Bear Down Wildcats

azgreg wrote:

Not sure I like seeing Diaz traded.

Still, solid since Segura has upside.

Segura has been absolute shit outside of one fluke year. He is now going to be expensive and the DBacks gave up useful cheap rotation depth in Anderson and a guy with potential in Diaz. Just another horrible trade for this franchise which is par for the course.

Dave Cameron pretty much killed this trade in one comment. The Dbacks just dealt a prospect who was better than the 39th pick for a far inferior player than Howie Kendrick. Still running in a strong 3rd place in the division though so that is just swell.

Makes total sense. Trade a young, reliable and cheap #4 or 5 starter, a middle infielder who finished among the league leaders in batting and second in home runs in rookie ball (one per 20 AB at rookie ball is very impressive for anyone, let alone a middle infielder) and Aaron Hill (only a 5.5 million dollar salary dump cuz we are paying 6.5 of his contract, FA eligible after next season) for a guy you have to pay 2.6 mill anyway? This cant be a money dump, they are going to lose that the next year when Segura gets well in excess of the 3 million in arbitration in 2017.

So this means Segura is going to short? All that was worth replacing (already) one of the best defensive shortstops in the game? If your beef is with Ahmed's bat, keep in mind that last season, Seguras OBP was only 6 points higher than Ahmed's and Ahmed actually slugged higher than Segura. So essentially you are losing the glove (Segura has great range and an outstanding arm but isnt even close to as sure-handed as Ahmed) and the offense is a wash. Ahmed is the more valuable player and thats for a guy with only one full year in the league. Only way this makes sense is for Segura's speed, which means jack if you only get on base 28 percent of the time. GOAT you are 100 percent right, he had that one year and he has been a replacement level player since. Or maybe he is the short term answer at 2nd? Regardless, I don't want a 280 OBP at the number 1 or 2 spot in my lineup, and speed isnt as important in the 8 hole in the NL with the pitcher hitting behind you. And what about Drury? Maybe he's the answer to a bat in the middle infield, but now things are even more crowded.

There just isn't any logic behind the trade whatsoever. I just dont know what the hell Dave Stewart has been doing.

I know it's spring ball and it can all go south on opening day but the Dbacks are looking pretty good right now.

Arizona Diamondbacks seek to end Chase Field lease

http://arizonasports.com/story/604829/r ... eld-lease/" target="_blank

The Arizona Diamondbacks have called Chase Field home since they first played meaningful games in 1998, but over time the stadium — once state of the art — has become one of the older venues in baseball.

In fact, it is the 15th-oldest building in MLB but the fifth-oldest in the National League, and one NL team with an older stadium — the Atlanta Braves — is set to open a new park in 2017.

So, with an eye on finding themselves a nicer, newer home, the D-backs have asked their landlord for permission to negotiate with other entities for a new stadium.

The story was first reported by 12 News’ Brahm Resnik, and in it he cites a two-paragraph letter sent from Diamondbacks president Derrick Hall to the Maricopa County Board.

Insane that teams want new stadiums every 20-25 years now. Bank One Ballpark still seems new to me. I seriously doubt they will get a new stadium deal anytime in the next decade.

Nuts. Chase is perfectly fine, the location is good, and its not like this team has been winning crazy games to justify an upgrade. Kind of getting ridiculous. Not much u can really improve upon and not have it be marginally better.

The way baseball is swimming in money I wouldn't be to torn up if the Diamondbacks left town if it came down to having to use public funds to keep them here.

As a child of Arizona, it's a very weird feeling to say I wish the other state teams had ownership and front offices like the Cardinals.

Be more like the Bidwells is not something I ever could have envisioned myself saying even a mere decade ago, let alone 20 or more years back.

Just crazy how the owners of the state teams have all lost "it" and then wonder why fans are repelled. Not sure there's a worse collection of owners in a single location.

Save for the Bidwells.

JMarks, the sports landscape has changed so much since I was even a kid. I never I thought I'd see a day where the Cardinals are the model sports franchise and the Suns are a joke. Weird times in Arizona.

Well, that awesome Title contention was fun.

Back to the real world, now.

Oh yeah, Pollock fucked up his elbow. Needs surgery.

Not April Fools.

More runs in one inning than any game last year

UAEebs86 wrote:

I'm over it, already...

Snacks pitching has given up 10 hr in the first 25 innings of the season

It's too early lol. There are two ways you can look at this:

1) Two of the three starters just threw their first game with new teammates and in front of new fans. Both felt the nerves/pressure of that. Some seasons, pitchers need extra time to get that feel or get rid of that spring training "dead arm." Corbin still hasn't had a full season under his belt after his injury and is still finding himself. The Pollock injury is a big blow. Maybe Brito can step up and be a shade above serviceable in starts against RHP. Segura had a nice spring and is off to a nice start early. If he maintains and can swipe bags like he can, that helps fill the void a lot at the top of the lineup. Have to like what youve seen out of Ahmed early, and if he can be more than just a glove, thats huge. A rookie was responsible for four HR and 7 RBI. He's gonna come back down to earth once big league clubs learn how to pitch to him. Great player though.

2) We are getting an immediate dose of why you don't mortgage your future and completely deplete your farm system for a couple of seasons of win now mode, and why you don't "overspend" in terms of the value of guy you are getting and what you are giving up. We don't pull that Miller trade, we have that fourth best defensive player in baseball, Inciarte, to slide over to CF. A guy who can get on base and run. A guy who is not that huge of a dropoff from AJ Pollock. Instead, we throw out a rookie and a backup middle infielder with a below average bat to play the most important outfield position. All it took was one injury to have us thinking contender to, crap, well, get them in 2017. What if the same happens in 2017? The team is too top heavy. It goes this way for most teams when they lose an MVP candidate, but at least there is some balance around and you still got your top 100 guys in the minors in case the window of winning big closes.

