As the Atlanta Braves head into the new SunTrust park, a new era of Braves' baseball follows them. The new stadium led Atlanta to make some interesting moves over the past six months as they brought in several veterans to contribute in 2017.

It makes the team a little more complicated as the team splits focus between a build for the future and a fight to stay competitive in 2017. Ideally, enough wins and close games at the new stadium will keep fans in the seats as they watch some of the players of the future develop and compete. 

This team will go through stretches of good and ugly, all a part of the process. As it develops and the team trades away more veterans when youngsters come up, the shape of the future will develop even further and the light in Atlanta will grow brighter.

The Bats

Kurt Suzuki & Tyler Flowers

It was an ugly free agent market for catchers this offseason. Bad news for catchers meant good news for teams in need of an affordable, reliable backstop and that's what Atlanta landed in Suzuki.

He's not in Atlanta to put up offensive numbers, plain and simple. But Atlanta didn't need an offensive-output backstop, it needed someone it could trust in the lineup and help out its pitchers until they can come up with a plan for the future at that position.

Suzuki will likely split time with Tyler Flowers, who also fits the bill of an adequate catcher, whose bat can bring you a little pop but with a low batting average.

The 31-year-old posted a career-best .270 batting average last season with a 110 wRC+ but a career .232 batting average and 88 wRC+ is a greater better indicator of his abilities with the bat.

Freddie Freeman

The star of Atlanta, Freeman's name floated around trade rumors for almost two years. But Atlanta wants to enter the contention window soon and it wants Freeman as a part of its core as the new stadium opens and a new era of Atlanta baseball begins.

It's the smart move for Atlanta. While further additions to the farm system would help, it's improbable they'd land a prospect that could ever develop into the caliber of player that Freeman is. Given he played for a 68-win ballclub, it's understood that Freeman received limited recognition in 2016. But when you look at his numbers, he put up some of the best across all of baseball.

In 2016, Freeman posted an outstanding 152 wRC+, just the first of many career highs he set in his age-26 season. In addition to the personal best wRC+, Freeman set career marks in weighted on-base average (.402), OPS (.968), isolated power (.267), home runs (34) and Wins Above Replacement (6.1).

Truly an incredible season for Freeman that made him one of the most impactful players in all of baseball. He'll remain a critical part of Atlanta's success going forward, though he may not match his numbers from 2016. 

Freeman also set career-highs in fly ball percentage (40.5 percent) and batting average on balls in play (.370). He can susatain the fly ball percentage if he's made some changes to change the trajectory the ball takes off the bat, but the BABIP is in for a decline.

While Freeman is a great hitter, a BABIP over .360 is typically unsustainable if you aren't lightning quick out of the batter's box and can beat the throw on most close plays. While Freeman is smart and efficient on the base paths, he doesn't have that special speed.

As a result of an expected BABIP drop, Freeman's batting average likely will dip into the .275-.285 range. While it's not as sexy as a .300 hitter with 30-plus home runs and a 40-plus OBP, Freeman's numbers are All Star caliber if he can put up 28-30 home runs, 85-plus RBIs and a great wRC+ and wOBA+.

Brandon Phillips

It seemed Atlanta had a short-term plan at second base in January. But an unfortunate car accident resulted in shoulder surgery for Sean Rodriguez that will keep him out three-to-five months, the good news is Rodriguez and his family are ok.

With Rodriguez headed to the 60-day disabled list, Atlanta revisited talks with the Cincinnati Reds and landed Brandon Phillips. The trade worked nicely for Atlanta for three particular reasons.

First, even as a 35-year-old, Phillips becomes the clear best option for Atlanta at second base. While Ozzie Albies develops in the minors, Phillips holds down the second base job. Second, it makes for a nice story as Phillips returns to Georgia, where he has spent much of his life. It will make for a fun subplot as Atlanta opens its new stadium and will help put a few more fans in the seats. Most importantly, the Braves gave up basically nothing to land him and the Reds ate most of the contract, an easy deal for Atlanta.

Last season, Phillips kept himself in the double-digit home run/steals club for the ninth time in his career. It marked the second season in a row where Phillips hit over .290 with a .310-plus wOBA. The jump in batting average from the previous three seasons where he hit below .285 are greatly due to the 20-point jump his BABIP saw from 2012-'14 to 2015-'16.

