Howdy folks,

Jim said a while ago it might be an idea for a diary and as there's few people this side of the pond to share (or relate) to baseball I hope none of you all mind if I chronicle my first year as a baseball player, here on the 'Pit.

I won't bother writing alot of personal background here, (that's already been done in the Hello my name is thread) but in a nutshell im a 21 year old guy from the UK living in the south of England who has never played baseball before in my life. However after 7 years of following the Diamondbacks and having returned from University I finally decided to take the plunge and seek out a local side to play for.  Fortunately for myself the nearest time was only 10 miles away, the Thames Valley Bisons, who i'd learned of after doing some research on UK baseball for some work experience I did with my local BBC radio station back in the fall.

Despite my enthusiasm I still didn't really fancy joining a new team by myself so dragged my mate Steve along for the ride. Even though Steve had never watched yet alone played the game before he soon took a liking to the game and so we began to play some basic catch and took a few swings with the bat down our local field. With a view to joining the Bisons for their first practise session at the end of February.

When we got to the Bisons field it wasn't exactly Chase. The diamond was at the back of two football (I will not call it soccer dammit ;) ) pitches, and all that was there to show that it was ever a baseball diamond was a mound and some rough patches where the bases had been. When our hopefully future team mates arrived It turned out that 7 of the 8 or  guys there  were Polish (there's a heavy and growing Polish population in Reading) of which only one or two could speak English. Still the guys were very friendly and welcoming and made us feel part of the team straight away, but we weren't just there to make friends we were there to play ball (insert dramatic music here) 

The first thing I'll say as someone who has never played before Now neither of us really expected to be the next A-Rod (Steve doesn't even know who A-Rod is..) but we didnt expect to be so far behind our team mates when we turned up to our first practise session. What we saw wasn't Major League caliber by a long shot but it still made us look like little leaguers. The biggest thing I took away from my first proper game of  catch Is that you never really appreciate the intricasies and techniques required to do the simplist of things such as throwing a ball. Our captain Tomasz and coach Peter took us aside for 90% of that first session and literally taught us the very basics of how to throw and grip a baseball. On the surface being taught such remedial things was enough to make me think "what the heck am I doing here?!" and such feelings only grew stronger as most of my throws barely made 10 yards, flew over Steve's head or into the dirt, yet slowly and surely it began to come together.

Sadly for us just as we thought "ok this might work out ok..." we were called over to the main field where the other guys were practising to practise catching fly balls. Having played cricket before i was no stranger to catching a ball (bare handed at that ;) ) but even so there's no words to descrive the feelings you go through when you see that ball sail into the sky off the bat knowing you have to make the catch. As I stood there waiting for what seemed like an eternity I couldn't help but think how much I take for granted a routine flyball out when I watch a game on the TV, but now standing waiting for the ball to (hopefully) hit my glove all I could think was please don't let me make a fool of myself. Fortunately it did nestle into the webbing of my glove and I made the catch sadly for me though it was one of about 3 i caught out of 6 or so.

That first session we didn't even get to bat but we'd both enjoyed ourselves enough to make a return visit the following week….

That second week felt a lot better then the first as even though neither of us could throw worth a damn we were better then the week before and getting somewhere. It was with this growing confidence that we headed over to the diamond to have our first fielding practise and I was planted at 2nd base with Steve (being left handed) in right field. As I stood there waiting I had dreams of making Orlando Hudson type plays and turning double plays for fun, but sadly I ended up making Orlando Hudson plays of the wrong kind, you know the simple ones you just mess up… The hardest bit was learning where the hell I should be when the ball went where, when to stand on the base, when to be a relay guy etc etc and half the time I felt like a kid lost in the middle of the supermarket unsure of which way or where to go. Still my team mates took it in good spirits and helped me whenever they could which admittedly wasn’t easy in mostly broken English.  After dusting myself down I finally got a chance to hit a baseball as we were shown how to stand and swing the bat before being let loose on a few soft throws. This is the one thing I can seemingly  do alright in as I was able to make good contact with a fair few..

After a week off to go skiing we returned ready for my BP and fielding drills. This time I played centre field probably catching about 75% of the fly balls my way and during BP I once again seemed to do alright. But at the end of the session I had to face a pitcher for the first time, with a catcher behind me. The experience was quite surreal as I stood staring down the pitcher, our captain Tomasz. Sadly Tomasz was more huge manatee then Webby and he struggled with his control meaning I got around 10 balls and about 4 strikes. Our coach Peter then took over and gave me 5 or 6 strikes so that I had something to hit and I did make contact on a couple though without a base hit!

