2019 Draft Review: Arizona Diamondbacks

First five rounds: Corbin Carroll (1-16), Blake Walston (1-26), Brennan Malone (1-33), Drey Jameson (1-34), Ryne Nelson (2-56), Tommy Henry (CBB-74), Dominic Fletcher (CBB-75), Tristin English (3-93), Glenallen Hill Jr. (4-122), Conor Grammes (5-152)
Also notable: Avery Short (12-362), Jerrion Ealy (31-932)

The Diamondbacks had an extra first round pick after failing to sign last year's first rounder Matt McLain, picked up a pair of compensation picks for losing Patrick Corbin to the Nationals and A.J. Pollock to the Dodgers, earned a competitive balance pick through the lottery, and obtained an additional competitive balance pick in the trade that sent Paul Goldschmidt to St. Louis. In all, that gave Arizona four of the first 34 picks and eight of the first 93, enabling them to play around with their massive bonus pool and bring on a ton of talent. They went underslot with five of those picks (potentially six if Tommy Henry signs underslot) and used their massive savings to reel in overslot picks in Glenallen Hill Jr. and Avery Short later in the draft, and they may not be done as they still have a few hundred thousand dollars left in that bonus pool. Overall, this massive influx of talent featured five consecutive pitchers after first rounder Corbin Carroll, a personal favorite of mine, there were so many picks that I didn't even get a chance to write about guys like seventh rounder Spencer Brickhouse, a power hitter from East Carolina, or 24th rounder Dylan Eskew, a high-upside high schooler from Tampa.

1-16: OF Corbin Carroll (Lakeside HS [WA], my rank: 8)
With their first of eight million or so picks this year, the Diamondbacks started it off strong and took a player I really like. Carroll is an outfielder from Seattle whose short stature, skinny frame, and lack of present power are no problem when you consider the rest of the package. Listed at 5'10" and 165 pounds, Carroll has exceptional feel for the barrel, so much so that he can actually hit for close to average power if he wants to and he still won't have to worry about too much swing and miss. He also uses his speed and instincts to play very good defense in center field, and that speed plays up on the bases too. On top of it all, he's reported to have a fantastic work ethic, and he should move quicker than most high school players. Carroll's ultimate projection is that of a high on-base, high stolen base, leadoff type of hitter who can also hit 10-15 home runs per season, maybe more if he fills out a little bit. He signed away from UCLA at slot for $3.75 million and is slashing .316/.316/.368 with a stolen base and six strikeouts over his first five games in the complex-level Arizona League.

1-26: LHP Blake Walston (New Hanover HS [NC], my rank: 42)
The Diamondbacks went underslot here, and perhaps no underslot signing at this point in the draft could have given them as much upside as Blake Walston. The Wilmington, North Carolina left hander is 6'4" and has an ideal pitchers' frame, albeit without much man strength on it yet. He sits in the low 90's when he's at his best, but his velocity fluctuates a lot and he is usually down somewhere in the 80's later in games. His curveball can also be a true plus pitch at its best, and even when it loses power and gets loopy, it still has good shape and he should have no trouble refining it into a consistent out pitch. Walston also adds a slider and a changeup to round out his four pitch arsenal, and his command is fairly advanced for his age, especially given how inconsistent his stuff can be. Walston will need some work on his mechanics, but ultimately getting on a pro conditioning program will hopefully help him get that fastball velocity up and get more power on his breaking balls, so he has ace upside. As a bonus, Walston is fairly young for the class and only turned 18 at the end of June. He signed for $2.45 million, which was $200,000 below slot and which kept him from attending NC State.

