Diamondbacks showing that return to contention might not be far off

By Pedro Moura
FOX Sports MLB Writer

One of the Arizona Diamondbacks’ emerging young outfielders plays with enough intensity that it causes sartorial issues.

Rookie Jake McCarthy slides so often and so aggressively that he regularly tears his knickers. All of his practice pants are stitched up at the knee and buttocks, and even his game pairs frequently feature sown-up spots.

“I go through pants like you wouldn’t believe,” said McCarthy, who recently attempted a walk-off steal of home. “I rip these every game.”

That’s the 2022 Diamondbacks for you. They are a little weird and a lot of fun. One year after they suffered a record road losing streak and lost 110 games, as many as any MLB team, the 70-80 D-backs are on a much better trajectory. A wave of talented rookies has helped them to a solid second half and, even more, hope for next season.

“The addition of a lot of younger guys shows the first step of what could possibly happen and what the future could hold for the Arizona Diamondbacks,” said right fielder Daulton Varsho, 26, the team’s most valuable player. “The D-backs have drafted a lot of really talented players, and now everyone’s finally seeing it. That’s what we’re gonna build around, and it’s cool to be part of it.”

There is plenty on which to build. The Diamondbacks’ top 11 players this season, in terms of WAR, are all under club control for at least two more seasons. Top prospect Corbin Carroll is on pace to make it an even 12 in a matter of days, when he overtakes David Peralta, whom Arizona traded at the deadline to clear playing time for young outfielders.

Newly 22, Carroll is three weeks into his big-league career. He is the centerpiece of the core the Diamondbacks believe can lead them back to the playoffs for the first time since 2017.

Only one player, infielder Ketel Marte, remains from that roster, though manager Torey Lovullo has also endured. Even the 2022 team’s veterans are more inexperienced than their ages would indicate. First baseman Christian Walker, 31, and right-hander Merrill Kelly, 33, entered this season with three years of major-league service each — less than that of 23-year-old divisional rival Juan Soto. 

Lovullo said club officials have long projected this group’s arrival and an accompanying window to win. He noted that more prospects continue to rise through the farm system. All told, he’s finding it easier to envision a fruitful future, and he has noticed that the same is true for the industry.

“It’s been very refreshing to this organization, especially after last season,” Lovullo said. “We’ll embrace that. But I think the thing we’re most excited about is how they operate daily, how they go out and perform, prep and help us win. Some of our young players are playing at a very high level, a very fast pace. And it shows up. Other teams are making mistakes defensively, and our guys are capitalizing.”

Defensive mishaps were a problem for Arizona’s 2021 team. Over a 24-game road losing streak that spanned from May to June, the Diamondbacks found new, embarrassing ways to lose nightly. The 2022 team still suffers from inconsistency, but it has also started forcing opponents into similar situations. Earlier this week, the D-backs seized on a season-high four errors from the league-best Dodgers.

“Baserunning, defense — we’ve done a lot of little things right,” Varsho said. “We had a decent stretch this year where we lost some games, but we were able to get out of [it] quicker than last year, and that’s a big step for us.”

More steps need to be taken. Recent top draft picks Jordan Lawlar and Druw Jones are still a ways away. Some of the prospects who made it to the majors have struggled mightily. First basemen Pavin Smith and Seth Beer, both 26-year-old former first-rounders, are back in the minor leagues. Shortstop Geraldo Perdomo, 22, has regressed following a promising finish to 2021. 

And the Diamondbacks’ highest-paid player, left-hander Madison Bumgarner, continues to disappoint. More than half of Arizona’s 2023 payroll commitment is earmarked for Bumgarner and shortstop Nick Ahmed, another veteran nonfactor. But Ahmed will be a free agent after 2023, and Bumgarner’s salary drops drastically in 2024, his final year under contract. Ahead of that season, the Diamondbacks could be in position to recruit a talented free agent or two to supplement what should be a still-underpaid young core.

It is an unusual core. Drey Jameson, one of two new right-handers, is 6 feet, 165 pounds. When he played basketball in high school, he played point guard. Varsho is a sturdy 207 pounds but only 5-foot-10. Carroll is listed at 5-foot-10 and 165 pounds, Thomas 5-foot-11 and 175.

McCarthy, the outlier at 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, has been hearing from old friends after recent games. They tend to remark on the sight gag of him high-fiving Carroll and Thomas when the Diamondbacks win.

“I must look huge,” McCarthy said.

The players’ frames do not appear to be an impediment. Carroll and Varsho hit for plenty of power; Thomas has not yet, but when he was a prospect, many scouts projected him to one day reach above-average power. Carroll is also the sport’s fastest player, per Statcast. McCarthy and Thomas are not far behind, and Varsho, despite his stature, is well above average.

“For what they lack in height,” McCarthy said of his shorter peers, “they make up for in just about every other quality on the baseball field.”

McCarthy himself has attempted 21 steals in 90 games — and succeeded on 19 of them. Every four or five means a new pair of pants and fresh teasing from his teammates.

“Dude, it’s The Show,” teammates tell him when they spot a new rip. “Get a new pair.”

“Bro,” McCarthy says. “These are a new pair.”

The Diamondbacks are a young team having a good time and playing pretty well, too.

“We’re all kind of new to this. It’s a funny camaraderie,” McCarthy said. “We have a hungry locker room, and a lot of us want to prove, individually, that we can hang here. 

“And also that we have a pretty good damn team.”

Pedro Moura is the national baseball writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the Dodgers for The Athletic, the Angels and Dodgers for the Orange County Register and L.A. Times, and his alma mater, USC, for ESPN Los Angeles. He is the author of “How to Beat a Broken Game.” Follow him on Twitter @pedromoura.