So that’s about where I am right now heading into my final before our spring training opener against Guilford on Sunday.  I still have no idea where I’ll field or if I’ll even make the team, but with numbers at around 12 I stand a good chance of being involved. I think I’d like to field first or left field to be honest, at least to start with as there is no DH ;)

Anyways hope that this isn’t too long/boring and  I’ll try and update later after practise. For anyone that’s interested our website is http://www.thamesvalleybaseball.co.uk/  which has some background info on the club and last season.  I should have mentioned last year was the teams first and the results page reflects this!

 Still, Go Bisons! ;)

 

I apologise for the sudden ending to this blog, but it honestly reflected the rather sudden ending to my time as a Bisons player, for this season at least.

As I mentioned in my last entry way back on August 4th I had no scheduled games for two weeks due to bad weather and work but little did I know I wouldn't play again that season. A combination of working commitments, postponed games, the weather and my departure to University meant that I didn't get a chance to play again for the rest of the year. I did manage to make a few practise sessions but with the light getting worse and worse even those became few and far between.

Never the less the Bisons did play on. Even though the season had 'ended' officially on the first weekend of September we still had a few games left to play and actually ended up finishing second in our division, a remarkable achievement given our sluggish start to the season. Below are the results of our final games.

SUNDAY 10th AUGUST @ SOUTHAMPTON: WON 27 - 5.
SUNDAY 7th SEPTEMBER @ GUILDFORD: WON 9- 0 (F).
SUNDAY 14th SEPTEMBER vs BRAINTREE - WON 14 - 4.
SUNDAY 21st SEPTEMBER @ OLD TIMERS - WON 13 - 3.
SUNDAY 12th OCTOBER vs OLD TIMERS - WON 12 - 9.
SUNDAY 19th OCTOBER @ ESSEX ARROWS II - WON 19 - 5.

So the Bisons ended the season well but I have found it difficult to stay in touch with people from the team as I haven't played for so long.

In spite of the anti climactic end I truly loved the time I spent out on the diamond with the team. Having been a follower of baseball for so long it was great to finally get out onto the field and actually gain an appreciation of how tough a sport baseball really is. My best moment was probably my debut, getting a hit in my first at bat was something I'd hoped for but never expected and sliding into first felt awesome (even if I later learned was quite unsporting...) Sadly as I've mentioned before the organisation of the side and some of the management decisions taken over the year caused some friction which was something that wasn't quite so great. Even so I'd like to thank the guys who ran the team and helped keep it going.

From a performance point of view I think I did alright, whilst I would have liked to get some more hits I got on base at a good rate and my fielding was improving game on game. Next year if I do play I'd like to try and be a bit more aggressive but in a non Special K kind of way ;)

Final Line:
DW: 16AB 5H 4R 6RBI 7BB 2HBP .313 Avg .560 OBP 3SB

In September I moved down to Falmouth to go to University to study for an MA in Sports Broadcast Journalism and I'll be here until June at least. Falmouth is in Cornwall in the South West of the UK and so I'm about five hours from home, meaning getting to practise/games will be near impossible at the start of next year. So I may well have thrown my last ball in anger with the Bisons, whether I'll be able to get back into the team next year, or have the time to play is something that I can't predict right now but watch this space :)

Finally thanks to everyone who read and commented over the year, and to Jim for letting me post this on the 'Pit. For anyone that's interested I'm writing a blog on my experiences/thoughts as a journalism student here and the link is http://www.wimbles.wordpress.com

On May 22nd I posted a quick review of our off season moves  from 2007/2008 Linky  and now nearly 3 months later I thought I would revisit and review again. Once more sorry for the lack of in depth knowledge/scouting, I'm restricted to stats I'm afraid but if anyone wants to chip in please feel free

Players In

Dan Haren: SP    (Ari)   

 24 GS  159 IP  12-6    SO 147   BB 27  3.00  ERA  1.025 WHIP

I don't think this needs much comment really. Haren has been awesome in the process of recording a 12-6 record and an ERA of 3.00. Had it not been for the general offensive woes of the late spring and early summer, Mr Haren could well be on 15 wins by now. Still Haren has been a co-ace of the staff this year and his recent contract extension is well deserved in my opinion.

Chad Qualls: RP (Ari)

57G 54IP   2-7  2 SV     51SO  17BB  3.50 ERA 1.24 WHIP

There is a certain hand drawn graphic that demonstrates just how much Qualls (or rather Melvin's use of Qualls) has frustrated the fans at times this season. Despite several implosions which have helped contributed to 7 losses Qualls has by and large been a decent aquisition for the Diamondbacks, posting a respectible ERA  and K/BB ratio. Used in a variety of roles by BoMel Chad has settled into the bullpen and  whilst his meltdowns do frustrate, such troubles a bullpen wide issue and not just one for Mr Qualls to worry about.

