Leading Off – 2/25/11

Baseball is officially back today as the Diamondbacks opened Cactus League play against the San Francisco Giants at Scottsdale Stadium. The Giants are playing their first competitive match since the end of last year’s World Series against the Rangers. The Diamondbacks, on the other hand, are playing their first game since the last day of regular season play in 2010.

Of course, that means that the Diamondbacks didn’t make the playoffs. That hope is refreshed this year with the roster of the Diamondbacks looking dramatically different. Changes have been made to make this club do the exact opposite of what they did last year.

So here today and beyond we take a look at what exactly has changed about the team and what to expect out of those changes. Today we look at the battery. Pitching and Catching is the name of the game, so lets look at what has changed. Starting with the rotation, here is a side-by-side comparison of last year compared to this year.

2010 Opening Day Rotation*                                  2011 Projected Rotation
1. Dan Haren                                                           1. Joe Saunders (Lefty)
2. Edwin Jackson                                                     2. Barry Enright
3. Billy Buckner                                                       3. Ian Kennedy
4. Ian Kennedy                                                         4. Daniel Hudson
5. Rodrigo Lopez                                                      5. Galarraga/Duke

*Note that the 2010 starting rotation changed throughout the year (Dan Haren, Edwin Jackson, and Billy Buckner were traded, leaving Joe Saunders, Daniel Hudson, and Dontrelle Willis to take their places respectively).

Notice that the only similarity in the two rotations is Ian Kennedy who has moved up a spot in the rotation. The Bullpen, however, was the true cause of the Diamondbacks’ pitching problems. The team has added several arms that look to help improve the pen and compete for spots during the Spring (which, in case you have short term memory loss, started today).
Here is a look at some of the new arms.

New Non-Starting Pitchers           L/R               2010 ERA
David Hernandez                              R                   4.31
Juan Jaime                                      R                   DNP (2009 ERA: 2.31)*
Kam Mickolio                                   R                   7.36 **
JJ Putz                                            R                   2.83
Mike Hampton                                 L                    0.00*** †
Micah Owings                                  R                   5.40***
Brian Sweeney                                 R                   3.16***

*Juan Jaime’s 2009 2.31 ERA was produced in the Minor Leagues.
**Kam Mickolio only pitched 3 games with Baltimore in 2010
***Non Roster Invitee
† Mike Hampton was acquired late last year, pitching 10 games for the Dbacks without allowing a run.

David Hernandez is a 6’2″ right-handed pitcher who was acquired this offseason in exchange for Mark Reynolds. He appeared today in the opener against San Francisco and pitched a scoreless inning, striking out one and only allowing a walk.

Juan Jaime did have surgery last year which is mostly why he didn’t play a single game. Nobody is sure what to expect from him post surgery, but we do know that the 2.31 ERA from 2009 is an impressive one.

Kam Mickolio is the other pitcher who was acquired by the Dbacks in the Mark Reynolds trade. The tall 6’9″ righty looks to be a new young arm in the pen for Arizona this year. This big guy hurled a perfect sixth inning today in the opener.

JJ Putz is a name most baseball fans will recognize when they see it. The Dbacks picked him up to close out ballgames this year for Arizona, signing him to a 2 year, $10 Million dollar contract. JJ Putz spent 2010 with the White Sox with three saves, but his best closing year came in 2007 with the Mariners in which he recorded 40 saves.

Mike Hampton is certainly the most “veteran-presencey” reliever in Arizona. In 2010, the lefty was acquired off waivers by the Diamondbacks, pitching in 10 games allowing 3 hits and not a single run. His 2010 WHIP was .923 across 4.1 innings pitched.

Micah Owings isn’t a new name to Diamondbacks fans; the good-hitting pitcher spent ’07 and ’08 with the club, pitching 257 innings over the two years and posting a
5.11 ERA over the timeframe. But more impressively is his ability to hit… over the two years, he hit 16 extra-base hits, 4 of those being homeruns, and 2 of THOSE homeruns coming in the same game. In his four-year career, he has 34 RBI and a .538 slugging percentage. Not bad for a pitcher. Owings should get time at first as well as on the mound in an attempt to get him more at bats.