1-33: RHP Brennan Malone (IMG Academy [FL], my rank: 19)
After going underslot with Walston, I thought it would take an overslot deal to sign Malone away from a UNC commitment here, but they surprisingly got him at slot. Malone moved from Charlotte, North Carolina between his junior and senior seasons to attend the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, and it helped him get more consistent with his stuff. The 6'3" righty now sits in the low to mid 90's with his fastball and gets good movement on it, and he adds a pair of breaking balls and a changeup. His curveball was his out pitch before this season and it can look plus at its best but often flattens out, but this year he added a slider which has become his new out pitch and which is much more consistent. His command has also improved from shaky to average, and his athleticism has helped him along the way. Malone, like Walston, has a high ceiling as a frontline starter, but he has less work to do to get there as he can already hold his velocity through games. However, I think Walston's ceiling is just a bit higher. Malone signed at slot for $2.2 million.

1-34: RHP Drey Jameson (Ball State, my rank: 50)
With their first college pick, the Diamondbacks went underslot and selected a high upside, high risk pitcher in Drey Jameson. The six foot right hander who grew up outside of Indianapolis is a draft-eligible sophomore, but he's very old for the class and would actually be on the older side for a college junior because he turns 22 in August. Jameson improved on his up and down freshman season to post a 3.24 ERA, a 1.16 WHIP, and a 146/32 strikeout to walk ratio over 91.2 innings this year. Not only is Jameson fairly short for a pitcher at six feet tall, he also weighs in at just 165 pounds and likely won't add too much more. Still, he has a live arm that produces a mid 90's fastball and a pair of good breaking balls, and he has the arm strength to maintain his stuff and velocity deep into games. That stuff enabled him to miss a ton of bats in the relatively weak Mid-America Conference, and he should continue to miss bats in pro ball. However, his command tends to come and go, and with a high effort delivery at his size, there are reliever questions. Optimists can look at the arm strength and stuff and project him as a potential mid-rotation starter, but pessimists would argue that his size won't hold up when he moves from the every-seventh-day college schedule to the every-fifth-day pro schedule, forcing him to the bullpen. Still, he could be nasty as a reliever. Jameson signed for $1.4 million, which was $750,000 below slot.

2-56: RHP Ryne Nelson (Oregon, my rank: 72)
Another college pitcher with a premium fastball, another underslot signing. Nelson was a two-way player for Oregon as a freshman and a sophomore, but he became a pitcher-only in the Cape Cod League (2.65 ERA, 26/9 K/BB in 17 IP) and continued with that as a junior this year in Eugene. After that strong showing on the Cape, it was an up and down year for the Las Vegas-area native as he split time between the rotation and the bullpen and finished with a 4.29 ERA, a 1.55 WHIP, and a 104/41 strikeout to walk ratio over 65 innings. Nelson's biggest strength is his mid to upper 90's fastball, which he was able to blow past Pac-12 hitters at a frightening rate this year, and he also adds a good slider that can get its share of swings and misses. However, he lacks much of a changeup and his command is very mediocre this year, so he ended up getting hit harder when he fell behind in the count or when he left balls over the plate. On one hand, he's fairly new to pitching and didn't focus exclusively on it until this year, and his athleticism could help him transition to the rotation and become successful there as he gets more refined. On the other, he's a college reliever who didn't get great results this year, and that's a tough hole to climb out of. His lack of command likely pushes him to the bullpen long term, but we'll see how he progresses. The 6'3" righty signed for $1.1 million, which was $180,000 below slot.

