The Diamondbacks will add 14 non-roster players to Spring Training. The team will add 10 pitchers (6 RHP, 4 LHP), 1 infielder, and 3 outfielders. Some of the non-roster names aren’t new to most of the Snake Pit given the bigger names mentioned.
The following non-roster players have been invited to #DbacksSpring camp. pic.twitter.com/z4VVYeMP7S
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) January 9, 2017
The list of pitchers are mostly of minor league signings, highlighted by returning Diamondback Rubby De La Rosa. Keyvius Sampson and JJ Hoover have experience pitching for the Reds, Hoover once being the Reds setup man before pitching his way out of town last season. Prospects Joey Krehbiel, Josh Taylor, Jared Miller, and Daniel Gibson are also part of the mix. All four players have a legitimate shot to make the bullpen, although the Dbacks will allow Taylor to develop as a starter if he doesn’t make the MLB bullpen given his pedigree is similar to Robbie Ray. Krehbiel and Miller are coming off of strong seasons in both the minors and the Fall League against other top prospects, with Miller stealing the show. Gibson is a LOOGY type pitcher that struggled against RHB in Reno in 2016.
The only infielder on the list is Kris Negron, who appeared for the Reds back in 2014-15. Negron plays primarily 2B although has seen action at SS and 3B. He had a solid 2014 season that saw him hit .271/.331/.479 for the Reds in 158 PA, but regression hit back hard in 2015 and hasn’t been in the majors since. Negron will be 31 next month, so this is clearly minor league depth although middle infield is the one area where the team has a surplus of depth players.
The three outfielders are very well-known to most Dbacks fans as all three signings came with a bit of fanfare. The big name is Oswaldo Arcia, a corner outfielder who has decent power, but defense and inconsistency in tapping into that power has put him in his 5th organization in the last calendar year. The next well-known name is Reymond Fuentes, a former first round pick by the Red Sox in 2009 who has solid tools all around but hasn’t shown enough to stick in the majors. The last name is Jason Pridie, who is a Phoenix native and spent some time with the Mets a while back, although it seemed like he had a thing for nailing Dbacks pitching and the pitching actually was good back then.
Of this group, the more exciting names come from the pitchers, with a former starter and a group of young reliever prospects. Krehbiel and Miller are players that I can almost guarantee will debut in 2017 given how strong their track record has been in the Diamondbacks system the last two years.