MadFriars kicks off its end of the year wrap-up of all the Padres’ affiliates with the guys that know them the best — their play-by-play announcers. Today’s interview is with Chris King, the voice of the Tri-City Dust Devils, but before we go to Pasco, we have a quick rundown of the AZL Padres.

Arizona League Padres:

Worrying about where an AZL team finished in the standings at the end of the year has about the same relevance as keeping track of the OPS+ statistics in your kid’s Tee-Ball league; you must have a lot of time on your hands. But for those keeping score, the AZL Padres were 25-30.

What is relevant is the potential and tools of players just entering into professional baseball that were very much on display in the desert this summer.

With 11 of the Padres’ first 13 picks in this year’s draft pitchers, what guys did on the mound was going to be the big story. But Hudson Potts, nee Sanchez, a first round pick out of the Dallas/Fort Worth area proved to be a major find in the draft along with Fernando Tatis, Jr., who came over in the James Shields trade.

Top players: Dayon Olmo had quite a campaign in the desert. While there are certainly red flags in his strikeout and walk rates during the year, Olmo’s first stateside campaign resulted in a team-best .485 slugging percentage while still showing some above-average speed.

Infielder Potts played in 44 games for the AZL Padres and led the team in RBI. The 17-year-old was the top talent and the best performer for the AZL squad. He only homered once, but was second on the team with 12 doubles and his eight steals were second to Tatis.

On the mound: Lake Bachar, the Padres’ fifth-rounder this season, pitched well in limited innings for the AZL Padres this season. The right-handed pitcher and former punter averaged better than a strikeout per inning, while only walking six in 28.2 innings.

Jim McDade at 23, was a bit old for the AZL but the undrafted righty reliever pitched well in Peoria this summer. McDade was second on the squad with 34 innings and led the team with a 0.91 WHIP. McDade ate innings when several of the young arms were only able to throw an inning or two.

The pitchers with the highest upside, including newly-drafted righties Mason Thompson and Reggie Lawson, and international arms like Andres Muñoz, Henry Henry, and Starling Cordero all were used very sparingly as they transitioned into their first professional games in the U.S., but each offers plenty to dream on.

Tri-City Dust Devils

Summary: While the Dust Devils didn’t experience the same success they had in their inaugural season with the Padres, four of the first 50 selections from this year’s draft still suited up for them. Cal Quantrill, Hudson Potts, Eric Lauer and Buddy Reed spent all or part of their time in southern Washington.

Top players: SS Chris Baker had a breakthrough junior year as a Husky and it carried over into his debut as a pro. Of the regulars who played at least 40 games, he led the team in batting average, on-base and slugging percentage, and was second in stolen bases with 14 in 18 attempts. CF Buddy Reed, the Padres’ second-rounder made his professional debut with the Dust Devils and showed gobs of potential. After a slow start, the athletic outfielder hit a solid .279/.354/.403 in the second half, with eight doubles and four triples. Reed also added 15 steals for the season and made several highlight reel catches while patrolling the outfield.

On the mound: Joey Lucchesi, the 2016 fourth-round pick pitched to a sparkling 1.35 ERA in 40 innings. Lucchesi didn’t allow a homer and walked only two batters, while striking out 50. The funky lefty looked far too advanced for the Northwest League and only failed to win a game because of a 60-pitch limit that was implemented for each of his starts. Lucchesi only allowed two earned runs over his last 31 innings in Pasco, walking one in that same span. Fellow lefty Eric Lauer, the 25th overall pick in the draft, showed exactly why he earned the early selection. Relying on four pitches he can throw to all quadrants of the plate, Lauer separated himself in college this year because of an increase in velocity so that he now sits easily in the low-90s.

While others outperformed him a bit this summer, first-rounder Cal Quantrill showed why some thought he’d be in line to be the top overall pick after his freshman year at Stanford, and why the Padres were thrilled that his rehab from Tommy John surgery caused him to slide to them in the eighth slot. The righty has the stuff, the bloodlines and the approach to become a front-of-the-rotation starter.

Minor League Announcer Series: Chris King

The Tri-City Dust Devils just completed their second season as the San Diego Padres’ short-season A-ball affiliate. The team reached the championship series in year one but struggled in the second half and ultimately finished the season with a 34-42 record.

While the 2016 season finished without a playoff berth, the Dust Devils were loaded with top talent. 2016 first-round hurlers Eric Lauer and Cal Quantrill saw action in Pasco, as did second-round pick Buddy Reed and fourth-rounder Joey Lucchesi.

No one saw as much Dust Devils baseball as broadcaster Chris King did in 2016. King, who hails from the Seattle area, has broadcasted Dust Devils games since 2012. King is also the voice of the Idaho Vandals basketball in the baseball off-season. King chatted with us via telephone about all of the talent that suited up for Tri-City in 2016.

MadFriars: The Dust Devils set another attendance record in 2016, as the team drew in 86,886 fans. What has led to the increased attendance figures?

Chris King: Every year seems to get a little better. The ownership has been in place here for about 10 years and they have just worked hard to improve the baseball experience. There are cool promotions and the stadium has been kept up. I think the fans are just enjoying the Padres organization and all of the top draft picks that have played here.

