The Diamondbacks have shaken off an early slump to get themselves back to .500 and keep themselves in the playoff picture in a bizarre 2020 season. At the moment, the team hopes to add pieces with the trade deadline looming, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic writes. General manager Mike Hazen spoke to Piecoro about his club’s potential deadline approach, noting that the bullpen could be an area of focus.
“I think going down the stretch and looking at how playoff runs and games transpire, I think the more firepower you have out there the better,” Hazen said of the bullpen. The D-backs could also look for an upgrade at designated hitter in the hopes of getting some more home run power in the lineup, but they’ll take a look at recently recalled Kevin Cron in that role for now.
To this point, Arizona relievers have combined for a 4.62 ERA that ranks 18th in the Majors. (Their 5.01 FIP lands 22nd, and their 4.70 xFIP is 20th.) It’s been a roughly middle-of-the-pack unit, with closer Archie Bradley and righty Stefan Crichton looking particularly sharp in this year’s small sample of innings. Fellow righties Taylor Widener and Taylor Clarke have given strong bottom-line results, but their poor command calls into question just how sustainable those low ERAs are. Offseason pickup Hector Rondon, meanwhile, has been hit hard. Lefty stalwart Andrew Chafin landed on the injured list due to a finger sprain this week, which removes him from the equation at least temporarily.
Suffice it to say, there’s room for at least another arm or two in the ’pen, although the intricacies and oddities of this shortened 2020 season make trade values difficult to determine. Hazen explores that concept in his interview with Piecoro, which is well worth a full read-through, calling this a “bizarre” deadline season that will put all 30 clubs outside their comfort zones.
As for the newly created designated hitter spot in the NL, the D-backs haven’t gotten much production there. While their combined .245/.311/.351 output obviously trounces what could’ve been expected from the pitching staff, it still ranks 16th in the game in terms of wRC+ and leaves clear room for an upgrade. David Peralta and Christian Walker have hit well while DH’ing, but they’re better served playing on the defensive side of things — particularly in the case of Walker, as Jake Lamb has struggled to hit at all in 2020.
There’s time yet for Cron, who led the minors in long balls and homered in nearly 10 percent of his plate appearances last year, to change the club’s thinking, but the desire to add some more pop is plenty justifiable. Arizona has hit just 22 home runs as a team, which is tied for 26th among MLB’s 30 clubs. And even that poor standing undersells their lack of pop; two of the four clubs that trail the D-backs are the Marlins and Cardinals, who both missed more than a week of games due to Covid-19 outbreaks on their rosters. Among teams that have played a full slate of games, only the Rangers and Pirates have hit fewer homers than the D-backs.
Any middle-of-the-pack team’s thinking is still somewhat subject to change, of course. We see teams pivot with their deadline approach at the eleventh hour even in standard 162-game seasons, and the short nature of this year’s schedule could lead to even more of that. Were the D-backs to drop six of their next seven games, the front office would surely rethink its approach, for instance. But for the time being, it appears they’re taking an optimistic outlook and eyeing one of the 16 available postseason spots this season has to offer.
I know the GM commented, but you can probably interchange “Diamondbacks” with a large number of teams. This probably is good for teams like the Orioles with Givens and the Pirates with Kela, driving their prices up. If you viewed the meltdowns in Buffalo yesterday, the Phillies HAVE to do something to contend.They would probably have 5 or 6 more wins with a better BP.
That was ugly yesterday. Philly can’t get it together.
Painful to watch, and not just with Alvarez.
As do the Padres. We all thought they were going to have one of the better bullpens out there and now they are one of the worst. Pagan needs to get his head out of his behind and someone other than Pomeranz has to get some outs.
Like the padres who have a better team but a really bad bullpen
said this on The Good Phight yesterday but just getting rid of Guerra and getting a real closer would be a life saver. Guerra sucks, dont know why we claimed him, and Neris is a 8th inning guy. anyone is an upgrade over Guerra and getting a better closer not only makes the 9th safer but also the 8th (Neris has always been great in the 8th) and the 7th (hopefully, if Alvarez isnt too bad off for that liner)
*that just
Will the D-Backs want to increase payroll? I’ve heard a lot about them wanting to drop payroll, at least starting in the offseason.
They should still have some wiggle room since Bumgarner has a back loaded deal and Greinke is (mostly) off the books
The Pirates are gonna be one of the few true sellers this year. They should look into both Holland and Kela.
You can keep Holland my friend lol
I mean, aside from one really disasterful inning, he hasn’t been all that bad. He’s been really hurt by bad defense because they’ve been basically playing Cole Tucker out of position in CF and a defensive miscue costed Holland a few runs, and Miguel Del Pozo walked in a run that Holland left on first. If you take out that one really bad first inning vs the Tigers a few weeks ago, his FIP is somewhere in the mid-3’s.
Lol I know just teasing. He’s got a few games with some decent K totals. He would be an interesting lefty bullpen option considering how bad Chafin has been.
That, and the fact he’s a fairly durable starter. He’s only been on the 10-day twice since 2017, and with how many pitchers going down to injury this year, you need a guy who can give you 5-6 serviceable innings. Especially one who can do it out of the pen, and is a lefty.
Absolutely true. I’m assuming the cost would be pretty low as well.
Probably would, but getting anything out of Holland, a minor league signee, will be worth it. Even if that’s just something like international bonus pool money.