That number is likely to drop as he gets into his mid-30s with less speed, a drop in exit velocity off the bat and less speed to beat out throws. Phillips days of 15-plus home runs and steals are certainly over, even being a part of the 10-10 club seems unrealistic given the change in ballpark and declined abilities with age. But even with that, Phillips will do enough for Atlanta that will make him a positive-impact player this season.

Dansby Swanson

It was just your average cold, December day on December 9, 2015. It's also a day that will go down in memory as one of the greatest robberies of recent time. In a movement to continue its rebuild, Atlanta traded Shelby Miller to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Ender Inciarte, pitching prospect Aaron Blair and Swanson, the No.1 pick in the 2015 Amateur Draft just months earlier.

Miller regressed in a major way this past season, meanwhile the Braves found their shortstop of the future, a young starter who was near MLB-ready and a young center fielder just entering his prime at 25.

The highlight of the deal of course is Swanson, who progressed quickly, vaulted up the minor league ranks and established himself as one of the 10 best prospects in all of baseball.

After Swanson spent 22 games in Low-A after being drafted, he made quick work of Atlanta's minor league system last season. He started the year in High-A, where he had more walks (15) than strikeouts (13) and posted a .333/.4441/.526 slash line in 21 games, then received a promotion to Double-A. 

His stay in Double-A Mississippi lasted for much of the season and while he struck out much more than he did in High-A, a 71/35 K/BB ratio, the young shortstop put up a 117 wRC+, .345 wOBA with eight home runs and made his major-league debut on Aug. 17.

Swanson handled the jump from Double-A to the majors extremely well as a 22-year-old. Across 129 at bats, Swanson smashed three home runs, swiped three bases and had a 107 wRC+, .334 wOBA and an .803 OPS. His first home run in the big leagues, an inside-the-park, symbolized the icing on the cake.

It was the perfect first taste of what's to come for Atlanta over the next six-plus years. Swanson showed off his abilities defensively at shortstop, all while showing the power-speed-contact combo that will make him a fixture near the top of that lineup for years.

His debut certainly came with some bumps. Swanson struck out in nearly 24 percent of his plate appearances. Swanson also experienced plenty of luck on his side with a BABIP over .380. While Swanson certainly has speed and good ability to spray the ball around to all fields, his BABIP isn't sustainable.

With the strikeouts and a closer return to norm, Swanson's batting average will see a dip. Between Low-A and Double-A, Swanson's batting average sat around .270 combined. While it's a noticeable drop from the .300-plus he had with short stints in High-A and the majors, Atlanta would gladly accept those numbers from its future star in his age 23-season.

Swanson retains rookie eligibility in 2017 since Atlanta kept him out just enough last year. If he can put up 10-plus home runs, stolen bases and have a .265-plus batting average with good defense, Swanson could finish as the N.L. Rookie of the Year in 2017. Even if he isn't, the future is bright for Swanson and Atlanta.

Adonis Garcia

The good news. Garcia is no longer the "old guy" of Atlanta's infield with Phillips arrival. Waived by the New York Yankees early in 2015, Atlanta scooped him up as a potential stopgap solution at the hot corner at a bargain price.

The 31-year-old didn't quite put up as good of numbers as he gave the Braves in 2015, a 112 wRC+ and .336 wOBA, but Garcia gave them some pop and a respectable batting average to hold onto the job firmly and have positive value for Atlanta.

Across 134 games last season, Garcia hit 14 home runs and contributed an even 65 runs and runs batted in. It's a good amount of power for a player that's 5'9" and made even more worthwhile given he lowered his strikeout percentage from 17.7 percent in 2015 to 16.5 percent last season. Meanwhile, Garcia nearly doubled his walk percentage and raises his OBP by 20 points.

Looking ahead to the 2017 season, we should see another near repeat of Garcia's numbers. Two straight seasons of a .270-plus batting average and OBP over .300 can represent the baseline and with an improved HR/FB percentage slightly closer to the 21.7 percent he had in 2015 versus the 12 percent he posted last season, could see Garcia hit 15-17 home runs

Garcia may not move the needle much, but he is the perfect stopgap for this team as they look to win enough games to keep fans interested as the rebuild starts to come together and the future quickly approaches becoming the present.