CBB-74: LHP Tommy Henry (Michigan, my rank: 75)
One of the centerpieces of Michigan's surprise run to the College World Series Finals, Tommy Henry has a live arm but has been up and down this spring. After posting a 3.09 ERA and a 77/26 strikeout to walk ratio as a sophomore, he came back this year with a 3.27 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP, and a 135/26 strikeout to walk ratio over 124 innings for the Wolverines, a heavy workload which will probably limit his pro innings this year once he signs. Henry is a 6'3" lefty from just outside Kalamazoo, Michigan, and he has looked very good at his best. He tossed 23 shutout innings with a 34/2 strikeout to walk ratio over his first three starts against SUNY Binghamton, The Citadel, and Cal State Northridge, then stepped up against a fearsome UCLA lineup in his next start and struck out ten over six innings. However, he put up an unsightly 6.50 ERA and a 42/15 strikeout to walk ratio in 45.2 innings in conference play, making it look like he just got lucky in that UCLA start. Then he confused us again by averaging eight innings per start in the NCAA Tournament and striking out 31 to just three walks over 31.2 innings (though three of those four starts came after the draft). When he's on, he sits in the low 90's with his fastball and adds a solid slider and an advanced changeup with good command, but during that run through the Big 10 as well as previously in his career, he sat closer to 90, his stuff flattened out a bit, and his command regressed from above average to average. Pre-draft, I wasn't sold on Henry because I didn't like the idea of drafting someone on Day One just due to a month of good pitching early in the season, but his very good post-draft performance has me more willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, and I might have ranked him ten spots higher if I re-did them today. Henry projects as a back-end starter if he can get to where he has been at his best more consistently, though he could be a #3 if he not only gets there but takes a step forward. However, pitching like he did in the middle of the season will get him bumped to the bullpen, and his early birthday (he turns 22 in July) doesn't help him. He hasn't signed because his season ended less than a week ago, and slot value is $844,200.

CBB-75: OF Dominic Fletcher (Arkansas, my rank: 102)
Fletcher, like Henry, is a bit of an enigma, but for different reasons. The younger brother of Angels infielder David Fletcher, Dominic has performed well at Arkansas despite lacking standout tools. Fletcher had his best year in 2019, when he slashed .313/.385/.528 with eleven home runs and a 54/28 strikeout to walk ratio, and that included a .305/.346/.500 run through SEC play. The Southern California native is only 5'9" and he doesn't show much raw power, but he got to what little power he has frequently at Arkansas and against high level pitching. However, for a 5'9" kid who needs to find the barrel consistently to make an impact, his plate discipline isn't great and that was especially apparent in SEC play, where he struck out 30 times (22.1%) to just six walks. If he wants his approach to work in pro ball, he'll need to get more selective and find pitches he can drive. Defensively, it's a similar story as Fletcher lacks speed but uses his instincts to get to a lot of fly balls in the outfield. He could be playable in center field, but left field would be the better overall fit and he could excel there. Overall, he projects as a fourth outfielder with some power and a decent on-base percentage. He signed for $700,000, which was $131,100 below slot, and he is slashing .300/.364/.400 with a double and a walk over his first three games at Class A Kane County.

3-93: 1B Tristin English (Georgia Tech, unranked)
A two-way player at Georgia Tech, English drew some interest as a right handed reliever as he posted a 3.70 ERA and a 20/7 strikeout to walk ratio over 24.1 innings as the Yellow Jackets' closer this year, doing so with a low 90's fastball and a couple of solid breaking balls. However, his future lies as a hitter after he slashed .346/.427/.710 with 18 home runs and a 30/17 strikeout to walk ratio over 57 games, also leading the ACC by a wide margin with 21 hit by pitches (Florida State's Matheu Nelson was second with 17). The Central Georgia native also slashed .300/.366/.510 with five home runs and a 15/6 strikeout to walk ratio over 32 games on the Cape, and with his 6'3" frame, it's easy to see his power playing up at the next level. He'll need to get a little more patient at the plate to start drawing some more walks, but he has 20-25 home run upside with decent on-base percentages if he can transition to pro ball well. Working against him is his age, as he's a college senior who already turned 22 in May, but seniors have succeeded before. Defensively, he's playable in either corner outfield spot and has done a good job at first base, so while the pressure will still be on his bat, he at least provides some moderate value in the field. He signed for $500,000, which was $127,900 below slot, and he picked up one single in four at bats in his first game with short-season Hillsboro.

