SB Nation - Rusty Ryal

This Week in AZ Baseball: winter meetings, drugs and Reno personnel

Jim McLennan — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 01:00:20 -0000

I'd just like to say, gastroenteritis sucks. One second, you're feeling perfectly fine, the next you're calling for Ralph and Hughie on the big white telephone. Rinse. Repeat. I haven't been able to be more than 30 feet from a bathroom in two days now, except for the drive to and from work - and certainly makes for a nervous twenty minutes there, I can assure you. [Yes, I could call in sick, but I'm a firm believer that time off should only be taken when you are well enough to enjoy it. If I'm going to be miserable, I may as well get paid for it] Still, life goes on, and so does the ongoing work for the Diamondbacks' front-office, as they build towards 2010.

After the jump, we'll take a look at what the winter meetings may hold for Arizona - brief summary, nothing too startling, probably - discuss some unpleasantness down in Mobile, and look at what some of our guys are doing in the Central and South American leagues. I'll bring the saltine crackers.

The annual winter meetings take place next week in Indianapolis. Nick Piecoro doesn't expect much action over them, saying "The more drawn out the off-season, one team executive mused this week, the better it could be for the Diamondbacks, who might wind up bargain hunting for a pitcher deep into January." This makes some sense: outside of the very shallow top tier of starting pitchers available - which largely begins and ends with John Lackey - there isn't anyone who seems to deserve too much chasing. I wouldn't hold my breath expecting our rotation to be fleshed out until after the New Year.

Steve Gilbert reports that our overall priorities during the winter are "a fourth starter to replace free agent Doug Davis, whom the club is not interested in retaining, some depth in the bullpen and possibly a veteran hitter that could play multiple positions including first base." Again, if you're feeling masochistic, click through to the comments and read such sad drivel from the alleged "fans" as, "Given the overall performance of Max Scherzer last season, his stats, and tendoncies [sic] I would consider him a number 5 kind of starter." Really. If I wasn't already wanting to throw up before, I'm sure I would be on reading that. [Pause for DayQuil]

Speaking of pharmaceutiicals, two Diamondbacks have been suspended for 50 games for failing drug tests. Before your heart stops entirely, I should point out that, while still disappointing, they are minor-leaguers, Daniel Vasquez and Matt Tupman. Both were most recently with Double-A Mobile, though Tupman is now a free-agent. Vasquez tested positive for metabolites of Stanozolol, a performance-enhancing substance, and Tupman had a second positive test for a "drug of abuse"- an interestingly-vague choice of words that picqued my interest.

Assuming it's the same in the minors, the Major League Baseball drug policy lists the following as "drugs of abuse:" cocaine, LSD, marijuana [are you listening, Timmy?], opiates, MDMA (Ecstasy), GHB and Phencyclidine (PCP). Or, as Amy Winehouse would refer to it, "a good start to the evening." Hey, I guess when you're a 30-year old player in Double-A, guees you need to make your own entertainment... Since Matt is a free-agent, the suspension will kick in whenever he signs with a team: this news will not exactly have improved the chances of that happening.

Larry Dobrow looks at the Diamondbacks. Not really too much new there - the impact of injuries, no need to panic, the young talent which has to develop - but his take on Eric Byrnes was... Well, here you go: "Speaking of giant sucking sounds, Eric Byrnes is a great guy to have around if you need color commentary during the potato-sack race at the team picnic. Unfortunately, that's more or less where his usefulness ends. His speed and kamikaze defense is as much a relic of 2007 as that one Justin Timberlake song. You know, the one with the little falsetto flutter." He concludes by saying, "The Diamondbacks will vault past the Rockies and Giants on their way to challenging for the wild card, if not the NL West title." I'll have what he's having.

Brett Butler will be back to manage the Reno Aces in 2010. He initially interviewed for the vacant third-base position with the Marlins - ironically, this was empty because previous incumbent, Bo Porter, left to take up the same spot with the Diamondbacks. Pitching coach Mike Parrott and hitting coach Rick Burleson will also return - the former was also looking elsewhere this winter, interviewing for a spot as minor league pitching coordinator in Seattle, but didn't get it either. It'll be Butler's fifth year as a manager in the Diamondbacks organization.

