• February 7, 1997: Mark Davis was signed as a free agent with the Arizona Diamondbacks. • August 14, 1997: Mark Davis was sent to the Milwaukee Brewers by the Arizona Diamondbacks as part of a conditional deal. • November 18, 1997:
Devon White was traded by the Florida Marlins to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Jesus Martinez (minors). • November 18, 1997: Travis Fryman was traded by the Detroit Tigers to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Gabe Alvarez, Joe Randa, and Matt Drews (minors). • December 1, 1997: Matt Williams was traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Travis Fryman, Tom Martin, and cash. • January 8, 1998:
Andy Stankiewicz signed as a free agent with the Arizona Diamondbacks. • January 11, 1998: Mark Davis was signed as a free agent with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Expansion Draft Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 1996–97 MLB June drafts and minor league affiliates The two expansion teams set to debut in 1998, the Diamondbacks and
Tampa Bay Devil Rays, had two full seasons to establish scouting and player development systems and were permitted to participate fully in the
1996 and
1997 Major League Baseball drafts. The Diamondbacks drafted 30th in both 1996 and 1997, selecting 62 players (1996) and 60 players (1997) in those drafts. The team began developing those players in a
farm system with three
minor-league affiliates in 1996 and four in 1997. Among the players selected and signed by Arizona from those drafts were
pitchers
Brad Penny (fifth round, 1996) and
Casey Fossum (seventh, 1996);
infielders Alex Cintrón (36th, 1997),
Jack Cust (first, 1997) and
Junior Spivey (36th round, 1996); and
outfielders
Ron Calloway (eighth, 1997) and
Jason Conti (32nd, 1996).
1996 farm system Visalia affiliation shared with
Detroit Tigers 1997 farm system LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: High Desert ==Regular season==