Nick Markakis

Let's start with the good. At 33, Markakis remains one of the better defenders in right field. Amongst qualified right fielders last season, Markakis accounted for 10 Defensive Runs Saved by FanGraphs metrics. Granted, it also came with a -3.1 arm rating, the third-worst amongst qualified right fielders and a -5.6 defensive rating.

Markakis' bat is about average, though he at least offers walks. Last season we did see Markakis' power come back in the double digits after he hit just three the year before, so the normal power remains. With that comes a batting average around .270 and a wOBA that hovers around .340.

He's the definition of a solid player for a non-contender, someone who can make numerous starts in right field and perform sufficient defensively and with the bat. With age, we have started to see some drop off. Markakis has seen his numbers versus lefties decline from a 93 wRC+, .306 wOBA and .280 batting average in 2014 to a 75 wRC+,.281 wOBA and .273 average in 2015 and last year fell to a 66 wRC+, .273 wOBA and.243 batting average.

Markakis may shift to platoon status with the decline in an important skill, which could mean an overall drop in numbers given less plate appearances. Another average season for Markakis with age likely catching up to him as the calendar turns to August/September and Atlanta starts to give younger players more opportunities, is the expectation. With two years left on his deal, it's likely his last season in Atlanta's outfield.

Ender Inciarte

While the corner outfield spots are taken up by older veterans who represent short-term fills for Atlanta, Inciarte matches the Braves desires to field a competitive team now and also represents a part of the team's core in the future. Atlanta is confident Inciarte is its center fielder for the long-term and rewarded him with a five-year, $30.5M extension.

It was certainly well earned as the 26-year-old gave the braves Gold Glove-caliber defense in a prime position last season with the third-highest Defensive rating (13.4) amongst qualified center fielders, the third-highest Defensive Runs Saved (13) and the second-highest ARM (5.6) rating by FanGraphs.

Offensively, the season started off slow for Inciarte. Just a few days into the season, he suffered a strained hamstring that kept him out for all of April. Even when he returned in May, Inciarte showed rust at the plate and had a .220/.304/.270 line with a miserable 56 wRC+ and .259 wOBA.

But from June 24 on, we saw an excellent two-way player. In addition to the outstanding defense, Inciarte posted a .323/.378/.419 slash with a 114 wRC+ and .345 wOBA. He paired that with 11 stolen bases, a low strikeout rate and 64 runs scored, the ideal leadoff hitter for Atlanta.

As we look ahead to the 2017 season, Inciarte should again provide GG-caliber defense in center field, speed on the base paths and serve as a strong option at the leadoff spot. If he can post another .290-plus batting average, .310-plus wOBA and a wRC+ near 100, Inciarte could join Freeman as Atlanta's All Star representatives.

Matt Kemp

Acquired in a salary swap, Kemp came over to Atlanta with a power bat and experience. A horrific fielder in right field, Atlanta shifted the 32-year-old over to left field where the poor fielding wouldn't hurt them as much and the bat would make up for it.

Due over $21 million in each of the next three seasons, Kemp is locked into the Braves' lineup in part because of the contract and in large part because of the power he has to offer. We did see some of the best power numbers Kemp put up since 2011, with 30-plus home runs and an isolated power over .230.

Plenty of strikeouts came with it as he struck out in more than 23 percent of his plate appearances and the walk rate sank below six percent, an ever-growing problem as he gets older. The change from San Diego to Atlanta did prove beneficial in some ways, Kemp's slash line jumped from .265/.285/.489 with a .322 wOBA and 102 wRC+ to .280/.336/.519 with a .354 wOBA and 120 wRC+ in 56 games with Atlanta.

Kemp's strikeout rate and HR/FB remained fairly consistent with the numbers over his last five seasons, while his BABIP jumped 30 points from San Diego to Atlanta. In all likelihood, Kemp's batting average will again hang around .270 this season with a good wRC+ around 110 and a 25-30 home run ceiling.

The strong bat is more than enough to keep Kemp in the heart of Atlanta's lineup alongside Freeman. He'll remain in left field after he appeared there 465 innings in for Atlanta, but again it will come with a negative defensive rating and defensive runs saved in the double digits.