A quick run through the latest activities of the Diamondbacks in winter ball. Tony Abreu has managed exactly zero walks in the two weeks since we last updated things, though his last game for Aguilas appears to have been on November 28. Not been able to find any sources explaining why, or that I can even pass to Mrs. SnakePit for translation from the Spanish. Also in the Dominican is Pedro Ciriaco, who continue a 2009 tour which has already seen him play in Mobile and Scottsdale. In Venezuela, Rusty Ryal and Gerardo Parra are seeing action: the latter put together back-to-back three-hit outings, while Ryal appears to be collecting bruises, having been hit four times in only seven games.

Some of our relievers have also entered action. Esmerling Vasquez has thrown three hitless innings in the Dominican for Estrellas de Oriente, but Juan Gutierrez's first two appearances on behalf of Leones del Caracas in Venezuela have not gone so well. In two innings, the results have been five hits and three earned runs. Gutierrez ended up taking the loss in the second game, after coming in for the eleventh with the scores tied. And with, back on to the Gastic Flu Weight-loss Diet I go. Jenny Craig, eat your heart out! I'll never laugh at "flu-like symptoms" ever again, I swear...

The 2009 'Pitties: Rookie of the Year

Jim McLennan — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:00:13 -0000

Why, yes - I have been waiting all year to use that picture, thank you for asking. Actually, I wanted to use one of that fan at ~~Joe Robbie Stadium~~ ~~Pro Player Park~~ ~~Pro Player Stadium~~ ~~Dolphin Stadium~~ Land Shark Stadium, who attended a May Marlins-Diamondbacks game in full Chewbacca get-up. I can think of about 29 other stadia in baseball where I'd rather wear a full-body fur suit. Before going on, however, congratulations to Ryan Roberts, who won the award for Unsung Hero of the Year, beating out Juan Gutierrez by a 2-1 margin. I trust he'll be getting our logo inked somewhere on him, to commemorate this honor.

Nine players made their major-league debuts for Arizona in 2009: Brandon Allen, Bryan Augenstein, John Hester, Trent Oeltjen, Gerardo Parra, Rusty Ryal, Daniel Schlereth, Esmerling Vasquez and Clay Zavada. They join other qualifiers Billy Buckner, Gutierrez, Bobby Korecky, Kevin Mulvey and Josh Whitesell - I've checked what I can find as far as transactions go for Buckner and I do not think he reached the 45-day cutoff for pre-September days on the roster since his debut in August 2007. If anyone knows differently, let me know and I'll cross him off . After the jump, we'll lay out the numbers for all the Diamondbacks' rookies in 2009.

	Age	G	PA	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+
Gerardo Parra*	22	120	491	455	59	132	5	60	5	7	25	89	.290	.324	.404	.729	85
Josh Whitesell*	27	46	133	108	7	21	1	14	0	0	24	29	.194	.346	.287	.633	64
Brandon Allen*	23	32	116	104	13	21	4	14	0	0	12	40	.202	.284	.385	.669	69
Trent Oeltjen*	26	24	73	70	11	17	3	4	3	1	1	13	.243	.250	.457	.707	76
Rusty Ryal	26	30	68	59	11	16	3	9	0	0	6	21	.271	.353	.593	.946	136
John Hester	25	15	30	28	4	7	1	4	0	0	2	7	.250	.300	.429	.729	83

	Age	W	L	ERA	G	GS	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	IBB	SO	ERA+	WHIP
Billy Buckner	25	4	6	6.40	16	13	0	77.1	94	57	55	12	29	0	64	71	1.591
Juan Gutierrez	25	4	3	4.06	65	0	9	71.0	67	33	32	2	30	5	66	113	1.366
Esmerling Vasquez	25	3	3	4.42	53	0	0	53.0	52	27	26	4	29	2	45	104	1.528
Clay Zavada*	25	3	3	3.35	49	0	0	51.0	45	22	19	5	24	2	52	136	1.353
Kevin Mulvey	24	0	3	7.04	6	4	0	23.0	23	18	18	5	12	0	18	65	1.522
Daniel Schlereth*	23	1	4	5.89	21	0	0	18.1	15	13	12	1	15	1	22	78	1.636
Bryan Augenstein	22	0	1	7.94	7	2	0	17.0	23	16	15	2	6	2	6	58	1.706
Bobby Korecky	29	0	0	13.50	5	0	0	6.0	11	9	9	0	4	0	3	34	2.500

After careful analysis, I have come up with the following five nominees for Rookie of the Year. I ummed and ahhed over including Buckner, but questions over his rookie status and the fact that, until September, he largely blew chunks, convinced me that he did not quite qualify.