4-122: SS Glenallen Hill Jr. (Santa Cruz HS [CA], my rank: 127)
After five straight college picks, the Diamondbacks went back to the high school side and took Glenallen Hill Jr., son of 13 year major leaguer Glenallen Hill who was mostly a fourth outfielder in the 1990's. Junior played his high school ball out in Santa Cruz, which I imagine isn't the worst place to grow up, and he shows a very interesting skills package despite only standing 5'9", which makes him the fourth "little guy" that the Diamondbacks drafted. The switch hitter has plenty of bat speed in both of his swings and shows good loft from the right side, helping him hit for average power despite his size. He doesn't make the most consistent contact, and that will definitely be something to work on in pro ball, but finding the barrel a little bit more will help him become a true threat at the plate. Defensively, he was drafted as a shortstop but will likely have to move to center field, where he can use his plus speed to become an above average defender once he gets more reps. Hill is raw and needs a lot of work, but he has high upside if he can make the necessary adjustments and become a faster Willie Calhoun. He signed for $850,000, which was $381,000 above slot, and he's slashing .185/.214/.370 with a home run, three stolen bases, and a 12/1 strikeout to walk ratio over his first seven games with Corbin Carroll in the Arizona League.

5-152: RHP Conor Grammes (Xavier, unranked)
Grammes, like English, was a two way player in college with draft aspirations both ways, but he ended up being selected as a pitcher. He came to Xavier without much fanfare, as he managed to walk on to the team after emailing the coach. I played against him in high school and while he was a good shortstop at McLean in Northern Virginia, he didn't stand out on the field as much as you would expect from a future fifth rounder, so the progress he has made with the Musketeers is remarkable. Grammes put up fantastic numbers over three years as a hitter for Xavier, slashing .334/.396/.513 with 25 home runs in 168 games. He also posted a 3.95 ERA, a 1.38 WHIP, and a 79/46 strikeout to walk ratio over 68 innings as a starting pitcher this year, and that's what he'll be doing in the Arizona farm system. Grammes sat in the mid 90's as a starter but when he transitions to relief in pro ball, he should be able to sit in the upper 90's with his big fastball. However, given that he is new to pitching and has been a two-way player as well, his fastball is just about his only weapon at this point. His slider is inconsistent and can flatten out, and his command is well below average because he throws from a high-effort delivery. Now that he is giving up hitting, focusing on his slider and command will be his priorities, and he could turn himself into a set-up man at the big league level. He signed for $300,000, which was $50,300 below slot.

12-362: LHP Avery Short (Southport HS [IN], my rank: 111)
The D-Backs built up a bunch of savings with their early picks, and while some of that went to signing Glenallen Hill Jr. away from Arizona State, and even bigger chunk went to grabbing Indianapolis-area high schooler Avery Short in the twelfth round. Short is only 18, but he looks like a college pitcher because his pitchability is so advanced. He sits in the high 80's with his fringy fastball and can occasionally bump it into the low 90's, but he adds a good curveball and slider that can generate swings and misses already in addition to a changeup. He also has very advanced command for his age and mixes his pitches effectively, so he should be able to move more quickly than the typical high school arm. The 6'2" lefty could add some velocity once he gets on a pro conditioning program, and just a little more velocity is all he needs if he wants to be a back-end starter in the majors, if not more, so long as he maintains his command. If Short can improve not just his velocity but his secondary pitches as well, he could be a mid-rotation starter. It took $922,500 to sign him away from Louisville, which counts for $797,500 against Arizona's bonus pool.

31-932: OF Jerrion Ealy (Jackson Prep HS [MS], my rank: 65)
Signability was a concern with Ealy, and evidently his asking price was too high for teams to match and he'll end up at Ole Miss. The Diamondbacks actually have a few hundred thousand left in their bonus pool and could offer him upwards of $500,000, but even that seems a little light to draw him away from school and that money will probably go elsewhere, such as to 16th rounder Brock Jones, a lefty with a nice curveball or to 24th rounder Dylan Eskew, a live armed righty with some upside who ranked 119th on my list. Ealy is arguably the best athlete in the class as he is also a five star running back recruit and will play both sports at Ole Miss. He's following the trend of short draftees and stands just 5'10", but he's built like a tank and packs a lot of strength into his shorter frame. The Carthage, Mississippi native who attended high school an hour away in Jackson had first round hopes coming into the season, but a poor senior season dropped his stock to more of a second round talent. He hits for power but his swing mechanics are very raw and need a lot of work, which caused him to perform poorly this spring against mediocre Mississippi high school competition. His top of the scale athleticism plays very well in center field, where he figures to be a plus defender with a strong arm, as well as on the bases, where he should use his speed to steal plenty of bases. Getting those swing mechanics ironed out will be the biggest challenge for Ealy, but if he can do it, he could be a five tool player at the major league level. We'll just have to wait a few years to let him play for the Rebels.

