2013 Fantasy Baseball Prospects Recap: Arizona Diamondbacks

We head east and take the Interstate-8 to the I-10 on our way to Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona as we continue our our Prospects Recap series with the Arizona Diamondbacks. The D’backs made some noise this offseason by radically rearranging their farm system with trades that shipped former number one prospect Trevor Bauer to Cleveland, but added more depth by trading away Justin Upton to the Atlanta Braves (most notably, Randall Delgado). Even though they are currently four games over .500, it is very unlikely that they will be earning a playoff berth this season. Nevertheless, the future looks pretty bright underneath the desert sun. 

Be sure to check out the rest of the other teams’ Prospects Recaps, beginning with our overview of the San Diego Padres.

Matt Davidson–3B–2013

2013 Outlook: Upside has scouts excited with his power potential; defense has improved

It’s very easy to lose track of the fact that Davidson is only 22-years-old, but has been playing pro since 2009 and is already up in Triple-A. He was named to the 2013 Futures Game, was named the game’s MVP and Triple-A Home Run Derby Champ, and was also named the Pacific Coast League’s Best Power Prospect. To put that last honor in perspective, Tampa Rays’ Wil Myers was named the Best Power Prospect in the International League, so this is some serious praise Davidson has received. He did see 30 plate appearances in Major League Baseball action this season, but was recently sent back down to Triple-A. Evidently, Davidson’s power is still raw and untapped judging by the fact that he’s never hit more than 25 homers in any minor league stop, but does have 31 doubles to show us a glimpse of things to come. An .822 OPS is not too shabby, but one expects more from a guy with Davidson’s talent and potential. Another negative is the atrocious approach at the plate, which make the Mark Reynolds comparisons a bit too close for comfort. Nevertheless, if you’re looking for a third baseman of the future, Davidson will get plenty of chances to succeed in Arizona.

Archie Bradley–SP–2014

2013 Outlook: Working on changeup in this season; Was once considered to be a future ace

Bradley has ideal size (6-4, 225 lbs.), but has been struggling with control since Arizona drafted him with a first round pick in 2011. He doesn’t give too much for hitters to work with, but the K/9 has seen a decrease in Double-A. But Bradley just turned 21 years-old so he has time on his side. He was also named to this year’s Futures Game so his prospect status is intact. He was also named the Southern League’s Best Fastball and Best Pitching Prospect.  If he can keep the walks in check, he’s back in the picture as a legit future ace for your pitching staff.

David Holmberg–SP–2014

2013 Outlook: Potential to have four, above-average pitches, all of them with good command; wastes very little time on the mound.

On August 27, 2013, Holmberg made his MLB debut. The next day, he was sent back down to Double-A. Since being promoted to Double-A in 2012, he has been able to limit his walks, but his K/9 has dropped from a high of 9.9 in High-A ball, to a low of 6.3 in Double-A. But he still has size and the ability to come at hitters from the left side with four pitches, so there’s a lot of variety to his game. He probably needs more time in the minors.

Zeke Spruill–SP–2013

2013 Outlook: Good control; Good collection of pitches; Mid-rotation starter

Part of the Justin Upton trade, Spruill has sort of plateaued as it seems that he is a pitch-to-contact hurler that will be making a living inducing a lot of ground balls. He also has some control issues, but his BB/9 has never been above 3.5. Definitely not a pitcher that you can build your ball club around, but could be a future, spot-starter in daily leagues. Even a guy like Aaron Cook was able to make some impact in most fantasy leagues posting similar numbers.

Nick Ahmed–SS–2014

2013 Outlook: Fast and athletic; good defender; solid approach and decent hitter

Another player who was part of the Justin Upton trade, outside of stolen bases, Ahmed has not produced much of anything this year in the minors. Ahmed is certainly displaying the speed and despite the disappointing BB/K of 0.45, he really doesn’t strike out that much, which fits his preseason profile as having a good approach at the plate. Unfortunately, it has not resulted in an increase in batting average or on-base percentage. He has lived up to the hype on defense, recently being named the Southern League’s Best Defensive Shortstop. The only good thing about a shortstop with good glovework is the fact that he’ll be getting plenty of playing. From a fantasy perspective, however, defense does not win championships. We’ll see if he rebounds next year in the minors, but in the mean time, he’ll get a chance at redemption at the Arizona Fall League.

Stryker Trahan–C–2016

2013 Outlook: Very young at 18, but was drafted for his bat; strength is obvious attribute and leads to raw power; runs well for a catcher; Needs work on defense, but might move to outfield.

Trahan spent another season in the Rookie League with slight regression with plate discipline and consistency. But Trahan is still a teen and based on his .460 slugging percentage and .198 ISO, the power is becoming apparent. His strength will not only be used at the plate as Trahan is a strong kid who is willing to take punishment at the backstop. And if you watch this video, you’ll see that he’s strong enough to dish out punishment as well.

TOO MANY SHORSTOPS

Chris Owings–SS–2014: We’ve mentioned Ahmed already, and the player the D’backs got in return for Bauer was Didi Gregorius. Both were acquired in trades and they kind of overshadowed former first round pick, Chris Owings. Owings may not have the approach that Gregorius possesses or the size and upside that Ahmed has, but he does currently have more pop in his bat and can even contribute in the steals department as well. So Owings might be a player to watch out for if the Diamondbacks decide to go in a different direction at either middle infield positions.

FRESH OFF THE DRAFT

Braden Shipley–P–2016: A top 15 pick in the 2013 Amateur Draft, Shipley has a mid-90s fastball and one quick look at his scouting report and you can’t help but think “Bulldog.” I also can’t help but think, “future reliever.” But the D’backs look like they want to give Shipley every chance to succeed as a starter. He is a bit unrefined as he’s only been pitching for a short while now and he does have issues with walks, but in baseball, if a guy can consistently throw the ball at 90 miles per hour, and sometimes get it as high as 98 mph, he’ll garner plenty of attention.

Scouting Reports courtesy of mlb.com, baseballprospectus.com, and baseballamerica.com

Stats courtesy of Baseball Prospectus and are good through August 28, 2013.

Felipe Melecio

Felipe Melecio was the managing editor for the blog Pathological Hate. He believes that math is your friend and numbers can be fun, especially when it comes to baseball. Keep tabs on all his knee-jerk reactions on Twitter: Follow @pathological_h8 !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)?'http':'https';if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=p+'://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js';fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document, 'script', 'twitter-wjs');

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