Two prominent Diamondback veterans in Kelly Johnson and Adam LaRoche have cleared trade waivers recently, but don't expect the team to move them or anyone else says Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic. Interim GM Jerry Dipoto didn't sound confident about making any deals before Tuesday, which is the deadline for when a player must be with an organization to be eligible for the postseason roster.
"There's still a chance (of making a deal)," said Dipoto, "but I wouldn't qualify it as likely."
Aside from Johnson and LaRoche, the D-Backs could have also looked into moving Aaron Heilman, Mark Reynolds, and maybe even Stephen Drew if the return was great enough. They've already jettisoned Chris Snyder, Edwin Jackson, Conor Jackson, Chad Qualls, and Dan Haren this season, the closest thing we've seen to a full-blown firesale in quite some time.
At 51-78, Arizona has the second worst record in the NL and fourth worst overall. The do, however, have a decent young core with Ian Kennedy, Daniel Hudson, Chris Young, Miguel Montero, Drew, and of course, Justin Upton. Beyond a bullpen overhaul, it might not take much to get them back into contention in the NL West.
The Cardinals would be a perfect fit for Kelly Johnson. Skip Shumaker isn’t getting the job done defensively or offensively.
They have a nice core group. Let’s see if they build around it.
Amazing that Barry Enright isn’t mentioned in the “core.” Over his last eleven starts, he’s clearly been the best pitcher the Diamondbacks have.
Nekos, I agree with you, but there is a fear amongst scouts that he doesn’t have the stuff to sustain a career as a starter in the MLB. I have been praying to the baseball Gods that this isn’t the case – but many professional scouts and baseball analysts believe Enright will end up as a long reliever.