Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.
Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.
Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.
Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.
Go to Blogger edit html and find these sentences.Now replace these sentences with your own descriptions.
SCOTTSDALE — Spring training is a great time for fans to watch top prospects compete with big league stars, and the Arizona Diamondbacks have supplied many opportunities with Ryan Waldschmidt, Jose Fernandez and Tommy Troy garnering attention.
At the same time, the Diamondbacks would benefit greatly from a couple young players who graduated prospect status last year taking the next steps in their development, as it is more likely Jorge Barrosa and Tim Tawa will be tasked with adding big league depth when the regular seasons begins.
Both players have the traits to be valuable role players for Arizona. They are fast, athletic and can fill in at multiple positions, with Barrosa a plus defender at all three outfield spots and Tawa able to play all over the diamond. Barrosa is a 5-foot-6 switch-hitter who frequently reached base and showed sneaky pop in the minor leagues, while Tawa blasted 31 home runs in 2024.
They each ran into trouble against big league pitching last season, however, when Tawa and Barrosa hit .201 and .141, respectively.
Barrosa (25) and Tawa (26) are at an important stage of their careers.
They made the major leagues but must prove they can stick. The Diamondbacks have questions with the back end of the starting lineup and bench, particularly early when their injured list will be long and the schedule daunting. Barrosa and Tawa went into the offseason focused on making the adjustments necessary to fill roles for a club that could use leaps from its youngsters to raise the floor of this roster.
Despite his smaller frame, Barrosa expanded the zone last year in his major league at-bats, chasing at a 35% clip (28% league average) and striking out 22 times with only two walks in 77 plate appearances, according to Statcast.
That’s not in line with his minor league track record, rather a sign of a player trying to do too much on the grand stage.
“Just play for the team, that’s one thing that you’re always trying to do,” Barrosa told Arizona Sports. “Be able to recognize more pitches and be patient, be more patient. Just swing at the right pitches. A lot of the guys that I’m learning from are (Lourdes Gurriel Jr.), I always talk to him. (Ildemaro Vargas). They always talk to me about game situations.”
Barrosa said he wants to see a lot more pitches this year, making the pitcher work before facing the bigger bats atop the order.
The Automated Ball-Strike Challenge System should be a useful tool, which Barrosa has experience with in the minor leagues. The ABS strike zone is slightly tighter than the average umpire’s zone, particularly at the top and bottom. Barrosa said he felt there were some high strikes called against him last year, and the ABS system should help with that.
Part of Barrosa’s approach focus, he said, is doing a better job of staying behind the baseball and trusting himself instead of getting too far out front. He can drive the ball, hitting 29 doubles in only 93 Triple-A games last year.
“I would say a lot with the hitting coaches is about approach, about mentality, what you’re going to do, where you want to see the ball, where you want the ball to start,” Barrosa said. “Be confident in your work that you put in the cages and be able to execute it in the game. … Don’t try to do too much.”
Manager Torey Lovullo said at the start of camp that Barrosa knows this is a big spring for him to compete, noting that pitch selection will be key.
Arizona’s Opening Day outfield projects to be Corbin Carroll, Alek Thomas and Jordan Lawlar, with Lawlar getting his feet wet in center field this spring.
That would leave a bench spot for Barrosa as the fourth outfielder who could provide value as a defensive replacement, pinch runner or a pinch hitter for the right matchup. With Arizona’s top prospect being an outfielder (Waldschmidt) knocking at the door, along with Gurriel progressing faster than expected from a torn ACL, a light outfield could become pretty crowded sooner than later.
Barrosa also has no minor league options remaining, adding a level of urgency to perform.
Tawa was rolling when he got to the major leagues for the first time last year. The right-handed hitter clocked four home runs with two doubles and eight walks in his first 14 games. The pop he showed in the minor leagues was evident, but from there, pitchers peppered him with breaking balls and the strikeouts piled up.
So, Tawa went to work with Arizona’s hitting coaches this offseason to make both approach and physical adjustments.
“The approach is obviously a big part of it, and it’s important being able to control the zone and I’ve tried to put a big emphasis on that so far in my at-bats,” Tawa said.
“But I was feeling more like I was steep, and where my hands were loading, it was just tough to consistently get to the right spot and then have my bat path be the right way. So just trying to eliminate the variability, be a little bit more consistent just by having a little bit more of a set position and just be a little more point A to point B.”
Tawa feeling more balanced has been a positive sign this spring, he said, that allows him to be on more pitches. He’s off to a solid start, slashing .286/.400/.476 in 21 at-bats with a home run.
Lovullo said Tawa could fill into a Ben Zobrist-type role with his versatility, harkening back to the utility man who helped the Kansas City Royals and Chicago Cubs win championships during the mid-2010s. Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernandez are right-handed utility players who have benefited the Los Angeles Dodgers for years.
Blaze Alexander had been described with that potential before he was traded to Baltimore this offseason, which presents an opportunity for someone else to handle the do-it-all job.
Tawa played all three outfield spots, second base, third base and first base last season for the Diamondbacks. He has played mostly second base this spring but will continue to move around. He is not expected to play shortstop, but the ability to fill into other infield spots and the outfield should create playing time opportunities.
The Diamondbacks’ roster will change as the season progresses with players returning from injury or earning call-ups. That should create a level of internal competition all year for players with years of MLB service time or others getting started like Tawa and Barrosa.
The Arizona Cardinals released defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson on Friday, saving $9.4 million in cap space for 2026.
Arizona is still faced with a $6.8 million dead money hit, according to Over the Cap.
