Diamondbacks call up prospect LuJames Groover, option Jose Fernandez

PHOENIX — The Arizona Diamondbacks are calling up corner infield prospect LuJames Groover from Triple-A Reno, the No. 8 prospect in the system, ranked by ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel.

The Diamondbacks have optioned infielder Jose Fernandez and designated pitcher Taylor Rashi for assignment.

Groover is set to make his big league debut on Friday against the Washington Nationals at Chase Field.

LuJames Groover’s minor-league production

Groover has been a top 10 hitter in the Pacific Coast League in batting average (.322) and on-base percentage (.421), as the 24-year-old has a great hit tool and works his way on base often. He has a hit over power profile but popped 12 home runs with 23 doubles last season in Double-A Amarillo.

He is a career .302 hitter in the minor leagues.

“He’s shown us a really good job of managing the strike zone, putting the ball in play, taking his hits,” Diamondbacks farm director Chris Slivka said last month. “Situational hitting has been really good. He’s doing a lot of things that we value as an organization. I know the slug numbers probably aren’t where he wants them to be, but we’ve always prioritized these guys being hit-first guys and then the power comes as they continue to get into their at-bats and get count leverage and take their shots.”

LuJames Groover to dead center 😤

Groover's 3rd home run of the year gives us a 3-run lead pic.twitter.com/9WaiLhL4SG

— Reno Aces (@Aces) June 3, 2026

The 2023 second-round pick has spent most of his time this season playing third base but has also played 17 games at first base. He had some hiccups defensively in spring training and has seven errors at third base, but none at first base this year.

Groover is the latest in a line of well-regarded hitting prospects to receive a call-up this season after Tommy Troy, Ryan Waldschmidt and Fernandez, who has spent the most time in the big leagues this year. All four are right-handed hitters.

From MLB Pipeline:

Batting from a straight-up stance, the right-handed slugger keeps things loose but controlled in the box and doesn’t have much trouble shooting all pitch types into play as a result. … He’s still yet to strike out more than 15 percent of the time in either of his first two full seasons. With that contact comes fringy pop, so it remains a hit-over-power profile.

Jose Fernandez optioned

Fernandez gets sent down with a .255/.289/.352 slash line, three home runs and seven doubles. He was a standout early this season, hitting two home runs in his big-league debut, including a clutch long ball off Detroit Tigers closer Kenley Jansen.

He held an .819 OPS at the end of April, but the league made its adjustments and he has not received the same playing time. Since May 1, he is only batting .183, so he will get opportunities to find a rhythm in Triple-A, a level he has only one game of experience in.

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