Of Prospects and Rosters, Part III: Pitching (upper minors)
Share this story
Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images
In this part, the examination shifts to Arizona’s pitching prospects. Pitching is this farm system’s strength. That shouldn’t come as a surprise for anyone. Other than 2017, when Mike Hazen first came on board, and during a time he openly admits he was not as prepared for the draft as he would have liked, Arizona’s drafts have been pitcher heavy at the top. 2018 saw the Diamondbacks make six of their first nine signed picks (six of ten overall thanks to the Matt McLain affair) come from the pitching ranks. In 2019, it was six of 10 picks, including selections 2-6. In 2020, it was four out of five total picks in the draft. Three of those four are already making waves. When looking at the few position players which were selected above or among the pitchers in those three years, the players that one sees are Jake McCarthy and Corbin Carroll. Both of those players were touched on in part two of this series as having potential good value for this franchise, with McCarthy two months from essentially awaiting injury or trade to get a shot at the Majors.