How was he acquired?
The Braves took Lodise with their second round (60th overall) pick in the 2025 draft, taking the shortstop out of Florida State. Lodise received a signing bonus of $1.3 million.
In his final season with the Seminoles, Lodise appeared in 58 games, hitting 17 homers and posting an OPS of 1.167. Those numbers, combined with solid defense, netted Lodise the Dick Howser Trophy, which is given annually to the best college baseball player. Previous winners include Paul Skenes, Kris Bryant
and Buster Posey, so Lodise is in some elite company there.
What were the expectations for 2025?
As Lodise was a 2025 draft pick, there weren’t many expectations for the 2025 campaign. Simply getting a good look at him in a pro setting would have been good enough.
However, Lodise actually put up respectable numbers for someone who just finished his college career and set himself up quite well for his first full professional season in 2026
2025 results
As mentioned above, Lodise got off to a solid start as a pro. In 25 games at the high-A level, Lodise slashed .252/.294/.398 to go along with 10 doubles and a homer to his credit. In his very first game with Rome, Lodise went 3-4 with a triple, double and 3 RBI on the night.
While he did cool down and come back to earth, Lodise showed poise and talent that naturally comes with being one of the best college players.
2026 outlook
Lodise will probably return to Rome to start the 2026 season, with his eyes on a quick bump to Columbus and perhaps Gwinnett down the road to finish the season if all goes well. More than likely Lodise will finish with Columbus and begin 2027 with Gwinnett with a short leash when it comes to getting bumped to Atlanta.
Atlanta has obviously not been shy about promoting guys who excel or show they can handle tougher levels without too many challenges, and Lodise fits the bill as one of those types of guys. He will need to cut down on the strikeouts — as he went down on strikes 42 times out of his 103 at-bats — if he wants to move up the ladder quickly. And there’s enough evidence to suggest he will cut that strikeout rate back, but how much he can do so will, of course, determine his success.