A power bat-negative fielder is the growing trend for left fielders in the majors and it's what Atlanta will roll with in 2017.

The Arms

Julio Teheran

One of the more interesting pitchers over the past four reasons is Teheran. His rookie year started with a bang in 2013 when he posted an 8.24 K/0 with a 3.20 ERA, 14 wins anda fifth-place finish in a very deep N.L. Rookie of the Year field. Teheran took it to the next level in his sophomore season with a 2.89 ERA, though the K/9 dropped to 7.57.

But he took a major step back in the 2015 season. His ERA plummeted from 2.89 to 4.04, Teheran's BB/9 rose from 2.08 to 3.26 and his FIP jumped up from 3.49 to 4.40. In addition to the increased struggles with command, Teheran also had two other issues that caused the inflation in numbers. His HR/FB jumped from 8.1 percent to 13 percent and that came even with a drop in flyball percentage, meanwhile his strand rate dropped to 73 percent versus 76 from the previous year.

Given his career numbers, the balloon in HR/FB and strand rate were likely to change in 2016, and they did. Last season, we saw the 2013-version of Teheran with a 3.21 ERA that nearly matched his mark from his rookie season and an identical 3.69 FIP across 188 innings pitched.

Teheran's command greatly improved last season, demonstrated by a remarkable improvement in his BB/9 from 3.27 to 1.96 in 2016. In addition, Teheran set a career-high in K-BB% at 16.6 percent. As expected, his HR/FB rate dropped closer to his career norms as did his strand rate.

He just turned 26 in January, the very start of his prime is just beginning. With some defensive help behind him and the improved command, Teheran should put up high quality numbers again with an ERA around 3.5 and turn out quality starts as Atlanta's ace.

Bartolo Colon

He is the everyman. While Colon isn't "The Most Interesting Man in the World", he is the most loved in baseball. Standing at 5'11" and weighing 285 lbs, he gives everyone hope that no matter their size, they can do great things. Although, no one will ever hit a home run as beautiful as Bartolo did.

Even into his 40s, Colon keeps putting up respectable numbers. While he isn't quite at the level of a fine wine that gets better with age, Colon is a vintage, trusted truck that you can rely on to eat up miles (innings) and keep things rolling over a long trip.

In 2016, Colon put up some of his best numbers in three years. He finished the season with a 3.43 ERA, kept the BB/9 down once again below 2.0/9 and  turned in another 190-plus innings for the fourth season in a row.

There's no real way to explain how he keeps it going at this age with stuff that isn't overly dominant, he's just out there every fifth day and gives you five to six solid innings. The 3.43 ERA likely isn't repeatable given his 3.99 FIP and the increased hard hit ball percentage (35.4 percent) he gave up, but Colon has proved many wrong before.

He'll slide in behind Teheran and bring delight to Atlanta fans as they watch the larger, 43-year-old pitcher trot to the mound, throw a scoreless inning and walk back to the dugout and finish the night with six innings pitched and two or three runs allowed. You'll take that in the position Atlanta is in.

Jaime Garcia

Atlanta committed its offseason to the rotation in a hunt for veterans who could eat up innings and buy them time as its young starters develop more in the minor leagues. Joining Colon in Atlanta's rotation is Jaime Garcia.,Garcia, who is by far the youngest of the veteran additions with a 12-year age gap between Garcia and Dickey/Colon. likely represents maybe the biggest risk in this rotation.

First, Garcia comes with durability concerns. While he pitched over 170 innings last season, Garcia combined for 99 innings between 2013-'14 due to injuries. In the two seasons that surround that, Garcia put up less than 130 innings. In May of 2013, Garcia tore his left shoulder labrum and didn't return to the Cardinals' mound until May of 2014. Then just seven starts into the '14 season, he felt soreness in his arm and eventually opted to get thoracic outlet surgery In July. Then when 2015 rolled around, he missed the start of the season as he recovered from the surgery, then landed on the 15-day disabled list in late June and early July with a left groin strain.

His career is marked by serious arm injuries and nagging leg injuries, a scary sign that his body is already breaking down in the midst of his career. But then Garcia showed the promise of his old self again in 2015 when in 20 starts, he posted a 2.43 ERA with a 3.00 FIP. Everyone was excited again, Garcia was healthy over an extended amount of starts and it seemed like St. Louis had a great starter locked in once again.

