The Diamondbacks announced that they have designated the infielder’s contract It’s James Groover. A partner who plays football José Fernandez optioned to Triple-A Reno in an active program matchup. The right hand Taylor Rashi he was selected for the assignment to open the 40 man position.
Groover, now 24, was a second-round pick in the 2023 draft. As a hitter, Groover is known for his quality at the plate, though there are questions about how much of an impact he can make when he connects.
In 2024, he missed time with a broken wrist and played in just 61 games. Last year, he stayed healthy enough to play in 123 Double-A contests. He stepped to the plate 547 times. He walked 11.5% and struck out only 14.4% of the time, both solid stats, but only scored 12 runs. Overall, his .309/.399/.434 line led to a 120 wRC+, but he got help from a .347 batting average on balls in play.
He was in Triple-A this year, with some consistency in the output. His 14.5% walk rate and 16.8% strikeout rate are good but he still has just three runs in the Pacific Coast League with a hit. His .322/.421/.452 line leads to a 116 wRC+ but he got a lot of help from a .381 BABIP.
Defensively, Grover was a corner infielder, with little second base experience. Baseball America currently ranks him as the #5 prospect in the Arizona program. FanGraphs ranked him #9 in the offseason.
Arizona has Nolan Arenado hot corner, so Groover will probably be used more in the first base/designated hitter mix. Pavin Smith he just came off the injured list and should get some regular playing time, though he’s hitting lefty with a notable team split. Groover is good and can cover Smith, though maybe the Snakes will be comfortable against the good guys.
While Smith was out, the Snakes used the Fernández combination once Ildemaro Vargas cover first, with Adrian Del Castillo getting more DH time. Del Castillo is hitting just .192/.252/.325 on the year. Vargas began his season with an incredible 24-game hitting streak, which was actually 27 games from last season, but he has hit .186/.218/.237 since then. Fernández also hit .342/.359/.500 in 78 plate appearances to start the year but just .180/.232/.225 in 99 plate appearances since then.
Rush, 30, signed a minor league deal with the Diamondbacks at the start of the season. He was listed in early April, though was optioned to the minors after allowing four earned runs in 3 2/3 innings. Combined with his performance last year, he now has 20 major league innings under his belt, with a 5.40 earned run average, 29.9% strikeout rate, 10.3% walk rate and 44.2% ground ball rate.
His numbers in the minors are similar, as he gets hit but also has less control. Since the start of 2025, he has thrown 67 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 3.48 ERA. His 10.3% walk rate is a bit high but he has struck out 24.7% of the batters he has faced and induced grounders in nearly half of the balls in play allowed. He is able to get punchouts despite the low velocity, as his four-seamers reach nearly 90 miles per hour. He also throws a splitter, slider and curveball.
DFA limbo can last as long as a week, although the withdrawal process takes 48 hours. That means the Snakes can take up to five days to assess the trade’s merits, though it could put him on immediate termination. If he were to go through unsolicited waivers, he would be stuck as an undrafted depth. He doesn’t have three years of service time or previous work directly, so he won’t be eligible for free agency.
Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images
