D-backs Prospect Primer: Bradley is back

Some players are on the verge of stardom, others are entering a crucial phase of their development and still others are getting their first tastes of full-season ball. With the 2015 season approaching, MiLB.com takes a look at the most intriguing prospects from each MLB organization.

Back and healthy: Archie Bradley, RHP

Like that of his parent club, Bradley's 2014 campaign wasn't quite what was expected. The 22-year-old pitched in just 18 games across three Minor League levels last season and battled a flexor strain in his right elbow that cost him nearly two months of action. In total, the D-backs' top prospect posted a pedestrian 3-7 record and 4.45 ERA with the Rookie-level AZL D-backs, Double-A Mobile and Triple-A Reno.

During a six-game stint in the Arizona Fall League to make up for some of his lost innings, Bradley's fastball velocity returned to the mid-90s, and his breaking stuff looked better. Arizona believes those encouraging signs have MLB.com's No. 16 prospect back on the road to the form that led him to a 2013 Organization All-Star honor and Futures Game selection.

"I don't know how far off-track he felt," Arizona Director of Player Development Mike Bell said. "As far as I'm concerned, at 21 years old, he's made the climb to knocking on the door to the big leagues quickly, and at that age, at some point, you're going to have a bump in the road."

Through his first five Spring Training outings at the big league level, Bradley has recorded a 2.20 ERA with 12 strikeouts against three walks.

"If you ask him, I think he'd be disappointed in his year, but at the same time, he was able to learn from it," Bell said. "When you have a little setback -- whether it's injury or whatever it is -- you do have time to reflect and learn from it. The offseason's a time to kind of recharge mentally as well as physically. Just the way Archie's carried himself, the way he's talking, he's very comfortable with who he is, what he needs to do and also that he still has a lot to learn."

Bradley is ticketed for Reno to begin the year but could impact Arizona's rotation in short order.
    
"He's going to pitch in the big leagues for a long time," Bell said, "and he'll do it at the right time, whenever that is -- whether it's to start the year, at the end of the year or next year. He's a great man, and he's a fun guy to watch and to be around."

Full-season debutant: Touki Toussaint, RHP

Haitian-born Toussaint didn't play baseball until he was 11. Seven years later, he was the 16th overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft, a live-armed and athletic righty who decided to forego a commitment to play with reigning national champions Vanderbilt in order to sign with Arizona.

"He knows what he does well, and he's confident in it," Bell said. "He knows when he gets in trouble, some of the areas and some of the things he might be doing wrong. That's been great to see. Early in the spring, with sides and live BP, he's been able to take those adjustments and improve on them, on what he wanted to improve on, and we'll see how that spills over into competition."

On top of his on-field promise -- Toussaint pitched in 12 games between two Rookie levels in his debut season -- the D-backs' No. 5 prospect has impressed his organization with his makeup and maturity.

"Emotionally, mentally, Touki is beyond his years," Bell said. "His mother and father did a great job with him. He's respectful. You do feel like you can push him, and he would struggle and learn from it."

Toussaint brandishes an arsenal that includes a fastball that touches 95 mph and a curveball that rated as one of the best breaking pitches in his Draft class. Should the D-backs choose to challenge Toussaint, he could open 2015 with Class A Kane County at just 18.

Loudest tool: Peter O'Brien, C

The Minor League world will long remember the 2014 home run cchase between the Cubs' Kris Bryant and Rangers' Joey Gallo, but many probably don't remember that a third name was involved in that race deep into the summer. O'Brien had belted 34 home runs -- 33 as a member of the Yankees system before joining the D-backs in a trade deadline deal -- when a foul ball off his shin in just his fourth game with Double-A Mobile ended his season. This spring, Arizona's No. 8 prospect healthy and ready to let his bat roar again.

"He's an exceptional offensive player," Bell said. "His talent at the plate is exciting, and he's a leader wherever he's been. I've seen the players kind of gravitate toward him. The type of teammate he is, he's going to do really good things for us in the big leagues."

Despite playing in just 106 games last season, O'Brien still finished fifth in the Minor Leagues in home runs. Though his power potential is obvious, his eventually defensive home is not. Last year, the Miami native saw action in the outfield, at first base and behind the plate. Arizona is committed to letting O'Brien work at his catching craft and is unfazed by recent throwing struggles during Spring Training. O'Brien is likely headed to Double-A Mobile to start 2015.

At the crossroads: Stryker Trahan, C/OF

Like O'Brien, Trahan, a 2012 first-round pick, moved around the diamond in 2014, playing both corner outfield positions in addition to catching. After struggling to the tune of a .198/.264/.367 slash line in Class A South Bend, he was sent to short-season Hillsboro where he captured a Northwest League title with the Hops and regained some confidence both at and behind the plate, batting .257/.344/.496 in 30 games.

"He had a great end to the season in Hillsboro and then in instructional league as well," Bell said. "He looks good here in Spring Training. He's a good offensive player, and he's shown signs of being a plus defender behind the plate as well as in the outfield. He had 11 or 12 putouts in the outfield too, so there's some flexibility and versatility there. He does enough behind the plate to keep him there, and if there's ever a need to put him in the outfield, it's certainly something he proved he can do."

The D-backs' No. 16 prospect bashed 19 homers between his two levels last season and drove in 74 runs.

"I'd heard people say they were disappointed in the year outside the organization," Bell said, "and I don't think the organization looked at it that way. When you look at home runs, RBIs, bouncing around different positions, I thought it was a positive year."

Still just 20, Trahan is likely headed back to the Midwest League in 2015, at times likely to form an intriguing young battery with Toussaint in Kane County.

Major League-ready: Yasmany Tomas, 3B/OF

Though not a prospect in the traditional sense, Cuban defector Tomas could well test the Triple-A Pacific Coast League waters before making a name for himself in Arizona. The D-backs inked Tomas to a six-year, $68.5 million deal in December, but the 24-year-old will not have seen game action -- with the exception of Spring Training -- in more than a calendar year when the season opens. Tomas played mostly the corner outfield positions in Cuba's Serie Nacional, though he did see some action at third base where the D-backs have tested him heavily this spring.

"I can tell you I think people are excited about Yasmany -- the offense, for sure," Bell said. "His willingness to work at third has been good. It's something I think he's been up for and wants to make work. That's not to say he has to be there. He's an athletic guy, and we'll see."

More to keep an eye on: Right-handers Braden Shipley and Aaron Blair, Arizona's No. 2 and No. 5 prospects, were joined at the hip last season, pitching in South Bend, Visalia and Mobile together. That wasn't exactly the plan. "We'll move each guy at their own pace and the right time," Bell said, "but they are friends." … Despite their homer-friendly ballpark, the D-backs hit just 118 long balls in 2014, third-fewest in the National League. There is deep power in the Minor Leagues though. Beyond O'Brien's 34, four more D-backs prospects hit at least 22 last year, led by Rudy Flores' 28 with Visalia. ... Along with his terrific name, outfield prospect Socrates Brito flashed multi-tool promise last year at Class A Advanced, batting .284/.332/.395 with ten homers, 38 stolen bases and one of the best outfield arms in the system.