2003 Wrapups: Arizona Diamondbacks
With the 2003 minor league season coming to a close, we will be providing a brief wrapup of the season for all 30 minor league teams. In each report, we will take a look at how the team's Top 10 Prospects performed, identify some emerging prospects and organizational leaders, and report on the performance of their top draft pick.
Complete index of Team Wrapups 2003 League Wrapups
By Kevin Goldstein
September 17, 2003
Season Results
| Level |
Team |
League |
W |
L |
PCT |
| AAA |
Tuscon |
Pacific Coast |
73 |
71 |
.507 |
| AA |
El Paso |
Texas |
67 |
73 |
.479 |
| A+ |
Lancaster |
California |
73 |
67 |
.521 |
| A |
South Bend |
Midwest |
72 |
64 |
.529 |
| SS |
Yakima |
Northwest |
45 |
31 |
.592 |
| R+ |
Missoula |
Pioneer |
36 |
40 |
.474 |
|
|
TOTAL |
353 |
340 |
.509 |
|
Performance of Top 10 Prospects
Here's how our top 10 prospects entering this season performed in 2003. Major league statistics through games of September 15th.
| 1. Scott Hairston, 2b
Age: 23 |
Nagging back problems forced him out of the lineup for over a month combined with an August slump (.218) kept him from matching last year's breakout performance. He still projects as an elite offensive second baseman.
| TEAM | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| El Paso (Double-A) |
88 |
337 |
53 |
93 |
21 |
7 |
10 |
47 |
30 |
80 |
6 |
.276 |
.345 |
.469 |
| Tuscon (Triple-A) |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
.000 |
.000 |
.000 |
|
| 2. Mike Gosling, lhp
Age: 23 |
Went 14-5, 3.13 in his pro debut for Double-A El Paso, but a lack of strikeouts was a bit of a red flag. PCL batters absolutely teed off on him at a .330 clip, and a nice string of starts in July and August (6-3, 3.59) was the only bright point.
| Team |
W-L |
SV |
ERA |
G |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
| Tuscon (Triple-A)
| 9-12 |
0 |
5.61 |
26 |
136.1 |
190 |
106 |
85 |
56 |
89 |
|
| 3. Lyle Overbay, 1b
Age: 26 |
Was given starting first base job in the big leagues to start the season, but found himself back in Triple-A after a summer slump. Will Arizona give him another chance in 2004 or go the free agent route?
| TEAM | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Arizona (MLB) |
82 |
246 |
22 |
67 |
18 |
0 |
4 |
26 |
33 |
66 |
0 |
.272 |
.360 |
.394 |
| Tuscon (Triple-A) |
35 |
119 |
24 |
34 |
11 |
0 |
4 |
16 |
28 |
19 |
0 |
.286 |
.419 |
.479 |
|
| 4. John Patterson, rhp
Age: 20 |
Spent quite a bit of time on I-10, shuttling back and forth between Tuscon and Bank One Ballpark. While he pitched well at Triple-A, he was inconsistent as a starter in the big leagues, but has found some success in September coming out of the pen.
| Team |
W-L |
SV |
ERA |
G |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
| Tuscon (Triple-A)
| 10-5 |
0 |
2.63 |
18 |
109.1 |
100 |
48 |
32 |
43 |
74 |
| Arizona (MLB)
| 1-4 |
1 |
5.92 |
6 |
48.2 |
52 |
34 |
32 |
28 |
37 |
|
| 5. Brandon Webb, rhp
Age: 24 |
Called up merely to fill a roster slot after three starts at Tuscon, Webb reeled off 13 consecutive quality starts to establish himself as a solid Rookie of the Year candidate.
| Team |
W-L |
SV |
ERA |
G |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
| Tucson (Triple-A)
| 1-1 |
0 |
6.00 |
3 |
18.0 |
18 |
17 |
12 |
9 |
17 |
| Arizona (MLB)
| 9-7 |
0 |
2.62 |
26 |
164.2 |
126 |
49 |
48 |
59 |
160 |
|
| 6. Edgar Gonzalez, rhp
Age: 20 |
Inconsistent at Tuscon, Gonzalez allowed two or fewer earned runs in 12 of 20 outings, yet allowed more than five runs five times. Still extemely advanced for his age, and spending September in the Arizona bullpen before he's able to drink.
