Arizona Diamondbacks 2024 MLB Draft Report Card

Best Pure Hitter: The D-backs tend to select hitters with direct swings and plenty of contact skills. That’s what they got with outfielder Slade Caldwell (1), who has a chance for an above-average pure hit tool and was one of the most natural hitters in the class. Arizona has plenty of conviction in his hitting ability and believes he can get to a plus hit tool. 

Best Power Hitter: Arizona’s draft was more hit-over-power in general, but outfielder Ryan Waldschmidt (1s) has a great blend of present power, impressive exit velocity data and a track record of accessing that power in SEC games. He homered 14 times during the spring with Kentucky and should get to above-average slugging numbers with homers and doubles.

Fastest Runner: Caldwell (1) earned a 70-grade run tool in our pre-draft report, but the D-backs are enamored with the athletic package that shortstop Tytus Cissell (4) provides. He’s also a 70-grade runner and in a head-to-head footrace might get the edge against Caldwell.

Best Defensive Player: Once again Caldwell (1) could be a fit for this category as a probable center fielder who looks like a plus defender at the position, but shortstop JD Dix (1s) is a gifted athlete and fluid defender who has the actions to stick at shortstop in the long run and be a solid or better defender at the most premium non-catching position on the diamond.

Best Fastball: Righthander Connor Foley (5) has long been a power-armed righthander who relies on a big fastball to get outs. It’s consistently in the upper 90s and has been up to 99-100 mph at peak with above-average life that adds to the quality his velocity provides. It’s a plus offering. 

Best Secondary Pitch: Righthander Daniel Eagen (3) throws both a slider and a curveball, but the D-backs are more excited about his low-80s downer curveball at the moment. Collectively, the group views it as an above-average or plus offering. This spring it featured nearly 13 inches of depth, 5-6 inches of glove-side movement and generated a 53% miss rate with Presbyterian. 

Best Pro Debut: Just seven D-backs draftees got into official games after signing, with lefthander Luke Craig (7) perhaps standing out the most. He threw eight innings out of the bullpen with Low-A Visalia where he struck out 11 batters and walked two. A low-slot lefthander, Craig is a senior reliever who could move quickly and sits in the low 90s with a sweepy slider.

Best Athlete: Many of Arizona’s athletic prep hitters are compelling candidates for this category, including Caldwell (1), Dix (1s), Cissell (4) and outfielder Bo Walker (11). Walker was a standout football player and is a plus-plus runner who has a chance to be an above-average defender in center field. His standout speed and athleticism creates exciting upside potential if he can refine his game in pro ball. 

Most Intriguing Background: Eagen (3) had brain cancer as a child and needed brain surgery to remove a cerebellar astrocytomas tumor that led to migraines when he was just four years old. He’s now cancer free and the D-backs are confident the challenges he’s gone through in life will allow him to thrive in the minors.

Closest To The Majors: Three of Arizona’s first four picks were high school players, so Waldschmidt (1s) is the easy pick to move quickly through the minors as an SEC-tested hitter who has the sort of physicality, contact skills and on-base skills to handle minor league pitching. Craig (7) could be a darkhorse option as a senior-sign reliever who has a chance to move quickly in the same way that 2023 ninth-rounder Kyle Amendt did.

Best Day Three Pick (Or NDFA): Righthander John West (12) wasn’t activated in official games, but the D-backs loved what they saw from him in the bridge league after the draft. He split time as a starter and reliever in his four years at Boston College, but has starter traits and showed better stuff than the D-backs were expecting to see after the draft with a 94-97 mph fastball, solid slider and solid changeup. Expectations may be low for a 12th-rounder with a 6.06 career ERA at Boston College, but Arizona’s player development staff was excited with his arm talent and control.