Arizona Diamondbacks Appoint Shaun Larkin as New Farm Director

The Arizona Diamondbacks made significant moves in their player development department, appointing Shaun Larkin as the new director of player development and elevating Chris Slivka to assistant farm director, as per the club’s announcement on Thursday.

With the departure of Josh Barfield, who served as the overseer of the farm system for four years but departed to take a position as the assistant general manager for the Chicago White Sox, Arizona had big shoes to fill.

Larkin brings with him a wealth of experience, having spent the past eight seasons in various capacities with the Los Angeles Dodgers. His most recent role with the Dodgers was as a field coordinator for the past three years, preceded by stints as assistant field coordinator and coordinator of skill development for four years. Notably, the Dodgers’ farm system was ranked No. 6 by MLB Pipeline in 2023, with the team winning the National League West in seven of Larkin’s eight years with the organization.

Before his time with the Dodgers, Larkin had coaching and managing experience in the minor leagues, and he was previously a minor leaguer in Cleveland’s system from 2002-07 where he was managed by Diamondbacks skipper Torey Lovullo at multiple stops.

Meanwhile, Slivka, who has been with the Diamondbacks for eight years, was promoted to assistant farm director after spending the last two seasons as the team’s player personnel analyst.

The Diamondbacks have seen significant contributions from their farm system in their recent World Series run, and they have promising prospects for the future in the form of recent first-round picks such as shortstop Jordan Lawlar (2021), outfielder Druw Jones (2022), and shortstop Tommy Troy (2023).

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