How Acquired
The Braves drafted Brett Sears in the seventh round of the 2024 MLB Draft. Sears signed for a senior sign bonus of $12.5k out of Nebraska, after initially starting his college career at Western
Illinois. What Were Expectations?
The expectations for Sears were fairly low coming in. Despite being the 2024 Big Ten Pitcher of the Year with a 2.16 ERA and 0.88 WHIP, his stuff wasn’t overpowering and he was a cheaper level senior signing last year. We also didn’t get to see him make his pro debut in 2024, so we all expected him to start in Augusta and spend his season in A-ball.
2025 Results
Sears blew away all expectations for him this year. He made just five appearances for Augusta, including two starts, pitching to a 1.93 ERA and 1.02 WHIP with a 31 strikeout to four walk ratio in 18.2 innings before being promoted to Rome. His time with Rome was even shorter, as he made just three starts there, pitching to a 2.00 ERA and 0.67 WHIP with 17 strikeouts to two walks in 17 innings.
That was enough to get him to AA, where he pitched in seven games (six starts) prior to being promoted to Gwinnett for two starts. He allowed 11 runs over 9.2 innings in two starts in Triple-A before being sent back to Columbus and making his final eight starts. His time in Double-A saw him pitch to a 3.63 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 74 strikeouts to 23 walks over 74.1 innings.
Combined this year, pitching at all four levels of full season ball, Sears made 21 starts and four relief appearances. He went 10-11 with a 3.65 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and 128 strikeouts to 31 walks in 120.2 innings pitched.
What Went Right?
Almost everything went right for Sears in 2025, as he surpassed even the most optimistic expectations from him for this season. For a guy making his pro debut in Low-A to make it all the way up to Triple-A in the same first season as a pro is just not a thing that happens – especially not for a guy who was a senior sign. Sears used a total of six pitches – a fastball, sinker, cutter, slider, curve, and changeup this year, and relied on his movement and command in order to carve up lineups in the minor leagues.
What Went Wrong?
Really the only thing you could say would be his time in Triple-A, though considering it was just his first professional season that isn’t a huge surprise either. Sears allowed six runs over three and two thirds innings in his first start, then five runs over six innings in his second start. He was being hit harder, but also missing bats at a lower rate as he moved to the top level in the minors.
2026 Outlook
Sears will turn 26 at the start of May and doesn’t have much more to prove in Double-A, so it is very likely that he opens his 2026 season back in Gwinnett. It will be a big year for him to prove his very small sample size there last year was not indicative of things to come due to his stuff being more modest. Sears fastball only tops out at 94 MPH, so he will need to prove he can rely on his movement and stuff to get out hitters in Triple-A before he potentially gets a shot in Atlanta.
