Catching up with D-backs top prospect Ryan Waldschmidt

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D-backs No. 1 prospect Ryan Waldschmidt (MLB Pipeline's No. 56 overall) has gotten off to a hot start to the season with Triple-A Reno, slashing .298/.431/.532 with a 147 wRC+ across 12 contests. He crushed his first homer of the year Thursday and finished a double shy of the cycle – a feat which he bypassed in favor of dropping down a bunt to help ensure an Aces victory.

My colleague Jesse Borek caught up with Waldschmidt after the game to discuss his feel for the new level, his approach at the dish and playing alongside a supremely talented group of fellow D-backs prospects. Here's his conversation with Waldschmidt, edited for length and clarity:

Q: How are you able to cover the inner third of the plate so consistently? I feel like you never get jammed.

Waldschmidt: My thought process as a hitter – all the way down to my setup and my stance – is just simplicity and being on time when the pitcher releases the ball. I'm always on the fastball, no matter what the count is. I'm always looking for that, the hardest pitch he's got.

And I think the way my swing is when I'm set up and I'm in my launch position, I can kind of hang out and wait. As long as I'm always on the hardest one, it allows me to just cover that inner third because I'm looking for that fastball, and as soon as I see that straight one out of the hand, I just turn and go.

I think that's just helped me throughout my entire career so far with plate discipline, strike zone awareness, all of it, because when you're on the hardest one, you really allow yourself some time to see the off-speed and really just track pitches to your best ability.

Q: I’ve heard you mention before having watched Joey Votto when you were younger and that you picked up your plate discipline and approach from him. When did that start?

Waldschmidt: One of my good friends from home, his dad was a hitting coach for the Reds when I was growing up, so he was always one of my coaches and he would always show me Joey Votto. That was the guy. Obviously, I'm not a left-handed hitter. I didn't model my swing after him, but he just always talks about the ability to control the strike zone.

He said, “Hitting is all about just being on time and swinging at the right pitches,” so I've always carried that throughout my career and I really believe in that with all my heart, and I think that's just one of the biggest things that I take with me every game.

Q: You’ve played at every full-season stop in the D-backs’ Minor League system. What has it been like to acclimate to each level? Are there subtle differences?

Waldschmidt: There's obviously skill differences – I wouldn't say it's crazy, but people get to these levels for a reason, and I think that obviously coming into it, you want to prove yourself. You want to prove that you belong at the level and you want to show immediate success. I feel like even at the beginning of this year, I felt like I went out of myself early, just trying to show that I belonged.

I understand now that I’m here for a reason. They put me at this level because I belong here. And the day when you get your Major League debut, it's because you're supposed to be there. I think just having that mindset, it really just relaxes you as a player because you understand that they believe in you. As long as you believe in yourself, you'll find success, and I think that's the biggest thing for me.

Q: You’re playing with Tommy Troy (D-backs No. 4 prospect) and LuJames Groover (No. 10) again. What’s it like for you three to be together banging on the door of the big leagues with Reno, a pretty prospect-heavy Triple-A squad?

Waldschmidt: I love it. We talked the other day about how young our team is here, and I really just think it shows the development that Arizona has with its players. Tommy and Groover are great hitters, and I think we kind of all feed off each other while watching each other hit. I think we really just help each other out in the aspect of just giving each other confidence.

It's just really cool to have that core young group of guys coming up together because hopefully we're going to be playing together for a long time, and that really helps when it comes down to winning championships and winning a World Series. Everyone's got a great skill level, that's part of it, that's why you're a professional baseball player. But I think the real thing that separates is kind of that bond and that trust that you build with each other, and I think that's what's going to be huge here in the future for us.