On Sunday, the Arizona Diamondbacks made a handful of roster adjustments, with five players, including top prospect Jordan Lawlar, being optioned to Triple-A Reno.
Before the start of spring training, General Manager Mike Hazen commented on Lawlar’s progress, stating, “I think his performance last year, he did a good job defensively for sure. I think from an at-bat standpoint, I think there’s still some growth that needs to happen. And he’s going to figure that out pretty quickly. He’s too good of a player not to be playing. He needs to play. And that might be with us, it might not be. We think he’s got a chance to be a stud in this league for a long time. We’ll see how Spring Training goes.”
Lawlar, who made his major league debut last September, had a challenging start at the plate, going 4-31. But, he did secure a spot on the postseason roster primarily as a pinch runner.
Last week, they then signed veteran shortstop Elvis Andrus to a minor league contract, making Lawlar’s chances of making the opening day roster even slimmer.
Now, it appears likely that Andrus will serve as a backup to Geraldo Perdomo.
Another notable name that was sent down to Triple-A Reno is hard-throwing righty Justin Martinez.
Another notable player sent down to Triple-A Reno is hard-throwing righty Justin Martinez, who also debuted in the majors last year. However, his stint with the Diamondbacks was brief after allowing 14 earned runs in just 10 innings out of the bullpen.
With these roster moves; the Diamondbacks now have 46 players remaining in camp.
More must-reads: