Could Gavin Conticello be the Next D-backs Breakout Prospect?

The Diamondbacks 8th round pick from the 2021 draft seems to be putting it together with the bat at High-A Hillsboro.

The Diamondbacks appear to have a potential breakout prospect in the lower minors, as infielder Gavin Conticello is off to a blistering start with the Hillsboro Hops. In 17 games, Conticello is hitting .381 with four home runs and a 1.062 OPS. Accounting for Hillsboro and Ron Tonkin Field being one of the more extreme pitcher-friendly environments in the minor leagues, FanGraphs rates his offensive production to be 112% better than the league-average player with a 212 wRC+.

The sample size is still relatively small since he's only had 72 plate appearances, but this start is still worth noting. His .465 BABIP isn't sustainable, but digging deeper into the batted ball data his line drive rate is up 8% and his fly ball rate is down 18%. We're not deep enough into the season that these rates stabilize, but an increased line drive rate is an encouraging sign. It'll be a good stat line to follow throughout the season because a player in his Age 21 season putting up good numbers in High-A is worthy of at least Top 30 organization prospect consideration.

Here's more on how the D-backs top prospects fared on Thursday.

Triple-A: Reno Aces 5, Sugar Land Space Cowboys 6 (F/10)

Adrian Del Castillo went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles. He had three hard-hit balls although only one went for a hit. I talked to Del Castillo about his early-season breakout, which you'll want to check out.

Christian Montes De Oca allowed his first run with the Aces, allowing two runs in the top of the 10th to take the loss.

Double-A: Amarillo Sod Poodles 5, Frisco RoughRiders 13

Deyvison De Los Santos went 2-for-4 with a walk. Ivan Melendez went hitless but also did not strike out. Both De Los Santos and Melendez are showing encouraging reductions in their strikeout rates in their second season in Amarillo, both being under 25%.

Wilderd Patiño went 2-for-5 with a double out of the leadoff spot. J.J. D'Orazio doubled, walked, and scored two runs.

Alec Baker struck out three in two scoreless innings in his Double-A debut. Baker has 19 strikeouts compared to just four walks in 14 innings this season between Hillsboro and Amarillo, so he could fly up the system as a potential reliever prospect that could debut in 2025.

High-A: Hillsboro Hops 6, Eugene Emeralds 7 (F/10)

Conticello, who is featured at the top of the article, went 3-for-5 with a double. Andrew Pintar tripled, homered, drove in three, and scored two runs. Jack Hurley went 2-for-5 with a stolen base.

Low-A: Visalia Rawhide 9, Inland Empire 66ers 8

Junior Franco homered twice, including a walk-off two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth. Jansel Luis went 2-for-6, making it 14 hits in his last nine games. His average has spiked up to .262, but only four walks and one extra-base hit all season. Cristofer Torin doubled and walked twice, driving in a run and scoring twice. Druw Jones was 0-for-3 but was hit by a pitch and stole second on a perfectly executed double steal.