Juan Gutierrez - 71 IP, 113 ERA+
[What does this "paste" button do?] Leading the team in appearances and innings of relief Gutierrez in 2009 helped make the trade of Jose Valverde look good for the Diamondbacks. The rookie made 65 appearances, and posted an ERA+ of 113, giving up only two home-runs all year - to Ryan Zimmerman and Jayson Werth, hardly an embarrassment. After the loss of Chad Qualls at the end of August, Juan became the de facto closer, going a perfect 8-for-8 in save chances, ending the season with a perfect ninth in Wrigley. Said AJ Hinch, "He has pitched very, very well since the All-Star break. I think a lot of that can be attributed to how he is improving at getting left-handed hitters out."

Trent Oeltjen - .243/.250/.457 = .707 OPS
On August 6th, our favorite Australian baseball player - ok, the only one most of us know - replaced J-Up on the roster and became the first since at least 1954 to hit a home-run and swipe two bases during his major-league debut. He blazed across the baseball firmament for his first five games, going 12-for-24 with three HR and innumerable stolen hearts among the SnakePit Laideez. While he cooled off a bit after that (to put it mildly - his OPS after August 12 was .277!), Oeltjen's enthusiasm for the game and (I am informed) cute accent won him tons of admirers. He said "It's just something I've always wanted to do since I was little. It's been my dream. I wanted to stick it out and give it my all."
Gerardo Parra - .290/.324/.404 = .728 OPS, 60 RBI
The only Diamondback to actually receive any votes in the BBWAA ballot, was not originally expected to be on the team this year. Parra started the season down in Double-A Mobile, but was called up early on, after the loss of Conor Jackson, and wasted no time in making an impression, hitting a home-run in his first major-league at-bat and driving in runs each of his first five game. He won the Rookie of the Month award for May and trailed only the Brewers' Casey McGehee for rookie RBIs. Said Parra, "One thing I have learned is that you have to always stay focused. Sometimes things will go good, sometimes things will go bad, but you have to do the job everyday."
Rusty Ryal - .271/.353/.593 = .946 OPS
Sure, it was only thirty games, and likely completely unsustainable. But over the time after his debut on August 10th, Ryal more than held his own. The OPS Rusty posted put him in the top ten of the 302 NL players with sixty or more PAs, sandwiched right between Manny Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval. It was also the best figure by any D-back with as many PAs since Tony Clark in 2005 - mostly because eleven of Ryal's 16 hits were for extra-bases. The most memorable of these was probably the ground-rule double off Hiroki Kuroda's head, which ricocheted back into the stands behind home-plate Obscurist factoid: Ryal is a big baseball-card collector.
Clay Zavada - 51 IP, 136 ERA+
If there were a category for Heart-warming Story of the Year, it would certainly belong to Zavada. See here for why we were so delighted when he made it to the big-leagues - and when he did, both the man and his performances lived up to the myth and the legend. An instant hit with the crowds at Chase [not least at SnakePitFest], Clay also didn't allow an earned run until his twentieth appearance, six weeks after he arrived. Overall, the only AZ rookie pitcher since 2003 with a better ERA+ (in fifty IP) was Max Scherzer last year. But Zavada's attitude is perhaps even more impressive than his pitching ability. Let's finish with a couple of quotes from the man:

Every day is a great day to be here. It's the best job in the world. You don't ever have a bad day at a ballpark. If you have cleats, a glove, a hat and someone has your name on a list to be out on the field for batting practice you've got the best job in the world. That's the way I feel...

Sometimes you ask people how they are doing and they tell you they are living the dream. They're not really living the dream. There's really only one percent that is really living the dream. I'm living the dream, my dream. Not many people get to do that in their lifetime. Life's not fair. Life's not easy. So I'm just thankful... You had better have fun, you had better enjoy it and you'd better give it all you've got. Otherwise you'll regret it. And I don't want to regret it.

Poll

Who was the 2009 Diamondbacks' Rookie of the Year?

Juan Gutierrez

11 votes

Trent Oeltjen

7 votes

Gerardo Parra

89 votes

Rusty Ryal

2 votes

Clay Zavada

20 votes

129 votes | Poll has closed

NL West in Review: 2nd Basemen

Poseidon's Fist — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:00:36 -0000

More photos » by Matt York - AP

Felipe Lopez only got in a half season in the NL West, but was he good enough to be the best 2B in the division in 2009?

