The Diamondbacks made three selections in the first round of the draft, taking Valley View HS (Ark.) outfielder Slade Caldwell with the No. 29 pick, then Kentucky outfielder Ryan Waldschmidt at No. 31, and finishing the round with Whitefish Bay HS (Wis.) shortstop JD Dix at No. 35.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The overall theme from these first selections is drafting players with advanced hit tools. They also took a pair of high school players, sandwiching a college selection with the pick they got for Corbin Carroll winning the 2023 National League Rookie of the Year. Both high school players fit the archetype this organization has selected in the past.
Slade Caldwell
As much as I didn’t like the selection at the time, Caldwell fits the Diamondbacks type of prospect. Standing at 5’9″ 182 lbs., he fits the mold of an undersized high school player with an advanced approach at the plate and can play high-level defense. This comes as the same organization that drafted Daulton Varsho, Corbin Carroll, and Alek Thomas. From a build standpoint, Caldwell is much closer to Varsho than Carroll or Thomas.
His swing is very simple, with very little moving parts to try to get in sync, geared more towards line drive and fly ball contact. Line drive contact is heavily rewarded at Chase Field, with the deep gaps allowing him to stretch an extra base. Chase Field has the seventh-highest 3-year rolling park factor for doubles (108) and triples (171) according to Statcast.
He has a much more square muscular build that could project for more consistent home run power in the future. MLB Pipeline projects a 45-grade power tool moving forward, which usually projects to 15-20 home runs, although I think there may be more juice in that bat.
Defensively, he projects to play an above-average center field. With some of the other prospects taken in the draft class, that’s the most likely long-term outcome for him.
Ryan Waldschmidt
Finally healthy again, Waldschmidt has been one of the biggest risers in the 2024 draft. He suffered an ACL the previous summer but has shown more impressive run times as he’s further removed form the injury.
He broke out with the bat, hitting .333 with 14 home runs and a 1.079 OPS. He has a solid approach for the college game, with nearly as many walks (41) and strikeouts (45). His swing is geared towards lifting the ball, crushing fastballs out over the plate and breaking ball strikes. The bat and the approach are advanced enough that he should be a fast-riser in the Diamondbacks system.
Defensively, he’s best suited for left field. While he could fit in center at some ballparks, the cavernous outfields in the National League West make him a better fit for a corner. With the combination of base stealing ability and good defensive tools, he’s the type of player who could really blossom under Dave McKay’s tutelage if he can get up to the major leagues quickly.
Also there’s a little element of irony in the selection, as the same team that drafted Paul Goldschmidt in the eighth round of the 2009 draft selects Waldschmidt 15 years later.
JD Dix
Looking at the MLB Pipeline top prospect rankings, Dix at first glance seems like a reach at 35. However, his stock dropped due to a torn labrum and attempting to play through it, then not playing much shortstop after getting surgery to address that the previous fall. It will be interesting to see how the throwing arm rebounds with more time removed from the surgery, as it could determine his ability to stick at short.
This looks a lot like a situation where the Diamondbacks project him to make a full recovery. Assuming the arm gets back to where it was before the injury, he has the potential for four tools of at least 55, or above-average, quality. He has a very advanced feel to hit, using the entire field to his advantage, with double-digit home run power at the plate.
Defensively, he has the natural actions of a shortstop and can all the throws. Assuming everything comes together, Dix has the upside of an above-average regular at the position, which would be a solid outcome this deep into the draft.
Outfielders dominate Diamondbacks’ first night of 2024 draft selections
As we get further removed from the draft, I will publish a Top 30 prospects list for the Diamondbacks with their latest draft selections included. Stay tuned for that later this week.
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Michael McDermott covers the Arizona Diamondbacks, Arizona Cardinals, and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB
