Evaluating now and the future
D-Backs try to balance playoff push, next year
Before he left town last week, manager Torey Lovullo said he was excited his Diamondbacks remained in the race for a wild-card spot in the playoffs.
“To me,” he said, “there are some elite teams and then there is a big group of teams fighting the same fight. There is parity in this league right now.”
In sports, parity is a euphemism for average. That’s better than being, say, the Orioles, but it does create challenges for management.
Average means you could secure a wild-card spot, maybe win a game, but aren’t good enough to accomplish much more than that.
So, do you stick with struggling veterans in the hope they find themselves? Go to the youngsters? A mixture?
That’s the plight of the average, and the Diamondbacks will spend the next seven weeks not only trying to make the playoffs, but also figuring out what they should do in 2020. Here are a few spots they will be evaluating.
The closer
Greg Holland was jettisoned last week.
As our Nick Piecoro noted recently, this is the 13th time in 22 seasons of existence the Diamondbacks have changed closers in a season.
Not that Lovullo is ready to designate Holland’s replacement, at least not with actual words. Archie Bradley seems to be in that role now, but Lovullo went out of his way last week to avoid giving Bradley that job title.
“I want to put Archie, or whoever gets those last three outs in the ninth inning, the best opportunity to get those outs as easily possible,” Lovullo said. “I love where Archie’s at. I don’t want to add anything to his plate right now. I just want to keep it as is right now and let him keep rolling the way he is.”
The challenge with Bradley, and most relievers for that matter, is determining exactly who he will be in the long term. The pitcher that was demoted from a set-up role a few weeks ago? The one who hasn’t allowed a run in his past 12 outings? Or, more likely, a mixture of both?
But if Bradley continues to pitch well, General Manager Mike Hazen likely won’t know what to do with himself when he doesn’t have to search for a closer this offseason.
The rotation
With Zack Greinke gone, there is no clear No. 1 starter, and that’s a problem. The Diamondbacks have some talented young pitchers, but they happen to have arm injuries.
Taijuan Walker (Tommy John) is throwing 90 feet. Luke Weaver (forearm strain) is scheduled to begin throwing bullpen sessions.
The Diamondbacks are hopeful that both will be able to pitch in a game this season.
If Walker returns at all this year, it’s a bonus. Same if Weaver is able to pitch a few innings out of the bullpen. Realistically, the Diamondbacks will be fortunate to see even one of them on the mound again in 2019.
Either one would be a nice piece to pair with Mike Leake and Zac Gallen, right-handers obtained at the trade deadline, and rookie Alex Young, who is 4-1 since being called up in late June.
Still, there is no obvious candidate for the top spot, unless Robbie Ray suddenly proves to be something more than he’s been the past two seasons.
Among the odd men out
… is Jake Lamb. The Diamondbacks need to make decisions about several players, but Lamb is among the most interesting.
He peaked in 2017 when he was an All-Star and has been hampered by injuries since. He played in just 56 games a year ago and missed the first half of this season with quadriceps injury.
Lamb, who bats left-handed, is hitting just .224, and Lovullo usually pinch-hits for him against lefties late in games.
Unless Lamb makes a dramatic transformation, it’s difficult to see a role for him next season. Eduardo Escobar is the regular third baseman. Christian Walker and Seth Beer, obtained in the Greinke trade, can play first.
The Diamondbacks still have control over Lamb’s contract in 2020. The question is, do they want it?
They could try to trade Lamb, and failing that, decline to tender him.
As we saw last week with departures of pitchers Zack Godley and Holland, the Diamondbacks will move on from under-performing veterans, although they sometimes are tardy in doing it.
While the pursuit of a wild-card berth is a noble one, the real goal for the rest of the season should be figuring out who should be with the team next year. If the Diamondbacks get it right, maybe they can be more than average in 2020.