Diamondbacks name Shaun Larkin as farm director amid wave of departures

The Diamondbacks hired Shaun Larkin away from the Los Angeles Dodgers to be their new farm director, adding a well-respected voice to the organization at a time when the club is being pummeled by departures throughout baseball operations.

Larkin, 44, spent eight seasons in player development with the Dodgers, including the past three as their field coordinator, a role in which he helped oversee one of the better farm systems in the game.

Larkin replaces Josh Barfield, who left in September to become an assistant general manager with the Chicago White Sox. Several others followed, including special assignment scout Danny Haas, who became the scouting director for the Washington Nationals; assistant pitching coach Barry Enright, who took the head pitching coach position with the Los Angeles Angels; and special assistant Daniel Descalso, who is now the bench coach for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Most recently, special assistant Deric Ladnier accepted a position to run the Houston Astros amateur scouting department.

The Diamondbacks also are losing longtime baseball executive Allard Baird, who is stepping away from the game to spend more time with his family.

“We’ve lost a decent amount of people,” Diamondbacks General Manager Mike Hazen said. “But we 100 percent expected it. This is what happens when you have a successful season.”

Larkin, who will take the title of director of player development, helps plug one of those holes. Mike Fitzgerald, Diamondbacks assistant General manager, said the organization was impressed with Larkin’s breadth of experience, the “infectious energy and passion” he exudes and his varied skillset, including an ability to build relationships and communicate.

Fitzgerald also noted that Larkin has worked for a pair of organizations — the Dodgers and Guardians — with successful track records in player development.

“We’re really excited to add him into the fold,” Fitzgerald said, “and have him continue to build upon the momentum that we’ve had over the last couple of years and help us continue to get better.”

Larkin crossed paths with both Hazen and Lovullo during his time with Cleveland, with whom he climbed as high as Triple-A as a position player in 2007 before transitioning to coaching.

Barfield oversaw player development for four years. He was promoted after serving as an assistant to Mike Bell, who held the farm director title for nine years. Hazen said there was some appeal to bringing in someone from a different organization.

“I think we’ve done a lot of promoting from within over the years, up through the ranks in a number of departments,” Hazen said. “I think getting fresh ideas into the organization is something — we have a lot of creative people, but bringing some outside perspectives into the organization in terms of what’s going on in scouting and player development around the game, I think is important.”

Ladnier’s departure was perhaps the most unexpected. He oversaw the club’s amateur drafts for seven years — during which time the team selected Corbin Carroll, Daulton Varsho, Alek Thomas and Brandon Pfaadt, among others — before shifting to a special assignment role prior to 2022 in which he took on a variety of roles.

Ladnier said Wednesday he was intrigued by the new opportunity for a number of reasons, including the chance to work alongside a longtime friend in Astros GM Dana Brown while noting Houston’s closer proximity to his home in Florida, which is also where the Astros’ spring training facility is.

But mostly he sounded eager to once again get the chance to help rebuild a farm system, a task he helped accomplish during his time with the Diamondbacks.

“When Dana and I started talking about this opportunity — and it wasn’t even something I had remotely had planning on in my life or thought about because of my contentment for where I was — but when he started talking to me, my competitiveness started coming out and I got those butterflies in your belly. It's my calling. It’s what I’ve done my whole life.”

Baird said he was not ready to use the word “retirement,” but after 37 years spent “doing the long-distance gig” in baseball that took him away from his wife, he wants to dedicate more time to her. He spent nearly two decades with the Kansas City Royals, including six years as the general manager, and also worked for the Boston Red Sox and New York Mets before joining the Diamondbacks in 2021.

The Diamondbacks are in the process of interviewing to replace Enright on the coaching staff but otherwise are in no hurry to fill the other vacancies.

“I think in time we’re definitely going to rehire a lot of these spots, but I want to do it right,” Hazen said. “I’m not going to rush into it. A lot of these spots are relationship spots, for me, in a lot ways; they’re not running departments. I want it to be the right fit.”

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: DBacks name Shaun Larkin as farm director despite wave of departures