Snake Bytes, 10/26: LA low

Team news

[MLB] Elite defenders named Gold Glove finalists - Greinke has won four straight Gold Gloves, and a fifth would tie him with Ron Guidry, Phil Niekro and Kenny Rogers for seventh all-time among pitchers... Ahmed’s 21 DRS tied for the MLB lead among shortstops.

[The Athletic] Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen discusses the hitting coach search - How do you think it worked with hitting strategist Robert Van Scoyoc in the mix this year? There was probably some trial-and-error aspects to it that we need to lock in on and make sure it’s working for everybody in a way we intend it to. Obviously, it’s all coming from a place of trying to add as much expertise in this area as we can, to gather information and develop plans and things like that. That was predominantly what his job was at the major-league level in a lot of cases, and more of the work he was doing was on the minor-league side and the evaluation side, with the draft and things like that. That would probably be what we would look for going forward, too.

[AZ Central] Archie Bradley grants wishes as he waits for Diamondbacks’ offseason to unfold - Diamondbacks right-hander Archie Bradley picked up a phone, dialed a number and told an Arizona schoolteacher her dream was coming true. It wouldn’t be entirely accurate to say Bradley took time out from watching the World Series to participate in a Fiesta Bowl charity event, but that’s only because he says he’s been avoiding baseball’s postseason. “I’m always going to be that little kid who is upset he’s not playing,” Bradley said outside Fiesta Bowl headquarters on Thursday afternoon. “I don’t want to see other guys win. Not in a bad way; I’m happy for them. But I just want to win. Not being there, especially the way it ended, it’s tough.”

[Phoenix Business Journal] Phoenix not ranked among best baseball cities - The study compared 360 U.S. cities with at least one college or professional baseball team across 31 metrics. They range from team performance level to average ticket price to fan engagement. After all the math, Phoenix came in at No. 21. While the city has the lowest average season ticket price for Major League Baseball teams – $19.65 per game – it has some of the least engaged MLB fans, according to the study.

And, elsewhere...

Just to get you ready for tonight... Manny Machado Being a Douchebag Compilation. He’s the perfect fit for the Dodgers.

[Texas Monthly] How Chinese Baseball Came to North Texas - Instead of fielding a typical American Association team of fringe prospects, has-been minor leaguers, and guys trying for one last shot at The Show, the 2018 AirHogs would, in effect, lease out the majority of their roster to players from the Chinese national baseball team. Ten veteran non-Chinese pros—five pitchers and five position players—would supplement the national team squad, acting as on-field ringers and off-field mentors.

The chart below shows what percentage of nationwide fans surveyed would cheer for a team in each possible match-up. For example, in an Arizona-Atlanta match-up, 52% would cheer for Arizona, and 48% for Atlanta. I’m delighted to report that in a D-backs-Dodgers series, we would have the support of 82% of the population... [Full-sized version here]