Toussaint’s debut catches eye of Padres coach
SAN DIEGO – Former Diamondbacks prospect Touki Toussaint made his major-league debut this week, tossing six innings of one-run ball for the Atlanta Braves. Among those following Toussaint from afar was Padres bullpen coach Doug Bochtler.
“To watch him go out there and take the ball and perform the way that he performed, I couldn’t have been happier,” said Bochtler, who was Toussaint’s pitching coach in Low-A Kane County in 2015, the year he was traded to the Braves. “It was a great debut.”
Toussaint’s trade was one of the more controversial deals made by the club’s previous regime. Essentially, he was sold to the Braves, who were willing to take on right-hander Bronson Arroyo – and the roughly $10 million owed him – so long as they got Toussaint, as well.
The club justified the deal by saying that it needed to clear payroll space in order to add pieces to the roster the following winter. In theory, that money was spent on right-hander Zack Greinke, who signed as a free agent six months later.
“I didn’t understand the trade, but then again I was an A-ball pitching coach,” said Bochtler, who is in his third season with the Padres. “I don’t know what all factors played into it. I was disappointed to see a talent like that leave the organization.”
Toussaint was always viewed as a risky asset, though one with significant upside. He possesses a mid-90s fastball and a good curveball but hadn’t had a year with a walk rate under four per nine innings prior to this season.
“Everybody talks about how he’s got this great curveball, (but) his fastball has run life to it, which is beneficial as long as you can keep that in the lane you’re trying to throw to,” Bochtler said. “I think he can be a Number 3 starter, which is hard to do at this level.”
Toussaint was optioned back to the Triple-A following his debut on Monday.
In pursuit?
According to a report by Nikkan Sports, the Diamondbacks are showing interest in signing Japanese pitcher Shunpei Yoshikawa, a 23-year-old right-hander who is looking to bypass Japan’s top league, Nippon Professional Baseball, in favor of pro ball in the U.S.
If he does sign, he would be the first Japanese pitcher since Junichi Tazawa to sign out of a Japanese industrial league, which is sort of like independent ball in the U.S. but the players are technically amateurs.
Yoshikawa, whom the report described as a 6-foot sinker-baller with a 92-mph fastball, played college baseball in Japan and is in his second season in the industrial league.
Short hops
❚ Right-hander Randall Delgado, who was designated for assignment by the Diamondbacks and later released, re-signed with the organization on a minor-league contract. He will report to Triple-A Reno.
❚ The Diamondbacks sent left-hander Joshua Javier to the Texas Rangers on Friday to complete the trade for reliever Jake Diekman. He was the player to be named later in the deal that also sent pitching prospect Wei-Chieh Huang to the Rangers. Javier, 19, has pitched parts of three seasons in the lowest levels of the Diamondbacks’ system. This season, he had a 2.80 ERA in 351⁄3 innings in the rookie-level Arizona League. He has a three-pitch mix with a fastball that ranges from 91-93 mph and a change-up that’s ahead of his curveball, according to a scout familiar with him. Javier has a chance to develop as a starting pitcher.