Drey Jameson

Jameson broke out as a high-upside starting pitching prospect in 2021, doing his best to shelve reliever concerns that stemmed from his stature (6-foot, 165 pounds) and control. However in 2022, he had to navigate extreme hitter's parks in Amarillo, Reno and the Pacific Coast League in general. He quickly forced a promotion from Double-A, but the PCL got the better of him over the span of 22 starts. It's not like he righted the ship prior to his MLB promotion -- he gave up 17 earned runs in his final 15.2 innings (three starts) for Reno. However, he was closer to the pitcher he was at Double-A against big-league hitters, going at least five innings in all four starts while tallying a 1.48 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 24:7 K:BB in 24.1 innings. Jameson primarily threw his four-seamer, two-seamer and slider in the big leagues, also mixing in a changeup and curveball. The two mid-90s fastballs (can touch 97 mph) and mid-80s slider were his strikeout weapons, and while he did well in a small sample against lefty hitters in the majors, opposite-handed hitters logged a .933 OPS against him in the minors (.701 OPS against RHB). He might not have the truly dominant fastball/slider combo to get by without an offspeed pitch that neutralizes lefties, but the Diamondbacks will give him every chance to develop as a big-league starter in 2023. Read Past Outlooks