The Diamondbacks' main additions this offseason have been Adam LaRoche, Edwin Jackson, Ian Kennedy, Kelly Johnson, Aaron Heilman, and Bob Howry. They also exercised Brandon Webb's option and received Tony Abreu as the player to be named later in the Jon Garland trade. On the flip side, they subtracted Max Scherzer, Doug Davis, Yusmeiro Petit, and Daniel Schlereth from the pitching staff.
MLB.com's Steve Gilbert interviewed D'Backs managing general partner Ken Kendrick, while AZ Snakepit's Jim McLennan talked to GM Josh Byrnes. Hot stove notes:
- Regarding LaRoche, Kendrick said, "There were a couple of other possibilities, and we were going to be able to do one of them."
- Given the losses of Webb and Conor Jackson last year, Kendrick considers them on par with big free agent additions for 2010.
- Kendrick spoke of four or five guys the D'Backs would prefer not to go year-to-year with, third baseman Mark Reynolds among them. Kendrick believes the time for those discussions is before the season begins. Reynolds will be arbitration-eligible for the first time in 2011, as he just missed the cutoff this time around.
- Byrnes spoke of "a pendulum in the game," where some teams chase a new philosophy to the extent that it creates a market inefficiency.
- Byrnes carefully explained why he traded Scherzer, suggesting Jackson has gotten "to that next level" while Scherzer hasn't. He also explained how that three-way deal came together – 90% was done quickly, and then there was "about a month of starting at each other and seeing if there were another deal, improvements or alternatives out there either club liked."
Jackson has reached a “new level” alright; a new level of luck. Giving up Schlereth and Scherzer to get Jackson and Kennedy is a huge blemish on what would otherwise be a very solid offseason for the D’Backs. Johnson is streaky but can be in the upper class of offense for 2B when he’s healthy, which he wasn’t last year for the Braves. LaRoche is moving into a much better hitter’s park than what he’s used to, and that has the potential to boost his mediocre first-half numbers. They solidified their bullpen with addition of Howry. I like everything the D’Backs did, except for the Jackson trade.
The Dodgers could have solved there 2nd. base issue had they not traded Tony Abreu
for two weeks of Jon Garland. Arizona stuck it to the dodgers good on that deal.
Trading two relievers for two starters is a win in my book. Scherzer is good but obviously Byrnes and co. were not comfortable with him as a starter. As a Dbacks fan it was tough watching him labor through innings. I still like Scherzer though and hope he does well in Detroit, but I think Jackson is a better fit for AZ.
Offseason’s a push. Josh byrnes has a good feel for pitching, and guys with plus stuff, so adding the vet arms of Howry and Heilmann makes up for the loss of Bryan Price, who is great at developing young talented relievers. Rosales and Guttirez both have excellent potential that Price was bringing along. Now without, the highly respected Price, J. Byrnes is forced to go the veteran rout. EJackson, is the caliber pitcher in the same way Schilling was. Meaning his heavy 4 seam can be unhittable for 9 innings. Now of course he doesn’t spot his fastball like Schilling did or probably ever will. Hopefully for the Dbacks Jackson will continue to get to the next level. Jackson has definitely benefited from Hickey and Knapp. He’s the type of guy who probably still needs, maintenance from a good pitching coach. Going to be interesting to see how Scherzer if healthy, will continue to develop under Knapp, who helped create the success the Twins have been having the last few years with their staffs. Scherzer and Schlerth are both great arms, but Byrnes was probably kept up at night worrying about Scherzer’s health, so the deal had to be done.
Another hole card will be can Montero handle a staff with Haren’s fork, Qualls 95 two seam, webb’s two seam. Will his average receiving abilities affect the staff, while at the same time, can his bat keep up with the added pressure of this staff?
Montero is only going to get better both behind the dish and with the bat – look at what playing every day produced from him last season
My only concern with this rotation they have built is the lack of lefties. Thats really the way to stop Colorado
My only concern with this rotation they have built is the lack of lefties. Thats really the way to stop Colorado