The Visalia Rawhide (High A; California League) and Arizona Diamondbacks have announced a two-year extension of their player development contract, thus maintaining their affiliation through 2020.
“We are excited to announce that we have extended our partnership with the Visalia Rawhide for at least the next 2 years,” said Mike Bell, Director of Player Development for the Diamondbacks. “Tom Seidler and Jennifer Reynolds have worked hard along with the city of Visalia to continue to improve the Recreation Park. Visalia is a terrific community, one that we are proud to be a part of.”
Arizona has aggressively developed prospects in Visalia over the past 12 years. Rawhide alumni such as Max Scherzer, Archie Bradley, Trevor Bauer, Paul Goldschmidt, and Mitch Haniger have all gone on to make a substantial impact at the Major League level. The Rawhide reached the California League playoffs for four straight seasons between 2013 and 2016 and are in the midst of a playoff hunt this year.
The Diamondbacks are the second-longest tenured partner in Visalia professional baseball history, behind only the Minnesota Twins (1977-92), who sent future stars such as Kirby Puckett and Kent Hrbek to Visalia. The Arizona affiliation, which began in 2007, will reach its 14th season in 2020.
“We’re fortunate to have great working relationships with our partners – the City of Visalia and the Arizona Diamondbacks,” said Rawhide General Manager Jennifer Reynolds. “We are thankful for our partnership with the Diamondbacks that continues to send some of the top prospects in baseball through Visalia and are proud to have a facility with a charming personality for affordable family entertainment in the greater Visalia community.”
You can read more about the current state of affiliations on our Affiliate Dance page. We expect a number of affiliations to be renewed in coming weeks, but there are always intriguing openings at every level of baseball. As you can see on the Affiliate Dance page, MLB and MiLB teams can renew their existing affiliations at any point. At the end of the 2018 season, teams can file to search new affiliation options, so there’s always a shuffle of sorts at the end of the year.