Browse more photos »

Introduction

Before getting to the second base rankings, I thought I would touch on a peripheral discussion on the accuracy of WAR. It is important to understand that even the WAR found at Fangraphs isn't absolute. The methodology of chosen inputs can make the final numbers vary slightly, or in some cases, drastically. The best example of this is this year's season by Ricky Nolasco, who was a 4.0 WAR pitcher from Fangraphs, but just a 1.0 WAR pitcher via Rally's historical database. The quick explanation is that Fangraphs' input is FIP, while Rally's is more based on actual runs allowed and BABIP.

In my case, I'm using Statcorner's component park factors, while Fangraphs has their own methodology for park effects. That is why some of my numbers will vary some from Fangraphs' data. For instance, I have Orlando Hudson as a 2.52 WAR second baseman, while Fangraphs has him at 2.9 WAR. Which is right? I think it's a matter of preference.

A few weeks ago, Dave Cameron wrote an article entitled WAR: It Works, which defended their methodology by finding a 0.83 correlation between a team's total WAR and final record (for comparison, Pythageorean W-L has a 0.91 correlation). So it does a decent job, but there's some understandable noise in the data.

Method

See the full methodology as explained last week. Last Monday, I omitted stolen bases and caught stealings from my value calculations. It turns out Fangraphs' positional splits are accurate to positional at-bats, and Baseball Reference's positional splits are not accurate for stolen bases and caught stealings. As it turns out, first basemen don't steal much, so that omission made practically no difference.

However, second basemen do tend employ the running game, so I did the extra legwork of utilizing ESPN.com's positional splits to extract SB/CS data. It didn't make a great deal of difference. Four teams saw their team wOBA* increase by .001, while the Rockies dropped by .001. Clint Barmes, who led all NL West 2B in caught stealings with nine, was the only prominent player to be affected, who dropped one slot in the rankings.

Read the results after the jump.

Results

No NL West team had complete personnel consistency at second base, but that didn't stop Arizona from far surpassing the rest of the division with some surprise production from their second-sackers.


Teams	Players	Avg	HR	RBI	OBP	SLG	wOBA*	WAR
1. Arizona	4	.298	15	49	.372	.448	.362	5.97
2. Los Angeles	6	.283	12	77	.356	.424	.347	3.19
3. Colorado	5	.231	31	98	.281	.441	.301	0.80
4. San Francisco	7	.236	17	80	.281	.329	.281	-0.26
5. San Diego	5	.246	2	58	.315	.314	.292	-1.04

Brendan Scolari's calculations had Arizona projected to be the weakest team at second base this season, but the other four teams fell in line as expected from there.

Your graphical plot of the RAR for all five teams, with the positional RAR set at +2.5.

The second base position was exceedingly interesting, in my opinion. To wit: the most valuable player was also the fifth least valuable fielder; the worst and best fielders came from the same team; the man with the third most homers was the fourth worst second baseman; and, one team had four second basemen in the top seven in the division:

There were 27 total second basemen, and you can view the complete rankings and data here in Google Docs. Here are the top and bottom five:

Rank	Player	Team	PA	Avg	HR	RBI	OBP	SLG	wOBA*	UZR	WAR
1	Orlando Hudson	LAD	627	.285	9	62	.359	.420	.345	-3.7	2.52
2	Felipe Lopez	AZ	375	.305	6	25	.366	.417	.351	3.8	2.25
3	Ryan Roberts	AZ	199	.303	7	16	.374	.506	.383	2.3	1.65
4	Clint Barmes	COL	551	.238	22	69	.286	.437	.301	7.0	1.60
5	Juan Uribe	SFG	131	.274	6	15	.331	.538	.380	3.5	1.25
~	~	~	~	~	~	~	~	~	~	~	~
23	Edgar Gonzalez	SDP	54	.234	0	3	.315	.319	.289	-2.1	-0.17
24	Ian Stewart	COL	73	.235	8	26	.274	.632	.349	-7.5	-0.39
25	Luis Rodriguez	SDP	102	.200	1	7	.294	.256	.266	-4.1	-0.48
26	Emmanuel Burriss	SFG	220	.238	0	13	.292	.267	.265	-3.7	-0.53
27	Eugenio Velez	SFG	106	.198	1	8	.226	.287	.231	-4.7	-0.80

The 2009 Diamondbacks: what the heck happened?