Brian Sweeney appeared in 24 games last year for the Seattle Mariners and posted a 3.16 ERA while doing so. His BB/9 ratio was a respectable 1.9 and his K/9 ratio was 4.2. This non-roster invitee while likely compete for a spot as an early reliever.


Catching is an interesting subject for the Diamondbacks this year because it highlights a second Diamondbacks who is beginning his second stint with the club: Robby Hammock. Hammock caught Randy Johnson’s perfect game for the Dbacks in ’04 (which was the Diamondbacks franchise all-time worst year) and stayed with the team through 2008. Arizona is the only team Hammock has played for in his career (180 games) and had a .255 AVG while doing so. Hammock doesn’t have the best odds for making the team, however, having to compete with Miguel Montero and Henry Blanco.

Another catcher joining the team this spring is Konrad Schmidt who had a brief cup of coffee with the major league club as a September call-up in 2010. In his four-year minor league career, Schmidt has caught a mere 30% of runners stealing, with a .981 FP. His batting average is a respectable .298 and he’s produced 590 total bases (averaging roughly 150 a year). However, for the same reason as Robby Hammock, Schmidt has very minimal chance of making the Opening Day roster.

That does it for today. Keep checking the blog because coming soon is “Cleaning Up”; the second edition of the offseason report series and the countdown to Opening Day.

Notes From Camp – 2/21/11

Today was a pleasant day in Scottsdale, Arizona, where the Diamondbacks train in the spring and prepare for the big day. April 1st. That’s the big day when everyone pees their pants as they peel themselves from their bed and realize that their daily grind will be put on hold, at least for one day when they play hookie and they go to the ballpark in their respective city to see the first game of the season, and experience the new best day of their life. For those of you who don’t have a major league club in their town, I’m sorry that I just described to you what it’s like to be one of us more fortunate.

But unfortunately, this is the first year since I’ve been following baseball that my Diamondbacks open on the road. I’ve been religiously following the Dbacks since May of ’08, and there is nothing I love better than Opening Day. This year, however, the Dbacks will play a mile in the sky against the Rockies at Coors Field, and my favorite day of the year will have to wait a week.

Now that I’m done writing a narrative, it’s time to get down to some real baseball. As I was originally saying, I went to Salt River Fields at Talking Stick today, the Spring Training home of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Here are of some notes of what I saw.

-JJ Putz threw live batting practice and his velocity seems to be impressively high.

-Many members of the Diamondbacks were hitting longballs in batting practice that landed in a street neighboring the complex.

-A few of the outfielders took fly balls today, but most of the position players could not be found.

-Diamondbacks catchers including Robby Hammock, Henry Blanco, Konrad Schmidt, John Hester, and Miguel Montero practiced throws to second and third today. Robby Hammock’s arm looks better than ever, while John Hester’s throws were slightly off the mark.

-Upon arrival to the Rockies side at around noon, only five or six players could be found still practicing.

-Joe Saunders stood out amongst the pitchers as being one of the better hitters in the cages today. After seeing him rake, expect to see a few RBIs and base hits out of him this year.

-Clay Zavada threw with good distance and velocity today and seems to be recovering well from Tommy-John surgery.

-John Kruk and Tim Kurkjian were at camp today for a spot on baseball tonight.

Jarrod Parker and company throwing today:
IMG_7199.JPG

1/8/11 – As It Stands Now

Yesterday, I posted a rambling of different teams that may not be in the same spot in the division in 2011 as they were in 2010. I used the Rays and Padres as examples, who I believe will be a lot lower in their divisions. I would also like to bring up something I didn’t yesterday, which was the Brewers’ good offseason. We have to remember that they have a good core in Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder, and will have a good new closer in 2011 in John Axford. What will make them better in 2011 is the addition of two great pitchers; Zack Grienke and Shaun Marcum. They have also added Takashi Saito and Yunieski Betancourt. The Brewers quite possibly could compete legitimately with the Cardinals and Reds this year if they can have consistency in their offense and bullpen.

Anyway, I would like to talk a little bit about the Diamondbacks (after all, this is The Open Roof). They’ve done quite a bit this year with their team, and they look fairly different from last year. They will still have the core of Upton, Drew, and Montero, but when you look at the team as a whole, it looks dramatically different from the ’09 team, and certainly different in some areas when you compare it to the 2010 team.

