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GM Mike Hazen is not normally a man who speaks his mind. If hadn’t been a General Manager, he would probably have made a fine poker player. But speaking on Doug & Wolf on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM this afternoon (the section in question starts around the 6:40 mark), Hazen was unusually blunt about what the team must do over the next stretch of games against their competition, both in the NL West and the Brewers and Cardinals (whom we face after the break). “This is going to determine where we stand come the trade deadline... If we tread water again, we’re going to lose ground... We need to create some separation and establish ourselves as a legitimate contender in the next four weeks.”
No-one better to start that off than Zack Greinke, who has not been scored on since June 1. He threw six scoreless innings against the Blue Jays, and followed that up with seven against the Nationals, on the recent road-trip. It promises to be interesting to see if he can cope with the Rockies offense, which seems to have traveled to Arizona better than expected. All told, over their last seven games, Colorado has scored 67 runs, with a combined triple-slash of .366/.421/.576. That’s a .997 OPS. Put another way, the whole team has been hitting like Paul Goldschmidt. And peak Goldschmidt too, not the faux version currently appearing for the Cardinals...
Torey Lovullo media session and notes:
- 5th Starter: Still no decision. Will piece together in the next couple of days. In house “untried” options are under consideration, i.e. several players in AAA. Looking at all angles
- Greinke and consistency: He prepares, he executes, he makes adjustments quickly. Brilliance in everything he does. It’s fun to watch his runs. Should be a slam dunk All Star. Gifted aptitude, always making adjustments and reinventing himself
- Tim Locastro’s ability to get HBP: Fearless with where he stands in box. Know pitches get away. Gets good reads and allows the ball to travel. [The comments from Torey on Greinke during the followup question midway through are a good listen; he goes to Locastro but the question circles back to Greinke).
- Adam Jones: Will look to get him some days off to manage his hamstring
- Jake Lamb: Will definitely play both third and first when he’s back.