Sellers: Red Sox, Mariners, Tigers, Angels, Pirates, possibly Giants, Nationals, Phillies, Orioles, Rangers, Royals
Could see a very few lop sided trades for relievers this year.
Angels don’t have any relievers to offer.
I mean, you do.
Hoby Millner, Ty Buttrey, Noe Ramirez, Felix Pena and Mike Mayers could all be of interest.
Now, would the Angels be willing to deal them? Idk.
I think the only true sellers are going to be the Red Sox, Mariners and Pirates. The Pirates might have a corner on the market, being the only seller in the NL.
Phillies and Nats are at the very least holding, if not buying. same probably goes for Rangers and Angels too.
Hey Darkside, there is a local, Texas blog named Lone Star Ball, and it just writes about the Rangers. I swear the people over there are so frustrated right now. Not because of the Padres thing, but because ownership wants to do NOTHING. They aren’t planning on adding payroll (that news came via Evan Grant and Dallas Morning News, last week), but they also don’t really want to move on guys, because, I guess, they think we have a playoff team. No. And the commentors know that. They all are sick and tired of the run around this team is doing, to go nowhere. The fans want to see the team sell on Lynn, and most want to see Gallo traded this Winter (I am one to say that I want him extended, but nevertheless). All of us Rangers fans want to see us go in A direction, and they’d much rather see us sell than go hog wild and jack our payroll up to 200 mil on guys like Choo.
All in all, if we hold this deadline… people are gonna be pissed. I seriously want to see Lynn traded to the Braves, but at this point it really doesn’t matter where…
“We could be interested in bullpen upgrades,” commented the GMs of 46 MLB teams… believed to be an all time record (pending certification).
The Yankees have a ton of young relievers. If you need them their the best team to call. Chad Green could even close for most teams he’s that good. Do the Diamondbacks have any interest in Miguel Andujar? His bat could really help a team looking to make a playoff push. Are D-Backs looking to trade Robbie Ray or no? Please let me know fans & thnx. Are there any young starting lefties in your minor system that are available via trade?
Wait, did Yank4Life just make an Andujar trade proposal? Wow. I never thought I would see that!
Blake Walston but I doubt he’s available. Maybe Tommy Henry?
Luke Jackson for a broken ventilator
Yeah for sure or at least keep him in low leverage situations
If they want a DH JD Martinez can go back to the desert.
@Red Eye- c’mon man, Andy can play 3rd, lst, and dh. And he’s a lot cheaper then your boy JD Martinez. Andujar would put up big #’s In the Desert given the at bats and playing time
Rafael Montero would be a perfect fit. He’s been terrific with us this season, and the only reason he gave up the Grand Slam Wednesday was because Woodward left him out for 40 some odd pitches instead of just 20-25.
would Texas want to trade him though?
Yeah, we can produce bullpen arms like it’s nothing (one of the few things we can do). We made a the return for an aging backup catcher turn out to be Emmanuel Clase. Hernandez was a failed starter in AA last season so we stuck him in the pen, and he’s terrific. Leclerc is eh, tbh I don’t really like him, I think we should push him back to a middle relief role. J-Rod wasn’t homegrown, we just bought him up before others got to him. And we have Demarcus Evans ready to come up. Oh and Taylor Hearn.
I think Texas would move on him, just because of the amount of relief arms we manufacture.
Ian Kennedy struck me as someone the Royals could have traded to a contender (along with some salary relief) prior to his rough 2020 showing.
Could still be an ounce of value there, but not without KC kicking in most if not all of his remaining salary.
This article illustrates everything about why baseball is going to lose their entire older fan base. Baseball has become a game that’s dominated by things like WAR, wRC+, FIP and xFIP. They’ve taken what used to be a simple, easy to understand game and made it something that is more akin to a spreadsheet and a computer probability chart. Will that attract a younger fan base who’s excited by that sort of activity? Maybe. For MLB’s sake, I really hope so. But it’s certainly not going to enable it to hang on to its older fans who have already been turned off by defensive shifts, a lack of attention to the fundamentals of the game, and the changes that have been instituted for the abbreviated season.
Is it though? If that were true, then the average age of baseball fans should be decreasing if older fans are being turned off by the metrics. According to the numbers, the average age has actually went up. from 2006 to 2016 from 54 to 57. Right now, the only other sport that has a higher average fan age is Nasscar. If anything, the older fans are sticking around, and there are few younger fans.
You don’t have to appreciate the analytical side of baseball to go out and enjoy a game. I quite honestly don’t understand what it is with people and wanting to shoot down the fans who enjoy bringing analytics to the game. If they appreciate the sport, why be nasty to them? Baseball needs fans, and if that’s what they like doing, then so be it. This goes for the analytical fans too who have an ‘adapt or leave’ mentality.
Also, I don’t think you’re going to find many people saying “I don’t like baseball because of wRC+”. Sure, not everyone is going to like analyitics, but if someone doesn’t like baseball, it’s not because they don’t like wRC+, wOBA, etc.
What prospects in the 60 player pool are teams willing to cough up?
Being interested is one thing.
Surrendering the future is entirely different.
Trevor Rosenthal appears to have regained control and much of his velocity, albeit in just over 10 innings after two lost seasons.
Kela and Frazier from the Pirates for a mid range prospect
Pirates trade K.Kela for JB Bukauskas or J.Duplianter.