In 2009, the outfield wasn’t that different from what it will be in 2011, but the infield was Reynolds, Drew, Lopez, and Clark/Jackson/Reynolds from left to right. Now, the infield is Mora/Blum, Drew, Johnson, and Miranda/Allen/Nady left to right. The catching situation was mostly just Chris Snyder with a little bit of backup duty from Miguel Montero. Now, Snyder is in Pittsburgh, Montero is the starting catcher, and Henry Blanco is the backup. The pitching rotation was Haren, Davis, Garland, Buckner, and Petit. In 2011, the rotation looks to be Saunders+, Enright, Duke+, Kennedy, and Hudson (maybe in a slightly different order).

(+ denotes a left-handed pitcher)

My point with all of that is that the team that finished dead last in the NL West in 2009 and again in 2010 just simply doesn’t exist anymore. The Hinch regime has ended, and Kirk Gibson will fire up the troops and get them going, the bullpen will see new names like JJ Putz and David Hernandez, and the infield has a big more offensive capability, and the middle infield features great range.

Projected Lineup:
Drew, SS
Parra, LF
Young, CF
Upton, RF
Miranda/Allen, 1B
Johnson, 2B
Mora, 3B
Montero, C
Pitcher’s Spot

I don’t know Kirk Gibson well enough yet to be able to accurately predict the way he will construct my lineup, but this arrangement is what makes sense to me. It is a tough call for me as to whether the starting left fielder will be Gerardo Parra or Xavier Nady. Even though Nady might not be starting caliber, he does have more experience than Parra. However, Parra did more than prove himself both offensively and defensively last year. He was not at all afraid to lay out for a diving play, or through out a runner from the outfield. This kid is one of the best defensive outfielders in the game and will see plenty of time in the outfield next year. I think Parra will probably get the starting spot.

I have pretty high hopes for the Diamondbacks next year and hope that their new roster can turn the team around. The only concern I have is one that I expressed yesterday’s post, and that is that I don’t know if the additions of a couple of no-name relivers is enough. JJ Putz to me is the only notable bullpen addition. Other than that, its just Kam Mickolio and David Hernandez, who combine for 205 innings in their whole careers. Brian Sweeny was claimed by the Diamondbacks off waivers, but the likelihood of him seeing time in the pen seems low to me. I would’ve liked to see maybe one big signing in addition to what we already did, like maybe a 2-year deal to Grant Balfour, or maybe a Rafael Soriano or Joaquin Benoit. Unfortunately, those hopes are gone now, and Kevin Towers has said that he is likely done making moves. We will now have to wait and see what happens in 2011 with our new team.

1/7/11 – A Whole Different Ballgame

There’s a good old saying that goes, “If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.” Well, I would like to create a new saying; “If it’s fixed, don’t break it.” I say this because it seems like lots of teams this offseason have done things that are going to severely jeopardize their chances of contending next year. Whether it be via free-agency, trade, unafforadbility, etc., there are situations where a team doesn’t and/or can’t hold on to certain players. Even though there are huge free-agent signings that we all pay attention to, we don’t seem to focus as much on the loss of players. This seems ironic to me, because I personally believe those subtractions are just as pivotal – if not more so – as the big name signings.

One of the biggest examples of this is the AL East Tampa Bay Rays, who last year made it to the playoffs and will weakly try to do it again. This is going to be tough when you consider the fact that Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Jason Bartlett, Joaquin Benoit, Rafael Soriano, and, as of a few hours ago, Matt Graza (who, if you haven’t heard, was traded to the Cubs) will not be returning to the team. If I’m a Rays fan, I’ve lost all hope. These are guys that were very critical pieces of the team last year, who each contributed a huge part to making it to the playoffs. This now means that team will largely rest on the shoulders of Longoria and Price, which will be tough. I say the Sox and Yanks will battle it out in August and September.