We should all be in mode #1 right now. 162 games in a season. We will know by June or July where this team is going.

IMO you know about a team 50 games in.

And even then, plenty of examples of teams who come from under 500 and torch everyone in August and September and sneak into the playoffs. I already thought the Giants were going to win the division before the season even started. You figure the Mets, Pirates and Cubs are going to be playoff teams. My gut tells me the Dodgers and Cardinals are going to have down years (by their standards). The Nationals may bounce back this year. The problem is, you know at least 1 wildcard spot is going to an NL central team who is going to have 90 plus wins, and the Nationals have a big advantage playing in a division with complete dormats in the Braves and Phillies and what I think will be an at best .500 Marlins team, even with a healthy Fernandez. It probably takes 90 wins this year to get the last wildcard and even then, who knows if even that is enough.

Going by last year's numbers, losing Pollock means you lose 7.5 wins over a replacement, and Owings is below replacement value by 0.5 wins. So eight wins gone, which is a lot when you also think we have to replace Inciarte's 5+ wins. So basically, Brito needs to emerge as a 3+ win guy (solid D, 320 OBP, swipe bases when available), Tomas (-1.3) needs to tear the cover off the ball this year and be the power/gap hitter he has the potential to be, Segura has to be 2013 Segura (off to the right start so far). Ahmed's hitting has looked a lot better so maybe you pick up a win in his improved bat. Couple other guys could emerge, but I dont see Castillo, Lamb, or Peralta being guys that take huge strides. All that happens and you get close. Then your new rotation, which is certainly doable, and the bullpen (ehh, we'll see), has to propel you from about an 82 win team (give or take a few wins) to 90 plus. If he is only out a few months, things become a lot less drastic, but that does not appear likely.

Throwback Thursday unis are the best of the lot by far,

Lead off HR by Segura.

That's a better start. I'll take a 3 run first everyday of the week.

Good Lord the pitching has been atrocious so far. 33 earned runs in 36 innings. On the bright side, fifth in MLB in runs scored and that's with Goldy off to a slow start.

haha yea, 8+ERA for the pitching staff with no quality starts is not a recipe for success. Nowhere to go but up (hopefully).

And Robbie Ray walks in a run. Another solid outing from a Dback starter.

I hate Goldie, Dodgers pen sucks, more HBP, and those were ugly uniforms

These steel grey Dbacks unis are crispy

Prick Delgado

Nice little run on the road, 3-game win streak and four of five.

Break up the Dbacks. 4 in a row.

azgreg wrote:Break up the Dbacks. 4 in a row.

And Goldschmidt playing like Bronzeschmidt.

Get him going, get the staff close to even league average, and they win most of their series going forward.

And the Snakes bust it open in the top of the 9th.

One starter with an ERA below 3.70, Greinke, who ranks 40th in all of baseball. He is also the only one who has an E.R.A. below the NL league average.

That 7th took 1:20 to complete

This team is a dumpster fire. Segura, Lamb and Goldie (albeit power numbers are down) and Tomas' bat (too bad he is the worst fielder in baseball) are the only things that can make you smile these days. Pitching top to bottom is atrocious. You cant completely fault Hale, he was given this product and that has been compounded by under-performing players and some injuries (part of the game). I will say this though, he isn't a guy who is going to do anything with a shitty team outside of watch them be shitty and make some dumb in-game decisions in the process. Doesn't seem to have the fire in him to do much else and on multiple occasions he has failed to protect his players from ejections or after getting thrown at.

This largely falls on Stewart and/or LaRussa, depending on how much influence LaRussa has in terms of front office stuff. Didn't think we could get any worse than the last two GMs, but now I'm not so sure. The evaluation of players AND their respective values has been horrendous. The Segura trade is the only thing that has worked out, BUT that was still a complete head scratcher at the time seeing how they gave up starting pitching depth (still an issue NOW, irrelevant of how Anderson is doing in MIL) for a middle infielder to play in a middle infielder that was predicted to be crowded with young guys who need innings to see who can get it done (still is, to a degree). Not sure if the Segura thing is good fortune (likely) or if the Dbacks saw something, which is unlikely considering their swings and misses everywhere else. Oh and the farm system is weak, again...

They should send LaRussa back to wherever he came from then pay Bucky whatever he wants to come back and straighten this mess out.

I happened to be in Phoenix last night and stopped by for a game. The stadium was 80% empty and I left after 45 minutes when they were down 9-1 or whatever.

Wait, the DBags . . . uh, I mean DBacks want a new stadium to replace one that's less than 20 years old???



Perfect response...

Oh Zach

Dbacks dead last in team ERA in NL at 5.22. Shelby Miller hasn't gone six full in his last three starts and has given up 4 earned runs in each of them. His ERA is still near 7.00 Rubby is our ace with a 4.26 ERA Ender had a horrible start to the season but still has a WAR above 3 and still playing great defense. Dansby Swanson has already made his Major League debut and is hitting 290 with a couple of bombs Kill me.

Chip Hale needs to move on. The D-Backs' problems run up to ownership and he's being saddled with an unworkable organization to win with because of that.

Hey at least they didn't finish last in the division! Nice sweep at the end!