2019 Draft Preview: Left Handed Pitchers

There aren't as many left handers as right handers, so I combined the list here. As with the right handers, none of these guys figure to go in the top five picks, and it's very possible, even likely, that only two get drafted in the first round. There is especially a dearth of high schoolers here, with only two or three expected to go on day one and all coming with signability questions, though the college left handers have much more depth. 

Tier I: Nick Lodolo, Zack Thompson

The first tier consists of two major conference starters, with no high schoolers cracking it. Nick Lodolo took a huge step forward with TCU this year, posting a 2.36 ERA, a 0.98 WHIP, and a 131/25 strikeout to walk ratio over 103 innings before the draft. After posting ERA's of 4.35 and 4.32 over his first two seasons in Fort Worth, respectively, Lodolo has gotten more consistent with his mechanics and his command this year. He's 6'6" and throws in the low 90's, adding a solid curve and changeup, but he's got the best of both worlds in that he's a proven major conference starter as well as a tall lefty with projection remaining. He could be a #2 starter at best but looks more like a #3 and will likely go in the top ten picks, with the Reds at #7 looking like the best bet. Over at Kentucky, Zack Thompson put an inconsistent 2018 behind him by posting a 2.40 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP, and a 130/34 strikeout to walk ratio over 90 innings this year. He's 6'3" and has been creeping up lists all spring long, using his low 90's fastball and full set of secondaries to carve up SEC hitters. His command has been more consistent this spring as well, though it still plays closer to average, and he overall looks like a #3 or solid #4 starter. He figures to go somewhere in the middle of the first round, likely in the top half.

Tier II: Hunter Barco, Blake Walston, Ethan Small

These three pitchers couldn't be more different. Hunter Barco was an early top prospect in this class with an exceptional showing on the summer showcase circuit back in 2017, but he was more inconsistent in 2018 before righting the ship a bit in Spring 2019. He's a 6'4" high schooler from Jacksonville who throws a from a lower arm slot, showing a low 90's fastball, a slider that flashes plus when he doesn't come around it, and a good splitter. His mechanics have been all over the place and dictate his success, so getting him to use a consistent arm slot will be the first thing on his drafting team's list. He figures to go at the end of the first round or in the comp round based on talent, but he'll be a tough sign away from Florida. Blake Walston is an uber-projectable arm out of Wilmington, North Carolina, standing 6'4" with plenty of room to add weight to his athletic frame. He can run his fastball into the low 90's but fades during his starts and can end up in the high 80's at times, also showing an inconsistent curve with good shape but without power at this point. He also has a slider and a changeup, and his command has been pretty good for a raw, projectable high school arm. He'll be a tough sign away from NC State and he needs a lot of work, but he has high upside and could be an ace when all is said and done. He looks like a comp or second rounder, but signability might affect that. Ethan Small is a 22 year old redshirt junior at Mississippi State, but he has been the best pitcher in college baseball this season. In 16 starts before the draft, Small posted a 1.88 ERA, a 0.83 WHIP, and a 160/27 strikeout to walk ratio over 96 innings against some of the top competition in the nation. His fastball only sits around 90 and his secondary stuff is closer to average, but his command and feel for pitching are so good that even the SEC's best hitters can't figure him out. There is deception in his delivery and he varies his timing, and if anybody can make a 90 MPH fastball work in pro ball, it will be Small, who figures to go in the second round and has #4 or #5 starter projection.