Speaking of Boston, I said in a previous blog that I didn’t think much would change in Boston, and that the additions of A-Gon and Crawford wouldn’t be enough to turn the team around. I’ve given it a lot of thought, and maybe I was too quick to say that. That isn’t to say that I now think that Boston is the next World Champion, but they might contend. You have to consider the fact that, as I just mentioned, the Rays are severely depleted. And not only have the Rays lost Crawford, but they lost him to a division rival. Now, if the Rays are depleted enough that the go behind the Yankees and Red Sox in the AL East, that would mean that it would be Yanks/RedSox in first and second, and the Rays in third or lower, obviously. So that would mean that, if the Red Sox fix tweak their bullpen a bit, they have a legitimate chance at the East title or at least the Wild Card. That is to say, if their isn’t a sudden arrival from the Orioles or Blue Jays, which I think is unlikely.

Let’s talk about my NL West. The NL West is probably going to be a lot different this year than last year. The Rockies have added Ty Wiggington and can boast Jorge De La Rosa, Ubaldo Jimenez, Troy Tulowitzki, and Carlos Gonzalez, which will put them in a good position to win the division. The Giants will finish second, I believe. Even though they are reigning world champions, I think they are too young and too surprised at themselves for winning last season that they will not know how to repeat it in 2011. The Padres are going to be a tough one to swallow. It may sound all pretty and nice that they’ve added Brad Hawpe, Jason Bartlett, and Orlando Hudson, but you have to consider the fact that they have lost Jon Garland, Ryan Webb, Edward Mujica, and Adrian Gonzalez, and there are rumors of a trade of Heath Bell. This is starting to get dangerous and the Padres could very easily finish fourth. The Diamondbacks, who have been a mess since late 2008, have been plagued with a bad bullpen over the past two years, and Kevin Towers has come in to try and fix it. However, I have concerns with the bullpen because, even though J.J. Putz is a fun name to throw in to the mix, that’s about it. David Hernandez and Kam Mickolio are the only other relievers to be added this offseason and I’m not quite sure that is enough to win the west. Other than that, I like the look of the team, but that bullpen is gonna need a bit more than what they’ve got if they want to turn it around from last year. I bet they place third. That leaves the Dodgers, who, honestly don’t look much different than last year, but they do have to adjust to a new manager because of the departure of Torre. With that in mind, I have to say its going to be a tough year for the Dodgers.

My Projected 2011 NL West Final Standings:
1. Colorado Rockies
2. San Francisco Giants
3. Arizona Diamondbacks
4. San Diego Padres
5. Los Angeles Dodgers

And that’s today’s post! Check back soon for the next one.

12/31/10 – The New Year, The Yankees, and the Hope For Victory

Today is the last day of 2010, which means that tomorrow is the first day of 2011. And with a new year, will eventually come another baseball season (not to mention tomorrow’s Winter Classic between the Penguins and Capitals). It was unfortunate that last season was actually more fun to follow, when it was other teams besides my own Diamondbacks. I sit here, typing this post in a coffee house in Chandler, Arizona, wearing a Dbacks hat and a 2011 All Star Game T-shirt (which will be at Chase Field), but somehow, I wonder why. The Diamondbacks were terrible last year, finishing a disappointing 65-97, and yet I stay D-voted. Why? Well I guess it is for the same reason that anybody still shows up to A’s games, or the same reason that the Orioles are still allowed in the AL East (I’ll touch on that in a moment).

The new GM of the Diamondbacks has added nine players, and has also relinquished nine. Some of the subtractions include Adam LaRoche, Rodrigo Lopez, Aaron Hielman, and Mark Reynolds, while the additions include Xavier Nady, Henry Blanco, Geoff Blum, Zach Duke, David Hernandez, and Melvin Mora. Ouch, sounds like the replacements don’t quite add up to the guys that are leaving. I guess we will have to trust the GM that was with the Padres for nine years and built the bullpen that wasn’t backed up by their offense last year when the Padres fell just a few games shy of the playoffs. But the only relievers added have been David Hernandez and Kam McColio. Who? That’s right. PEOPLE WE’VE NEVER HEARD OF. I would love to see a Grant Balfour come in, but we settle for the crap that the Orioles gave us as compensation for stealing away Reynolds. I just hope everything works out for the best, but I guess that’s what an offseason is. Hope.

