Diamondbacks' Landon Sims: Drafted by D-backs

The Diamondbacks have selected Sims with the 34th overall pick in the 2022 first-year player draft.

There are some bullpen red flags with Sims, but there's no denying he has the stuff to be a dominant late-inning reliever if it comes to that. He already showed he could dominate out of the bullpen as a sophomore at Mississippi State on their road to a national championship. Sims boasts a mid-90s fastball with excellent movement/release point metrics and a high-spin mid-80s slider, both of which could be plus-plus pitches. Unfortunately, Sims' move to the rotation was short-lived, as he got Tommy John surgery after making three starts as a junior. In regards to his third-pitch changeup and command/control, there's not much to go on, but he gave up just two earned runs with 27 strikeouts and two walks over 15.2 innings before tearing his UCL. At 6-foot-2, 227 pounds, he has the size to handle a starter's workload, and it's possible he is given a chance to start in the majors even if he's mostly relying on that fastball/slider combo.