Billy Buckner: SP     

(ARI)  6G  9 IP   1-0    SO 7 BB 2  4.00 ERA   1.56 WHIP

(TUS) 19 GS 110.1 IP  5-8    SO 63 BB 39  5.30 ERA  1.53 WHIP

After being aquired for Alberto Callaspo  in the off season Buckner was sent down to AAA where he and his felow Tuscon starters not named Sherzer all found themselves getting shelled in a team wide struggle. That being said Buckner has made it to 'the show' this season and performed admirably in his few appearences out of the 'pen.

Connor Robertson:  RP

(Ari)  6G  7 IP  0-1   2 SO  2 BB   5.14 ERA   1.429 WHIP

(Tus) 40 G  66IP  7-3    63SO  25BB 4.23  ERA  1.21 WHIP

Part of the Haren deal, Robertson has settled in well in a relief role with Tuscon. His ERA has dropped by around a run at AAA since I last reviewed and like Bucknor he has been up and down with the D-Backs and pitched a handful of largely average innings. The jury is still out on this one but he doesn't look too out of his depth so far.

Juan Gutierrez:  SP (Tus)

21G  18GS   91.2 IP   3-10      74SO  35 BB   6.68  ERA   1.79 WHIP

Fighting it out with Chris Burke to be crowned worst piece of the Valverde trade is Juan Gutierrez who is sucking the big one down in Tuscon, An ERA closer to 7 then 6 and a WHIP nudging towards 2 says it all. Certainly not someone who we'll be expecting up at the big league level when the rosters expand.

Jose Marte: RP (Vis/Mob)

(Vis A+)   9G  14 IP  1-0  3SV  15 SO  4 BB    1.93 ERA  1.21 WHIP

(Mob AA) 31G  42.1 IP  4-2  6 SV  33 SO  22BB  4.68 ERA   1.56 WHIP

Our return for Dustin Nippert was relief pitcher Jose Marte who impressed early on with high A ball for Visalia and was promoted to Mobile early on in the season. However the jump to AA proved challenging for Jose and whilst not being terrible he looks set to at least repeat AA.

 

Chris Burke: OF/INF (Ari)

67 G   137 AB  26 H  14 R  0 HR  7RBI  .190 AVG  .536 OPS

Chris Burke has managed to cross the plate a whopping 7 times since I wrote this original article, very impressive stuff from the Chocolate Teapot! The man who has one less home run then a pitcher sitting in Tuscon and as many RBI's as Brandon Webb has at least been useful defence wise this season but at the plate....well. I made this comment back in May.

 Burke should heat up and when that happens he's a guy you want on your bench.

 What a fool I am :(

 

Trot Nixon: OF/1B (Tus/NYM)

(TUS) 58G  181AB  56H 39R    10 HR   31RBI   .309 AVG  .995 OPS

(NYM) 11G  35AB    6H    2R       1HR    1RBI  .171 AVG  579 OPS

Despite the injuries to several outfielders and infielders during the early part of this season, Trot Nixon never made it onto the Diamondbacks roster and eventually found his way to the Mets  where he has largely been sidelined by injury.

 

Josh Whitesell: 1B (Tus)

114G  421 AB  139H  77R  23 HR  95 RBI  .330AVG  .996 OPS

This waiver claim from Washington is quietly having a great season down is Tuscon  hitting for a decent average and slugging well. Sadly his progress is blocked by a number of players who can play 1st and might well end up like Chris Carter V1.0.

 

 

 

 Players Out

 Livan Hernandez: SP (Min/)

(MIN) 23GS   139.7 IP   10-8   5.48 ERA   54 SO  29BB

(COL) 1GS         2.7 IP   0-1     30.38 ERA  1 SO  4 BB

Livan left us as a free agent in the hope of snagging a mega bucks multi year deal but ended up signing for a year with the Twins. After a great start he fell off a cliff around the same time our offence did and after 2 months of sucktitude was DFA and picked up by the Rockies. In his lone start so far he managed to give up 9 earned runs in only 2 2/3 innings, so thanks Livan ;)

Dana Eveland: SP (Oak)

22 GS  125.0 IP  7-8  85 SO  64 BB  4.46 ERA  1.52 WHIP

After a bright start Eveland has faded fast due in a large part to a sharp drop in his K/BB ratio as the season has progressed. His stock has fallen so low as of late that he's not even on the roster for the A's right now and has been DFA

Gregg Smith: SP (Oak)

23 GS  137.7 IP  5-11    90 SO  65 BB  3.92 ERA

Like Eveland, Smith found himself in the A's starting rotation at the start of the season and like his former D-Back he made an immediate impression winning many plaudits  for his role in keeping the A's as contenders in a rebuilding year. Sadly much like Eveland his stock has fallen recently but he still has decent numbers on the year.

