Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen Hints Jordan Lawlar Likely to Start 2025 in AAA

The oft-injured shortstop prospect is getting reps in winter ball to make up for lost time. Will it be enough to give him momentum into spring training and a legitimate shot at making the opening day roster?

Sep 25, 2023; Bronx, New York, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop Jordan Lawlar (10) gets a force out against New York Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres (25) during the sixth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images / John Jones-Imagn Images

Arizona Diamondbacks top rated prospect Jordan Lawlar is currently playing winter ball in the Dominican Republic for Tigres del Licey. He's doing so to help make up for lost time due to injury in the 2024 season.

Lawlar was first called up to the major leagues for the stretch run in 2023, making his major league debut on September 7, 2023. Prior to that he'd put up an impressive minor league season in his age 20 season. Playing Double-A and Triple-A he hit .278/.378/.496, 874 OPS with 20 homers while scoring a whopping 95 runs in just 105 games.

The young shortstop had just turned 21 prior to his call up, and struggled. It was just 31 at bats, but he only had four hits and clearly did not look ready at the plate. The defense was fine, but by the time the Postseason rolled around, he was limited to appearing in just three games, once as a pinch runner and two as a pinch hiter.

While it was valuable experience, Lawlar clearly needed to go back to Triple-A to continue to his development. Unfortunately, as so often has been the case, injuries got in the way. First he tore his UCL in his right thumb in late spring, then not long after returning, he injured his hamstring. He'd go on the minor league IL twice with that injury.

When he played, he hit extremely well, batting .318 with a .900 OPS. But between Double-A, Triple-A, and rehab appearances in rookie ball he got into just 23 games with 104 PA. So he was sent to the Dominican Republic to play winter ball. In 16 games, 69 PA, he's batting .250/.319/.383, .702 OPS. It's a pitcher's league this year, as the league average is .241/.319/.336, .654 OPS.

There has been much speculation about where Lawlar will start the 2025 season, but General Manager Mike Hazen, speaking on the Wolf and Luke show on 98.7 Arizona Sports gave strong hints that the initial plan is not to open with Lawlar on the opening day roster as he needs further reps in the minor leagues.

"I have the expectation that he's going to be on our team at some point next year. I hope. ... It's more, though, the reps that got missed that level."

Hazen explained his thought process for sending Lawlar down to Triple-A to start the season last year.

"You know, we sent him down at spring training for a reason, to go down there and get that experience and those reps in AAA, coming off of the appearance in 2023, and that just didn't really happen. So I'm really happy that he went down to the Domincan Republic and is playing at Winter Ball, and is starting to pick up some of those reps, because I definitely think that will start to close the gap."

Hazen also said that there is still a lot of room for Lawlar to grow and become more consistent, which is what he's looking for. Furthermore, when Lawlar does come up, he wants him playing every day, not spending half or more of his time on the bench as a utility player.

"He's still so young. I want to make sure that he's ready to go when we have him up here. I still don't think we're at that stage of his career where putting him on the bench at the major league level does anybody any good."

Much like his minor league season, Lawlar has been splitting his time between shortstop and third base for Licey. At one point before the injuries popped up again mid season, it was thought he might be in line to replace a slumping Eugenio Suarez at third base should the veteran be traded or released.

Instead, Suarez got hot, Lawlar got hurt, and that window passed. The D-backs picked up Suarez's option for 2025, and have Geraldo Perdomo at shortstop and Ketel Marte at second base. There was some speculation that Suarez could be shifted to first base, opening up third base for Lawlar. While that's an outside possibility, it's clearly not plan A for the Diamondbacks.

Of course injuries can happen either in spring training or early in the season, as we saw at the start of 2023. Had Lawlar not injured his thumb it probably would have been him that got called up in early April when Geraldo Perdomo tore knee cartilage, requiring surgery. Instead it was Kevin Newman who got the call.

Hazen left the door open just a smidge for Lawlar to make the opening day roster, depending on how the offseason goes.

"So wherever that opportunity may come, it's going to come at some point next year. I don't know when. It could be on opening day. It might not be. But we have to obviously go through the offseason and build our team when options become available to us."

Lawlar turned 22 years old on July 17, 2024. He still has just 1,211 professional plate appearance between affiliated minor league ball and winter ball. He's hit well at virtually every level, and his defense already looked major league ready when he was called up in 2023. The D-backs are wise not to rush him.

At the same time 2025 appears to be somewhat of a crossroads, a season in which they have high hopes that he will ultimately establish himself as a bonafide major league player, at some point.