Inside The Diamondbacks

Two Prospects Named D-backs' Minor League Players of the Month

Slade Caldwell and Dylan Ray were named the Diamondbacks' Player and Pitcher of the Month for May 2025.
Michael McDermott|
Arizona Diamondbacks first-round draft pick Slade Caldwell speaks to reporters at Chase Field.
Arizona Diamondbacks first-round draft pick Slade Caldwell speaks to reporters at Chase Field. | Jack Sommers

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Arizona Diamondbacks

Each month, the Diamondbacks' Player Development staff chooses a player and a pitcher from a list of nominees sent in by the coaches at each level. For May 2025, the organization's Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Month are outfielder Slade Caldwell and right-hander Dylan Ray.

Caldwell, 18, was the team's top draft choice in the 2024 MLB Draft. For the month of May, he hit .313 with five doubles, a triple, a home run, and a .865 OPS with Class-A Visalia. Among the best hitters in the California League, he ranked in the top 10 for batting average, on-base percentage, walks, and OPS.

Because of his strong start relative to his young age for the level, we moved him up to the top spot in our midseason prospect rankings. Caldwell projects as a starting center fielder in the major leagues. His approach at the plate needs some refinement to maximize the damage he can do with the bat.

Ray, 24, enjoyed the best month of his career. In five starts with Double-A Amarillo, he pitched to a 2.03 ERA with 35 strikeouts and three walks in 31 innings. All five of his starts were quality starts, as he allowed no more than two runs in any start and struck out at least six.

Ray has since been promoted to the organization's Triple-A affiliate in Reno. He's jumped up to the No. 7 spot in our farm system rankings thanks to increased fastball velocity and better refinement of his breaking pitches. He projects as a bottom-of-the-rotation starter that has to rely on mixing a diverse arsenal of pitches to keep batters off balance.

Here are the list of players nominated at each level.

  • Triple-A Reno: C Aramis Garcia, RHP Christian Montes De Oca
  • Double-A Amarillo: INF Tommy Troy, RHP Dylan Ray
  • High-A Hillsboro: INF Ben McLaughlin, LHP Nate Savino
  • Low-A Visalia: OF Slade Caldwell, RHP Junior Sanchez
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Michael McDermott
MICHAEL MCDERMOTT

Michael McDermott is a writer for Arizona Diamondbacks On SI. Over the past 10 years, he's published thousands of articles on the Diamondbacks for SB Nation's AZ Snake Pit, Arizona Diamondbacks on SI, Burn City Sports, and FanSided's Venom Strikes. Most of his work includes game coverage, prospect coverage in the Arizona Fall League, and doing deep analytical dives on player performances. You can follow him on Twitter @MichaelMcDMLB

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