Jose Valverde: RP (Hou)

55 G  54.3 IP  5-3  29 SV  4.31 ERA  62 SO  19BB

The Valverde deal seems to fluctuate almost weekly between good/bad for the D-Backs.  At times Valverde has been dominant bt at other times he's looked lost, so in a way him and Qualls really aren't so different. Still, Jose is on course for around 40 saves and few in Houston will look at an ERA some 1.5 runs higher then last year.

Dustin Nippert: RP (Tex)

13 G  35.7 IP  1-2    24 SO  23  BB 7.82 ERA   2.13 WHIP

After a nightmare start at Texas and injury to boot, Dustin has somewhat settle down and pitched a few innings in the Lone Star State but really nothing spectacular

Brett Anderson: SP (Oak Class A/AA)

(A) 14G 13GS  74 IP  9-4    80 SO  18BB  4.14 ERA  1.16 WHIP

(AA)  5GS  25 IP  2-1  29 SO  8 BB  1.80 ERA  1.04 WHIP

Anderson is progressing nicely so far, already having moved from high A to AA ball and based on early results is settling in well. Again as with all young pitchers its harder to project, especially when you rely on pure numbers but he does seem to have some talent. 

 

Carlos Quentin: OF (CWS)

114 G  423 AB  120 H  82 R  32 HR  90 RBI  .284 AVG  .947 OPS

For old times sake....

 

Alberto Callaspo:  SS/OF (KAN)

42G  100AB  29H  8R  0 HR  4RBI  .290 AVG  .679 OPS

Alberto has been blighted by injuries and personal problems this season but in his limited playing time he is showing glimpses of talent.

 

Tony Clark: 1B (SD/ARI)

(SD)  70G  88AB  21H  5R  1HR  11RBI  .239 AVG  .684OPS

(ARI) 17G 37AB 8H 4R  2HR  9RBI  .216 AVG  .698 OPS

Well, we all know how this one worked out... GIDP anyone? Still joking aside Tony came back to the D-Backs after being one of the best examples of a pure pinch hitter around whilst in San Diego. Since coming 'home' to the Diamondbacks Tony has had more playing opportunities but has underwhelmed 2 home runs aside.

Chris Carter: 1B (Oak Single A)

(A+) 118 G  437AB  119H  89R  34HR  97RBI  .272AVG  .958OPS

So, maybe Byrnes was onto something with 'that trade' after all. It's a small sample size and at A+ level but so far Chris Carter V2.0 is showing some awesome power connecting for 34 Home runs already this season whilst keeping a respectable batting average and OBP to boot. One to watch...

Carlos Gonzalez: OF (Oak/ AAA)

(AAA) 41 G  157 AB  46 H  23 R  4 HR  25 RBI  .293 AVG  .790 OPS

(OAK) 62 G  234 AB  64 H 25 R  3HR  19 RBI  .274 BA  .715 OPS

Shortly after I wrote my first review CarGon was called up to join the A's and has held his own in the major leagues. The centrepiece of the Haren deal still has a lot to learn but there is no question about the potential.

Aaron Cunningham: OF (Oak AA/AAA)

(AA) 87 G  347 AB  110H  65R  12 HR  52 RBI  .317 AVG  .893 OPS

(AAA) 5G  17 AB  7H  7 R  2HR  3RBI  .412 AVG  1.506 OPS

Aaron has recently been elevated to AAA and has started brightly after playing well at AA ball for the A's.  

 

I don't have too much to say about these really. I think the interesting bits are the results of the Haren trade. The A's really do look to have received a lot of talent with 3 players making an impact in the big leagues and another at AAA, even below that level Chris Carter seems a genuine power prospect. However from a Diamondbacks perspective we have received a man who is an All Star and a man who is a genuine Cy-Young candidate so we can't be anything but happy. Tony Clark looked to be slowly rocking towards retirement before we granted him a final hurrah, whilst Livan looks a spent force. The trade involving Papa Grande has been a draw so far and we looked to have picked up a decent reserve player/trade bait in Whitesell

So yeah, any fresh feelings/thoughts welcome :)

According to the Diamondbacks website as Peguero gets called up to come into the pen'

Linkage

It's been discussed over a few other threads but this move seems to make sense after yesterdays meltdown :(

Hopefully he can work on his mechanics for a month or so and make it back with the roster expansion, despite his recent struggles I still see alot of potential out there in that guy.

Petit unsurprisingly will make Owings next scheduled start and the guy does deserve it on the basis of recent displays.

