Diamondbacks Recall Jose Fernandez For MLB Debut
The Diamondbacks announced that infielder Jose Fernandez has been recalled to the active roster. He’ll be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. He will take the spot of first baseman Pavin Smith, who has been placed on the 10-day injured list with left elbow inflammation, retroactive to March 29th.
Fernandez, now 22, was an international signing out of Venezuela in 2021. Since then, he has climbed the minor league ladder. He never really hit much but he stole some bases and played all four infield positions.
He may have taken a step forward offensively last year. He got into 122 Double-A games and stepped to the plate 511 times. His 17 home runs more than doubled his previous high, which was the seven long balls he hit in the prior season. His .272/.321/.454 batting line was still not overwhelming, translating to a 98 wRC+. However, considering his speed and his defensive abilities, it was an intriguing jump.
The Diamondbacks gave him a 40-man roster spot in November, to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. In December, FanGraphs ranked him as the #42 prospect in the system. Arizona optioned him to the minors a few weeks ago, an unsurprising move since he had no Triple-A experience coming into this year. He does have one Triple-A game under his belt now but will quickly be thrust up to the show. He was perhaps chosen by default, as he was the only position player on the 40-man roster who wasn’t already in the majors or on the injured list.
The Snakes have a regular infield of Nolan Arenado, Geraldo Perdomo, Ketel Marte and Carlos Santana from left to right. With Smith out, they don’t really have a regular designated hitter. Utility guy Ildemaro Vargas is in that spot tonight. Fernandez gives the club a bit of depth all over and could perhaps serve as a pinch runner or defensive substitute. Given that every healthy position player on the 40-man is now on the active roster, another injury in the short-term will require Arizona to add a non-roster player.
Photo courtesy of Allan Henry, Imagn Images
D-Backs Select Four Players, Designate Tommy Henry
The Diamondbacks have added four players to keep them out of the Rule 5 draft: pitchers Kohl Drake, Mitch Bratt and Dylan Ray and infielder Jose Fernandez. Arizona only had three openings on the 40-man roster, so they designated lefty Tommy Henry for assignment.
Henry, 28, pitched just 6 2/3 innings in the big leagues this year. He has 181 innings of 5.07 ERA ball under his belt in the majors but wasn’t going to be a factor on next year’s staff after undergoing Tommy John surgery in late June. Henry had a decent showing with the ’23 D-backs, tossing 89 innings of 4.15 ERA ball, and he posted similar numbers in Triple-A the following season. However, he was clearly pitching through something in 2025, posting an 8.12 ERA in 11 Triple-A starts before hitting the injured list and ultimately undergoing surgery.
Any team can now claim Henry, but he’d need to be carried on the 40-man roster all winter before the 60-day IL becomes available again in spring training. Given his lack of consistent big league success to date and that lengthy injury rehab, there’s a good chance he’ll pass through waivers unclaimed. If Henry becomes a free agent, he’ll be an option to sign with the D-backs or another club on a minor league deal. He still has four-plus seasons of club control remaining.
Drake is one of the prospects the D-backs acquired when trading Merrill Kelly to the Rangers this past July. The 25-year-old was an 11th-rounder in 2022 and has put himself on the prospect map with solid performances in each of the past two seasons (2.29 ERA across three levels in ’24, 4.23 ERA between Double-A and Triple-A this past season). Drake punched out more than 35% of his opponents in 2024 and more than 28% at higher levels in 2025. He sits 92-94 mph with his heater and has three secondary pitches as well as solid command. A big league debut in 2026 seems likely.
Like Drake, Bratt came to the Snakes in that Kelly trade. Texas drafted him in the fifth round back in ’21. He pitched 122 1/3 innings with a sharp 3.38 ERA at the Double-A level in 2025 and logged even more encouraging rate stats: 29.3% strikeout rate and 4.2% walk rate. As with Drake, he could get his first big league look next year, though the D-backs may want to give him some run in Triple-A before that point.
The 24-year-old Ray was Arizona’s fourth-round selection in 2022. The 6’3″, 230-pound righty out of Alabama pitched well for 10 starts in a pitcher-friendly Double-A setting before being torched for a 6.30 ERA through 18 starts in an exorbitantly hitter-friendly environment in Triple-A Reno. He set down 20.1% of opponents on strikes and issued walks at a 9% clip. Both are worse than league-average, but Ray draws praise for a smattering of roughly average offerings and could be a back-end starter or swingman.
Fernandez is an infielder — primarily shortstop and third base — who spent his age-21 season in Double-A this past year. In 511 plate appearances, he hit .272/.321/.454 (99 wRC+) with 17 homers, a dozen steals, a 20.4% strikeout rate and a 6.3% walk rate. This was the first season he’s shown any semblance of power, as he’d previously been touted more for his athleticism, raw tools and projection more than his performance. He’ll hope for a big season in Triple-A next year, and he could factor into the big league mix either at third base or in a utility capacity if he can manage that.