2016 Down On The Farm (Mid-Season)

The Diamondbacks have finally managed to sink below the middle of the league, but that may change in the next few years as the farm looks to be brimming with talent. The Diamondbacks are shallow on pitching, but their offense won't have issues filling positions.

Position, Player Name (Sickels Grade, Current MiLB Level) 

SS Dansby Swanson (Grade : A, Double-A Mobile)

 
Started out the season in Advanced-A Visalia and earned a promotion to Double-A after hitting .333 with a .441 OBP. Added some pop to his game with 7HR so far, batting average suffered a bit in Mobile at .262 but he has plenty of time to improve. Still a question of sticking at SS, but aside from that everything has been as expected.

RHP Jon Gray (Grade : A-, MLB)

Gray logged 8.2 innings at Advanced-A Visalia before making a move to the majors and staying there for the remainder of the first half. He's blown past his rookie limits so Arizona won't be able to tout him as a prospect anymore, but based on his time in the majors they won't want him wasting away on the farm. He has pitched very well despite posting 4.12ERA, his 111 strike outs over 102.2 IP and 1.16WHIP point to his potential. Pitching in Chase Field doesn't help, but he could be an ace in waiting if he continues to improve.

OF Austin Meadows (Grade : A-, Triple-A Reno)

Power hasn't really developed just yet, but to his credit he has already set a career high in HR already. Meadows doesn't strike out much, but he also doesn't walk much, all of which is alright when you hit close to or over .300. Aside from the power "surge" he's on pace for pretty much the same season he's put up over the past few years. Promotion to Triple-A is a good sign, at only 21-years old he's still young and a step away from the majors.

RHP Aaron Blair (Grade : B+, MLB)

Just barely crossed rookie limits lately, so he won't be around this list much longer. He will probably be around the farm a little longer after getting blasted in 11 major league starts. Struggled across the board, but to be fair he didn't have the best numbers in Triple-A prior to being called up. Still has time to right the ship.

RHP Jeff Hoffman (Grade : B+, Triple-A Reno)

Another good arm who looks to add to Arizona's bumper crop of rookie pitchers. Started the season in Reno and has looked pretty good for the Pacific Coast League with nearly a strike out per inning pitched. His K rate saw a solid jump this season, but like most PCL pitchers he's doing a bunch of things you don't like to see. A rise in hits per nine (8.2 across three leagues in 2015 to 9.1), HR per nine, and walks per nine all feed into the boosted ERA. Hoffman is still coming off a 2014 Tommy John surgery, so it's likely he could continue to improve. He was taken 9th in the 2014 MLB Draft even after having surgery, so the Diamondbacks are prepared to see if they managed to find a gem.

3B Ryan McMahon (Grade : B+, Double-A Mobile)

The 21-year old slugger has seen a dip in production since being promoted from Advanced-A at the beginning of the season. The substantial drop in batting average, from .300 to .232, has the organization worried, but like most guys on this list he is young enough to turn things around. McMahon is clearly struggling with advanced pitching as he looks to set a new career record for strikeouts in a season, which was fine when he hit .300, so the Diamondbacks are hoping he shows some improved plate discipline.

OF Alex Verdugo (Grade : B+, Double-A Mobile)

Verdugo has really impressed evaluators and looks to have made a real leap in production. With 11HR and 53RBI and improved plate discipline, he looks like a major steal for Arizona. If he can finish this season strong he could move much higher on this list, not to mention prospect lists across the country.

OF Jesse Winker (Grade : B+, Triple-A Reno)

Perhaps it's prospect fatigue, but Winker has been losing his shine after the past few seasons. A wrist injury has been blamed for his power outage, which looks to continue through to next season, but everything else looks good. His 1:1 BB:SO ratio is promising, and his .307BA is right in line with his career numbers. He's only 22, so he has time to find his power again, but Arizona might not be able to wait for him to find it in Triple-A.

RHP Luke Weaver (Grade : B, Double-A Mobile)

The trade for Weaver looked bad at the time, costing Arizona SS Isan Diaz, but since then it has looked like a solid deal. Weaver has ripped apart Double-A hitters with a minuscule 1.31ERA and 71 strikeouts over 62.0 IP. He is still a few years away, but he should be moving up on this list in 2017.

3B Matt Chapman (Grade : B, Double-A Mobile)

Chapman looks to be a classic three-true-outcomes guy. He has lit up Double-A pitcher while simultaneously getting destroyed at the plate. He already has 22HR, one shy of his total in 2015, and 61RBI, but he's also hitting .225 with a whopping 130SO. Another year in Mobile or a stint in Triple-A will sort things out, but with Lamb having a career altering season and a few more sluggers ahead of him it will be difficult to find his place in the majors.

2016 Cactus League Evaluation

SCOTTSDALE - Arizona's fans are not going to be happy, unless they go to games just to see Goldschmidt do Goldschmidt things. The team is in total teardown mode with tens of millions in expiring contracts freeing up their finances for the Winter of 2016-2017. The best news is that the Diamondbacks may see some glimpse of it's future in the form of early season call ups, but most of the high impact prospects are likely to stay in the minors.

SPRING ANSWERS

Paul Goldschmidt - Paul Goldschmidt is likely to continue being excellent, and he's likely to be in the MVP conversation all season. He is going to have issues getting the attention others might get in more powerful offenses, but a 100-30-100 season is definitely in the cards. A first baseman stealing 10-15 bases and hitting .300+ should be a surprise, but people seem to be overlooking Goldschmidt. He's going to be steady at the plate and a decent defender, but he won't get the media coverage Josh Donaldson is going to enjoy

Young Outfielders - There was some competition for RF, but the CF-RF slots were Eddie Rosario and Micheal Taylor's to lose. The young outfielders are coming off decent rookie seasons and management is hoping they make the leap to long term starters. Taylor will have some plate discipline issues to overcome, he was clearly overwhelmed after showing decent discipline in the minors, but the upside is a 20-20 hitter who can handle CF. Rosario didn't put up the numbers Taylor did, but he did lead the majors with 15 triples, and he hit a respectable .267. If Taylor and Rosario can take a few more walks in 2016 it will help their case going forward.

SUMMER QUESTIONS 

Gio Gonzalez - Is Gio Gonzalez going to be a Diamondback after the All-Star break? Is he even going to be on the team after this article is posted? He's already been involved in a trade that fell through and there are a number of teams looking for starting pitching. His time in Arizona is probably coming to an end, and based on the stories floating around at various media outlets he's ready to move on as well.

Is Gonzalez on his way out?

Jake Lamb - Lamb has been decent in his major league stints, but he's clearly not going to learn much more in the minors. 3B is all his with Tomas leaving town, and the Diamondbacks aren't going to be bringing in anyone else. With nobody in the minors close to coming up, Lamb won't be looking over his shoulder. Will he make the leap, or is Arizona going to need to cut bait with him like Owings?

Middle Infield - The Diamondbacks may look at playing a bucket of balls at SS, if they even field someone. Dan Uggla, who is still in the majors for some reason, is manning 2B and looks like he might hang up his cleats at an moment. There has even been talk of putting OF Alfredo Marte at SS, with Maicer Izturis suddenly announcing his retirement the Diamondbacks are hurting in the middle infield. Perhaps they shouldn't have traded Chris Owings.

2016 NL West Preview

The NL West is going to be a solid one horse race unless the apocalypse strikes Northern California. The Giants are going to make a run at a 100+ win season with a World Series repeat while the rest of the division will see finishing close to .500 as a win. There will be more competition for second place than first, but even that looks pretty locked up.

NL West Projected Finish

#1 San Francisco Giants (110-52) : Not a whole lot to say about the defending World Series and NL West Champions. They are loaded again at every position, and while it's outside of the NL West the injury to A.J. Pollock puts the Giants farther ahead of the Cubs as favorites with the World Series. Josh Donaldson, Starling Marte, D.J. Martinez, and Buster Posey power the league's most dangerous offense, and their rotation features three pitchers in the Cy Young race with Madison Bumgarner, Chris Sale, and Chris Archer. The Giants could make a run at a number of league records aside from a back-to-back title.

Can Donaldson repeat as MVP in the pitcher-friendly confines of AT&T Park?

#2 Colorado Rockies (80-82) : The Rockies sneak up on the NL West this year, but they are hardly a powerhouse. They have a decent shot to crack .500 with a number of good players at key positions. Homegrown 2B DJ LeMahieu had a breakout season in 2015 and looks to keep things going, and sluggers Devin Mesoraco and Josh Reddick give the Rockies the extra punch they need. A decent pitching staff will really be the key to Colorado climbing over .500, but things will be rough at Coors Field.

Can LeMahieu take the Rockies over .500?

#3 Los Angeles Dodgers (75-87) : The dying embers of a very expensive team are all that's left in Los Angeles after an offseason sale of everything that wasn't nailed down. There are still enough players to put up a fight every week, but the strength of this team lies in it's farm system. The team did sign Jason Heyward to a $16.7 million a year contract through 2018, so they will have a foundation to build around in the coming seasons.
 

Heyward looks to be the future in Los Angeles.

#4 Arizona Diamondbacks (70-92) : The Diamondbacks are going to be bad, and the aborted trade for Gio Gonzalez is a sign that things are about to get worse. Paul Goldschmidt is going to be Paul Goldschmidt, and the team is hoping that Yan Gomes can reclaim his former glory after an injury marred 2015. Young players like Jake Lamb and Michael Taylor hope to keep building on their rookie seasons, but unless they turn into Mike Trout it won't do much to pull Arizona out of the NL West gutter.

 Goldschmidt will be wasted in 2016.

#5 San Diego Padres (60-102) : It's going to be a long season in San Diego, but the team has been building for the future and won't be too bothered if they lose 100 games or more. The second half of the season could see some exciting prospects make their permanent move to the Majors as 2B Trea Turner and RHP Jose Berrios wait for a call. 2017 could see yet another name come up with LHP Blake Snell looking like a 1-2 punch atop the order with Berrios.

2016 might be Pujols' last in San Diego.