[Wimb posted this while I was working on my piece reporting the same, so let's combine the two under one heading. Jim]

Jack Magruder reports so this afternoon. I imagine this doesn't come as too much of a shock - Petit will replace him in the rotation, as of Saturday, with Jailen Peguero getting to step up from Tucson and move into the bullpen. I imagine that will likely be a short-term assignment, with Juan Cruz almost ready to come back. How long Owings stays down with the Sidewinders is harder to say. There has clearly been something very wrong with him over the last couple of months: is it mechanical or mental, and in either case, is it fixable?

I certainly hope so: it's a shame that a season which started with such promise has now turned around so radically. However, he can take comfort from past history - Jose Valverde was similarly optioned down to Tucson after imploding during the 2006 season, and returned in full force, to lead the majors in saves for 2007. Fingers crossed Micah can be similarly "cured", sort out his command, work on his third pitch, and return to the good form he showed for us during April.

[Moved to front page and refreshed, since the trade talks appear to be coming to the boil.]

Browsing the baseball globe today the Diamondbacks have been linked by both Fox and ESPN to signing Braves First Baseman Mark Teixeira. Fox's Ken Rosenthal in particular discusses the prospect.  linky

Whilst it's been made clear in many places that the deal is unlikely would you be in favour of the move under the right circumstances?

If Rosenthal is to be believed the Braves want CoJack as part of the deal and I know I'm stating the obvious but for me that just makes absolutly no sense. CoJack now has value at both LF and 1B and is tearing up pitching recently helping spark the offence. Also worth noting his defence in left has been more then adequete and his speed has also increased making him at least a nuissance in the eyes of pitchers.

Personally I'd love Tex and I don't think it would be too damaging to commit the roughly $5 million he is owed for the rest of the season, especially considering we would get 2 draft picks when he presumably leaves for free agency.

So really I just thought I'd open it up to what sort of package you'd think it would take to get him over here (if you want him at all) With Rauch added to the bullpen we could presumably move one of our bullpen arms but I'd like to think the Braves would be tempted by dangling Doug Davis or even Micah Owings plus a prospect. With Smoltz not certain to return to the rotation and Glavine likely to retire they Braves have a need for starting pitching and with the Petit and Scherzer showing themselves as capable arms I think we could absorb the loss of either Davis or Owings/Petit.

Bottom line though is I think with the addition of Clark the D-Backs ruled this one right out and barring an injury to Clark or Tracy I don't see it happening

Steve Gilbert's latest mailbag threw up an interesting response to a question about leadership on the team and speculates on a possible return of Tony Clark to the desert. 

 linkage

 

In the summer, not giving Clark a 2 year multi million dollar deal made a lot of sense, but his subsequent failure to get a 2 year deal and that he ended up signing for less then a million with the Padres now makes Clark, at least in my opinion, a great 2nd half rental for the team. Clark stated all along his preference in staying in Arizona and as Gilbert points out, with Gonzalez raking out West I doubt it would take much to bring him over here.

Whilst I don't subscribe to the belief that 'clubhouse presence' will rescue our season, it can't be a bad thing to have a guy in the clubhouse who's been down the stretch in a tight race before and the level of respect he has amongst the young guys here is unquestioned.  However if the Eric Byrnes deal has shown us ANYTHING it's that such sentimentality shouldn't factor into the decision so here's a very basic rundown of Clark this year.

If we are talking on a purely statistical basis the return of Clark won't magically fix our slumping/broken offence much. Clark is currently hitting for a .247 over 85 AB's with 11 RBI's and just 1 home run.

What does interest me though is his OBP where his mark of .385 would certainly be welcome given the K heavy nature of our lineup.  In roughly half the games as he played in 07, he's walked 19 times already in 08 compared with just 21 in 07. Power wise he seems very much on the 06 side of life, having hit just 1 this season but hitting the longball doesnt seem to be much a problem for us this year.

The argument to bring Clark over here makes increasing sense when you look at who stands 'in his way'  The contract to Clark was seemingly pulled after we aquired Chris Burke from Houston. This along with the subsequent signing of Trot Nixon and impending return of Chad Tracy meant that with CoJack and Reynolds set to get the vast majority of playing time, there was no need to carry another backup first baseman with an already overcrowded infield. However as we all know things have changed with Burke a massive dissapointment, Nixon gone and CoJack out in left field we have somewhat of a need at first.

So, the bottom line is do you think it's worth bringing Clark back? and what would it take to get him?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ok screw this depressive run of results, and screw normal convention it's Saturday morning I'm hungover and up for a laugh or two :)

So I'm going to ask the pointless but potentially amusing question of based on life at the 'pit which Diamondback (past or present) would you compare yourself too?

 

Whilst office life is fast turning me into a Russ Ortiz sized person this is about the 'Pit and based on my posting habits I'd say I'm a bit of an Augie Ojeda.

