Colorado Rockies Top 25 Under 25: No. 18: Jairo Diaz

Welcome to the BSN Denver Colorado Rockies Top 25 Under 25 where we will rank the organization’s best players who will be 25 years-old or younger on Opening Day 2017.

Our parameters for this list may be different than others it resembles so let us be clear about them:

1. The list was created entirely by the BSN Rockies staff and had no other input from any outside sources.
2. While giving credit for overall (or trade) value, we prioritized an ability to help the MLB club win immediately.
3. In accordance with this, we also prioritized players with fewer question marks but potentially lower ceilings.
4. Statistics were considered on equal level with scouting reports in addition to our own field reporting.

Our observations come through a combination of spending parts of each of the past four (going on five) seasons on the ground on the backfields at spring training and through our regular reporting from Rookie Level Grand Junction, talking to coaches, scouts, and journalists both on and off the record. Of course, countless hours are spent on MiLB.tv and combing over public reports from other credible sources.

No. 18: Jairo Diaz, 25 (RHP)

It can be difficult to get excited about 25-year-old relief pitchers with extremely limited MLB experience coming off of Tommy John surgery, having never cemented a place on a roster above the Triple-A level.

Spring training 2016 got started with some rough news for Diaz who had to leave the diamond after throwing just a few pitches, later finding out he would need to miss the entire season. It couldn’t have come at a worse time for the fireballer who seemed to be harnessing his raw skill into a more polished big league asset.

He carries with him what could soon be called the “Bridich Arsenal” of hard, mid-to-upper 90s fastball backed up by a hard slider … and an OK changeup.

Acquired from the Los Angeles Angels for Josh Rutledge, Diaz had always shown the ability to rack up big strikeout numbers in the minor leagues. In 2014, pitching over 60 innings through the High-A and Double-A level with the Angels, Diaz struck out 11.81 batters per nine innings while walking 2.79. After his promotion, he posted a 2.20 ERA before making a five-inning debut in MLB and then being traded to the Rockies.

He spent most of 2015 in Triple-A, throwing 55 innings and seeing a reduction in his impressive peripheral numbers. The strikeouts came down to just over eight per nine innings and the walk rate skyrocketed to over six per nine. However, the wicked stuff showed that Diaz had the ability to work out of traffic that he often created himself, ultimately limiting the damage to a relatively respectable 4.58 ERA in the ridiculously offensive-oriented PCL. By all rights, that number should be much higher with so many walks, but Diaz got enough swing-and-miss and weak contact to earn a call-up despite otherwise pedestrian numbers.

In his 19 innings with the Rockies, Diaz showed the club exactly the side of himself they were hoping for in acquiring him. He struck out 8.53 per nine but kept the walks down to 2.84 with a very nice 2.37 ERA. It’s a small sample size to be sure, but the powerful fastball slider combo showed well early at Coors Field, and Diaz displayed the kind of confidence of character it takes to succeed in a tough environment.

He more or less hasn’t pitched since then which has allowed for players like Miguel Castro and Carlos Estevez to pass him on the depth chart. Though, he did get a taste of a full season of the big league experience, he was always at the field on game day.

Coming off the injury, and having been such a long time since we’ve seen such a short amount of him, there are a lot of questions surrounding Diaz. His advanced age even makes him barely eligible for this list. But Diaz could absolutely emerge as a favorite for a bullpen spot at any given time during 2017.

He has a few options remaining and is likely caught up in a numbers game, so we project that he begins the year in Triple-A. We can’t confidently rank him any higher than No. 18 on our list, but we would also be very surprised if he doesn’t make a positive contribution to the Colorado Rockies over the next couple of years.