So, now what? The Orioles have Mark Reyolds. Is that really going to be enough to beat the greatest team of all time in the New York Yankees, or last year’s AL East Champion Tampa Bay Rays, or 2007 World Series Champion Red Sox (Who added Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford)? And that brings me to my newest complaint. I am so tired of the Yankees. The Yankees win, earn money, use the money to get the best players, the new players help them win, then they get more money. And even though in theory, any team could do that by having just one good year, the Yankees seem to have built such a dynasty and such a “biggest-kid-on-the-block” type of team, that they might not ever lose. It’s pretty hard not to win when your team’s lineup looks strangely similar to last years AL All Star Lineup, and your team is in a city where selling out games isn’t even news, its just something that happens… everyday.

I really don’t like the idea of a salary cap, I think it adds pressure and complications to GMs, and I think having a salary cap means teams who had a successful year aren’t rewarded as much, in other words, they can’t use their good year’s earnings to go get the Carl Crawford’s and the Cliff Lee’s, because other teams still have a chance at getting those players, even if that team didn’t have as good of a year. Maybe in some ways that is a good thing, but I don’t like that type of ceiling. However, with that being said, it is still very necessary to have a salary cap in order to take down a team like the Yankees. It is the only option, otherwise teams like the Orioles will be terrible forever. Quite honestly, a three-team AL East of just the Rays, BoSox and Yankees would be still plenty of exciting. Toronto and Baltimore should just be… the AL Sucky, or something like that. I don’t know. But the Yankees are way too much of a powerhouse, that will dominate for as long as time will allow. If Bud Selig doesn’t stop the Yankees domination and place a salary cap, then there may not ever be an end to the unfairness that has been in the AL East since… who knows? Maybe even since the days of Murderer’s Row.

And speaking of Bud Selig, I have another bone to pick with him. All star voting is out of control. It seems like every day, baseball fans are getting stupider. I talk to fans at the ballpark who haven’t heard yet that Luis Gonzalez is retired, or think that Curt Schilling is the best second baseman to ever play for the Diamondbacks. Yet these baseball “fans” who don’t know anything about the team they call theirs, these are the ones who decide who go to the ASG. But even more than that, I’m tired of the NL All Star Lineup looking like the Phillies lineup, and the AL All Star Lineup being the Yankees Lineup, except Ichiro instead of Nick Swisher. This is what bothers me. It was especially upsetting last year when I saw the 34 year old Placido Polanco go the game. Other than that, It’s pretty much just Utley, Victorino, Howard, Jeter, A-Rod, and Teixeira going to the game every year, even though Utley had a sub-par year last year, for example. Take Chris Young for example. He is, without a doubt, the best defensive Center-Fielder in the game right now, and one of the best offensively. And even though he did barely squeeze his way in to the game last year and go to the homerun derby, he wasn’t in the starting lineup. If he was on the Phillies- oh my god. He would be the damn king of the world. So Bud Selig, PLEASE take away the right for fans to vote on the All Star Game. It is extremely unfair to teams with legitimately good players who are very worthy of a spot on the roster. Let the BBWAA vote on it. That seems much more fair.

12/31/10 – The New Year,

Today is the last day of 2010, which means that tomorrow is the first day of 2011. And with a new year, will eventually come another baseball season (not to mention tomorrow’s Winter Classic between the Penguins and Capitals). It was unfortunate that last season was actually more fun to follow, when it was other teams besides my own Diamondbacks. I sit here, typing this post in a coffee house in Chandler, Arizona, wearing a Dbacks hat and a 2011 All Star Game T-shirt (which will be at Chase Field), but somehow, I wonder why. The Diamondbacks were terrible last year, finishing a disappointing 65-97, and yet I stay D-voted. Why? Well I guess it is for the same reason that anybody still shows up to A’s games, or the same reason that the Orioles are still allowed in the AL East

12/11/10 – Counting Down The Days

I find it appropriate that today’s post, titled “Counting Down The Days”, happens to come on 12/11/10, the date that counts down from 12 to 10. But there’s more going downhill as well, that is, the wait for the 2011 season, the wait for Christmas, and the worth of free agents with relation to the attention they get, and the contracts they sign.

I’m telling you, every time I turn on MLB Network, or look on mlb.com, It’s Cliff Lee this, Cliff Lee that, followed by Carl Crawford. And it’s about damn time he signed with SOMEBODY, because I’m tired of hearing about it. I’ll just be glad when Lee signs. I can give them one thing, and that is that they have to talk about something, otherwise they will show the reruns of old world series games that nobody cares about (#daytimeprogramming). Although I must say, hearing about who met with Lee today to kiss his butt and telling why he should come to team X is somewhat interesting, you don’t need to tell us fifty times. It’s kinda like when a news anchor is talking about a hostage situation. There’s basically a beginning and end, but in between, it’s just a waiting game. So quit focusing on the waiting game so much, and let me know when something actually happens.

