The extra playing time is off to a good start for Atlanta Braves infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. In his Arizona Fall League debut, he reached base three times (1-for-4 with two walks) and had an RBI double.
The Glendale Desert Dogs took down the Scottsdale Scorpians 13-7 to pick up their first win of the 2025 season.
Alvarez went out west to play in Arizona to make up for the missing playing time early in the season due to recovering from a wrist injury. He missed virtually all of Spring Training, and he didn’t make his season debut at any level until he had his rehab out in with the FCL Braves June 9.
He returned to Triple-A Gwinnett for a little over a week before his first call-up to the Major Leagues in early July. After Austin Riley sustained what turned out to be a season-ending injury in early August, Alvarez stuck around patrolling third base for the remainder of the season.
In 58 MLB games, he batted .234 with a .626 OPS with two home runs and 15 RBIs. Both of his home runs were the first two of his career and they came in a multi-home run game against the Detroit Tigers in early September.
By this point, he’s likely earned himself a platoon role with the Braves. However, he played a total of 98 games last season. The Arizona Fall League play won’t full make up the lost time, but at least, he can get himself back over 100 games, and work on his craft in a more developmental setting.
Alvarez is the only player who saw Major League action for the Braves this season who’s participating in the Arizona Fall League. Jhancarlos Lara was called up, but he didn’t see action. His time in the Majors was spent behind the scenes and learning from the veterans.
Other top-30 prospects, such as No. 16 Luke Sinnard, are out west as well. Another notable infielder seeking action alongside Alvarez is minor league infielder Jim Jarvis. He was acquired at the trade deadline in exchange for Rafael Montero.
The Arizona Fall League is chance for promising MLB talent to go get extra developmental time after the MLB regular season has concluded. The season runs until Nov. 15, the day of the championship game. Last year, the Salt River Rafters beat the Surprise Saguaros 3-2 to win the championship.
