Minor League Recap: Debut Week

Around a dozen players made their organizational or domestic debuts this past week

The Week That Was

It was an immensely successful week down on the farm. The Hops had the least successful week of the group, splitting the series in Vancouver. But even that was an accomplishment, as they had lost ten consecutive games there before winning on Thursday. Reno won four of six in Sacramento. Amarillo won four of six against arch-rival Midland. Visalia won five of six at home against Fresno. And the complex league started with the ACL D-backs (who really should be called the Pygmy Rattlers) winning their opening game against the ACL Cubs. Combined, that’s a 17-8 record, which was compiled despite the circumstances.

While Reno did get Yu-Min Lin back, none of the five pitchers in their rotation on opening day have made every start. Brandon Bielak is out for the season, Billy Corcoran is also on the IL, Cristian Mena is on the inactive list, and Tommy Henry and Yilber Diaz have missed starts due to being called up. Juan Morillo, Jose Castillo, Scott McGough, and J.P. Feyereisen have all been called up (and Feyereisen failed to clear waivers and is now with the Dodgers.) Taylor Rashi had to start yesterday, and he threw more pitches than he had in almost four years. Christian Montes De Oca was called upon to make his longest appearance (in terms of innings) in his professional career. Yet they allowed just 18 runs in their series in Sacramento. Hillsboro was short three starters, including their two best: Mason Marriott went to the IL, and Daniel Eagen couldn’t go to Canada for paperwork-related reasons. And the bats scored 37 fewer runs across the system than they did the previous week, despite playing one more game.

Oh, and just six of the 25 games were home games.

Debuts Aplenty

With the Pygmy Rattlers of Salt River opening their season on Saturday, there were plenty of debuts happening. But Trent Youngblood was the first to debut, as the 23-year-old Transylvanian did so on Thursday, and proved adept at working counts, walking four times on the week. He also showed his positional flexibility, making one start at second base and three in left field.

Doug Engle / USA TODAY NETWORK

That is the final Trent Youngblood/Dracula joke of the day, but we might as well move on to Graveman, who threw the first pitch of the year for the complex group, as part of his rehab assignment. That also marked his organizational debut. Tytus Cissell homered and JD Dix singled, but the best offensive domestic debuts belonged to Pedro Catuy and Carlos Virahonda, who combined to go 4-for-8 with three extra base hits and two times hit by pitch. Kenny Castillo and Kyle Nelson made their season debuts in rehab assignments as well, and both played well.

Yu-Min Lin made his season debut for Reno and was excellent. His curveball may have been better than it has ever been; the spin rate was comparable to Max Fried’s and the movement was practically off the charts.

Some Later Round Talent to Watch

In 2024, the Diamondbacks used a sixth round pick on a smallish right-handed pitcher (6’0”, 200 pounds) who bats left and throws right and had a abnormal college track record named Mason. He’s since landed on the IL, but Mason Marriott has made it look like a genius pick in the interim, making seven appearances (four starts) and pitching to a 2.36 ERA and a 1.050 WHIP, both figures substantially lower than he posted at Baylor.

In 2025, could the Diamondbacks use a pick in the sixth-tenth rounds on a smallish right-handed pitcher (6’0”, 200 pounds) who bats left and throws right and has an abnormal college track record named Mason?

Mason Estrada isn’t a name that many people know, but that is likely to change, if only because of the highly unusual route he is taking to the pros. A graduate of Covington High School in Louisiana (where he played shortstop), he was initially committed to Nicholls. However, a 36 on the ACT later, he was at MIT studying aerospace engineering. He didn’t play in his freshman year, but this year has pitched extremely well. (https://youtube.com/shorts/T0Wr-V19fxk?si=Yzx1U44htIGwYNj- shows what he’s working with. That should play at any level.) But beyond the brains and the stuff, Estrada has also reached this point through difficulties that would have sidetracked a lot of young athletes. He lost his father (a noted youth baseball coach in Louisiana) during his junior year of high school.