I'm not usually in the Game(day thread) for that long but occasionally when the timezones match I can put in a full performance.  I'm never likely to go yard and fill out 200 posts and only rarely post a fanpost in depth but am i am full of single one liners :) and I'm happy to walk into a fanpost at any time

Anyways yes this seems slightly stupid but heck anything to lighten the mood oh and feel free to nominate anyone else for a player, should be worth a chuckle

Before you ask, No this post won't need "the picture"  Instead I thought I'd take a look at how the off season deals are working out so far for the Diamondbacks, looking at how our departed free agents as well as trades in and out have performed so far this season (I don't have the time to look at the minor league FA signings sadly). I'm not looking to make a point of whether a particular trade was worth it, but more looking from a collective standpoint of how the Diamondbacks moves have played out for both players in and out. The stats I've used are simple ones from MLB.com and  some might say overly simplistic but again it's just a light review after just over 1/4 of the season so go easy on me!  

 

 

Players In

Dan Haren: SP    (Ari)   

 9 GS  57.1 IP  5-2    3.14 ERA   SO45   BB 10

Haren has provided us with a much needed Number 2 and arguably co-ace in our rotation and had the bullpen pitched a little better in his starts, might very well be on 6 or 7 wins to date.

 

 

Chad Qualls: RP (Ari)

24 G 23 IP   0-4   1 SV   2.74 ERA  24 SO  10 BB

Chad has gone alongway to replacing Jose Valverde and keeping the Diamondbacks with 4 solid "top end relievers" despite an 0-4 record. Part of the Valverde trade, Qualls has been solid particularly early on when Pena and Cruz were struggling. During May he's struggled a little himself with a 8.59 ERA during May but he's shown enough talent to be counted on.

Billy Buckner: SP   (Tus)   

 

 

10 GS 54.1 IP 2-4 5.30 ERA   SO 30  BB 23

Our return from trading Callaspo, Bucker is only 24 and still developing whilst playing on an awful Tuscon side that currently stands at a dire 16-31 record.  Young pitchers are always hard to project and I can't profess to ever having seen the guy play so the jury is out for the time being.

Connor Robertson:  RP (Tus)

19G  32.1 IP  4-2  5.01 ERA  32SO  14BB

Part of the Haren deal, Robertson like seemingly every pitcher, not named Sherzer, has been shelled down at AAA Tuscon  but has helped himself to 4 wins in the process it's also worth noting that over his last 10 appearences he's pitched 19 innings  for a 2.84 ERA only giving up 6 runs with 3 of those coming in one outing. Robertson seems the type of guy that could fill in the long guy role should we lose Gonzalez or Medders on waivers.

 

Juan Gutierrez:  SP (Tus)

10 GS   51 IP   1-8   5.65 ERA   38 SO  19 BB

I sound like a broken record already but Gutierez joins the collective Tuscon suckage down at AAA. Part of the Valverde deal Gutierez has  A pitiful  1-8 record tells the story and in his last 3 starts he's given up 15 ER in 13 1/3 inning of work. Again the guy is only 24 so time will tell.

Jose Marte: RP (Vis/Mob)

15 G  22.1IP  2-1  3SV  3.63 ERA  20 SO  10 BB

25 year old reliever Marte was aquired at the end of March for out of options pitcher Dustin Nippert.  Marte pitched well in 9 appearences at single A picking up 3 saves in 9 appearences compiling a 1.93 ERA. Promoted to AA Mobile, Marte has struggled somewhat giving up 6ER in just 8.1 innings.

 

Chris Burke: OF/INF (Ari)

30 G   59 AB  11 H  7 R  0 HR  .186 AVG  .526 OPS

Whilst proving versatile and able to play just about anywhere in the field, Burke hasn't converted a successful spring at the plate into regular season production with a dissapointing .526 OPS furthermore his average is well down from its around .250 average. Burke should heat up and when that happens he's a guy you want on your bench.

 

 Trot Nixon: OF/1B (Tus)

42 G  122 AB  37 H 27 R    6 HR   24 RBI   .303 AVG  1.013 OPS

The former Red Sox outfielder signed  terms after battling it out during spring training for the final spot on the roster before losing out to Alex Romero. Somewhat surprisingly Trot agreed to a minor league assignment and after a slow start has played pretty well batting over .300. With the recent injury concerns of Byrnes and the continuing doubts over Chad Tracy we could well see Trot in the majors again before too long.

 

Joshn Whitesell: 1B (Tus)

40 G  154 AB  42 H  31 R  9 HR  30 RBI  .273 AVG  .864 OPS

Whitesell was a waiver claim from the Nationals in mid March and is providing decent numbers at AAA Tuscon. Sadly at 26 he's running out of time to make an impact but given that he's a left handed bat a September callup isn't beyond the realms of possibility given his decent production in a poor Tuscon lineup.

