Hazen less than pitch perfect
GM’s failure to find, develop arms costly
Zack Godley represents the latest failure for the Arizona Diamondbacks on the mound.
The club under general manager Mike Hazen, manager Torey Lovullo and pitching coach Mike Butcher have a problem picking and developing pitchers.
It’s not clear whether the issue is a matter of analytics, mechanics or tac
tics. But if Hazen, Lovullo and Butcher don’t get it figured out, they’ll spend the rest of their time in Arizona conceding the National League West to the bigspending Dodgers.
The Diamondbacks are clearly doing some things right under Hazen.
Nick Ahmed has developed into a Gold Glover and David Peralta into a Silver Slugger. Hazen traded for guys like Ketel Marte and Eduardo Escobar. And he’s been at the forefront of finding versatile, athletic position players that allow for more bullpen guys on the active roster.
Hazen, Lovullo and Butcher took the club from worst to first in 2017, their initial season together. They had the Diamondbacks at the top of the division most of last year.
And they’re in the thick of the wildcard race, despite being a club that seems to have underperformed all season (as evidenced by their .394 winning percentage in one-run games and plus-67 run differential, which ranks them among playoff teams.)
But imagine if they could find some consistency on the mound?
Godley was cut loose this week with a 6.39 ERA.
In 2017, he was the surprise of the rotation, working behind a steady fastball and biting curve that gave him a solid 3.37 ERA and limited hitters to a .221 batting average.
But he got progressively worse to the point that he’s out there with no team.
Problems all over
He’s not the only starter to regress. Robbie Ray was a step from untouchable in 2017. He was injured much of last year. And while his strikeouts per 9 innings ratio (12) is as high as ever, his 4.03 ERA is way up from his All-Star campaign of two years ago.
Then there are the injuries. Shelby Miller left his fourth start in 2017 and ended up getting Tommy John surgery that he couldn’t come back from.
Kris Medlen couldn’t recover from
Tommy John.
Taijuan Walker hasn’t been able to recover from Tommy John.
Relievers Rubby De La Rosa and Silvino Bracho had Tommy John and haven’t been seen or heard from since.
And now Luke Weaver has forearm tightness, which is like casting a BatSignal for orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews to get on his scrubs.
The closer situation has been an issue for three years. Fernando Rodney was effective like a roller coaster. He was unpredictable and thrilling, but ultimately safe.
Brad Boxberger was the opposite. He was calm and steady. Then he had a meltdown against the Mets on Father’s Day and never fully recovered.
The struggles have continued this year with Greg Holland.
(We’ve still never gotten a straight answer on why they haven't just handed Archie Bradley the ball in the ninth inning and been done with it.)
Bad acquisitions
Starting with Rodney, Boxberger and Holland, Hazen’s bullpen acquisitions haven’t inspired confidence. (Although, Roller-Coaster Rodney did put up 39 saves, despite a 4.23 ERA.)
Last year at the deadline, when the team was skidding and in need of a push, Hazen got Jake Diekman, Brad Ziegler and Matt Andriese. They went a combined 1-5 with a 6.63 ERA.
In fairness, this isn’t some sort of total, abject failure.
Hazen, Lovullo and Butcher have gotten success out of their staff.
The club finished in the top three in the National League in ERA and strikeouts over the last two years.
Ray and Patrick Corbin, at times, looked like aces.
And the bullpen was a strength in 2017 and 2018, finishing near the top of the National League in several statistical categories.
But this year marks a clear regression.
No one has stepped up to command the closer job.
The bullpen has taken a clear step back with middle-of-the-pack ERA and opponents’ batting average numbers.
And no surprise starters have emerged — as Godley did two years ago.
Despite all this, the Diamondbacks remain in contention for a wild-card spot.
But unless they can get the best out of their guys consistently, rather than rotating in a cast of extras and hoping everyone puts up career years together, they’ll always be looking up at L.A.
For what it’s worth, Godley will be missed around the clubhouse. He had a great attitude and loved the game.
Hazen, Lovullo and Butcher have got to be able to develop guys like that.