D-Backs show proper restraint at the deadline

Major League Baseball has done some stupid things over the course of 114 years. The one-game playoff is near the top of the list.

It’s exciting, compelling and tremendously unfair. Everything about the sport is built on winning the marathon, surviving the grind. One game is not supposed to make a difference. That’s the whole point.

The diminished value of a wild card berth has changed the nature of the trade deadline, and the Diamondbacks should be applauded for their restraint. Their biggest maneuver was acquiring J.D. Martinez, the best rental bat on the market. They traded for shortstop Adam Rosales on Monday, but that was born from necessity, after injuries ravaged their crew of shortstops. The addition of David Hernandez, who has a tremendous comfort level in Arizona, fortifies the bullpen at very little cost. That’s good enough. The harsh reality became clear following a brutal weekend in St. Louis, where Robbie Ray was hit in the head with a 108-mph line drive and placed on the seven-day disabled list; Chris Owings fractured a finger and could miss the rest of the season; Nick Ahmed was transferred to the 60-day disabled list; and Ketel Marte had to leave the team following the tragic death of his mother.

Nobody wants to concede defeat, but the Nationals have significantly beefed up their bullpen; the red-hot Dodgers added Yu Darvish; while the Cubs are finally getting some traction, and have the resources to obtain Justin Verlander in a waiver-wire deal later this season.

I would love to see the Diamondbacks get a shot at the juggernaut Dodgers in the postseason, especially with no pressure or expectations attached. But that would require winning a onegame playoff, a game that could come down to a bad bounce.

As enticing as it must be for an organization that hasn’t made the playoffs in six years, this is not the time for the Diamondbacks to make a front-office push for the World Series. Mortgaging any part of the future is not worth that kind of risk.