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Diamondbacks News
[AZ Central] Arizona Diamondbacks look to shore up weaknesses as general managers meet this week
Diamondbacks General Manager Mike Hazen cited the bullpen, third base, starting pitching and a right-handed bat as areas of need as the winter gets underway. Hazen said he hopes to attend the [GM, DBE] meetings in person for at least a day, though assistants Amiel Sawdaye, Mike Fitzgerald and Allard Baird are expected to be there throughout.
[Arizona Daily Independent] Memories Of 2001 World Series Vivid For Diamondbacks Broadcaster Oscar Soria
Soria is the Spanish television and radio analyst of the Diamondbacks, who joined the club in 1999 as the organization tried to make inroads with Latino fans on both sides of the Mexican-U.S. border almost from the moment the franchise was born.
“We were proud during that World Series because we knew a lot of Latin fans were so excited,” Soria said.
Around The MLB
[mlb.com] Who got qualifying offers, and who didn’t?
It is really not of that much interest to us because the Diamondbacks do not have any free agents nor will they sign one that will cost us a draft pick. But there were some interesting choices, like the Dodgers not offering a QO to Kershaw, cheap Rockies denied Gray as well while the Mets offered one to Syndergaard just like the Astros extended one to Verlander.
[mlb.com] Your 2021 Gold Glove Award winners are ...
Let me see...1B Goldy...OK...2B I don’t care, 3B I don’t care....LF...YES! No Pollock!
[CBS Sports] MLBPA makes second economics proposal with only minor changes
Moving a mountain begins by carrying away small stones, so it is the little things that are infinitely the most important. Maybe it is a small step for the MLBPA but a giant leap for the new CBA.
[ESPN] Baseball players declining opt-outs
No surprises, really. J.D. Martinez’s case might have been a bit more doubtful but in the end the former Diamondback decided to opt-in of what will be the final year of his contract. I believe that he is QO eligible afterwards, so the 34-year old is cashing in just in case.
Across The Pacific
[South Korea] Samsung Lions to face old foes in first playoff series since 2015
The Lions take on the Bears, which, were it real animals, would definitely make for an interesting fight. In this case, the Bears might have somewhat of an upper-hand since they beat the Lions 9 times in the regular season, but the Doosan team has also already played two play-off rounds: 2 in the Wild Card game and 3 in the first round of the play-offs.
The winner of this play-off will meet the regular season winner KT Wiz in the Korean Series. The KT Wiz reached that final stage after tying with the Samsung Lions in the regular season for first place, but beating them in a tiebreaker game.
[Japan] Marines, Giants advance to the Climax Series’ final stages
In Japan the equivalent of the Division Series have started where the best teams of each League (Pacific and Central) face each other to determine who will advance to the Japan Series.
In the Central League the Yomiuri Giants, despite ending the season with a negative winning record, will face League winner Tokyo Yakult Swallows after beating the Hanshin Tigers 2-0 in the first round of the Climax Series.
The Pacific League will be disputed by the Orix Buffaloes who will meet the Chiba Lotte Marines after the latest eliminated the Rakuten Golden Eagles with a win and a draw in the first round.
[Japan] Japanese star Seiya Suzuki to be made available to MLB teams
The 27-year-old is a five-time All-Star in the Japanese league. In 131 games for the Carp in the 2021, he had 38 home runs and 88 RBIs with a career high in OPS (1.079). He played for Japan in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Across The Wall
[Mexico] Twelve Cuban players defect after U-23 World Cup in Sonora
To make up for the lost weight on the plane, they took Yasmany Tomas back.
[Dominican Republic] LIDOM has started (google translate)
Those of you with a MLB.tv suscription are able to watch the Dominican Winter League games. Now don’t expect great baseball, but you can expect some big names like Robinson Canó (Estrellas Orientales), Albert Pujols (Leones del Escogido), Hanley Ramírez (Licey), Starlin Castro (Leones del Escogido), Franmil Reyes (Leones del Escogido) and Ramón Laureano (Licey). At the moment it is Melky Cabrera and his Aguilas Cibaeñas who are currently leading the Winter league after 10 matches.
Just like the LIDOM many other overseas winter leagues started and we will keep you informed on Diamondbacks player’s performances when the time is right.
Across The Atlantic
[Czech Republic] Czech Baseball Association keeps working on ways to engage with fans
The latest project is to create a fan club to allow the Czechs to have a close experience with baseball in the country, which is one of the leading baseball destinations in Europe.