Brewers in AFL: Youngster Diaz gaining valuable experience

After a year that saw him join the Brewers in an offseason trade and then win the organization’s Minor League Player of the Year award, Isan Diaz is now showcasing his upside as the Arizona Fall League’s third-youngest position player.

Acquired from the D-backs in late January as part of the deal that brought Aaron Hill and Chase Anderson to Milwaukee and sent Jean Segura and Tyler Wagner to Arizona, Diaz’s selection for the Fall League comes on the heels of an impressive full-season debut with Class A Wisconsin.

At age 20, Diaz hit 20 homers to lead the Midwest League, tied for third in RBIs (75) and finished fourth in slugging percentage (.469). The performance was an impressive follow-up to his 2015 campaign in the Rookie-level Pioneer League, where he batted .360/.436/.640 with 13 home runs en route to winning the circuit’s MVP award.

“It was a fun year,” said Diaz, the Brewers’ No. 8 prospect and No. 96 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list . “Obviously very cold up there and I had a lot of adjustments to make throughout the season, but I was learning a lot and there were a lot of adjustments made, mentally and physically.”

Now suiting up for the Salt River Rafters in Arizona, Diaz is relishing playing alongside and against other top prospects just as he embraced his trade to the Brewers in the offseason.

“It was a great opportunity,” said Diaz about the trade. “I’m very blessed to be a part of something like that early in my career, and I’m very honored to be with the Brewers today and here in the Fall League.

“Mentally, with all these older guys, I’m trying to improve and learn. These guys know a lot about the game.”

In terms of his performance, Diaz has opened the Fall League by batting .222 with nine strikeouts in his first 27 at-bats for the Rafters, although he has more than held his own …

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