Tomlinson was signed on a two-year $29 million contract last offseason and started all 17 games for the Cardinals.
Tomlinson totaled 26 tackles, three for loss, three quarterback hits and a sack in his first season in Arizona.
The 32-year-old was taken by the New York Giants in the second round of the 2017 draft out of Alabama. After four seasons in New York, the Minnesota Vikings signed Tomlinson to a two-year deal. He later played two seasons for the Cleveland Browns before joining the Cardinals.
Arizona will not make any additional cuts on Friday, according to Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro.
The Cardinals also cut defensive lineman Bilal Nichols and linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither on Thursday, which saved another $11 million in cap space for 2026.
Without Tomlinson and Nichols, Walter Nolen III, Darius Robinson and Dante Stills round out the defensive linemen depth for the Cardinals. Calais Campbell and L.J. Collier are free agents.
Diamondbacks outfielder prospect Druw Jones started his World Baseball Classic with an RBI double, as his Hall of Fame father, Andruw Jones, watched on from the dugout on Friday.
The younger Jones, 22, is representing the Netherlands for the first time in his career, with his father managing for the first time. The older Jones is from Curacao, an island off the coast of Venezuela that is a constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The Jones’ make up the first father-son, manager-player duo in WBC history.
“As soon as he knew he was managing, he kind of let me know,” Druw told reporters on Friday. “He was like, ‘Hey, man, if you’re going to be able to play, we’re going to have you on the roster.’ Of course I’m going to accept. Just had to wait on the team’s approval, and they were all backing it 100 percent.”
In the Netherlands’ opening Pool D game against Venezuela, Jones grounded a sinker up the middle and hustled his way to second base for an RBI double in the second inning.
Druw Jones and Team Netherlands quickly answer back! #WorldBaseballClassic pic.twitter.com/AyB5jOUo3V
— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 6, 2026
What a moment 🥹
Hall of Famer Andruw Jones watches his son knock in Team Netherlands’ first #WorldBaseballClassic run! https://t.co/CMN2Oe9Pl2 pic.twitter.com/A5miF8D9Zs
— MLB (@MLB) March 6, 2026
In his second at-bat on Friday, Jones struck out swinging, but he recorded another RBI in his third plate appearance, a sacrifice fly that scored Didi Gregorius.
The older Jones, a 10-time Gold Glove winner who was recently elected to the 2026 MLB Hall of Fame class, told reporters he had never coached his son before, not even as a youth player.
But emphasized he treats everyone the same, even his son.
“It’s awesome. Like I say, I never coached him as a youth baseball player,” Jones said. “This is a great honor. This is good for him to represent the country that I come from, just like everybody else. Like Dominican players that have guys that were born in the United States and represent their family’s country.”
Jones has long been known for his defense and last season was named Minor League Defensive Player of the Year and was also a minor league Gold Glove recipient.
However, his bat has also impressed this spring. In Diamondbacks spring training games, Jones is slashing .333/.333/.500 and has two doubles in 12 plate appearances.
“It’s awesome. I think the experience is always big. I like to see a lot of young guys come out here and experience this because this kind of changes their career-wise of how to get started playing big games early in their career,” Jones said of his son getting WBC experience.
“Nobody wants to go out there and play nine innings in spring training. So they’re still in spring training, but they’re playing real games. So I always love young guys to come out so we can see what they’ve got.”
MESA — It is becoming an annual tradition for fathers and sons to exchange lineup cards when the Arizona Diamondbacks and Chicago Cubs play in spring training, but on Thursday at Sloan Park, the meeting was between Counsells instead of Lovullos.
Diamondbacks prospect Brady Counsell and Cubs manager Craig Counsell met at home plate ahead of Brady Counsell’s spring training debut. The D-backs took Counsell in the 10th round of the MLB Draft last summer, nine years after his father played his sixth and final season for the Diamondbacks in 2006.
“I think it’s just, obviously my dad played for them and won a World Series with them, so I think when I got the call that they’re gonna be taking me, just super exciting to be able to follow in his footsteps and hopefully eventually bring another championship back to Arizona,” Brady Counsell said.
Brady Counsell was asked to compare his game to his dad’s: “Normal stance for me.” pic.twitter.com/Y7HTMqbvmT
— Alex Weiner (@alexjweiner) March 5, 2026
Counsell let his mother know ahead of time but surprised his father on game day.
He was not in the starting lineup for Arizona but a sub, as the D-backs have needed to call on more minor league reinforcements as regulars left for the World Baseball Classic. Craig Counsell told reporters, “I’ll close my eyes and watch the video later,” in regards to his son’s first at-bat.
A Cubs-Diamondbacks spring training game over the past couple seasons has typically been preceded by a lineup card exchange between D-backs manager Torey Lovullo and Cubs minor league coach Nick Lovullo, who will be the bench coach at Triple-A Iowa this season.
“It’s probably more emotional for the parent than it is for the son or the daughter in these situations,” Torey Lovullo said. “You go crashing all the way back to them in diapers and throwing your first ball to them. I don’t care who you are. You reflect that far back and just proudly watch your son do his thing in his own element and make it his own way.”
When asked to compare his game to his father’s, Brady Counsell said they were similar but he supplied more power. He hit 12 home runs in his final collegiate season at Kansas, while Craig Counsell hit 42 over a 16-year big league career.
In terms of Craig Counsell’s famously unique batting stance, Brady Counsell said he’s tested it out but will stick to a more conventional set up.
“We both have a high baseball IQ,” Counsell said. “I think just playing the game the right way, playing hard and using the baseball IQ to kind of make a name for yourself.”