Then the other shoe dropped in 2016. After Garcia posted a 7.1 HR/FB percentage the year before, the mark nearly tripled to 20.2 percent last season. His groundball percentage also dropped by a noticeable margin from 61.2 percent in 2015 to 56.7 percent last season, all while his hard-hit contact percentage allowed jumped four full points as well.

There is room for optimism and reasons why Atlanta traded for his services. Garcia's career HR/9 even after his miserable 2016 season is 0.79/9, nearly half his mark from 2016. That's almost certain to drop this year as the numbers fall closer to the median over his career. The large jump in home runs is just a wacky season caused by multiple factors like an undisclosed injury, a tired arm and/or some bad luck. Garcia is full steam ahead and ready for a normal workload this season and keep the home runs and ERA down. If Garcia can put up a strong first half, this could turn into a great buy-low then sell-high move by Atlanta.

Mike Foltynewicz

Consider this. When Foltynewicz turned six, Bartolo Colon had already made his major-league debut and R.A. Dickey finished his first season in the minor leagues. It's a remarkable note and just shows the wide range in age between Atlanta's starting pitchers.

The 25-year-old righty heads into spring training with confidence after he took a major step forward in his career last season. In the first 105 1/3 innings of his major-league career, Foltynewicz registered a 5.64 ERA, 5.01 FIP, 3.08 BB/9 and a negative Wins Above Replacement. It represented a limited sample size, but in that time Foltynewicz pitched poorly. But the 2016 season saw the jump forward Atlanta needed, especially with a large jump in starts in the majors.

His first month started fairly strong with a 7.56 K/9, a 3.51 ERA and he displayed much better command shown by his BB/9 dropping to 2.16. Then Foltynewicz landed on the 15-day disabled list in June with a sore pitching elbow that kept him out for most of the month. In his next nine starts, Foltynewicz seemed to regress to his old self with a 5.15 ERA, 4.76 FIP and a 3.02 BB/9. Whether Foltynewicz still had some rust from the missed time or lost the consistency and command he showed at the start of the season, he looked off.

Over his final seven starts of the year, Foltynewicz returned to form with a 3.89 ERA, a 3.17 FIP, a 9.61 K/9 and a 2.29 BB/9. He finished the season strong and even better than his improved command and drop in home runs allowed, Foltynewicz started throwing a lot more strikes as 67 percent of his pitches resulted in strikes. He finished the season even stronger than he started it and it can provide great momentum into 2017.

With the improvement of his command and more consistency, Foltynewicz has a grade opportunity to put on display a 70-grade fastball and a potential 60-grade curveball if it all clicks, two plus-plus pitches that will make him a nightmare to deal with at times for opposing hitters. With further improvements in the areas listed and if he can keep the home runs down, Foltynewicz could post 150-plus strikeouts, an ERA under 3.9 and a potential 2-plus WAR this season if things go right. If Atlanta gets that,it is sitting pretty going into the future with Teheran-Foltynewicz together and the arms on the way.

R.A. Dickey

After a stretch of dominance over the past seven years that included a N.L. Cy Young Award, Dickey's numbers took a major hit in 2016. After two straight seasons of an ERA under 4.0, Dickey's line regressed to 4.46 this past season and his FIP took a nosedive even further to 5.03. Dickey, who in previous seasons had shown good command, saw his BB/9 jump to 3.34. Meanwhile, 35 percent of the pitches Dickey threw were called a ball, compared to compared to 34 percent in 2015.

Dickey's HR/FB rate also jumped from 9.8 percent to 14.7 percent from 2015 to '16 and he surrendered more home runs (28) across 169 2/3 innings this season than he allowed in 214 1/3 innings in 2015. It seemed American League hitters began to lock in on the knuckleball more, a pitch Dickey threw nearly 84 percent of the time.

The good news, it's been five years since N.L. hitters saw the knuckleball from Dickey regularly. Given a lot of the lineups that have changed and youth that has arrived over that time, hitters will lack plenty of experience against the pitch. It's an adjustment to face a knuckleballer and even for experienced hitters, the N.L. is more forgiving than the American League. 

