'Be a sponge': No. 19 prospect leads A's Fall League group with do-it-all mentality
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Davis Diaz starred at Acalanes High School in California before heading to spend three years at Vanderbilt, moving around the infield throughout his Commodores career. So it was a little surprising when the A’s took him in the eighth round of the 2024 Draft and announced him as a catcher, a position he had played as an amateur for a grand total of … a half of a game.
“I think I had probably five innings of high school experience before that,” Diaz said with a laugh.
As luck -- or the baseball gods -- would have it, A’s scouting director Eric Kubota happened to be at that game, a seed planted in 2021 that wouldn’t be watered until three years later after his Vandy career. And rather than run from the experiment, Diaz decided to embrace it.
“Honestly, I was excited,” Diaz said. “Any opportunity I could get. In general, just being drafted was a huge opportunity. And when they brought up catching, honestly, the first emotion was excitement, just being able to learn a new position. Each day at the ballpark, I felt like I had an opportunity to learn something new.”
It continues to be a work in progress, and his defensive development is a big area of focus for the A’s No. 19 prospect during his time with the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League this year. He’s caught a grand total of 128 professional games, including 47 during a 2026 season that saw him reach Triple-A for the first time. He also got plenty of reps at third while seeing time at second and first base.
“I think the easiest thing was them saying to stay athletic back there,” Diaz said. “I like to pretend I'm an infielder just behind the plate. I think the hardest thing is just kind of learning each pitcher, understanding how they throw, what their strengths are, using it against different hitters and game plan and all that.”
While learning the complexities of being a backstop, Diaz’s offense took a nice step forward in 2026. He’s always had good bat-to-ball skills, with a career 15.4 percent strikeout rate to back up that claim, but that had always come without any impact. That started to change this year, as he reached double-digit home runs for the first time and easily eclipsed his extra-base hit total and slugging percentage from his first full season of pro ball. The key to unlocking some thump? Not thinking about it.
“It might sound crazy, but honestly just not even trying,” Diaz said. “I think when I got myself in trouble was when I started to try and produce more power. I went back to last year, I found myself in that hole a lot trying to do way too much and I told myself this offseason, ‘Whatever happens, happens.’ I'm just not going to try and do it. And you know, funny how things work out in baseball like that.”
It wasn’t all success for Diaz in 2026. He missed a month of the season after a hit by pitch caused a concussion and a facial fracture. His 21-game stint in Triple-A did not go well, posting just a .595 OPS over 74 at-bats, but he sees all of it as part of the process.
“I think failing is real important,” Diaz said. “I feel like that's the only way you can really learn and make adjustments. Just seeing the guys around there, a lot of them had big league service time, so just watching how they go about their business. If they're struggling a little bit, just watch how they handle it and just learn as much as I can from them. Just be a sponge.”
A’s hitters in the Fall League
Breyson Guedez, OF (No. 9): Guedez was a key acquisition during the 2025 international signing period with a bonus of close to $1.5 million. After a solid Dominican Summer League debut, he jumped straight to full-season ball in 2026 and he performed well, with a .309/.353/.460 line with Stockton before getting bumped up to High-A Lansing. The 19-year-old needs to improve his approach at the plate to get to his offensive ceiling.
Cole Conn, C/OF (No. 21): A former three-sport standout in high school, Conn is a slightly undersized, athletic, switch-hitting catcher who performed his way from Double-A to Triple-A in 2026 (.852 combined OPS). He started getting to more impact this past year while also stealing 28 bases. He has work to do on his receiving, but his arm is a real asset (32.7 percent caught-stealing rate this year).
A’s pitchers in the Fall League
Kenya Huggins, RHP (No. 23): A fourth-round pick of the Reds out of Chipola Junior College in Florida in 2022, Huggins had Tommy John surgery in June of his first full year, returning close to the end of 2024. He was back in Single-A Daytona in 2025 when he was sent to the A’s in return for Miguel Andujar at the Trade Deadline and headed to High-A post-trade. The move to Double-A in 2026 was uneven, though he was a bit more effective when moved into a relief role, where his mid-90s fastball and upper-80s slider have the chance to play up.
Jay Dill, RHP: Taken in the 18th round of the 2025 Draft after closing games at Troy University, Dill began his first full season of pro ball with Single-A Stockton, but spent much of it up a couple of levels with Double-A Midland. He misses bats mostly with his fastball-slider combination (30 percent miss rate in 2026), striking out 10.7 per nine on the year. He needs to refine his command (career 5.6 BB/9) to have a chance at big league bullpen innings.
Jared Johnson, RHP: Johnson’s pro journey began when the Braves took him in the 14th round of the 2019 Draft and went over slot (around $260K to sign him). Once on Atlanta’s Top 30, he had Tommy John surgery wipe out his 2022 season, then was dealt to the A’s for Nick Allen following the '24 campaign. He then missed all of 2025 with more elbow trouble, though he did pitch at the upper levels in '26.
Tucker Novotny, LHP: An 18th-rounder in 2024 out of Minnesota, Novotny spent his second full season of pro ball largely pitching out of the bullpen for Lansing. The 6-foot-5 lefty sits low 90s with his fastball, though he misses bats with it (33 percent) and backs it up with a slider and changeup. He could have a future as a lefty specialist (.186 BAA vs. LHH), though it’s interesting to note he threw well in seven starts (2.97 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, .198 BAA).
Grant Richardson, LHP: Richardson had Tommy John surgery that forced him to miss the 2025 season at Grand Canyon University, but the A’s took a shot on his stuff from the left side in the sixth round and he signed rather than transfer to Mississippi as planned. He’s had trouble staying on the mound -- he threw just 9 1/3 innings for Single-A Stockton this year -- but pre-surgery, he was 94-96 mph with good life and a wipeout slider in college.