and his .99 ERA is third-best in the circuit behind Jake Bennett (Red Sox) and Braxton Garrett (Marlins).
The one blemish on Ritchie’s season has been the BB/9 (4.3), unusually high for him.
For Ritchie, it’s all about the kitchen sink. The 22-year-old has a six-pitch mix, and all of those offerings will be used regularly, including a four-seam fastball that topped out at 97 MPH, and a heavy, mid-90s two-seamer with sink.
Ritchie can ring it up with the ladder with said fastball. However, the numbers are what one would expect from a pitcher like Ritchie. A high ground-ball rate (48.3% GB%) in Triple-A thus far, in the top 33% of the circuit. Roughly around the league median in Barrel% (8.1%), and a good amount of chase (27.1%) and swing-and-miss (26.6%).
The Braves officially listed JR Ritchie as the team’s probable starter on April 23.
Analysis
Ritchie is currently not on the 40-man roster, although that doesn’t matter too much in this circumstance. The Braves were going to have to add him anyway between now and mid-November, as the 2022 first-round pick would be Rule 5-eligible come December. But realistically, it really doesn’t matter because the Braves could use him now.
Martin Perez was scheduled to start on the 23rd, as the Braves called up Didier Fuentes to start the game on the 22nd. It was a move that was designed to give everyone an extra day. However, Fuentes faltered early, and Perez pitched in bulk relief.
From an immediate perspective, Ritchie may be the type of pitcher who could help the Braves more, compared to Fuentes. Fuentes gave up a good amount of hard contact, even though he was able to get a lot of swing-and-miss (37.5%) in his last outing with the Braves. Ritchie isn’t that kind of power pitcher — but can finesse his way out of jams.
It’s going to be interesting how this goes, as Ritchie has the toolset to be an effective starter now. And given that the Braves have several pitchers on the IL, he will be an important piece moving forward.
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