D-backs Minor League Happenings

The Diamondbacks, I believe, are getting ready to start selling off players at the August 2nd trade deadline. When they do that means they will start giving some of the prospects in the minors a chance to prove themselves in the show. But this weekend one Arizona prospect who is not even ranked in their top 30 may have just opened some eyes, another prospect did something special when his team and the team they faced scored 25 combined runs. What did they each do? Keep reading to find out!

Leandro Cedeno is not a name many Diamondback fans know. He is not in the top 30 prospects as ranked by MLB Pipeline. But he gave the Diamondback 527 reasons to notice him this past Saturday night. 

The D-back prospect, who plays for the Double-A Amarillo Sod Poodles hit a home run that covered 527 feet from bat to eventual resting place. He hit it to dead center field and out of the ballpark and by a tree......in the parking lot!

He hit the ball off San Diego Padres prospect Nolan Watson. Not just off but lift off. But the home run was not only impressive, but it was also decisive as the Sod Poodles were able to win the game by a run.

To give the reader some perspective on just how significant a 527-foot home run is, it is the longest home run recorded since 2004. You read that right, 2004, it is longer than anything hit by Judge, Stanton, Guerrero, or Alonzo. The home run that beats it, is not by much, it was 535 feet and was hit by Cincinnati Reds Adam Dunn. For a second perspective, MLB has changed the way they measure balls and have done it more accurately with Statcast. MLB began using Statcast in 2015 and there have only been two other home runs hit since then that have gone over 500 feet, one by Nomar Mazara in 2019 that traveled 505 feet and one by Giancarlo Stanton in Coors Field, none less than measured 504 feet. And before you discount Cedeno's home run by saying it was at a minor league park so it must have been recorded with a minor league tracking system, MLB and MiLB now both use Statcast to track home runs. And even for a third perspective, you just watched the home run derby, (or at least highlights) you know the balls that are lobbed over the heart of the plate, the longest home run ever hit in a derby was by the Washington Nationals Juan Soto, in Coors Field and it was still 7 feet short of Cedeno's.

But Diamondback shortstop switch-hitting prospect Drew Stankiewicz who also plays for the Amarillo Sod Poodles said "Look over here" as he hit a home run from each side of the plate in the same game! His accomplishment actually came the night before when he had a productive 2-for-3 night with 3 RBI and 2 runs scored but the Sod Poodles lost the game 17 to 8.

Diamondback fans might not see Drew for a while, but if the Dbacks trade Christian Walker and with Pavin Smith on the shelf for the next few weeks, you could see 1st baseman Cedeno in the bigs sooner rather than later.