Now that I’m done rambling, I thought I’d do a little bit of Q&A (even though nobody actually sends these questions, I figure they are questions someone might ask somebody).

Will the Red Sox actually contend in 2011 with the addition of A-Gon and Crawford?

I doubt much will change. They may have added two huge bats in the lineup, and sure, they have a good starting rotation, but you can’t finish third (which in the AL East might as well be dead last) and then add 2 big bats in the offseason and expect to suddenly overpower two teams that were way ahead of you the previous season (especially since those two teams are the Yankees and the Rays). If anybody is affected here, its the Rays. In 2010, the Rays relied on Crawford, Longoria, and Upton as the big bats in the lineup, and could back it up with a strong bullpen that included Joaquin Benoit and Rafael Soriano. Even though their rotation will still be good, with big names like David Price and Matt Garza, they are still going to have to add a little more offense, and maybe a reliever or two. Maybe Adam LaRoche would be a good fit to add 25-30 homers to the stats next year. Then again, what do I know?

Speaking of the Red Sox, how about that A-Gon trade?

If you ask me, it was a mistake. The Padres got rid of the face of the franchise for some minor leaguers that might go somewhere someday. They already traded Edward Mujica and Ryan Webb for Cameron Maybin. To be honest, I’d rather have Mujica and Webb. If I’m the Padres, I would’ve found my extra outfield in a free agent signing, not a trade. And if I did trade, I wouldn’t get rid of two vital pieces of the bullpen (which, it turns out, every piece of the bullpen is vital). They are going to lose fans as well as games for the trades they have made. Padres fans, prepare for going back to sucking again.

Reynolds to Baltimore? Hmm…

Yup, Reynolds got the Boot. Can you blame Kevin Towers? Sure, Dbacks fans are going to be mad, and I must admit this is a little unsettling, especially since we didn’t get much in return, but he wasn’t productive enough. 44 HRs and 200 K’s, fine. 30 HRs and 200 K’s, I’m starting to worry. His outs are never ever productive and his average and power didn’t make up for that. David Hernandez and Kam Mikolio aren’t the greatest return for a power-hitting third baseman, but hey, Who knows what the future holds?

How about that Lee?

What about him? (SEE PARAGRAPH 2)

Why do we talk about Baseball in the winter? Shouldn’t we be talking about something else? YUP. And I’m going to. First of all, how ’bout them Yotes? So close to taking first in their division the other night against the Wild, and they couldn’t come through. They’re gonna give it another go-round tonight against the Stars, and this game will be critical if they want to start making a playoff run. And wow, how about Sidney Crosby? I must say, I’m not a fan, but he has been on fire this year! Tim Thomas on the Bruins has been great, leading the NHL in three goalie categories,  and Carey Price in Montreal leads the league in wins with 17. Meanwhile, my Cardinals are stinking up the place. Enough said. Basketball is boring. So that concludes winter sports!

And that concludes today’s post. Sorry for going so long without posting! I’ll try to post again soon.

8/21/10 Q&A

Hey everybody! Sorry for going so long without updating my blog, but I’ve been busy. Anyway, today I thought I would do a little bit more Q&A. The Rockies have released Brad Hawpe, the Cardinals have acquired Pedro Feliz, and the Braves have gotten a hold of Derek Lee. But what’s going on in the world of the Diamondbacks? Well, with a 48-75 record, the Diamondbacks are pretty much done for the season. What’s in store for their future, though, might be a different story.

Will the Diamondbacks prove as spoilers in the NL West with upcoming series against their division-mates?

What do you think? The Diamondbacks haven’t won a game to save their life this year, so I don’t think they’re going to start now. The bullpen, which we all though was improving with great outings a couple weeks ago, has just taken its typical turn for the worst. A rollercoaster is what the bullpen should be appropriately named, which means the Diamondbacks are probably going to do what they have done best this year: lose.

