Posts by: Ryan P. Morrison
Since the last roundup, the D-backs have gone 4-3, with a split against the Dodgers and a series win against the Rockies. Arizona dropped in the ESPN Power Rankings, but only one spot. Pretty good week, right?
Wrong. Winning 2 games against the Dodgers was just good enough to push their NL West title to Thursday, when LA fought …
Continue Reading →It’s a good thing revenge is a dish best served cold, because the Diamondbacks will have to put their plans for retribution on ice for at least six months.
In winning the final game of this week’s four game series at Chase Field yesterday, the Dodgers clinched the NL West, punching their ticket to the postseason and officially eliminating the …
Continue Reading →No matter how you slice it, Montero was one of the top five hitters who played catcher for most of their games last year. At 124 wRC+, he was 24% better at creating runs than the average hitter. That’s hitter, not catcher — and in part because above-average hitters at catcher are expected to be scarce, Montero put up a …
Continue Reading →The last week started with difficulty for Arizona, as they dropped two ugly games to Los Angeles before winning three of their next four. The offense over the weekend was particularly inspiring; as I noted in the ESPN Power Rankings this week, Goldy finally killed that 22-game HR drought (the third-longest of his career) on Sunday. In consecutive wins against …
Continue Reading →Martin Prado has been up and down offensively, all year. He was the NL Player of the Month for August, and deservedly so — but while his May was also quite good, his April and June were dismal. His numbers are now similar to career norms (.281/.331/.414) — but what was Prado doing differently in his recent surge?
From the …
Continue Reading →Would a team with more Gerardo Parras do better than the current Arizona Diamondbacks team? -Voice in my head
In Boston four or so years ago, J.D. Drew was among the most controversial players on the Red Sox. Signed to a staggering $14M/year deal, Drew contributed high on base percentages and above average defense in right field, but hit relatively …
Continue Reading →It’s been a crushing seven days for the D-backs. After dropping the first two of the home games against Toronto to finish off interleague play, Arizona split a four-game set in San Francisco — nearly getting victimized by a perfect game along the way. If there’s a silver lining, it’s that the team’s pitching has fared very well; Wade Miley …
Continue Reading →Paul Goldschmidt was an above-average hitter last season, putting up AVG/OBP/SLG numbers of .286/.359/.490. This season, he’s taken a big step forward in becoming a significant offensive force for the Diamondbacks, posting .292/.387/.534 marks. He eclipsed his 2012 mark for home runs on July 1st of this year, and he leads the National League in RBI with 106. In 2012, …
Continue Reading →If you’ve read Jeff Wiser’s piece on lineup construction, you know that the difference between one lineup and another is pretty small in terms of runs scored. Still, the construction of a lineup is second only to bullpen alignment in terms of how something other than player performance affects games. And everyone has something to say. There are a …
Continue Reading →How about three: I don’t care.
Okay, I care a little. I don’t want players to have to think about using steroids just to keep up. And as for stimulants, baseball is a marathon, and seeing your team battle through a day game several hours after losing in extra innings the night before is part of what makes the sport …
Continue Reading →The last week literally had a lot of ups and downs, with the team winning two of three against the Padres and one of three against the Giants. In the middle game against the Padres, we saw Ian Kennedy face the D-backs in his new uniform for the first time. David Holmberg got the call to face him for his …
Continue Reading →Jason Kubel is now a Cleveland Indian (or, he will be once rosters expand on September 1). Kubel figured to land somewhere once he was designated for assignment on Tuesday, and the trade does little to change the Diamondbacks roster this year or next.
In exchange for Kubel and cash to help offset the remainder of his salary, Arizona will …
Continue Reading →Major League Baseball rosters expand on September 1, enabling teams to carry up to 40 players, provided they are on the 40-man roster. If you’re rusty on the mechanics of the 40-man and protecting players from the winter Rule V Draft, check out this mlb.com summary. In terms of guessing at what Arizona might do this year, the main …
Continue Reading →It’s been a difficult week for Diamondbacks fans, who watched their team drop 3 of 4 to their competition for the wild card in Cincinnati and 2 of 3 to the wayward Phillies. Count me among those feeling thoroughly exhausted at this point, after the 18-inning (7 hours 6 minutes) affair on Saturday night. The win there was great (check …
Continue Reading →The Diamondbacks’ chances of making the playoffs took a big hit when the team went 1-3 against the Reds this week. Cincinnati is currently in line for the second wild card spot in the National League, and had Arizona swept the series, they would have been just one game back. Instead, Arizona gears up for its game against the Phillies …
Continue Reading →I was so wowed by last night’s performance by Patrick Corbin that I set out this evening to write it up. Before completing the below, Jeff Sullivan of FanGraphs posted about the 10 most unhittable pitches this season – Corbin is the only starter in there. You should really take a look at that, as I won’t republish his findings …
Continue Reading →@ryanpmorrison
Best part of Peralta’s 108 mph fliner over the fence, IMHO: that he got that much leverage despite scooping it out… https://t.co/ivBrl76adF, 
RT @OutfieldGrass24: If you're bored of watching Patrick Corbin get dudes out, you can check out my latest for @TheAthleticAZ. https://t.co/k1DymgY7zO, - Of course, they may have overtaken the league lead for outs on the bases just now, also...
But in 2017, Arizona ha… https://t.co/38MBrr2D4b,
- Prior to the games today, there had only been 5 steals of 3rd this season (and no CS) in the National League. The… https://t.co/gVVL84vPQ5,
- RT @OutfieldGrass24: Patrick Corbin has a WPA of .318 and it's only the fifth inning.,
Powered by: Web Designers@outfieldgrass24
- RT @OutfieldGrass24: Come watch some weird dingers! My latest for @TheAthleticAZ profiles the five most unlikely home runs from the Diam… https://t.co/fxMvaZgcvG,
RT @TheAthleticAZ: More female players excelling from Arizona means more role models for girls to follow. @catmsilverman
https://t.co/vLmfiRLttP, - Come watch some weird dingers! My latest for @TheAthleticAZ profiles the five most unlikely home runs from the Diam… https://t.co/fxMvaZgcvG,
- RT @TheAthleticAZ: Lucky long balls: A detailed examination of @Dbacks top five most fortunate HRs - see for yourself - last season.… https://t.co/YUSw6TprEX,
RT @BaseballAmerica: Prospects chat! We're examining the state of the Diamondbacks farm system at 3 p.m. ET/1 p.m. MT.
https://t.co/IbhAfebO6V,
Powered by: Web Designers
