SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — For nearly every prospect working their way through a Minor League system, there comes a moment when they have to deal with what is likely their first taste of real struggles on a baseball field.
For third-ranked D-backs prospect Alek Thomas, that came last June and July, when the center fielder hit .247 and .234, respectively, for Double-A Amarillo.
“I think during that stretch during June and July, I really needed to figure out who I was,” said Thomas, who is participating in the D-backs’ early Minor League camp at Salt River Fields. “[Director of player development] Josh Barfield gave me a task and I tried to fulfill it as much as I can.”
Barfield gave Thomas a directive that was handed out to the rest of the organization’s hitters below the Triple-A level: On your first at-bat of the game, you have to take a strike before swinging.
There was some grumbling from players about that, and Thomas admits he was not pleased about it.
“I was being hardheaded,”…