Tyler LaPorte’s road from shortstop to bullpen option: How did he become a legit relief prospect?

Tyler LaPorte arrived in Glendale, Arizona with a question hanging over his dream for years: could the pitcher he became after elbow surgery ever look like more than a long-shot development project. MLB’s account of his journey says the answer started to firm up after the Braves signed him in February 2025 and he advanced through their minor-league workload.

Before he became a reliever, LaPorte was a shortstop. The Braves organization describes him as solely a shortstop in high school and for much of his college career at Baton Rouge Community College and Southern, where he batted.377 and earned Southwestern Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year recognition as a senior in 2019.

The transition to pitching took hold because his arm gave him options, even when his body threatened to end the effort. MLB’s write-up says he took the mound just four times at Southern in 2019, threw an 87-91 mph fastball, then injured his elbow and required Tommy John surgery.

Even after returning, LaPorte still had to find a pathway to sustained opportunities. MLB’s account says he was hurt again during his second independent season with the Lancaster Stormers and was released in the middle of his third, leaving him nearly 28 while waiting for a major-league organization to take a chance.

The turnaround, according to MLB’s Braves report, came through performance and a new professional-to-professional learning environment. After signing with the Braves in February 2025, LaPorte worked his way to Double-A, compiling a 2.41 ERA with 121 strikeouts in 100 2/3 innings, and then headed to the Arizona Fall League.

In the Arizona Fall League, the developmental circuit for prospects, MLB’s description frames LaPorte as an “age 29” exception rather than a placeholder. The report says he posted a 1.00 ERA, held hitters to a.161 average against, and totaled 11 strikeouts in nine innings.

MLB also ties his potential to what his pitches did when they got in the zone. It says LaPorte worked at 96 mph and touched 98 with his two fastball looks, and that his high-spin slider sat in the low-80s and missed bats, even as it notes his curveball and changeup were less developed.

The same MLB account identifies what still needs refinement to turn promise into consistency: his biggest need is providing more consistent strikes, which matters for a relief role where command shapes leverage situations. Still, the report concludes that the Arizona Fall League confirmed the majors are within reach given the bullpen-oriented combination of velocity and swing-and-miss ability.

Across the years, the through-line in MLB’s story is persistence rather than a single breakout game. It says LaPorte leaned on mentors and a growth mindset, including time spent rebuilding after injuries and learning pitching mechanics and sequencing with a throwing partner, Braden Bristo. The result, per the Braves feature, is that LaPorte now profiles as a legitimate relief prospect rather than a cautionary tale.