The one thing that I have always been curious about is winning in the minors. Do you feel like winning is the most important thing, or do the fans just enjoy an affordable night out?

Chris King: The most important thing is creating a fun environment for the fans. It doesn’t hurt to have a winning team, though. The number one goal of the [Tri-City] organization is to get fans to come out, get groups and families out to enjoy a game. In the minors, fans like promotions like firework nights and giveaways. I think it’s good to have a balance.

The Dust Devils struggled to score runs this season but the pitching was outstanding overall. We have heard that Gesa Stadium is an extreme pitcher’s park. How much did the hitting environment contribute to the offensive woes Tri-City had in 2016?

Chris King: The ballpark is always a fair argument. The team finished last in the Northwest League in many offensive categories, including runs, batting average, and runs. The Dust Devils hit just two home runs all year at home. Those two homers in 38 home games tied for the second fewest home runs at home in the history of the league. There were a few players that had productive seasons but the offense wasn’t there in 2016.

We have shortstop Chris Baker as our pick for player of the year in Tri-City. Which player would get your vote?

Chris King: I would go with Baker as well. I have a friend who is a scout and he told me how much he loves Baker. He was leading the NWL in games played upon his promotion to Fort Wayne and he didn’t have an All-Star break since he was playing in the game. He was versatile in college but he really looked outstanding, playing all of his games at shortstop. He showed patience at the plate and has some power as well. He would be my choice as player of the year as well.

Infielder Hudson Potts came up during the last few weeks of the Northwest League season. What did you see from him?

Chris King: Overall, I was very impressed. For 17, he is really mature. He handled everything thrown at him and never looked rattled. In the field, he looked smooth at every position. He doesn’t have the biggest arm you have ever seen but he has more range at short that I thought he would. The first pitch he saw up here was nearly a homer. He sprayed the ball all over the field and he had a really good idea of what he was doing at the plate. His performance was very encouraging.

Buddy Reed was touted as an incredible athlete but his hit tool was questioned out of college. What did you see from him?

Chris King: In the field he was incredible. He was easily the fastest player on the team and patrols centerfield with ease. At the plate, he went through slumps but in August and September he looked much more comfortable. He did a lot of extra work with hitting coach Oscar Bernard. You can see the potential there and he works very hard. You can see why he was drafted high.

Were there any other position players that stood out to you this season?

Chris King: A couple of outfielders stood out: Taylor Kohlwey and Luis Asuncion. Kohlwey was a gamer. His batting average was low but he got on-base at a great rate. When he was promoted to Lake Elsinore, I felt like the team lost a little energy. For Asuncion, he had an 11-game hitting streak in 2016, which was the longest for a Dust Devil this season. He’s strong and he showed some flashes of promise. He isn’t strong defensively but he is still very young.

Catcher Kyle Overstreet was really solid behind the plate. He even played some second and third base this year when the team needed to. Nate Easley played centerfield in college and was moved to second after being drafted. It was the first time he played there since eighth grade and held his own defensively. He drew a lot of walks and just very steady all season.

We chose LHP Joey Lucchesi as our pitcher of the year. Who would get your vote?

Chris King: I would vote for Lucchesi as well. After getting beaten up a little in his professional debut, he was lights out after that. His strikeout-to-walk ratio (27.5-to-1) was unlike anything I have ever seen. He has a funky delivery but he was polished and was just as good as any pitcher who threw in the Northwest League. He sits in the low 90’s but he can reach back for a few extra mph if he needed to. Just an impressive guy all the way around.

Jose Ruiz is an interesting guy because he converted from catcher and pitched well for the Dust Devils. How did his transition to the mound look?

Chris King: He was with the team for about a month before he actually pitched. The organization seemed like they wanted to make sure that he was in a good landing spot. On the mound, he had an impressive swagger to him — almost a take-charge, aggressive attitude out there. He doesn’t really have a windup but touched 99 mph with his fastball and has a pretty decent curve as well. Ruiz pitched 10 innings before he allowed a hit. As the season progressed, he was thrown into more pressure-type of situations and pitched quite well.

The headliners on the Dust Devils roster this season were RHP Cal Quantrill and LHP Eric Lauer. What did you see from them this season?

Chris King: There was quite a bit of hype with those two but I would say that they lived up to it. Quantrill was tied for the highest draft pick to ever play for the Dust Devils. Quantrill is a super-smart guy and very mature. On the mound you can see the command and poise that made him a high draft pick. He can throw all of his pitches for strikes and even helped mentor some of the young guys, such as Hudson Potts.

Lauer did an incredible job of working out of jams all season. He would allow a few hits and then make a pitch to get himself out of the jam. I think he has a high floor — it would be hard to envision a scenario in which he doesn’t make it to the big leagues. He has four pitches that can be above-average. I was highly impressed with him overall.

For more in-depth coverage of the Padres see MadFriars' season-wrap-ups at www.madfriars.com and @madfriars on Twitter.

Next week we speak with John Nolan, the voice of the Fort Wayne TinCaps, the Padres’ Low-A affiliate in the Midwest League.