Introduction
Since my last article looking at hitting prospects had such a warm reception, I thought I’d take a look at a few more hitters in the Diamondbacks farm system who have either hit well all season, or have been hot over the last 30 games. All five of these players are easily in the top 10 of the Dbacks prospects, but Kayson Cunningham should be consider the team’s top prospect with Ryan Waldschmidt and Tommy Troy in the big leagues now. I’ve linked to each players MLB Pipeline profile, along with their
Fangraphs and Baseball-Reference player pages.
Slade Caldwell, CF
Fangraphs | Baseball-Reference | MLB Pipeline
The D’Backs first pick in the 2024 draft, taken just two picks before Ryan Waldschmidt, got off to a very slow start in 2026, hitting just .143/.365/.157 for the month of April, and getting just 10 hits in 70 at bats. In spite of those hitting struggles, Caldwell still managed to get on base at a decent rate thanks to walking twenty times and five hit by pitches, which he took advantage of by stealing eight bases (while only getting caught stealing once) Apparently, and I say that because I only learned this via Jack Sommers a few week ago, Caldwell suffered a herniated disc back in 2025, and wasn’t at 100% until the end of April, which explains a lot of the struggles down the stretch in 2025, his early struggles in the 2026. Caldwell actually being at full health is reflected in just how hot Caldwell was in the month of May, going 25 for 83 with five doubles (four more than in April) and his first two homeruns of the 2026 season or a triple slash line of .301/.448/.434. It wasn’t all positive though, as Caldwell struck out 34 times versus the 25 times in April, while also walking 19 times compared to the 20 he had in April. On the season, Caldwell is hitting .223/.400/.299 with a .353 wOBA, which works out to a 108 wRC+ or 8% better than league average. I wouldn’t normally include Caldwell in an article like this, but I think how well he has hit in May and the fact that he’s finally healthy merits discussion.
Kayson Cunningham, SS
Fangraphs | Baseball-Reference | MLB Pipeline
Taken 18th overall, the Diamondbacks first pick in the 2025 draft was widely regarded as the best pure hitter out of the high school bats. Cunningham didn’t exactly impress in his handful of games after signing in 2025. In those 11 games, Cunningham hit just .255/.308/.277 with a .292 wOBA and 68 wRC+, while striking out 28.8% of the time. This year Cunningham has absolutely destroyed the A ball level California League’s pitching. In his 39 games playing for Visalia, he’s hit .377/.471/.509 with ten doubles, four triples, and the first homerun of his pro career. He cut his strikeout percent from that 28.8% down to a much more respectable 17.5%, and increased his BB% from a middling 5.8% to very solid 14.8%.
I expect Cunningham to stick at shortstop, which is probably a good thing, since his 5’10 frame doesn’t end itself to projecting power development going forward, making him much less valuable as you move down the defensive spectrum. That said, his superb contact ability, above average plate discipline, and speed on the base paths should more than make up for the lack of HR power.
LuJames Groover, 3B
Fangraphs | Baseball-Reference | MLB Pipeline
While he’s seen his hot hitting teammates either get promoted or go on hot and cold streaks, Lujames Groover has been a consistent presence in the AAA level Aces lineup. This season in 54 games, Groover is hitting .327/.425/.460 which works out to a .406 wOBA and a 119 wRC+ in the hitter friendly PCL. (His xwOBA stat, however is not nearly as impressive at .305.) Looking at how he did last season those numbers are right in line with the .309/.399/.434 triple slash, .389 wOBA, and 120 wRC+ he put up for Amarillo in 2025. Groover has seen his strikeout% jump from 14.4% in 2025 to 17.3% in 2026, but that’s also been accompanied by his walk% increasing from 11.5% to 14.5%.
Originally a below average fielder at third, Groover defense has improved enough to be acceptable at the hot corner. The one area that I’d like to see Groover work on is finding a better launch angle or approach at the plate to better harness his ridiculous bat speed. Groover has put up exit velocities of 110 MPH+ this season, while having just three homeruns. Considering how well Tommy Troy and Ryan Waldschmidt have handled MLB pitching since being called up, and the fact that most of Groover’s underlying metrics are better, I think he’d be a safe bet to succeed if called up. I don’t expect the Dbacks to call up Groover anytime soon unless Arenado gets injured for any real length of time. There are probably ways to get Groover on the roster now and give him playng time, for example, shifting Arenado to 1B/DH and then playing Groover at third base, but I don’t think that or any other scenario is plausible and makes sense at the moment. With all that said, I expect Groover to be the D’Backs starting third baseman in 2026.
JD Dix, 2B
Fangraphs | Baseball-Reference | MLB Pipeline
JD “redundant acronym” Dix was drafted by the Dbacks with the 35th overall pick in the 2024 amateur draft out of Whitefish Bay Highschool in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, the very same high school that 2001 World Series Craig Counsell attended. (Coincidentally, Dix likely will end up teammates with Craig Counsell’s son Brady, who’s currently assigned to the A+ level Hillsboro Hops). As a second baseman, Dix’s combination of plate discipline, power, and speed on the basepaths makes him quite intriguing, especially if he can become more polished defensively as he progress through the minors.
Dix made his pro debut in 2025, playing in the Arizona Complex League for 39 games, where he hit .342/.421/.493 with a .427 wOBA and 147 wRC+, though influenced by an insane .425 BABIP. Having conquered the Complex, the Dbacks promoted Dix to the A ball level Visalia Rawhide, where he played in 50 games to close out his 2025. In those 50 games, Dix saw his numbers drop down to .261/.391/.335 with a .368 wOBA and 114 wRC+. Interestingly, while Dix’s strikeout percentage increase from 19.1% to 22.2%, Dix’s BB% also increased from 11.2% to 16.55. He also was much more successful on the basepath after being promoted. While he was in the Complex, Dix stole nine bases and was caught stealing four times. While he was still caught stealing four times in the California League, he was able to steal 10 more bases in just 11 additional games.
The Dbacks assigned Dix back in Visalia for 2026, where got off to a slow start to begin the year. At the end of April, JD Dix was hitting just .187/.292/.307 with a double, a triple, and a pair of homeruns. He was still the same menace on the basepaths, arguably even better with seven stolen bases without getting caught stealing. In May, he hit .289/.438/.651 with seven doubles, a triple, and seven homeruns, while stealing 11 more bases without getting caught in just sixteen more plate appearances. Altogether, Dix is hitting .241/.371/.487 with a .385 wOBA and 115 wRC + in 40 games for Visalia. The only real red flag in Dix’s 2026 season is a slight downtick in BB% from 16.5% down to 13.8%, though his strikeout 22.1% is right in line with the 22.2% he posted in Visalia in 2025.
Assuming he hits similarly to how he has the last month, I’d expect Dix to be promoted to Hillsboro by the Allstar Break.
Final Thoughts
Which of these Diamondbacks prospects are you most excited for? Are there other prospects who you think I should have talked about instead? Is Kayson Cunningham the team’s top prospect in the minors right now? Do you think LuJames Groover deserve a callup? If so, who do you send down and how do you give him regular playing time? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below!
