Atlanta Braves Pitchers’ High School Origins
There is no denying that the Braves are one of the top teams in baseball currently, and they have a few dominant pitchers on their lineup. Not only are these Atlanta Braves pitchers dominant now, but they have been even going back to their high school days. Let’s look at the high school baseball origins for three top pitchers on one of baseball’s top teams.
Max Fried
Arguably the ace of the current Braves rotation, Max Fried played his high school baseball in California where he dominated.
Fried started at Montclair Prep in Los Angeles where in his sophomore season he went 10-3 with a 1.81 ERA while also hitting .446 with four HRs and 40 RBIs. Fried was named the Olympic League MVP, as well as CIF Division V First-Team, but would back that up with an even better junior season. Fried went 7-3 with a 1.31 ERA with 100 K’s during his junior season, while also hitting .360 with four HRs and 30 RBIs.
Montclair Prep discontinued the baseball program after his junior season, so Fried transferred to Harvard-Westlake for his senior season where he went 8-2 with a 2.02 ERA and 105 K’s while being selected as a 2012 Rawlings-Perfect Game First-Team All-American.
Fried was selected in the First Round of the 2012 MLB Draft by the San Diego Padres, and was traded to the Braves in 2014 where he has played since.
Ian Anderson
One of the current favorites to win the 2021 NL Rookie of the Year, Ian Anderson has been one of the top pitchers since high school. Anderson attended Shenendehowa (NY), where he went 6-1 with a 0.66 ERA and 91 K’s during his junior season, establishing himself as one of the top pitchers in the country.
Anderson backed that up as he pitched in the Perfect Game All-American Classic, and won the World Cup with the 18U National Team in the summer of 2015.
Anderson continued his improvement his senior season where he led his team to a Class 2A state championship.
Anderson was selected by the Braves with the third-overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft, and recently made his MLB debut last season.
Bryse Wilson
One of the Braves talented young pitchers knocking on the door of the big leagues full-time, Bryse Wilson attended Orange High School (NC), where he had a phenomenal senior season. Wilson went 10-2 with six shut-outs, three no-hitters, and a perfect game in the 3A playoffs while being named as The News & Observer’s high school athlete of the year.
Wilson finished his high school career with a 33-4 record before he was selected by the Braves in the Fourth Round of the 2016 MLB Draft.
Written by: Matthew Melton