As a result, Dickey should see enough of a drop in his home run rate and keep opponents down around a .240 batting average against him. It may never look especially pretty to watch and Dickey doesn't hold much fantasy appeal, but he should do enough to hold down the fifth spot in the rotation for a few months until Aaron Blair is ready.

The Farm

Ozzie Albies - 2B - 20 y.o.

While Swanson is still technically 'prospect-eligible', the true top prospect in Atlanta's farm system is Albies. Before the 2016 offseason, Albies represented the future at shorstop for Atlanta. Then team's acquisition of Swanson forced Albies move to second base. 

Atlanta showed extreme aggressiveness in its placement of Albies. After he spent the entire 2015 season in High-A, the Braves bumped him up to Triple-A just a month into the season. After Albies posted a .369/.442/.512 line with a 180 wRC+ and ,439 wOBA in Double-A, the Braves quickly bumped him up to Triple-A Gwinnett, where things didn't go well.

In 56 games at Triple-A Gwinnett from April 30-June 28, Albies slashed .248/.307/.351 with a .300 wOBA and a 89 wRC+. Atlanta realized it bumped him up too soon and quickly sent him back down to Double-A. He spent the rest of the season in Mississippi, where he shined once again. Across 241 at bats, Albies posted a .302/.371/.448 slash with an .818 OPS and .373 wOBA.

Looking ahead to the 2017 season, Albies should see extended run in spring training before the Braves ultimately send him down to minor-league camp before he starts the season with Triple-A. It will be an extended look given he just turned 20 and needs time to further develop.

Long-term, Albies projects to be the second baseman of a slightly older era. While teams have shifted more to putting great hitters with power at the position, Albies profiles more as the average-speed-defense combo that defined the position for years. In his prime, Albies will compete for Gold Gloves at second base, hit for average and rack up plenty of extra-base hits and stolen bases.

Atlanta will soon have its 6-4-3 combo set for its future. While Albies needs more time after he struggled in the second half of the season in his jump to Triple-A, fans will see him take the field alongside Freddie Freeman and Dansby Swanson this season. It is a trio that could develop into the best 6-4-3 core in the game and set the foundation for numerous playoff runs in the future.

Kolby Allard - SP - 19 y.o.

Atlanta's first-round pick in 2015, Allard steadily makes his way up the ranks and keeps shining at every level. The Braves took a chance on him in the draft after he fell out of the top-10 due to a lingering back issue. Long profile as a high-upside arm with a potential 60-grade fastball and a 60-grade curveball, the young lefty had plenty of tools to offer.

The gamble now looks like a great one for Atlanta. While Allard is years away, his early work shows lots of reason for optimism. Across 33 1/3 innings in Rookie-ball at the end of 2015 and start of 2016, Allard struck out 45 batters, walked only five and surrendered 19 hits. The competition represented little challenge for his talent, so the Braves gave him the rest of the 2016 season in A-ball.

Against Low-A hitters, Allard struck out 62 batters across 60 1/3 innings pitched. The strikeouts were there for Allard, but he also walked 20 batters, allowed 54 hits and gave up 25 runs over that span.

Looking ahead to 2017, fans will likely see Allard continue his time in Low-A for a few weeks. If he can keep the runs and hits allowed down, it should result in a rather quick promotion to High-A, where he'd likely spend the rest of his 2017 season. This year could also be the first time Allard throws 100-plus innings, so it will be something to monitor late in the season.

Allard likely won't take the mound in Atlanta for another two years, but he can be a key piece of this franchise's rotation in the future.

Mike Soroka - SP - 

While Allard brings the upside of a front-line starter, those type of pitching prospects are risky and teams like to balance things out with more defined, trusted arms with a lower ceiling but increased floor. That's the case with Soroka, who Atlanta took 14 picks after Allard in the 2015 MLB Amateur Draft.

Atlanta pushed things much more quickly with Soroka. Widely recognized for his polished repertoire coming out of the draft, the Braves let Soroka go right to work and it led to an extensive workload in Low-A this past season. Across 143 innings pitched, Soroka registered a 125/32 K/BB ratio with a 1.13 WHIP, 2.79 FIP and .239 batting average allowed to opponents.