Tier III: Spencer Jones, Tommy Henry, Erik Miller, T.J. Sikkema, Brandon Williamson, Graeme Stinson, Matt Cronin

This is where the deep group of college lefties gets going. We'll start with Southern California high schooler Spencer Jones, a two-way player who looked to be a first rounder before an elbow injury cost him most of his senior season. He shows power at the plate but on the mound, the 6'7" lefty shows a low 90's fastball and a good curveball that should be solid building blocks. He's much more about projectability than present stuff, but he has some of the highest upside in the class, so it's hard to peg his draft position. On the college side, Michigan's Tommy Henry has been inconsistent this spring but shows fringe first round stuff at his best. This year, he had a 3.61 ERA, a 1.10 WHIP, and a 111/25 strikeout to walk ratio over 99.2 innings, showing really well early in the season but seeing his stuff flatten out at times later on. He's 6'3" and sits in the low 90's with a slider and changeup that can look plus at their best, though as I said before, they flattened out at times later in the season, and his command has played up well this year. He looks like a mid rotation starter at times but at others, his stuff looks fringy in terms of being a major league starter. He looks like a second rounder. Stanford's Erik Miller has also been inconsistent, posting a 3.15 ERA, a 1.35 WHIP, and a 97/42 strikeout to walk ratio over 80 innings this season. He's 6'5" and shows great stuff, sitting in the low to mid 90's and adding a good slider that generates swings and misses, but he loses his mechanics at times and that leads to bouts of wildness. He struggled in the Cape Cod League, but a team that thinks it can clean him up could help him reach his ceiling as a mid rotation starter. He's a second or third rounder. Missouri's T.J. Sikkema has not been inconsistent, putting up a 1.32 ERA, a 0.96 WHIP, and a 101/31 strikeout to walk ratio over 88.2 innings, rivaling Small at times as the best pitcher in the SEC. He's just six feet tall but sits in the low 90's with his fastball, adding a good slider that also helped him put up a 1.72 ERA in the Cape Cod League. He's extremely competitive on the mound, which helps his stuff play up, his command is solid, and he won't be 21 until July, so he has a chance to outplay his #5 starter projection. He looks like a second rounder. Behind Lodolo in the TCU rotation, Brandon Williamson has been inconsistent but shows big stuff at times. He's 6'5" and posted a 4.19 ERA, a 1.53 WHIP, and an 89/36 strikeout to walk ratio over 77.1 innings. He shows a low to mid 90's fastball and a good slider from a smooth delivery, but he's been oddly inconsistent with both the level of his stuff and his command. A 6'5" lefty with velocity and an easy delivery is a scout's dream, but he's been inconsistent enough that he may be forced to the bullpen and may last until the third round. He has a high ceiling if he can put it all together. Duke's Graeme Stinson had a chance to go in the top ten picks with a good run through the ACC, but instead, it was a disaster. Stinson's transition to the rotation lasted just five starts before a hamstring injury, in which he posted a 4.58 ERA, a 1.07 WHIP, and a 26/9 strikeout to walk ratio over 19.2 innings. He's 6'5" and shows premium stuff at his best, running his fastball into the mid 90's with a wipeout slider that may be the best in the class, and that helped him put together one fantastic start in the Cape Cod League (5 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 12 K). However, there were durability concerns even before his hamstring injury, and now it looks like he'll be a reliever only in pro ball. Once healthy, he could move quickly in that role and he looks like a second rounder. Lastly, Arkansas's Matt Cronin is a pure reliever, having put up a 2.00 ERA, a 1.07 WHIP, and a 40/14 strikeout to walk ratio over 27 innings. He's 6'2" but with a running low to mid 90's fastball and a very good slider, he'll move quickly through the minors and could be a set-up man or even a closer. However, his command is fringy, so he's more of a solid relief prospect than an elite one. He should go in the second or third round.

Others: Ben Brecht, Antoine Kelly, Mason Feole, Avery Short, Hayden Mullins