Looking for a young Up-and-Coming Dynasty pitcher? Well, I have a player in mind.
Say hello to JR Ritchierookie pitcher for the Atlanta Braves. The right-hander has only started two games in the majors so far, but entered the season ranked in the top 100 and looks poised to help fantasy owners this season.
Let’s look at Ritchie.
Mathematics
| A YEAR | LEVEL | GS | WL | IP | The ERA | WHIP | H/9 | BB/9 | K/9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | RK|A | 5-5 | 0-0 | 14.1 | 1.88 | 0.977 | 5.7 | 3.1 | 8.8 |
| 2023 | A | 4-4 | 0-1 | 13.1 | 6.08 | 1.050 | 7.4 | 2.0 | 16.9 |
| 2024 | RK|A|A+ | 12-11 | 2-5 | 49.2 | 3.81 | 1.128 | 7.1 | 3.1 | 10.1 |
| 2025 | A+|AA|AAA | 26-26 | 8-6 | 140.0 | 2.64 | 1.007 | 5.6 | 3.5 | 9.0 |
| 2026 | AAA | 5-5 | 3-1 | 27.1 | 0.99 | 1.024 | 4.9 | 4.3 | 9.2 |
| 2026 | The brave ones | 2-2 | 1-0 | 12.1 | 2.92 | 1.297 | 7.3 | 4.4 | 8.0 |
When the Braves hit the draft in 2022, they selected three high school pitchers with their first three picks. JR Ritchie was the second of those three as he was taken with the 35th medal out of Bainbridge High School in Bainbridge Island, WA. Ritchie was outstanding in his 2022 debut, posting a 1.88 ERA and 0.977 WHIP in five starts at the Rookie and Class A levels.
But his season was interrupted in 2023 when he had to undergo Tommy John surgery, which limited him to four starts that year and 11 games and 12 games overall in 2024. But a healthy Ritchie was dominant last season at three different levels of competition, posting a 2.64 ERA and 1.007 WHIP and the Playoffs.
Tools
- 4-Seam: 30% Usage, 94.4 mph
With only two MLB games under his belt, the data on JR Ritchie will not be complete. However, at this point, opposing hitters are not having much success against Ritchie, currently hitting .200 with a .397 SLG against his fastball with four strikeouts. He sits at 94 mph with his four-seamer, but can reach the high 90s if needed. The pitch motion is very similar to a typical right-handed pitcher. It has a shorter length of two inches but a tail of 1.8 inches more for right-handed hitters.
Ritchie attacks left-handed hitters with this pitch, throwing 35% of the time against lefties and 15% against righties.
- Curve: 26% Utilization, 82.6 mph
Ritchie takes his fastball off with a tight curve that crosses 3.3 inches above the right hand curve and an additional 1 inch of downswing. Throwing equally against righties and lefties, hitters have a .125 batting average against the pitch with a .125 SLG, going 1-for-8 with four strikeouts and a 33% whiff percentage.
- Change: 16% Usage, 87.9 mph
The change is a pitch that currently doesn’t work for Ritchie. In 12 at-bats, hitters have a .333 average and .833 SLG thanks to two home runs. The pitch doesn’t have much of a tail, but it does feature four inches more fall compared to other righties. It’s a change of tone he’s had success with kids, so this may have been an early blip on the radar.
This is also a pitch Ritchie uses far more against lefties (22%) than righties (2%).
- Sinker: 12% Usage, 93.8 mph
JR Ritchie throws his sinker almost as hard as his four-seamer, allowing him to get 1.7 inches more down the field. Again, the results are early, but so far, hitters are 0-for-6 against the sinker. Right now, the sinker is only used against opposing right-handed hitters as he tries to get into their hands. He threw the sinker 43% of the time against righties and 0% against lefties.
- Slider: 10% Usage, 85.2 mph
Scouts like Ritchie’s slide coming out of high school and through the minors, as he was 55th in that field. But so far, he’s been average in the majors in terms of movement and depth.
Results
Ritchie’s start was outstanding as he allowed two earned runs (both solo homers) and five hits in seven innings of work against the Nationals. He struck out seven while issuing only two walks. His next start wasn’t as good, but he was solid against Detroit. In 5.1 innings of work, he allowed three runs (two earned) and four strikeouts but also walked four.
Walking is something that Ritchie has struggled with at times since childhood. His BB/9 average was 3.4 as a junior, but he was posting a 4.3 BB/9 during his five games at Gwinnett this year before being promoted. But the walk hasn’t come back to bother him too much on the farm thanks to a career H/9 rate of 5.9. That batting average has increased to 7.3 so far with the Braves, but again, it’s too soon to really know if that’s a trend or not.
The decision
For those who have fully entered the baseball dynasty, JR Ritchie should not be an unknown player. He entered the season ranked as the 84th best prospect by Baseball America, 90th by MLB and 88th by Baseball Prospectus. The timing was right for the Braves to call up Ritchie to join the staff due to injuries and ineffectiveness in the first round. While in Triple-A, he allowed just three runs in 27.1 innings of work with 28 strikeouts.
His first two starts show that Ritchie can thrive against big league hitters. The question is how often will he start. Currently, Spencer Strider is scheduled to make his season debut on Sunday. Reynaldo Lopez was moved to the bullpen, allowing Ritchie to make his second start. However, it’s likely that Ritchie will bounce back and forth between the Braves and Triple-A this season.
Ritchie won’t be able to dominate the starters as he doesn’t have the ability to dominate the strikers. Does that mean you should ignore Ritchie? No. He throws strikes and mixes up his pitches enough to keep hitters off balance.
Catch him while you can. He is currently available in 65% of Yahoo leagues and over 80% of ESPN leagues.
