clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Diamondbacks Gameday Thread, #100: 7/23 @ Reds

Will avoiding another sweep prove Mission: Impossible?

By Jim McLennan
/ new
Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One Kicks Off In China Photo credit should read CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images

Today's Lineups

DIAMONDBACKS REDS
Geraldo Perdomo - SS Elly De La Cruz - 3B
Ketel Marte - 2B TJ Friedl - CF
Corbin Carroll - LF Matt McLain - SS
Christian Walker - 1B Spencer Steer - 1B
Lourdes Gurriel - DH Jake Fraley - RF
Evan Longoria - 3B Jonathan India - 2B
Dominic Canzone - RF Christian Encarnacion-Strand - DH
Carson Kelly - C Nick Senzel - LF
Alek Thomas - CF Luke Maile - C
Tyler Gilbert - LHP Luke Weaver - RHP

Roster moves

The Arizona Diamondbacks made the following roster moves:

  • Recalled C Jose Herrera from Triple-A Reno.
  • Placed C Gabriel Moreno (left shoulder inflammation) on the 10-day injured list.

Bullpen woes

I touched on this yesterday, but the D-backs bullpen has been really struggling of late. As in, for pretty much all of July. Below you’ll find a chart with the ten worst months for bullpen ERA in franchise history. You can see that this month is the highest ERA from Arizona’s relievers in seven years. It was actually worse than that before yesterday’s semi-decent performance (one run over two innings of work). The ERA of 6.62 to that point was the highest for over thirteen years, since the hell of early 2010, which started off by giving us what was at the time the third-worst month, then followed it with a May where basically the entire bullpen pitched like Madison Bumgarner.

Worst months by the D-backs bullpen

Rk Split Year ERA IP H R ER HR BB SO
Rk Split Year ERA IP H R ER HR BB SO
1 May 2010 8.56 68.1 95 72 65 18 39 47
2 August 2005 8.10 80.0 109 79 72 17 41 71
3 Sept/Oct 2002 7.79 71.2 103 68 62 7 35 59
4 April/Mar 2010 6.85 68.1 76 54 52 14 38 54
5 June 2005 6.75 74.2 86 60 56 15 36 58
6 July 2016 6.55 78.1 94 62 57 18 39 85
7 July 2023 6.54 52.1 52 40 38 10 28 51
8 June 2006 6.49 86.0 106 70 62 15 34 91
9 May 2005 6.45 74.0 90 54 53 10 35 57
10 April/Mar 2004 6.43 70.0 69 53 50 11 48 77

I actually peered into the abyss of that May 2010 bullpen. It wasn’t pretty. Of the eleven relievers used that month, eight had an ERA higher than 6.20. That included “closer” Aaron Qualls at 6.23. It only got worse from there. Juan Gutierrez appeared in ten games that month and had an ERA of 15.75. That level of suck still wasn’t enough for a podium place in May, being surpassed by Daniel Stange (18.00), Bob Howry (19.29) and Saul Rivera (22.09). All of which helped the team go 9-20 that month, though most of those losses were charged to the rotation, who went 8-15 with a 5.18 ERA. Edwin Jackson had four losses, then threw a no-hitter his first start in June, because baseball.

I’m not quite sure what I’m trying to say here. Probably that I’ve seen considerably worse bullpens than the current incarnation, and that this too, will pass. Three months later in 2010, the Arizona bullpen had a 3.61 ERA - spearheaded by Gutierrez who allowed one run over seven August appearances. Justin Martinez as closer by season end, confirmed. :) Anyway, you’ll have to win this one without me, since as previously mentioned we’re off to see M:I 7 [I won’t burden you with the full title] this morning. Hopefully I’ll come back to find a nice Diamondbacks victory, at the end of a rather weird road-trip which has had its share of the good, the bad and the ugly...

More From AZ Snake Pit

Loading comments...