Four Sod Poodles Named to Arizona Fall League Roster
AMARILLO, TX (September 16, 2026) – Major League Baseball announced rosters for the 2026 Arizona Fall League (AFL) season yesterday. The list features a handful of current and former Sod Poodles plus additional Arizona Diamondbacks’ prospects with AFL Opening Day scheduled for Saturday, October 3. The AFL is comprised of
AMARILLO, TX (September 16, 2026) – Major League Baseball announced rosters for the 2026 Arizona Fall League (AFL) season yesterday. The list features a handful of current and former Sod Poodles plus additional Arizona Diamondbacks’ prospects with AFL Opening Day scheduled for Saturday, October 3.
The AFL is comprised of all 30 MLB organizations, divided into six teams, with each team representing five affiliations in the Minor League system. Each Major League organization sends at least seven of their prospects to the AFL to complete the six rosters. This year, a total of eight minor league players will represent the Diamondbacks as they take the field for the Salt River Rafters.
Four of these Arizona prospects that were named to the AFL roster have donned a Sod Poodles uniform this season, including Demetrio Crisantes, John West, Joe Ariola, and Yassel Soler.
Crisantes, a 22-year-old second baseman from Nogales, Arizona, played 35 games with the Sod Poodles in 2026. He batted .319 (43x135) with 32 runs, 12 doubles, two triples, five home runs, 26 RBI, and a .961 OPS. A seventh-round selection in the 2022 MLB draft, he hit for the second cycle in Sod Poodles history on June 28 against Frisco this season and was promoted to Triple-A Reno on July 21. Crisantes is the top-ranked prospect in the D-backs organization and ranks 74th in MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list.
West, a 24-year-old right-handed pitcher from Worcester, Massachusetts, debuted for the Soddies on August 26 in a start against the Corpus Christi Hooks at HODGETOWN. A 12th-round draft pick out of Boston College in 2024, he made four appearances (two starts) with Amarillo down the stretch and posted a 5.27 ERA (8 ER/13.2 IP) with 11 strikeouts.
Ariola, a 22-year-old left-handed pitcher from New York, New York, has rocketed up the Arizona farm system, beginning the year in Single-A Visalia and was recently promoted to Amarillo on September 10. A 2025 seventh-round draft pick out of Wake Forest, he has not allowed a run in either of his two appearances out of the Amarillo bullpen while recording four strikeouts over 3.0 IP.
Soler, a 20-year-old infielder from the Dominican Republic, has yet to debut for the Sod Poodles, but was added to the Amarillo playoff roster on September 15. This season in High-A Hillsboro, he batted .261 (105x403) with 56 runs, 16 doubles, one triple, 13 home runs, 71 RBI, and a .737 OPS.
The remaining Diamondbacks prospects that made the AFL roster include LHP Luke Craig, RHP Connor Foley, RHP Patrick Forbes, and OF Nathan Hall. Additionally, current Sod Poodles bench coach Ronald Ramirez and current Sod Poodles Athletic Trainer Haruki Mukohchi will serve on the coaching and support staff for the Rafters.
Fans can watch the Sod Poodles in the postseason for free on the Bally Sports Live app or at BallySports.com. For radio listeners, all Soddies playoff games will be broadcast live on NewsTalk 940 AM, the Official Radio Home of the Amarillo Sod Poodles. Listen Live and Watch Live links are available HERE.
Should Amarillo advance to the Texas League Championship, they will play their potential final home game of 2026 on Sunday, September 20 at 6:05 p.m. against the winner of the Texas League North Division Series. Tickets for Game One of the Championship Series at HODGETOWN can be purchased at sodpoodles.com or by calling the box office.