Will the Diamondbacks’ top pick going unsigned, will this put pressure on the 2011 Dbacks GM?

You betcha. Whoever is the GM next year, if it’s Jerrry DiPoto or not, they better make a good first round choice to please fans. Dbacks D-Voted are getting fed up, and Josh Byrnes (who was FINALLY fired mid season this year, and did nothing but a good job of ruining the Dbacks) screwed up the minor league system by trading away prospects (although, DiPoto’s trade of Pedro Ciriaco wasn’t a smart one, either). If the Dbacks expect to do anything within the next couple years, they better bolster their minor league teams.

Will Selig pull the 2011 All-Star Game from Phoenix because of the political mayhem over SB1070?

Shut your mouth. If I hear one more person suggest that possibility, I’m gonna go nuts. Selig may do dumb things every once and a while, but he’s in for a surprise from the Arizona baseball fans if he tries to take this away from us. The people wouldn’t allow it. The Dbacks wouldn’t allow it. The All-Star game isn’t going anywhere, Jose.

Thanks for reading.

7/22/10 Q&A

Man! I haven’t been on in a while. Anywho, in my return to blogging after a very busy summer, I would like to have a little bit of Q&A on some hot topics around the Diamondbacks and the MLB. Let’s begin.

Q. Will the Diamondbacks hot bats and electric bullpen continue their trends of success in tonight’s game vs the Giants?
A. It will be tough. The Diamondbacks’ sweep of the Mets isn’t what I would call a fluke, but I would have to say that the Giants are a much different team than the Mets, and the Diamondbacks need to make sure confidence doesn’t turn in to cockyness. The only two relievers that weren’t burned in yesterday’s 14-inning 4-3 win over the Mets were lefty Jordan Norberto, and righthander Chad Qualls. That means that when Rodrigo Lopez takes the mound tonight, he will probably have to go at least 7 innings if the Diamondbacks expect to win this game. The offense will be facing Matt Cain, along with a tough Giants bullpen. I can’t see Arizona’s offense squeezing more than 3 or 4 runs out of the Giants’ pitching tonight, so Rodrigo is going to have to be good, and the depleted bullpen better perform if they want to get another win.

Q. Will Dan Haren be traded by the July 31st deadline?
A. Not Likely. The Diamondbacks’ asking price for Haren is two starters and a reliever. That’s a pretty high asking price for a guy who’s 2010 ERA is above four. The people that I have heard that are serious about Haren are the Phillies, who would likely have to let go of Jason Werth to the Rays in a three-team trade, and the Yankees, who need to replace Pettitte. I would have to say that Werth is just as valuable if not more valuable than Haren. I dont think the Phillies would win or lose a lot in a Haren trade. The Yankees, who just lost Andy Pettitte to the 15-day DL, need another starter. Could Dan Haren be that man? Possibly, but Yankees GM Brian Cashman says that he would prefer to replace Pettitte with a pitcher in the organization. Also, I don’t think it’s a good idea to replace a starter at the cost of two more starters, and a reliever. I think Haren stays in Arizona.

Q. Will Kirk Gibson remain manager of the Diamondbacks after this season?
A. Probably. It’s tough to tell what the future will hold, especially considering the trainwreck that is the Diamondbacks. However, Arizona’s problems can mostly be blamed on pitching, something that will be up to Jerry DiPoto to fix. Players really like Kirk Gibson, and have been around him since 2007 when he was hired as bench coach. So far, I believe they have responded to him well, and I think he has a bright future with the club.

Q. Will Roy Oswalt stay in Houston at least until the offseason?
A. I doubt it. I really think it is in the Astros’ best interest to deal Oswalt and aquire some valued prospects in return to provide a little bit of a better future for Houston, because they certainly aren’t going anywhere this year. Oswalt is being considered by many teams, especially since Cliff Lee is off the table. His contract lasts through 2011, with an option for 2012. Oswalt will make over 21 million dollars between now and the end of next year.

4/16/10 When Crap Hits the Fan: Dbacks Succeed in Breaking Hearts

It’s most fitting that last night, when Juan Gutierrez left the game, his official decision was a blown save, AKA a BS. That’s exactly what that game was last night; BS. You know, I put up with the Diamondbacks’ crap for an entire 2009 season, and I really didn’t think I would do it again in 2010.

