Three late round Arizona Diamondbacks draft picks to watch in 2024
The Diamondbacks have some intriuging former late round draft picks who will be interesting to watch during the 2024 minor league season.
David Martin
The D-Backs drafted David Martin in the 16th round of the 2022 draft. Martin was selected out of California Baptist University after batting nearly .400 in his final college season. Martin’s 2023 season was very solid as he saw time behind the plate, at first base, and designated hitter. Although Martin probably won’t dethrone Gabriel Moreno, Martin could eventually compete for a backup catcher role in the near future.
Last year through 381 plate appearances, Martin batted .289/.407/.360 with a .372 wOBA and 119 wRC+. He rarely struck out and had a K% of just 12.1%. But he also paired this with an even better 14.7% walk rate. But Martin has never hit for much power. He had just three home runs with a .071 isolated slugging percentage.
Martin has an extremely good feel for contact. There were over 1000 batters with at least 300 plate appearances in the minor leagues last year. Martin’s strikeout rate was the 28th best among them. His 1.22 BB:K ratio was also among the best, ranking 15th. He was among 88 total batters with an OBP above .400 in 300+ PAs as well.
Defensively, Martin isn’t horrible, but he struggled with blocking last year. He allowed 11 passed balls in just 384.1 innings. Granted, passed balls aren’t the best identifier of defensive talent in the minor leagues. Martin also got some work in at first base and even played some corner outfield during his days in college.
Martin made it all the way from A-Ball Visalia to Triple-A Reno by the end of the season. He’ll only be 23 for all of 2024. The D-Backs don’t have an obvious answer for their second catcher, with multiple players on minor league deals competing for the spot. If Martin continues to hit well, maybe we will see him get a crack at the backup catcher role next year.
Zane Russell
Every so often, you’ll see a relief prospect fly through the minor leagues and make the bigs within a year. That happened last year with Phillies’ right-handed reliever Orion Kerkering. If the Diamondbacks have anyone who could do what Kerkering did, it would be Zane Russell. Russell was drafted in the 10th round of the 2023 draft. While he might have command issues, he definitely has the stuff to be a good reliever.
Russell tossed 79.1 innings out of Dallas Baptist’s bullpen throughout his college career, working to a strong 2.03 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. Russell struck out over 100 batters and had a K% of 32.1%. He was also great at limiting home runs with a 0.45 HR/9 rate. But walks gave him some issues as he had a 14.3% BB%.
The right-hander then went on to toss 17.2 more innings spread across the D-Backs’ Arizona Fall League, A-Ball, and High-A teams. In that short window, he only allowed two earned runs, struck out 27 batters, and didn’t allow a single home run. The most impressive part about this stretch is that he only handed out five free passes, leading to a solid 8.2% walk rate. His 44.3% K-rate was one of the best among 2023 draftees as well.
Russell throws his four-seamer in the mid-90s. But his change-up and breaking pitch are his swing-and-miss offerings. They generated a whiff rate of over 50%, according to Baseball America. The right-hander throws from an overhead arm slot. His delivery is quick but has a hitch to it. This could have been some of the cause of his control issues in college.
If the small sample size in 2023 wasn’t a complete fluke and Russell can cut his BB% down below 10%, he could become the D-Backs’ best relief pitching prospect. Russell debuted at High-A Hillsboro by the end of the year, so don’t completely rule out a late-season debut if he continues to make improvements.
Spencer Giesting
Spencer Giesting was an 11th-round pick by the D-Backs in 2022 but was an over-slot signee. Giesting inked a signing bonus worth $350K and is coming off a solid 2023 season. The left-hander is only entering his age-22 season and will likely start the year at Double-A Amarillo. If he makes a step forward, then you might see him move up in prospect rankings.
Giesting owned a solid 4.00 ERA, 4.58 FIP, and 1.46 WHIP in 117 innings at High-A Hillsboro. Giesting’s 23.8% K-rate was slightly worse than league average. But he had a quality 0.69 HR/9 rate with a 45.8% GB%. But he struggled to limit walks with a 13.6% walk rate. That was much worse than the league average rate of 10.1%.
In his defense, this was his first extended look against pro players, and he made improvements during the year's second half. After the All-Star break, Giesting cut his BB% down to 10.2% while keeping a 23.9% K-rate and 0.89 HR/9. Overall, the lefty had a much better-looking bottom line with a 3.86 ERA, 4.36 FIP, and 1.20 WHIP.
Giesting does not throw hard, averaging out in the low-90s. But he throws a plus slider. He’ll also mix a change-up into his arsenal, but it’s a clear third pitch. His mechanics can get in the way of his command, but as I stated earlier, he got better at limiting walks in the second half, and this was the first time he faced pro batters regularly.
Double-A will be the real challenge for Giesting. If he can continue to make the improvements he made in the second half of last year, he could eventually put himself into the Diamondbacks’ long-term plans. At the very least, he could find himself as a solid lefty hybrid reliever/starter in the near future.