John Gant

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked St. Louis Cardinals #27 prospect in 2017
  Gant and Rob Whalen joined the Braves when Atlanta sent journeymen Juan Uribe and Kelly Johnson to New York near the trading deadline in 2015. Less than a year later he was on the move again, this time as part of a three-player package, St. Louis-bound for lefty Jaime Garcia. After pitching well at the end of 2015 at Double-A Mississippi, the righthander spent most of 2016 bouncing between the big leagues and Triple-A Gwinnett while missing nearly a month at midseason due to a left oblique strain. Gant averaged 8.8 strikeouts per nine innings with Atlanta. His funky delivery begins with him scraping his left foot on the ground, pausing and then pitching. Gant can repeat the two-tap mechanics and has solid command, generating lots of grounders by throwing on a downhill plane with his 6-foot-5 frame. Gant's strength is his ability to set up hitters. He throws his low-90s fastball about 58 percent of the time and splits his remaining offerings between an above-average changeup and a tight curveball with a sharp break. Gant has the toolset to be a No. 4 or 5 starter or a situational reliever, and is likely to pitch for multiple teams before his career concludes. He'll provide the Cardinals a long reliever or sub-starter when needed in 2017.
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  Ranked Atlanta Braves #16 prospect in 2016
  Acquired with fellow righthander Rob Whalen from the Mets for veteran infielders Juan Uribe and Kelly Johnson at the 2015 trade deadline, Gant is a late bloomer from the Tampa area who has developed in recent seasons as his body has matured. The righthander made significant strides in 2014, when he ranked fourth in the South Atlantic League in ERA (2.56), third in opponent average (.231) and fifth in strikeout rate (8.3 per nine innings) at low Class A Savannah. Gant, who draws comparisons with veteran reliever Tyler Clippard from scouts, has a killer changeup with plus sinking action and a solid-average fastball with an advanced knowledge of how to set up hitters. His developing curveball with a tight spin has shown signs of becoming his best offering if he can gain more consistency with the pitch. An above-average athlete who uses his 6-foot-5 height to throw on a downhill plane, Gant has solid overall command while using the lower half of the strike zone as well as both sides of the plate. A potential No. 4 starter in the big leagues, he went 4-0, 1.99 with 43 strikeouts in 41 innings at Double-A Mississippi after joining the Braves. He is a candidate to begin 2016 at Triple-A Gwinnett after joining the 40-man roster in the offseason.