Could A.J. Vukovich See His First MLB Action in 2025?

A.J. Vukovich might not be a name that comes to mind right away when thinking about MLB-ready prospects in the Diamondbacks' organization.

But after spending nearly two seasons' worth of playing time in Double-A Amarillo, the righty outfield conversion project finally made the leap to Triple-A Reno.

Vukovich slashed .270/.342/.458 with 17 homers with the Sod Poodles over 121 games in 2024 before getting the promotion and spending a brief stint with the Aces to close out the year. He played in just four games for Reno, going 3-for-11 with four strikeouts.

Although he doesn't have much Triple-A experience, the young outfielder could see a late-season call-up, depending on how the rest of Arizona's roster shakes out.

Why Vukovich might outperform this projection

Vukovich is a solid power hitter. Obvious issues aside, he can mash the ball, and has a 55/60 raw power tool according to FanGraphs.

As Diamondbacks On SI's Jake Oliver wrote back in November, Vukovich was able to increase his line-drive rate by almost 5%, and his infield fly rate decreased 3%.

If Vukovich is truly finding ways to make better contact, and hit the ball to all areas of the field, he could see a jump in his numbers, which could pave the way for him to see major league playing time.

If the D-backs aren't able to bring in a right-handed hitting outfielder, and Vukovich gets off to a solid start in the organization, he could put himself on the shortlist of internal outfield options, and even see a larger opportunity than th one projected.

If he does see the field for extended time in the majors, it wouldn't require an elite season to see him finish well above his projected rate stats. His 2025 projections are quite low.

That's understandable, considering his issues and rawness, but a .232/.289/.356 slash is well below average. Even a slightly below average slash in limited playing time could easily see Vukovich outperform the low numbers set for him.

Why Vukovich might underperform this projection

Transitioning from the minors to the majors is a difficult task, even for top prospects in the organization. Many have to spend quite some time in Triple-A before being fully ready to perform in the majors.

Vukovich hasn't had much time to adjust, even to the Triple-A environment in Reno. If he struggles there, he might not even see the 97 plate appearances we have projected for him.

But outside of playing time, there are concerns about the 23-year-old. He strikes out at an exceptional rate, and almost never walks. He struck out nearly 30% of the time in 2024, and has a career 27.2% strikeout rate in the minor leagues.

Couple that with a low 7.0% career walk rate, and there's plenty of reason to wonder if Vukovich is ready to face big league pitching. On the surface, it appears thathe might not be.

While the pop is certainly there, Vukovich hasn't developed an ability to control his at-bats. When facing major league pitching, that issue could be amplified to high proportions.

Even though the projection is already quite low, it's possible that Vukovich wouldn't be able to reach its modest expectations, if he's even afforded the playing time.

Summary

It will be difficult for Vukovich to even see the opportunity to beat these projections. If the D-backs bring in right-handed bat as an extra infielder or DH, then Vukovich's playing time will be dependent on a series of injuries.

If he does make the majors, there's a chance he could outperform his projections, riding his power stroke to a higher OPS. If he stays hot, the playing time will expand as well.

But he's exceptionally strikeout-prone, and hasn't had enough time in Triple-A for this writer to confidently say that he's ready to make any sort of statistical impact on the major league club. For now, Vukovich remains a bit of an unknown, though there is plenty of potential.