Blanked on two hits by the Ramirezless Marlins, while new bullpen bods Carlos Rosa and Saul Rivera combined to allow six hits, four walks and six earned runs in their two innings of work. Sprankton will be along with a full recap a little later [his 'Net is playing up], but to keep you going in the meantime, here are some recaps of this bit of Arizona morning sickness, with other news and links to be found after the jump.
Recaps
- [Yahoo!] Johnson sharp, Marlins win minus Ramirez - "Billy Buckner made his season debut [and] was effective early before running into trouble in the fourth. Buckner hit Gaby Sanchez with a pitch and walked Brett Hayes(notes) with two outs to load the bases. Buckner then hit Barden with a pitch, too, giving the Marlins a 1-0 lead."
- [dbacks.com] Five-run sixth inning helps zap D-backs - "The D-backs hoped they were on their way to consistency with a nice victory against the Marlins on Monday, and they felt they added a nice weapon upon acquiring Saul Rivera -- who had done nothing but dominate Minor Leaguers this season - that same day. Neither panned out on Tuesday. "
Team News and Notes
- [FoxSportsArizona.com] Can this bullpen be saved? - "Of course, knowing is one thing; doing, quite another. Here's a look at the three ways at which the team may be looking to get our relievers firing on all -- or, at least, more -- cylinders." Who IS this guy? :-)
- [dbacks.com] D-backs like what they see from Rosa - "I liked what I saw," manager A.J. Hinch said. "He came right at guys, which is good. He's got a unique arm slot. The ball comes from a different angle, and he had plenty behind it."
- [dbacks.com] Key for D-backs' Drew is simplicity - Howell said. "We started that in spring, where he's kind of focused on seeing it and hitting it hard. And then any time, if the bat gets a little loopy or whatever, then we have a couple of drills that we work on to kind of get it in a better direction, which helps him stay in the zone longer."
- [Azcentral] Boyer designated for assignment - "He struggled with his command quite a bit," manager A.J. Hinch said. "It’s hard coming out of the bullpen if your command is off. You fall behind, you walk hitters and it’s a tough predicament to put yourself in. He started to tinker with his delivery and really tried to make adjustments. It didn’t really work for him."
- [dbacks.com] Young producing at the plate - "He's maintained really good balance at the plate," D-backs manager A.J. Hinch said. "And balance, you can say it's physical balance. He's not skating as much in the batter's box and not getting out of position very often. But it's almost a mental balance for him of taking every at-bat as a one-at-bat challenge and not dwelling on the mistakes that he makes or the misses that he has."
- [Diary of a Diehard] Diamondbacks First Quarter Season Review - "On one hand we may have just witnessed the worst baseball this team is going to play this year. On the other hand we may have just seen the best baseball this team is capable of playing in which case it is going to be a very long summer in the desert."
- [dbacks.com] Getting ahead is key for Heilman - "I think the biggest thing is just being aggressive," Heilman said. "Going out there attacking the zone and making sure that the hitter is on the defensive, and don't allow yourself to get into counts where you give the hitter the advantage."
Other news
- [FanHouse] Think You Can Be GM? You Have No Idea - "The reality is that being a general manager really isn't a job; it is a lifestyle. The GM usually arrives at the ballpark about 9 am on weekdays, works all day, stays for the game, speaks to the manager after the game and gets home at about 1 am only to do it all over again the next day."
- [SB Nation] MLB Power Rankings: On The Verge Of Eruption - Your go-to seventh week MLB power rankings, where the competition's just as hot at the bottom as it is at the top. Arizona is now #26. :-(
- [AP] Gonzalez becomes MLB's first Venezuelan umpire - "Manuel Gonzalez became the first Venezuelan umpire in major league baseball history Monday night, working at third base in the game between the Florida Marlins and Arizona Diamondbacks."
- [marlins.com] Marlins meet with cricket team - "In South Florida for a cricket tournament from May 22-23, members of the New Zealand BlackCaps were guests of the Marlins. Some of the players were on the field during batting practice. All-Star shortstop Hanley Ramirez dressed in the hitting gear and took a swing with a flat-surfaced cricket bat...but the underhand swing isn't exactly the defending National League batting champion's forte."
- {padres.com] Padres shut down Young's throwing - The San Diego Padres transferred right-hander Chris Young to the 60-day disabled list Monday. "We've shut down any further throwing activity for C.Y. for a couple more weeks," said Padres manager Bud Black.
- [MLB.com] Ethier expected to land on Dodgers' DL - "The Dodgers are expected to place Andre Ethier on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday, three days after he broke his right little finger in batting practice."