Arizona Diamondbacks Prospect Review: Brandon Drury

Brandon Drury hopes to make the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2016.

During the course of our series in reviewing the prospects of the Arizona Diamondbacks, most of the time we try to forecast when they will make their Major League debut. It is fun to track these youngsters as they begin on the lowest rung of Single A ball all the way up until the Show. On occasion, we take a look at a prospect that has already seen time in the Bigs. Once such player is infielder Brandon Drury.

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How he came to the organization: Drury was taken in the 13th round of the 2010 Draft by the Atlanta Braves out of Eagle Pass High School in Eagle Pass, Oregon. He was a First-Team All-State selection as a Senior and was ranked as the 493rd-best prospect by perfectgame.org. After spending three seasons in Atlanta’s farm system, Drury was part of the huge deal in which the D-backs shipped Justin Upton to the Braves. Also coming to Arizona were pitcher Randall Delgado and shortstop Nick Ahmed who remain the team’s roster while Upton will have yet another address in 2016 after the Braves dealt him to the San Diego Padres prior to the 2015 season.

Minor League career: Drury had a solid 2011 campaign at Rookie League Danville, hitting .347 in 278 plate appearances. He struggled the following year at Rome in the South Atlantic League, his final season the Braves’ organization. Drury enjoyed a breakout season in 2013 at Class A South Bend, swatting 15 home runs with 85 RBI’s and a slash line of .302/.362/.500. His 51 doubles led the Midwest League and he was rewarded by being named a Midwest League All Star. He made even more progress the next season with 23 home runs and 95 RBI’s between High Class A Visalia and Double A Mobile while slugging .510. His success continued in 2015 as he batted .303 with an on-base percentage of .344 between Mobile and Triple A Reno. Drury was called up to the D-backs in September and performing well at times with 12 hits in 59 plate appearances including two home runs.

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Where he will be in 2016: Drury could be with the D-backs in 2016 if management cleans up the glut of middle infielders. Or, the team could decide to have a competition at third base between Drury and Jake Lamb. A third scenario exists in which the D-backs trade for a front-line starting pitcher and puts him in as part of a package. He also could begin the year at Reno in order to get for him to play every day. In other words, we have no idea where Drury will be in 2016. If I had to guess, I believe he will return to Pacific Coast League action.