Braves acquire OF Hilliard in trade with Rockies
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ATLANTA -- The Braves began fortifying their outfield depth on Sunday, when they acquired Sam Hilliard from the Rockies in exchange for right-handed pitcher Dylan Spain.
Hilliard hit a career-high 14 homers with a .757 OPS in 238 plate appearances for the Rockies in 2021. But the 28-year-old outfielder tallied just two homers while producing a .544 OPS and 28.5 percent strikeout rate over 200 plate appearances this past season.
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Hilliard joins Ronald Acuña Jr., Michael Harris II, Eddie Rosario, Marcell Ozuna and Guillermo Heredia as the only outfielders currently on Atlanta’s 40-man roster. MLB Pipeline doesn’t include any outfielders among the Braves' Top 30 prospects. Jesse Franklin V is the team’s top-ranked outfield prospect, coming in at No. 17.
The Braves took Spain in the 10th round of the 2021 MLB Draft despite the fact the Hawaiian native hadn’t played organized baseball since 2019. Spain posted a 5.30 ERA over 56 innings for High-A Rome this year. He had a 24.7 percent strikeout rate and a 5.3 percent walk rate.