 

 

 

 Players Out

 Livan Hernandez: SP (Min)

10 GS   65 IP   6-2   3.88 ERA   21 SO  11BB

Livan has had a rollercoaster since he left the NL West champs in November. Originally expected to get a 3-4 year deal in the 30 million range, Livan ended up signing a 1 year $5-7 Million dollar deal with the AL Twins. At the time most of us seemed to think that the AL would eat up Livo' but somewhat surprisngly the veteran right hander has gone 6-2 with a sub 4.00 ERA with an average looking Twins side.

Dana Eveland: SP (Oak)

10 GS  62.0 IP  4-3  2.90 ERA  44 SO  24 BB

Part of the Haren deal Eveland has hardly impressed during his brief spells in the bigs with the Diamondbacks but has impressed in a rebuilding A's side and is sporting an impressive 2.90 ERA.

Gregg Smith: SP (Oak)

9 GS  56 2/3 IP  2-4  3.18 ERA  45 SO  22BB

Smith wasn't considered major league ready when traded as part of the Haren deal but has more then held his own in the big leagues with Oakland, keeping his side in games with a 3.18 ERA and logging around 6 innings per start.

Jose Valverde: RP (Hou)

24 G  25 IP  4-1  14 SV  3.60 ERA  31 SO  8BB

After a shaky start Papa Grande has settled down and hasn't given up a run since April 17th compiling 13 saves in that time out of 14 overall.

Dustin Nippert: RP (Tex)

6 G  8 2/3 IP  1-2  16.62 ERA  6 SO  8 BB

Poor Dustin was assumed to have the final spot in the D-Backs bullpen nailed down going into spring training. Sadly a bad spring combined with a good effort by Brandon Medders meant that the out of options Nippert was traded to the Rangers where since, well, Nightmare comes to mind. Dustin has given up 16 ER in just 8.2 innings which is over halfway towards what he gave up in 2007 but in 37 fewer innings. He has since been placed on the DL and I really hope that is the reason for his poor displays this year.

Brett Anderson: SP (Oak Class A)

9GS  44 1/3 IP  5-4  5.68 ERA  45 SO  14BB

The 20 year old was part of the Haren deal and clearly has good stuff based on 45 strikeouts compared with only 14BB. Sadly this is tempered by the fact Anderson has given up 49 hits in only 44 innings which has contributed to a lofty 5.58 ERA.

 

Carlos Quentin: OF (CWS)

44 G  153 AB  45 H  32 R  12 HR  38 RBI  .294 AVG  .996 OPS

 

Alberto Callaspo:  SS/OF (KAN)

25G  59AB  17H  2R  0 HR  3RBI  .288AVG  .703OPS

A Change of scenery was probably needed for Callaspo who had torn up AAA for years but never really done it on the major league level. So far this year Callaspo has been mainly used to spot regular starters but boasts a respectable .288 average.

 

Tony Clark: 1B (SD)

33G  42AB  10H  1R  0HR  1RBI  .238AVG  .635OPS

Like Hernandez, Clark probably felt dissapointed when he signing a 1 yar deal for around $1 million with the Padres to fill a place on their bench. Such dissapointment should be felt as he had a perfectly good 2 year deal from the Diamondbacks on the table which he turned down so he could get 400+ bats. Have fun on that bench down in San Diego Tony. Even more dissapointing for the vetern first baseman would be the fact he doesn't have an RBI since March.

Chris Carter: 1B (Oak Single A)

45 G  165AB  38H  33R  11HR  29RBI  .230AVG  .839OPS

Chris Carter V2.0 was a Diamondback for a couple of weeks, coming over in the Quinten trade before being flipped as part of the Haren deal.  Since then Carter has continued to show power potential but at the expense of his batting average.

Carlos Gonzalez: OF (Oak AAA)

33 G  126 AB  37 H  17 R  3 HR  16 RBI  .294 AVG  .774 OPS

CarGon was deemed surpluss to requirements given the progress of Justin Upon  and Chris Young, as well as the performances of Eric Byrnes and so it was little surprise to see him traded in order to get more starting pitching. Touted for a spot on the opening day roster, Gonzalez instead has to settle for more time at AAA where he has done well without setting the world on fire. In particular the fact he has just 3 HR in 126 AB will dissapoint many.

Aaron Cunningham: OF (Oak AA)

18 G  73 AB  22H  10R  2 HR  8 RBI  .301 AVG  .804 OPS

Good numbers from the final part of the Haren trade. Cunningham is showing decent dicipline and production at the plate so far down at AA Midland Rockhounds.

