The Electric Diamondbacks Prospect Fans Can't Afford to Overlook

What he's doing since his promotion has been astounding.

Apr 4, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; A detailed view of an Arizona Diamondbacks hat at the game between the Washington Nationals and the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

When the Arizona Diamondbacks traded one of their only left-handed relief options to the Philadelphia Phillies this offseason, the perception of that deal was not exactly overwhelmingly positive.

The Diamondbacks opted to send southpaw reliever Kyle Backhus to Philadelphia on December 19. In return, they brought back towering 6-foot-4, 245-pound outfielder Avery Owusu-Asiedu — dubbed "AOA."

Initially, this was a puzzling deal. Arizona did not have a wealth of left-handed relief depth, and Backhus had shown some promise in the 2025 season, pitching to a 4.62 ERA with 10 holds and two saves for the Diamondbacks in 25.1 innings.

Owusu-Asiedu, meanwhile, did not hit well for High-A Hillsboro in his first several months with the Diamondbacks' organization. Even at the time of his promotion to Double-A Amarillo, he held just a .202 average .658 OPS for the Hops — but with 13 home runs.

Since that promotion, however, Owusu-Asiedu has looked like a different player, and that's putting it as lightly as possible. His numbers with the Sod Poodles are not a simple hot streak. They have been truly astounding.

Avery Owusu-Asiedu explodes for Amarillo

Arizona Diamondbacks spring training cap at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick near Scottsdale on Feb. 20, 2024. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The big outfielder did not need any time to adjust to Double-A. In 75 plate appearances — an admittedly small sample size — he's hit to the tune of a .468/.547/1.113 slash.

The third number in that line is not his OPS, but his slugging percentage. His OPS is an astounding 1.658. He has hit 11 home runs in 16 games, including five in his first four games and four more in his last five games. The power is extremely evident, even if he's also struck out 16 times.

Owusu-Asiedu does not appear on Arizona's top-30 prospect rankings, and at 23 years old, he still has plenty to prove.

Likely, part of his explosive equation is due to leaving the offense-supressant Northwest League and transitioning to the launching pad that is the Texas League. But he's making consistent, hard contact, and could find his way to Reno sooner than later.

Backhus, meanwhile, has posted a 4.92 ERA for the Phillies' big league club in 20 innings. He's currently in Lehigh Valley, Philadelphia's Triple-A club. For them, he's posted a 2.75 ERA in 19.2 innings.

The Diamondbacks could, certainly, still use more left-handed relief depth, but if Owusu-Asiedu's development path continues on its positive trajectory, there may be a future power-hitting outfielder coming to Chase Field in the future.