Brandon Beachy

A day after teammate Kris Medlen blew out his elbow in spring training, Beachy did the same, necessitating his second Tommy John surgery in a span of 21 months. It came as a devastating blow to a Braves team that had lost Tim Hudson to free agency in the offseason, and due to a lack of quality starting options in the upper levels of the farm system, they were forced to hit the free agent market for the likes of Ervin Santana and Aaron Harang. His availability for the first half of the season is in question, and it may not necessarily be a given that he returns to a starting role in 2015. Beachy has never been overpowering, which may give him a better chance of making a full recovery from the second surgery.

Beachy's recovery from June 2012 Tommy John surgery seemed to be going smoothly right up until his final minor-league rehab appearance, when he felt some tenderness in his surgically-repaired elbow during a start with Triple-A Gwinnett. The setback delayed his return by more than a month, and Beachy ended up making just five starts with the big club before being forced out of action due to elbow inflammation. Fortunately, Beachy was cleared of any additional structural damage, but the Braves weren't taking any chances, and instead shut the right-hander down in September. He then had the elbow scoped, but the expectation is that Beachy will be ready for the start of spring training. Of course, the sample size from last season is too small to draw any real conclusions, but Beachy's fastball velocity was near where it used to be, and his walk rate was way down. If healthy, the 27-year-old Beachy is a virtual lock for the rotation out of spring training, and while he may never post numbers like he did in 2012 (2.00 ERA, 0.96 WHIP), Beachy could prove to be a steal at his discounted 2014 price, though there's still plenty of risk involved.

After going undrafted in the 2008 draft, Beachy has solidified his spot in an extremely deep Braves' rotation. Unfortunately, Beachy underwent Tommy John surgery in 2012 and will not be ready to pitch until the All-Star break in 2013. Despite coming up primarily as a reliever in the minors, Beachy has only started for Atlanta since being called up. He has made 44 career starts with a 3.07 ERA and 3.25 FIP. Some still doubt him, citing his low batting average on balls in play as a reason for regression. He likely won't be the 2.00 ERA pitcher he was before sustaining his injury last season, and there's always an element of wait-and-see with recoveries from Tommy John surgery, but he should be a big part of a potential playoff run for the Braves.

Two years ago, Beachy wasn't on most people's radar in the Braves organization, but the undrafted free agent from Indiana Wesleyan had a breakout season in the minors in 2010 and then surprisingly won a spot in the big league rotation in spring training. Beachy took hold of the opportunity and didn't look back, posting a strong strikeout rate (10.74 K/9IP) with great control (169:46 K:BB ratio). He missed a month after suffering a strained oblique muscle in May, but saw little decline when he returned despite a slight increase in his walk rate. While he doesn't have a long track record of success, his mid-90s velocity and good command of three off-speed pitches have him entrenched as Atlanta's No. 3 starter.

The undrafted free agent from Indiana Wesleyan is a bit old at 24 to be considered a top prospect, but he had a breakout season in 2010 that could put him in the mix for major league job at some point in 2011. Beachy showed stellar control and strikeout potential in Double-A, posting a 1.45 ERA and 100:22 K:BB ratio in 74.1 innings. He then looked even better at Triple-A, even if it was just seven starts (48:6 K:BB ratio in 45.2 innings). After his Triple-A season ended, Beachy was a surprise callup when an emergency starter was needed and had a strong debut in three big league starts (15 strikeouts in 15 innings) and was even included on the postseason roster. He'll compete for a bullpen role this spring, but likely opens the season in the Triple-A rotation. He could surprise, but he may need to get his break elsewhere amid a deep Atlanta rotation.