Diamondbacks Farm System May 2023 Update: Double-A Amarillo

Evaluating the performances of the top prospects at the Diamondbacks' Double-A affiliate.

The next level of the Diamondbacks farm system is Double-A Amarillo. Located in the Texas Panhandle, Amarillo has an elevation of 3600 feet and is one of the windiest cities in America. Coupled with a short fence in right field, Hodgetown can be a very rough environment for pitchers and can really inflate offensive stats. Similar to the organization's Reno affiliate in the Pacific Coast League, you have to take the  extreme high run environment when looking at the numbers from the prospects playing there. 

Hitters

Jordan Lawlar has been the key prospect at this level and has been up-and-down so far this season. After starting the season hitting .286 with a 1.009 OPS in his first 10 games, the D-backs No. 3 prospect fell into a big slump. He's now batting .190/.316/.411, .727 OPS with five homers, 16 walks and 34 strikeouts in 114 plate appearances. It's the first time he's slumped this badly in his career, and will be another good test of adversity that will prepare him for the big leagues. Considering his makeup, which has already shone through in his brief pro career, there is a good chance he figures things out eventually. Lawlar is 4.6 years younger than the average player in the Texas League, so the team might not be as aggressive to promote him as they were with Corbin Carroll a year ago. It might be time to temper expectations for Lawlar arriving in MLB this September. 

Ryan Bliss is the talk of the team, as he's started the 2023 season on a hot streak that hasn't stopped. On the season as a whole, Arizona's No. 25 prospect is batting .398 with 11 doubles, two triples, five home runs, and a 1.083 OPS in 25 games. Even with the hitter-friendly environments in the Texas League, that's very impressive. The main thing driving up his numbers is a .476 BABIP (average on balls put into play) is a 31% line drive rate.  While the BABIP is not sustainable over a full season, the level may not be too challenging. If his numbers are still this inflated at the end of the month, a promotion to Reno may be necessary. 

Deyvison De Los Santos hasn't gotten off to a hot start, batting .202 with three home runs and a .595 OPS. He has some very severe home and road splits, batting .313 with a .921 OPS at Hodgetown while batting .098 with a .281 OPS on the road. His numbers aren't encouraging right now,  but De Los Santos is still very young for the level. The main thing to watch for might not be the overall season numbers, but his progression over the course of the season.

A.J. Vukovich is still somewhat of an enigma. He's hitting .274 with a .825 OPS, but he continues to have concerning plate discipline numbers.  His walk rate has improved from 4%  last year to 7% this year, but his strikeout rate of 29% is still too high and a red flag. His .274 average is being supported by a .350 BABIP. Throughout his minor league career he has been able to produce high BABIP, likely due to his ability to do damage on the balls he puts into play in the air. The most important thing for Vukovich throughout the course of the season is to cut down on the strikeout rate so he can give himself more opportunities to make use of his power tool. 

Pitchers

Jamison Hill isn't listed as a Top 30 prospect, but the 2021 nondrafted free agent has quickly worked his way up to Double-A Amarillo in his third season with the organization. Opposing batters are hitting .212 against him, but 19 walks in 23 innings threatens to cause his ERA to rise well beyond his 4.30 mark in six starts. Hill throws low 90s with an above-average curveball. 

Luke Albright has a 6.65 ERA in six starts, with 17 walks in 21.2 innings coming back to bite him thanks to an opponent average of .264. He's pitched better on the road, with a 3.94 ERA in four road starts and a 14.29 ERA in two home starts. His fastball is in the low-90s with a mid-80s slider being his main secondary pitch against right-handed hitters and a mid-80s changeup for lefties.

Other Notable Performances

Tristin English got promoted to Triple-A Reno after hitting .333 with a 1.148 OPS in his first 18 games. In fact, he matched his home run total with Amarillo last season in less than a third of the games. English is an interesting bat with power and solid athleticism at first base, very similar to current D-backs first baseman Christian Walker. If he has a similar work ethic, he could be a dark horse candidate to take over at first in a couple years when Walker hits free agency.

Christian Montes De Oca could be an interesting bullpen arm in a year or two. Standing at 6'4" with a mid-90s fastball and a slider, he has some swing-and-miss potential as a middle reliever down the road. Opponents are only hitting .128 against him this season and has a 15/7 strikeout to walk ratio in 13.2 innings.

May 2023 Farm System Updates

Triple-A: Reno
Double-A: Amarillo
High-A: Hillsboro
Low-A: Visalia