Soroka's 3.02 ERA also could have been even lower last season if not for a low 67.8 left on base percentage. With a solid, well-developed combo of off-speed pitches, Soroka's continued progress as he climbs up the ranks is reasonable to expect. There's nothing overpowering in his arsenal or really tricky deception that would make him a front-line starter, but Atlanta could have a cost-controlled, reliable option in the middle of its rotation for many years. We'll likely see Soroka up around the same time as Allard.

Ronald Acuna

This is a deep farm system both in pitching and hitting, but what makes it even more intriguing is some of the young teenage bats that offer the highest ceiling in Atlanta's minor league system. It starts with the teenager that has experience on his side.

The 19-year-old spent most of the 2016 season in Low-A, though a thumb injury proved costly given it limited him to just 40 games last season. But Acuna made his impact felt over a short time for the team. Across 171 plate appearances, he drew 18 walks, struck out only 28 times and stole 14 bases. Things just seemed to click for him against the higher competition and it showed with a 139 wRC+, .376 wOBA and .819 OPS.

A look ahead to the future shows there's some All Star potential to Acuna's game if everything goes right. He certainly has the ability as of now to stick in center field and with a power grade that could see him hit 20-25 home runs in his prime, that skill in itself would already make him very valuable. He also pairs it with excellent speed. While it may not be on the 70 or 80-grade level you'll get from elite guys, but that power-speed combo with a solid hid tool is the core foundation of an All Star caliber-outfielder.

There's certainly plenty of risk with Acuna still. He'll play in A-ball as a 19-year-old this year and the foundational elements of his swing and approach are still a work in progress. Meanwhile, the 20-homer power is a best-case scenario and will require him to turn some of the raw BP power into game power and generate more lift off the bat.

The upside is certainly high and it could take until 2021, but there's a lot to like about Acuna's potential and Atlanta has time to wait with Ender Inciarte locked in for the long-term.

Kevin Maitan - SS/3B - 17 y.o.

There are two numbers to provide you for Maitan. The first number, 2000. Yes, we've now reached the point in the history of baseball where players born after the 1900s, are being paid by a major-league team. It's quite amazing how time flies so quickly, it makes us all feel older. But on the bright side for Atlanta fans, they have a 17-year-old in the system who offers lots of upside. The second number is ZERO. We haven't seen Maitan play a single game. If you took a look at his baseball card right now, there's zero hits, plate appearances and games.

But there's reason Atlanta forked over $4.25 million to the Venezuelan shortstop to join them. First, he's widely considered to be the best prospect to come out of Venezuela since Miguel Cabrera. That's a list of Venezuelan-born players that includes All Stars Jose Altuve, Felix Hernandez and Carlos Gonzalez.

Two of the top prospects in baseball right now in Gleyber Torres and Franklin Barreto are loved for their skill sets and seen as some of the best prospects in all of baseball, Maitan is better than both of them coming out.

Maitan is a switch hitter, already an immediate plus for teams and scouts that dream of having a great switch hitter in their lineup. Then add in power and bat tools that could be 60-plus, there is very good reason the line "Maitan Mania" came about. Maitan is a raw player who has yet to face even the lowest levels of the minor leagues, but the offensive tools are tremendous.

Baseball America talked to scouts that said Maitan definitively had the clear highest offensive potential in the 2016 class. Even with the swing-and-miss that some scouts saw in his game, they still came away in love with Maitan's potential. As one scout described to Baseball America about Maitan's potential and the ease of his swing, "The bat potential stood out for a guy who has a chance to stick at shortstop. It’s a combination of being able to hit and hit for power with advanced feel for his age. The ease of play, the way he could hit balls with authority without a ton of effort, that’s really what stood out the most.”

He isn't a perfect prospect by any means and no one is suggesting he's a shoe-in for the Hall of Fame, but the way scouts describe him makes you fall in love with what he could do down the line. Put the Chipper Jones comparisons aside right now, Maitan needs time to develop. He just turned 17 this February and needs significant time to develop, refine his game more and bring the raw tools into game skills.

His first season will be fascinating to watch unfold and there will be plenty of reactions to it. If he performs well, Maitan could shoot up into the top-15 of rankings and two years from now when he's 19, Maitan could be the No.1 prospect in all of baseball. Patience is key, Atlanta fans. While the major-league club starts to put things together, the next superstar could be in the minor leagues developing.