| Team |
W-L |
SV |
ERA |
G |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
| El Paso (Double-A)
| 2-2 |
0 |
3.50 |
6 |
36.0 |
40 |
18 |
14 |
11 |
30 |
| Tucson (Triple-A)
| 8-7 |
0 |
3.75 |
20 |
129.2 |
126 |
65 |
54 |
28 |
69 |
| Arizona (MLB)
| 2-1 |
0 |
5.14 |
4 |
14.0 |
22 |
8 |
8 |
6 |
11 |
|
| 7. Sergio Santos, ss
Age: 22 |
First-round pick from 2002 was challenged with assignment to high Class A Lancaster, and even more so by late-season promotion to El Paso. Still might need to move to third base, but has the bat to play there.
| TEAM | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Lancaster (High Class A) |
93 |
341 |
55 |
98 |
13 |
2 |
8 |
49 |
41 |
64 |
5 |
.287 |
.368 |
.408 |
| El Paso (Double-A) |
37 |
137 |
13 |
35 |
7 |
1 |
2 |
16 |
8 |
25 |
0 |
.255 |
.293 |
.365 |
|
| 8. Chad Tracy, 3b
Age: 23 |
Hit .364 over the final 30 games of the season in a late run for his second consecutive batting title. Career minor league average is now .333, but lacks the power normally associated with the hot corner.
| TEAM | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Tucson (Triple-A) |
133 |
522 |
91 |
169 |
31 |
4 |
10 |
80 |
41 |
52 |
0 |
.324 |
.372 |
.456 |
|
| 9. Brian Bruney, rhp
Age: 21 |
Numbers fail to communicate how dominating Bruney was during the middle of the season, as he didn't allow a hit during his first nine appearances at Tuscon, nor a run is his first 15 games at Triple-A. Built like a linebacker, throws in the high 90s, what else would one want in a future closer?
| Team |
W-L |
SV |
ERA |
G |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
| El Paso (Double-A)
| 0-2 |
14 |
2.59 |
28 |
31.1 |
29 |
17 |
9 |
13 |
28 |
| Tucson (Triple-A)
| 3-1 |
12 |
2.81 |
32 |
32.0 |
24 |
12 |
10 |
18 |
32 |
|
| 10. Luis Terrero, of
Age: 23 |
Still has the best tools in the system, but needs to start controlling the strike zone better and become a more proficient basestealer (caught stealing 19 times) to reach his potential.
| TEAM | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Tucson (Triple-A) |
118 |
467 |
83 |
134 |
20 |
15 |
3 |
46 |
31 |
103 |
23 |
.287 |
.345 |
.413 |
| Arizona (MLB) |
5 |
4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
.250 |
.400 |
.250 |
|
Top Draft Pick:
| Conor Jackson, OF
U. of California Bonus: $1.5M |
Seen before the draft as one of the more polished college hitters available, Jackson moved from third base to the outfield and set a Northwest League record for doubles while leading the league in RBIs.
| TEAM | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Yakima (Northwest) |
68 |
257 |
44 |
82 |
35 |
1 |
6 |
60 |
36 |
41 |
3 |
.319 |
.410 |
.533 |
|
Emerging Prospects:
Josh Kroeger, of: A disapointment since being drafted in the fourth round of the 2000 draft, Kroeger finally started translating his athleticism into production, hitting .314-8-77 across two levels.
Adriano Rosario, rhp: Assigned to the full-season Midwest League before his 18th birthday (though some have questioned his age), Rosario put up a 1.79 ERA over the final two months of the season while sitting comfortably in the mid-90s.
Statistical Leaders
| Batting Average |
Billy Martin |
.348 |
| Home Runs |
Kyle Nichols |
31 |
| Runs Batted In |
Kyle Nichols |
108 |
| Stolen Bases |
Marland Williams |
57 |
| Earned Run Average |
Sergio Lizarraga |
1.78 |
| Wins |
Sam Smith |
16 |
| Strikeouts |
Phil Stockman |
151 |
| Saves |
Matty Wilkinson |
30 |
