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Quotables
"It's the same game. That's what the older guys here have told me here so far. It's the same game. It might be a little faster up at this level but don't put any extra pressure on yourself."
"My biggest thing this offseason was just getting healthy," Lamb said. "Making sure my hand felt good, and I had a hamstring that was bothering me. That's all 100 percent now. I was in bad shape last year, to my standards at least. I got in a lot better shape for this year, and that helped a lot at the plate and in the field."
"Ball was up," Gibson said. "You see a lot of balls in the air, even his outs were balls that were hit pretty good in the air. That's why I got him out of there early. I was kind of trying to hang on and get as many innings out of him as I could, but he gave up five runs.
"If he doesn't keep the ball down, he's not going to be effective, just like every other pitcher who does that as well. He didn't have a lot of movement today, he wasn't throwing to both sides of the plate, he wasn't keeping the ball down, that's tough, a tough way to go."
Daily D-backs
Nuno's rocky outing toppels D-backs | MLB.com
Vidal Nuno threw plenty of strikes Thursday night, but just not the right kind of strikes. The Royals capitalized on the D-backs left-hander's tendency to leave balls up and out over the middle of the plate, knocking him out of the game early en route to a 6-2 win and a sweep of the three-game series.
Anderson gets call in opener| MLB.com
Chase Anderson is just 1-0 in his past four starts, but his ERA is a sparkling 1.80 during that time. One cause for concern is the five-day break between his starts; He's got a 3.99 ERA in the five starts he's made with that long of a rest, compared with 2.25 in four starts on four days' rest and 3.15 in four starts on six-plus days' rest.
Top prospect Lamb called up for big league debut | dbacks.com
When the D-backs traded third baseman Martin Prado to the Yankees on July 31, prospect Jake Lamb knew his chance in the Major Leagues may be coming soon. He could not have guessed it would be only a week before he was suiting up at a locker in Chase Field.
Owings progressing, but no timetable for return | dbacks.com
Slowly but surely, shortstop Chris Owings is working his way back from a left shoulder injury. Owings has been on the 15-day disabled list with a shoulder strain since June 29 and hasn't played a game since June 25.
Ziegler working out of jams this season | azcentral.com
Brad Ziegler has posted another solid season out of the Diamondbacks bullpen, but he has not made it easy on himself. Ziegler's ERA, while higher than last season's 2.22, was only 2.75 until he allowed hits to the first two batters he saw in Saturday's and Sunday's games, leading to three runs that bumped his ERA to 3.16. For the most part, he has escaped his own jams by holding opponents to .186 hitting with two outs and .259 hitting with runners in scoring position.
Ray Montgomery finds his calling | azcentral.com
Most scouts have a built-in bias: They're constantly looking for themselves in the players they're watching. If a scout once was a short, right-hander, he'll tend to gravitate toward short, right-handers. The same with overachieving middle infielders or power pitchers or hard-nosed players.
Youth movement continues with Jake Lamb call up | azcentral.com
When the Diamondbacks traded third baseman Martin Prado to the New York Yankees at the July 31 trade deadline, Jake Lamb thought his turn had come. The 23-year-old, then with Double-A Mobile, was sure he'd be getting the call to the majors.
Patrick Corbin discusses life as a Tommy John patient | azcentral.com
Q: With the grind of recovering from Tommy John, how nice is it to get out of town and clear your head? A: It's hard to have a normal dinner and a normal life with a baseball career. It's unfortunate that we're not playing. I think it's even harder on us, knowing we can't play. If we can get any time away from the game, away from baseball for a little bit so we're not thinking about that we're not playing, I think it helps. Maybe it makes it seem like the season's going to go by a little quicker where we can get ready, get better and get ready for next year.
Around the MLB
Gary Sheffield/Javier Baez | gfycat
Video: Jonny Gomes joins IT | MLB.com
On this edition of Intentional Talk, Rose and Millar speak with the new Athletics member, Jonny Gomes.
A Short Play Involving Kevin Towers and Tony La Russa | Most Valuable Zobrist
Cardinals react to Kolten Wong's 2nd homer
Mike Trout meets Vin Scully | SBNation
And the baseball-loving Internet swoons.
The Super-Rotation Rivalry | grantland.com
The A’s and Tigers are stockpiling star pitchers. But will adding aces actually help these teams trump playoff unpredictability?
Troy Tulowitzki says "something needs to change" with Rockies before 2015 | The Denver Post
Troy Tulowitzki, who ramped up his rehabilitation Wednesday with a full round of batting practice, said that the Rockies' fall to the bottom of the National League should force the team into changes before next year.
What happened to the art of an overhand curveball? | SportsonEarth.com
Pitchers must have monumental will to throw the overhand curveball, an unshakable belief that they can make that white sphere bend to your will. It could be that difficulty that accounts for the drop in use over recent decades. Here, a close look at the devolution of a befuddling pitch.