Surging D-backs prospect Demetrio Crisantes ends season with 57-game on-base streak
Sep 19, 2024, 7:26 PM
The Arizona Diamondbacks have a 20-year-old prospect on his way to making minor league baseball history.
Infielder Demetrio Crisantes, a 2022 seventh-round pick from Nogales High School, reached base safely in 57 consecutive games from June 25 to the end of the regular season at Single-A Visalia in a breakout campaign.
Crisantes is tracking down the unofficial MiLB record of 71 straight games, set by former Boston Red Sox players Kevin Millar and Kevin Youkilis. Crisantes will have the opportunity to do next season.
The prospect joined MLB Network’s Intentional Talk last week, and Millar himself got to ask him about coming for his record.
“100%,” Crisantes said. “I read that you had 71, and I told my mom I’m gonna get there and my dad too. I’m gonna get past 71, I’m gonna break that record.”
Demetrio Crisantes is coming for your MiLB on-base streak record, @KMillar15 👀
The @VisaliaRawhide standout joins Intentional Talk from the bus ON THE WAY to a playoff game to talk about his 57-game on-base streak and more! pic.twitter.com/hVIv0JyhaI
— Intentional Talk (@IntentionalTalk) September 12, 2024
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Beyond the on-base streak, Crisantes has dominated for the Rawhide since his promotion from rookie ball in June.
Crisantes hit .333/.429/.478 in 63 games with 16 double, six home runs and 20 steals. He ranked 12th in the California League in steals despite the delayed start. And his .921 OPS ranks sixth among minor leaguers with at least 400 plate appearances — D-backs catcher Adrian Del Castillo is first at 1.017, according to FanGraphs.
On Wednesday, MiLB named Crisantes to the California League All-Star team, along with fellow Visalia teammates outfielder Druw Jones, designated hitter Angel Ortiz and pitcher Daniel Nunez.
Crisantes jumped from outside the top 30 to No. 13 on MLB Pipeline’s D-backs prospects rankings this season, and Pipeline named him Arizona’s breakout prospect of 2024.
D-backs farm director Shaun Larkin said Crisantes is as good a bet as anyone to break the on-base record given his approach.
“He just has a good, quality, advanced approach, especially for his age and for the levels he was at this year,” Larkin told Arizona Sports. “Swings at strikes, takes balls, moves the ball forward, hits it hard. And you combine all those things, especially at the A-ball levels, you’re gonna have a lot of success.
“You watch him take batting practice, you watch how he goes about his work, the conversations you have with him. He’s just an advanced, confident hitter who’s humble enough to keep working but confident enough to not be afraid of anything.”
Demetrio Crisantes finished the Single-A regular season with a 57-game on-base streak!
The @Dbacks‘ No. 13 prospect and the @VisaliaRawhide begin the Cal League playoffs tonight. pic.twitter.com/hVleFUkqrl
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) September 10, 2024
Larkin said Crisantes will likely start next season one level up in High-A Hillsboro.
“Our job is to make sure we’re constantly putting our players in a position of success, while also making sure they’re being challenged,” Larkin said. “And he’s proved the challenge point at the levels he was at this past year, and I think he’ll continue moving up.”
Druw Jones closes season strong
Jones, Arizona’s Minor League Player of the Month for August, is also expected to start next season in Hillsboro after spending all of 2024 in Visalia.
The 2022 No. 2 overall pick produced a batting line of .275/.409/.405 with six home runs and 21 stolen bases while continuing to play elite defense in center field. He finished the season 12-for-36 with four extra-base hits and six walks over his final 10 games.
Jones was held back by injuries after the draft in 2022 and throughout the 2023 season, so getting a full year under his belt was valuable.
“Just a great year on lot of levels for him,” Larkin said. “Not only the production, but the mechanical adjustments he made, the mindset he had and how he handled the ups and downs of a full season, the health, the teammate part of it, just a great year for Druw. We’ll continue to push him as he’s ready. And I think he proved that he’s ready for the next challenge.”
The 20-year-old is Arizona’s No. 2 prospect on MLB Pipeline’s list.
Druw Jones calls game … off the barn! 🛖@VisaliaRawhide | @Dbacks | @jones_druw pic.twitter.com/Ynjefpq4c5
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) June 12, 2024
