Who is AJ Smith-Shawver? Meet the Braves' top prospect following MLB call-up

The call-up of AJ Smith-Shawver from Triple-A highlights the Atlanta Braves willingness to bring their prospects to the MLB faster than most franchises. The rookie has been brought up to help bolster the Braves' bullpen, as the club continues to emerge as one of the best in baseball.

While AJ Smith-Shawver has been tagged as one of the top prospects in the Braves system, the call-up comes as a bit of a surprise as he has only pitched 110 innings.

Not just this season, but 110 total innings of professional baseball, which makes his call to the main roster not more impressive, but perhaps more improbable.

"AJ Smith-Shawver gets called up by Braves @GordonEdes has the details on the pitcher who didn’t even start pitching until the summer before his senior year in high school. @BravesOnBally | #ForTheA" - @BallySports

Smith-Shawver, who was born in Fort Worth, Texas, spent the majority of his high school career as a football star. However, only three years ago at Colleyville Heritage High School in Colleyville, Texas, AJ began pitching.

Being the starting quarterback for his high school team, he clearly had talent in his arm, however, no one could have guessed that he would be on an MLB roster three years later.

Smith-Shawver was a 7th-round selection of the Atlanta Braves in the 2021 MLB Draft straight out of high school. The 2021 Draft saw the Braves also select Ryan Cusick, Spencer Schwellenbach, and Dylan Dodd.

AJ Smith-Shawver may soon be a start for the Atlanta Braves

While AJ Smith-Shawver is expected to serve out of the Atlanta Braves' bullpen, he is an interesting long-term pitcher for the club. However, given his 2023, he may soon find himself in whatever role he wants, as the 20-year-old has climbed four different levels in two months after opening the season in High-A.

"How strongly did the Braves feel about 20-year-old AJ Smith-Shawver’s electric arm? This season, he made three starts in High A, two in Double A and two in Triple A before they called him up. He’s on the big-league roster after 110 minor-league innings since they drafted him." - @JustinCToscano

So far this season, Smith-Shawver has been excellent in the minors. Through a combined 33.0 innings at all three levels, the young pitcher has been outstanding, posting a 2-1 record with a dazzling 1.09 ERA with 45 strikeouts.

Given his meteoric rise, it may not be long before Smith-Shawver finds himself in the pitching rotation, especially with injuries to starts Kyle Wright and Max Fried.