The Traders Arena Blog

Here is the inaugural post of my “MLB 30 in 30″ segment. First up is the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Last year, the Diamondbacks finished 82-80 in a dismal N.L. West division. They did not make the playoffs, but were in it till the final days in a close race with the Dodgers. You could call it a collapse of sorts, not as quick as the Mets recent collapses, but more over a month time period. Brandon Webb carried their team in the first season posting win after win, but he had a rough streak in August, where he was the loser in many games. His ERA skyrocketed to over 3.00 due to him not being able to get his sinker down and around the plate. This ultimately lost him the CY Young to Tim Lincecum, but that is besides the point. The D-Backs were boasting of a huge lead and almost started to coast and then the Dodgers traded for Manny Ramirez and ultimately overtook them.

After losing Brandon Lyon (FA), and Valverde the year before to the Astros, the D-Backs may be in need of a closer but do have Tony Pena who is a fireballer as well as Jon Rauch, who was a good closer for the Nationals and got traded mid season to the D-Backs. They also picked up Adam Dunn for the playoff run but are not likely to sign him back. They also lost Randy Johnson to free agency and signed with a division opponent in the San Francisco Giants.

Here is their projected position players for next year:

C - Chris Synder: Snyder provides good pop for the D-Backs, hitting 16 HR last year, however he only had a .230 batting average so he is more there for defense and a few good swings throughout the year. They also have Miguel Montero backing him up, who has wound up in possible trade talks to the Red Sox.

1B - Conor Jackson: Jackson finally lived up to his potential last year and surprised many. He posted a .300 batting average, with 12 HR and 75 RBI. A respectable season, but from first base that is definitely below average. Hopefully he can improve his power numbers or else they may need to look elsewhere for 1B help.

2B - Felipe Lopez: Lopez gives a nice little bat for the D-Backs, though he hasn’t repeated his 2005 season with over 20 HRs and 80 RBI. He was injured for 2 years so that plays a part but he is still good to steal 20+ bases.

SS - Stephen Drew: Drew, in his first big league season did fairly well, hitting over 20 HRs, a respectable average of .291. He is one of their stars for the future and shouldn’t disappoint. Many expect a big year from him.

3B - Mark Reynolds: Reynolds is a strikeout machine, having set the record last year with over 200K. He did hit a good share of HR though with 28 and had 97 RBIs. He started out very strong and then cooled off. I expect around the same year, maybe a few less HRs but hopefully a few less K’s as well with some off season help.

OF - Eric Byrnes, Justin Upton, Chris Young: Justin Upton came up last year, still young and raw, but he is a top prospect. He had some MLB experience, starting off hot but after a few weeks, pitchers figured him out. I expect some big things in the coming years from him. Chris Young is becoming a great leadoff hitter, having 32 HR in 2007, only 22 last year, but from a leadoff hitter he does his job. He does need to get his average and OBP up though. They are some of the lowest totals in the league for a leadoff hitter. Eric Byrnes is coming off an injury but if he comes back expect around 20 HR and 70+ RBI.

Here is their expected rotation:

SP: Brandon Webb, Dan Haren, Doug Davis, Max Scherzer, Yusmerio Petit: Webb and Haren make up a formidable 1-2 combo rivaling the 1-2 combos of the Yankees, Red Sox, Cubs, etc. The key will be when the other 3 start. Doug Davis is coming off a successful bout at cancer and pitched well after his comeback. Scherzer is their ace in the hole; a top prospect called up last year who did well in his first games of action and then dropped off. He should be a nice #2 or #3 pitcher in the future.

Closer: Who knows at this point. Most likely a mix of Tony Pena and Jon Rauch. Rauch has experience from last year, but they should have pursued a closer this year, especially with the deep relief FA class this year.

My expectations for the team: I expect them to bounce back, and pending the Manny Ramirez situation, they should be right on top in the division, or at least fighting for it. No team will run away with that division, so it will go down to the wire again. They should have around 80-85 wins depending on the young starters. They do need to land a bat, similar to Adam Dunn last year, but they are low on prospects after landing Dan Haren (traded Carlos Gonzalez, Brett Anderson, and others). They probably need to win the division to make the playoffs due to the strong east, but they could be a sleeper team, like the Dodgers were this year, making it to the NLCS.

Tomorrow’s Preview: Atlanta Braves

Trackback URI | Comments RSS