 

So that's the major deals covered and I'd have to say I don't think the Diamondbacks can say they particularly wish they had any of the guys lost on the major league level(with one exception who shall not be named) Whilst Bruke isn't Tony Clark v2007 he is just as good as Clark v 2008 and Haren is an upgrade on Livo. Furthermore given how well Lyon is settling into the closers role Qualls seems a good fit for the void left by Valverde.  As for the youngsters im surprised at how well Smith and Eveland have pitched for the A's particularly as I only saw Eveland as a throw in. Also I'd have picked Gonzalez to be the biggest performer for Oakland this year but even Greg Smith is outperforming him in terms of immediate value.  As for the other kids, both in and out, well only time will tell especially given the car crash that is the Tuscon Sidewinders this year. Again this is a tiny sample size and it's a long season to go but it's nice to see how former guys are performing :)

 I thought I'd try my hand at writing something a bit more in depth, I realise I might not have the level of statistical knowledge needed for these type of posts but thought I'd take a stab :)

So far the Big Unit has had mixed results on the mound this season going 38.2 Innings in 7 starts this season for a 4-1 record on the back of a 4.42 ERA. Some starts such as this weekend against the Tigers he's looked great but othertimes against the Padres at Chase, the Astros and Rockies he's looked very much the 44 year old coming off of 2 back surgeries

In fact you can split him up so far this year into dominating and very very average. If you combine his trip to *insert random telecoms company here* on April 14th,San Diego on April 25th, and at home to the Tigers on Sunday his line looks as follows.

2-1    18 IP 12H 4R 1ER  7BB 19SO  0.56 ERA

But if you take his other 4 starts

2-0    20.2 IP 30H 20R  18ER 5BB 18SO  7.84 ERA

Even whilst appreciating the small sample size and also acknowledging that it is early in the season and he's still working up to full fitness, it's looking like Randy is going to be hit and miss both in terms of innings worked  and effectiveness throughout this season.

Despite his rollercoaster so far, if the guy stays healthy and if he continues at this pace throughout the season  the Big Unit should in theory make the remaining 12 wins he needs and just about scrape 300 wins whilst providing us with around 150-160 innings of work.

The point is that Randy's contract with us ends at the end of this year and it's looking for now as if management sees Max Scherzer in future as a starting pitcher.  With that in mind we have a projected rotation of Webb, Haren, Davis, Owings and Sherzer and presumably people like Jared Parker maybe even able to step in during September 2009, not to mention people like Gonzalez, Buckner and Petit still around the organisation.

With this is mind where do you see Randy next season? In my eyes if he is shy of 300 but healthy he comes back for one more dance BUT only with the Diamondbacks. I can't see him playing again in the AL given his age and condition and a move to a team further north where colder conditions prevail in the early weeks doesn't seem wise given his back troubles.  Moreover I don't see him going somewhere that isn't going to contend and really the only team I could see making overtures towards the guy might be Houston as he's a former player.

Sentiment aside, even if he falls short on around 295 would Randy be an asset to us next season? In my eyes based on what I've seen so far, yes. Having him around for another year helps keep the pressure away from Scherzer and Parker and also helps keep a popular face with the team. The guy is well respected in the clubhouse and is popular with the fans and whilst that fact might not justify giving the old man $10 million I think a reasonable one year deal at 4 or 5 million would be a decent investment.  Furthermore it has been mentioned before but seeing Johnson in the pen at some point would be a great asset to a team that could well lose the likes of Brandon Lyon and Juan Cruz in the offseason and if he was agreeable, Johnson could fill the void left by Cruz brilliantly. However sadly I don't see him wanting a bullpen assignment unless perhaps it was as a closer and even that is a longshot for both player and organisation to agree too.

So therefore 2 questions I wanted to ask you all.

A) What do you do if you're Randy Johnson at the end of the season?

B) What do you do if you're the Diamondbacks and Randy wants to play next season. Do you offer him a new deal? offer him a deal based on certain conditions i.e on accepting a bullpen assignment, or say thank you very much for your time here but we're moving on?

I know alot of this is very hypothetical and it all depends on if he stays healthy etc but I just wanted to throw this out there!

 

 

 

So Clint Hurdle has picked his staff for the All-Star game and no Melvin in sight

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3399661

You know I can't say Im surprised...but how does the NL Manager of the year and manager of the NL leading Diamondbacks get overlooked in favour of Willie Randolph and Bud Black....two managers who might very well be out of a job, in Randolphs case maybe even before this game takes place 

Sigh its a real shame because you know, "THIS ONE COUNTS" etc ;)

Well Rollins wins, a shame in my book as I thought Holliday had done enough to convince the voters.

Anyways the point of this is that Death led our NL MVP votes for pitching  :O

The guy ended up with 4 more points then Webb (19-15) which shocks me to be honest.

Our winner though was Eric Byrnes who with 43 points came 11th so congratulations to him

The full table can be found

here