The Diamondbacks are set to recall Jordan Lawlar from Triple-A Reno, creating room after the top prospect essentially forced his way to the big leagues with a scorching start to the season, sources said Sunday evening, May 11.
In 37 games with Reno, Lawlar, 22, hit .336/.413/.579 with 23 extra-base hits and 13 steals in 14 tries.
The move comes on the same day manager Torey Lovullo offered clues to how the club could find at-bats for Lawlar even with established and productive players at shortstop (Geraldo Perdomo), second base (Ketel Marte) and third base (Eugenio Suarez) — the three positions Lawlar has played this season in Reno.
Lovullo said he believes that if Lawlar were to play perhaps four games a week at various positions, it would be enough playing time not to stunt his development.
“I wouldn’t mind it, that’s for sure,” Lovullo said. “I want impact players here.”
The one thing Lovullo said he was initially worried about was the potential for Lawlar to struggle defensively at any of the positions, but he made it sound like the club’s internal belief in Lawlar’s versatility has quelled those concerns.
“My questions are — I know he’s going to impact the game offensively, but you can’t totally count on that all the time — what’s he going to do defensively?” Lovullo said. “Is he able to move around comfortably and play three positions and make his plays? The answer is yes.”
The Diamondbacks had wanted Lawlar to play regularly in the minors to open the year. He suffered through an injury-plagued 2024 season with only 105 plate appearances.
Lawlar has actually cooled off at the plate in recent days, going 6 for 35 (.171) over his past eight games. Over an 18-game stretch from April 10 through May 2, Lawlar hit .466/.536/.918 with six homers in 73 at-bats.
“We are very well aware of Jordan Lawlar and his progression and his development and he is coming on quickly,” Lovullo said. “We know that and he’s doing his job. I’m really proud of him because he is a very talented player that is knocking as hard as you can at this door, at the big-league door.”
Lawlar made his debut in 2023 at the age of 21 but did not produce in limited at-bats, hitting .129 (4 for 31) with 11 strikeouts as he struggled to drive the ball.
Lawlar is widely regarded as one of the better prospects in baseball. He ranks fourth on MLB.com’s Top 100 list and 10th on Baseball America’s.
