Diamondbacks prospect Daulton Varsho is listed as a catcher. It is the position with which he identifies, the one he most enjoys playing. But Varsho understands his path to the majors as a catcher in Arizona is not without obstacles. And the Diamondbacks believe that catching isn’t the only way Varsho can contribute at the major league level.
For some in the organization, Varsho is the Diamondbacks’ most fascinating prospect. He has produced offensively at every stop of his minor league career. He can run, stealing 21 bases last season. He has displayed aptitude behind the plate. And he showed last season he can handle the outfield, as well, looking surprisingly natural in center field late in the Double-A season.
Varsho has a chance not just to be a good major league player – he has a chance to be a truly unique one.
“There’s no one like that right now, period,” said Jonny Gomes, the Diamondbacks’ minor league outfield/baserunning coordinator. “It’s pretty rare to get a Cody Bellinger first base/center field. That’s rare. But with how important catching is these days and just with his (Varsho’s) skill-set, we’re super lucky to have him.”
Over the past 50 years, only four players have played at least 10 games both as a center fielder and catcher in the same season. The Royals’ Ed Kirkpatrick (1971, 1973) and the Tigers’ Brandon Inge (2004, 2008) each did it twice, while the Astros’ Craig Biggio (1990) and the Cardinals’ Eli Marrero (2002) accomplished it once.
Perhaps the main reason the feat is so rare is because players often end up as catchers because they don’t possess attributes – such as speed, range or body type – required to play other positions. Varsho is different.
The son of former big league player and coach Gary Varsho, the younger Varsho grew up around major league clubhouses. He found himself gravitating toward the catchers. He always wanted to be one.
He still does, but Varsho moved to the outfield last season without complaint, knowing it could speed his path to the majors. Last season, the Diamondbacks’ Carson Kelly established himself at the major league level, putting himself in position to be the club’s catcher of the present and future.
“Catcher is priority number one,” Varsho said. “(But) if there’s a situation where I have to go out and play the outfield or a different position, I’ll be there ready to go.”
As Cactus League play ramps up, Varsho is expected to see time not just as a catcher this spring but also at all three outfield positions. He is likely to open the season in Triple-A Reno, but he represents major league depth at all of those positions.
Gomes does not sound surprised by how competent Varsho looked in his first professional exposure to the outfield last year, not after seeing flashes of Varsho’s athleticism behind the plate.
“He’s super fast,” Gomes said. “His pop time coming out of the hole to get a bunt is literally the fastest I’ve ever seen in my life. That definitely translates into a first step in the outfield. He’s definitely a plus runner.”
The Diamondbacks don’t plan on playing Varsho at additional positions – second base has been mentioned as a possibility – but General Manager Mike Hazen didn’t rule it out in the future.
“I don’t think there’s anything on the field he can’t really do,” Hazen said. “I don’t know that he’d be playing shortstop, but the other positions on the field I would think he could handle a lot of them.”
Beyond Kelly’s emergence, there are two other significant factors in Varsho’s timeline, and they are intertwined: his bat and his readiness to catch at the major league level. That is, the former is ahead of the latter.
The Diamondbacks like Varsho’s potential to catch, but they believe he could use further refinement at the position. Diamondbacks General Manager Mike Hazen said this is no knock on Varsho’s catching. It is a demanding and difficult position, he said, but often good-hitting catchers can hit their way out from behind the plate even when clubs like their potential to grow into solid defenders.
And Varsho has done nothing but hit at every stop in the minors, including last season in Double-A, when he hit .301/.378/.520 with 18 homers, leading the Southern League with a .899 OPS. Hazen acknowledged the possibility that Varsho’s bat forces its way to the majors, particularly if the major league club finds itself in need of offense.
“That’s definitely a possibility,” Hazen said. “We think he’s really good behind the plate, so developing him at that position is still a priority. But if he forces his way to the big leagues in that way (offensively) we’re not going to …”
Hazen paused, then continued.
“Every game is going to matter this year,” he said. “So we are going to behave reflective of that.”
Reach Piecoro at (602) 444-8680 or nick.piecoro@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on Twitter @nickpiecoro.
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‘There’s no one like that right now, period’: D-Backs’ Varsho a one-of-a-kind prospect - AZCentral.com
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