Braden Shipley

Shipley, who entered 2016 as Arizona's top prospect, made his MLB debut in July and stayed in the rotation through the end of the season. Like many young pitchers, Shipley had his ups and downs during his first stint in the majors. He didn't post huge strikeout totals his last couple years in the minors, and that trend continued at the big league level, as the young righty recorded just a 5.53 K/9 across his 70 MLB innings. He is relatively new to the mound, having converted from shortstop to pitcher in college, so Shipley is still developing his stuff and learning how to set up big league hitters, so the strikeout totals could improve. He still has the ceiling of a No. 3 starter, but will have to compete with Shelby Miller and Patrick Corbin for the final two spots in the rotation during spring training. Don't expect elite results, but Shipley makes for a nice end-game dart, given his pedigree and stuff.

Considered the top pitching prospect in Arizona’s farm system, Shipley spent all of 2015 at Double-A Mobile and posted decent numbers in his age-23 season. Shipley did a good job of keeping the ball in the park, giving up just seven home runs all year. His lack of huge strikeout totals might be a bit misleading, as Shipley is relatively new to the mound, having converted from shortstop to pitcher in college. He has the stuff and athleticism to project as a No. 2 or No. 3 in time, and those strikeout totals should begin to tick up in 2016. Shipley will presumably begin the year at Triple-A Reno where he could struggle to prevent runs in one of the most hitter-friendly environments in the minors. The key thing to watch will be his strikeout and walk totals, and if he holds his own a big league debut could come in the second half.

The converted shortstop displayed an impressive combo of stuff, size and athleticism in his first season in pro ball, allowing him to climb two full levels, finishing the year at Double-A Mobile. Many saw the potential for Shipley to be a future frontline starter when he was taken with the 15th overall pick in the 2013 draft, but it would have been hard to envision him moving this fast. Shipley posted a 3.86 ERA and a 127:42 K:BB ratio in 126 innings over his three stops, and a case could be made that he has surpassed Archie Bradley as the team’s most appealing prospect moving forward. It’s no surprise that his diabolical fastball/changeup combo embarrassed hitters at the lower levels. If he can develop his curveball into a third plus offering, his numbers at Double-A and Triple-A will have dynasty league owners salivating throughout the 2015 season.

Shipley pitched very sparingly in professional baseball in 2013 after being drafted 15th overall by the D-Backs in June, and he struggled in a very small sample size. A converted shortstop, he's only been pitching a short time. Because of that, Shipley may require extra development time in the Arizona system, and he figures to spend most of the 2014 season in the lower levels of the minors. If he is given a look in full-season ball, Shipley will likely end up in the Midwest League at Low-A South Bend.