The Diamondbacks haven’t been hesitant to reach down into Division III for talent, as Trent Youngblood shows. Almost certainly, some team will draft Estrada. I do wonder if he is signable, or if he decides to transfer for a chance to move up into the top rounds of the draft. But if a team succeeds in signing him, they will be acquiring one of the smartest people in the game in addition to a potential power arm.

Another pitcher to watch is Dominick Reid. Originally at Oklahoma State, the right-hander transferred to Abilene Christian this year is search of more playing time. It’s paid off. His fastball has been measured up to 96, the secondary stuff is playing well, and he’s struck out 84 (against just 24 walks) in 70.1 innings. He has struggled more against power conference teams, but for college pitchers (particularly those outside of the top few teams in the country) the process is more important than the results.

Also keep an eye on Brooks Bryan, catcher and outfielder out of Troy. He’s got power and arm strength, but strikes out too much and probably doesn’t have the defensive profile to be more than an occasional catcher in the pros. But in the later rounds, teams are chasing tools more than well-rounded players.

Hitters of the Week

Aramis Garcia, C, Reno: 14 PA, 16 true total bases, 1.700 OPS

Garcia didn’t play a ton, but he certainly took advantage of the opportunities he had. He hit three home runs. He drew four walks. The only player with more true total bases (total bases plus walks plus times hit by pitch) on the week was Jake McCarthy with 17, and McCarthy had twice the number of plate appearances.

Slade Caldwell, CF, Visalia: 22 PA, 15 true total bases, 1.258 OPS

Caldwell’s OPS was the highest of any player in the system with at least 20 plate appearances. While just two of his six hits went for extra bases, he also drew five walks and his .591 OBP was the highest of anyone, regardless of the number of plate appearances.

Starting Pitcher of the Week

Denny Larrondo, Visalia: 6 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 6 K.

Larrondo allowed just one baserunner in his start, in which he set down the first 17 batters he faced. Yes, he was the beneficiary of a large strike zone, but he actually got fewer strikes looking on Tuesday than he did in his previous start. The one hit he allowed was an infield single that could have been an out, although it would have taken a fantastic play from Juan Corniel to record the out. Still, it was the best start of the week, and only one pitcher (Avery Short) made two starts this week.

Relief Pitcher of the Week

Kyle Amendt, Reno: 4 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 6 K

Amendt’s ERA for the season remains at a perfect 0.00. But his performance this week was made all the more impressive by the circumstances in Reno. The injury bug has not only attacked the parent club (and therefore depleted the staff in AAA) but has also attacked the Aces as well. Between these twin difficulties, Juan Morillo, Jose Castillo, Christian Montes De Oca, and Taylor Rashi all found themselves either with the Diamondbacks or called into longer relief just to cover innings, leaving the back end of the bullpen sparse. Amendt was more than up to the challenge.

Plays of the Week

In no particular order, here are some plays you should see.

You can’t see the final result here, but it cleared the right field fence. Cissell also recorded his first stolen base.

The wind was blowing in, gusting up into the 20s, on Saturday and Sunday. Melendez chose to demonstrate that he still has the best power tool in the system.

Next Up

All four of the full-season affiliates are at home this coming week. Reno has been hot, winning eight of ten and moving into third place, but they’ve still lost ground on first place Las Vegas, who has won nine in a row. The chance to put a dent in the five game deficit starts tomorrow morning. Amarillo is also five games back, but they find themselves in fourth place in the Texas League South. They’ll be playing host to Texas League North last place team Tulsa, but both teams have identical 12-15 records. First place Hillsboro hosts second place Eugene. And second place Visalia hosts first place Rancho Cucamonga, but the Quakes have already opened up a six game advantage. The Pygmy Rattlers will play six games this week, starting today and ending Saturday, but of course there are no series in the rookie leagues.

On the draft front, we’re just weeks away from conference tournaments and yesterday marked nine weeks until the first few rounds of the draft.