Murphy, Ritchie hit the ground running in Minors

ATLANTA -- While evaluating who might be part of future Atlanta rotations, it should be very encouraging to watch the progress Owen Murphy and JR Ritchie make with Single-A Augusta.

It's so far, so good for these two right-handers, who were selected by the Braves in the first round of the 2022 MLB Draft.

Ritchie’s second start of the season was pushed back a day when rain forced Saturday’s game in Myrtle Beach to be postponed.

But Murphy, Atlanta’s No. 2 prospect per MLB Pipeline, has already followed his season debut with a second straight strong effort. The 19-year-old hurler has tallied 11 strikeouts while allowing just four hits over 7 1/3 scoreless innings thus far. He pitched around two walks and a hit batter while tossing 3 1/3 scoreless innings against Myrtle Beach on Friday.

Murphy was taken with the 20th overall pick last summer and received a $2.56 million signing bonus. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound pitcher posted a 0.12 ERA with 137 strikeouts in 58 1/3 innings during his senior season at Riverside-Brookfield (Ill.) High School.

Ritchie, the Braves’ No. 3 prospect, struck out seven of the nine batters he faced in his season debut for Augusta. He received a $2.4 million signing bonus after the Braves took him with the 35th overall pick out of Bainbridge (Wash.) High School.

Highlights from each of Atlanta’s four affiliates:

Triple-A Gwinnett
Braden Shewmake, the Braves’ No. 6 prospect, entered Sunday batting .326 with two homers and a .951 OPS over his past 10 games. His progress has enhanced his value while concerns about Vaughn Grissom’s capability as an everyday big league shortstop have grown. … No. 10 prospect Dylan Dodd has a 1.54 ERA through two starts, but he has issued seven walks in 11 1/3 innings for the Stripers.

Double-A Mississippi
Drew Lugbauer is expected to produce an incredible whiff rate. But he’s not the only Mississippi Brave swinging and missing at a high rate. Lugbauer has 25 strikeouts and three homers through his first 42 at-bats. Cade Bunnell has 24 strikeouts in 42 homerless at-bats, and Hudson Potts has homered once while striking out in half of his first 44 at-bats. Landon Stephens has a pair of homers and 21 strikeouts through 44 at-bats.

High-A Rome
AJ Smith-Shawver has shown why scouts from other teams have rated him the organization’s best pitching prospect. The young right-hander, Atlanta’s No. 4 prospect per Pipeline, has 17 strikeouts and three walks over nine scoreless innings in his first two starts. Catcher Adam Zebrowski has gone 11-for-30 with four doubles and two homers through his first eight games.

Single-A Augusta
No. 24 prospect David McCabe has been doing what he was expected to do at Single-A. The Canadian slugger from UNC-Charlotte has hit .333 with a .937 OPS through his first 42 plate appearances for the Green Jackets. He spent much of his final collegiate season as a first baseman, but he has been used almost exclusively as a third baseman in the pro ranks.