The Dbacks started the season giving concern to their fans, despite wins. They won their game behind the offense on Opening Day. The offense did score three runs in the second game of that series, but they lost due to some pitching mistakes by Ian Kennedy. Then in the third series, the Diamondbacks edged past the Padres, behind their offense. Then when the Pirates came to town, it was the same story. The first night, the Diamondbacks had pretty good pitching with Rodrigo Lopez on the mound, and scored runs as well that would lead them to the win. The second night on Saturday, Dan Haren struggled to find his zone. He gave up 5 runs in just as many innings, and despite 3 runs from the offense, the Pirates won 6-3. Then on Sunday, the Diamondbacks did win, but only because of a record-setting, 13-run inning from the Diamondbacks. If it hadn’t been for that, the Diamondbacks would be unlikely to win behind 6 runs from Edwin Jackson.

Going in to LA, the Diamondbacks learned that with good offense, you must have good pitching. That is exactly what the Diamondbacks didn’t have when it came to their bullpen. First game was starter Ian Kennedy, and in combination with the bullpen, Diamondback pitching gave up a total of 9 runs. Even though the offense score five runs, the pitching couldn’t back it up. The second night was Rodrigo Lopez, who, in spite of a scoreless start, received the no decision when the bullpen allowed the Dodgers to tie the game. The Diamondbacks won that game in the 11th inning, but only because of their offense that scored the winning runs. The third game was Dan Haren, who had gave up just one run in 7 innings. The dbacks, even with the 3-1 lead, managed to allow the Dodgers to tie it up 3-3 in the 8th (there’s that 8th inning curse again). The Diamondbacks offense made it 5-3 going in to the bottom of the ninth inning. Chad Qualls came in and gave up two runs to send it in to extra innings with a 5-5 tie. Pitcher Blaine Boyer would put men on second and third, and a hit over the head of Chris Young in center field would give the Dodgers a walk-off win.

So, the Diamondbacks, relying on their offense, couldn’t pull it off. Last night, I was finally wearing a smile when I was watching the Diamondbacks game. Let’s walk through this match.

Edwin Jackson was excellent, he went 6 scoreless innings giving up 3 hits and 4 walks, striking out three. The Diamondbacks, in the third inning, scored three runs off of the opposing Jon Garland. 3-0, until the 7th inning, when Bob Howry came in for the Diamondbacks, giving up one run and getting the hold. 8th inning was Aaron Heilman, who worked through a bases-loaded jam, but nonetheless giving up a run. He also got a hold. 9th inning, 3-2 Diamondbacks, here is where things get crazy…

The first batter for the Padres, Nick Hundley, would walk on Juan Gutierrez. He was working the outer part of the plate, first came up and away with a curveball barely in the zone for strike one, then missed badly with a slider and two fastballs to make it 3-1, then got a couple of fouls off from Hundley, then missed with the fastball on the outer part of the plate and got a guy on first.

Then came Jerry Hairston, cold off the bench to pinch hit for Heath Bell. He would lay down the bunt to move Hundley two second with one out.

Then Everth Cabrera dug in, and it was at this point that I thought the Juan Gutierrez had the game in control with a beautiful sequence of pitches. He first came down and in and got Cabrera swinging on a fastball to make the 0-1 count, then got the called strike two on a slider down and away, then came up and in with a curve that was fouled away, then got him swinging for the second out of the inning with a filthy slider that was low, and things looked promising.

David Eckstein then came up to the plate and hit a double to tie the game and we were tied. Then after intentionally walking Adrian Gonzalez, it was all up to Chase Headley. Gutierrez first went up and away on a first pitch fastball to make the count 1-0, then a pitch up and in was fouled off. Then on the 1-1 count, Juan Gutierrez just really missed his spot, coming in with a fastball and oh boy did Headley drive that ball. A BIIIGGGG homerun in to right field would give the padres a 6-3 walkoff win.

The moral of the story is that the Diamondbacks CAN NOT rely on their offense this year. It’s not because their offense isn’t good enough to rely on, it’s because no offense is. The pitchers are the true deciders in a ballgame and without good pitching no team will ever win a ballgame. The Diamondbacks can expect last place if they dont make moves to bolster their bullpen.