Diamondbacks are looking for answers against lefties
Closer Fernando Rodney’s ninth-inning meltdown garnered most of the attention, but there might have been an equally alarming development for the Diamondbacks that took place at Dodger Stadium last week.
For three days, their offense was shut down by a succession of lefthanded starters. It’s possible Clayton Kershaw, Alex Wood and Rich Hill might have overpowered whatever team they came across on those nights, but the fact that it was the Diamondbacks only served to reinforce what had already appeared to be a concern.
The Diamondbacks are more than halfway through the season, and they rank among the worst offenses in the majors against left-handed pitching. They have a lineup that, when healthy, is filled with right-handed bats that have a track record of producing against lefties. But for whatever reason, they haven’t – not this year.
As for why, well, General Manager Mike Hazen isn’t entirely sure.
“I don’t think there’s a great answer for that,” Hazen said. “It’s baseball. That’s one of those that, as much as we look at it – and we’ve looked at it – you’ve got to trust that the career consistency is going to come forward at some point. Why it hasn’t happened? I don’t know.”
In Jake Lamb and David Peralta, the Diamondbacks have a pair of lefthanded hitters who have never performed well against same-side pitching. No one is pointing at them as a reason for the team’s struggles; they weren’t expected to produce – or, at least, weren’t expected to carry the lineup.
It’s the right-handed bats that have failed to do the heavy lifting. Paul Goldschmidt entered Saturday with a .745 OPS against lefties, which is more than 250 points below his career average. Brandon Drury (.558), Yasmany Tomas (.580) and A.J. Pollock (.712) are all below their career norms. And while Chris Owings (.753) is hitting better than he ever has against lefties, he’s still performing better against righties (.829).
Owings’ numbers support a point Hazen made: The Diamondbacks’ production against righties represents a major bright spot. They’ve posted an .812 OPS against right-handed pitching, the second-best mark in the National League and a big reason why they rank third in the league in runs per game.
Still, that doesn’t make the numbers against lefties any less baffling, especially considering last year’s Diamondbacks led the majors in OPS against southpaws.
Injuries have likely been a factor. Though Tomas wasn’t doing well against lefties before going down with a groin issue, it’s reasonable to think his numbers would have improved in time given his track record. It’s also possible a healthy Pollock would have done more than he has.
But their absences also have caused the Diamondbacks to force a slew of left-handed hitters into lessthan-ideal matchups. Daniel Descalso, Gregor Blanco, Rey Fuentes, Chris Herrmann and Rey Fuentes have all performed poorly against lefties.
“We haven’t been able to maximize our platoon advantages in certain cases because most of our depth was more left-handed,” Hazen said, “because we were building (in the offseason) to protect ourselves more lefthanded.”
While Hazen believes the numbers will eventually normalize, he didn’t rule out the idea of a trade-deadline pickup helping in that department. Though, he cautioned, the ability to hit lefties won’t be a “singular focus” for a potential acquisition.
“If there’s a position player that helps lengthen our lineup, the primary focus isn’t just to find a right-handed hitter, it’s to find a good player that fits on this team and fits what we’re trying to do,” he said.