Jim McLennan — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 02:00:17 -0000

Worst Case Scenario… Arizona battles with Colorado for third place.
-- Baseball Digest Daily Team Preview, March 15, 2009

The above is a measure of how badly things went for our team this year: the "worst case scenario" suggested, would be something for which we would now be more than happy to settle. It's comforting to realize that I am far from the only person to have seen their high expectation for the 2009 Arizona Diamondbacks mercilessly dashed. Virtually every pundit I could locate online predicted us to have a winning record - the respected Baseball Prospectus PECOTA projections had the team all the way up at 88 wins, and they weren't alone.

Other sites predicted 86 wins; 85 wins, 84 wins, 88 wins, 83 wins for Arizona, and even CHONE, the most pessimistic I could find at 79 wins, had us finishing only three games back of the Dodgers. From a more fan-based perspective, in our pre-season poll, of approaching three hundred participants, only 12% predicted the Diamondbacks would have less than eighty victories, never mind struggling to reach seventy. Not quite the same realm as the chairman of DEC saying "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home," but why were so many people - neutral observers, with no vested interests or rose-colored fandom glasses - so completely wrong? Why was there such a gulf between expectations and reality? After the jump, we'll break down some numbers - here are Josh Byrnes and AJ Hinch talking about the season that's just finished.

Audio courtesy of KTAR 620

Injuries
Let's not kid ourselves. The loss of Brandon Webb was a devastating blow to the Diamondbacks in 2009, as much because it was completely unexpected to us. After all, over the previous five season, he had never made less than 33 starts per year. To be reduced from that, at an ERA+ of 140 to a single, ineffective outing was clearly a huge factor in the team's underperformance. How much?

Let's look at Webb's record in 2005, 2006 and 2008, when the total number of runs scored by the team (696, 712 and 720) were close to this year, when it's exactly the same as 2008, at 720. In those three years, Webb's collective ERA was 3.31 - one tick above the number posted last season - and his average W/L record was 17-9, with the team going 19-14 in his starts This seems a reasonable estimate for what we "should" have got from Webb this year, assuming run support approximately matching those hundred starts, and an ERA consistent with last year.

Instead of him, there was the Quadruple-headed Beast of Webb-Replacement Suck: Bryan Augenstein, Yusmeiro Petit, Billy Buckner and Kevin Mulvey. While Buckner has, of late, looked a semi-credible back-end candidate for 2010, this has been the exception, rather than the rule. In their first 33 starts, that quartet had an ERA of 6.24, went 5-18 and the team posted a record of 9-24 - ten games worse than that we could realistically have expected from 33 Webb starts. Even using a more conservative estimate - Fangraph.com's Wins Above Replacement (WAR) - we find that Webb in 2008 was worth six wins to Arizona - the four-pack of replacements plus Webb in 2009 rated only 0.3 wins in 33 starts, 5.7 less. I'd split the difference between the two methods and say Webb's injury cost us eight wins

We should also consider the unfortunate loss of Conor Jackson to valley fever, which basically meant he had the entire season written off. No real way to measure his input except by using WAR. This tells us there's a difference of 4.5 wins between what we got from the SnakePit MVP in 2008 and his sub-replacement output for the team this season. So, between the loss of him and Webb, we're probably looking at a cost to the team around twelve games. That's a massive difference by itself, almost enough to have put the team into contention for the wild-card, and is not including anyone else - I believe Arizona's players missed a total of almost 800 player-games on the DL. But wait! There's more...

Trades
After it became apparent that this team was not going to be in the post-season hunt, several deals were made, sending useful pieces to other teams, generally in exchange for players who might help the team in 2010 or beyond. The players we lost would likely have helped the Diamondbacks to several more victories - albeit meaningless ones - had we retained their services for the rest of the season. From WAR, we can see what the ex-Diamondbacks did for their new teams - production which could have been in Arizona.

Of course, we need to balance against this, the production provided to Arizona this season, by what we received in return. The chart below shows the four main trades, with the WAR values given to their new teams after the trade, on both sides of the deal:

Left Arizona	WAR	To Arizona	WAR
Jon Garland	0.6	PTBNL	0.0
Felipe Lopez	2.6	Cole Gillespie Roque Mercedes	0.0
Tony Peña	0.5	Brandon Allen	-0.6
Jon Rauch	0.3	Kevin Mulvey	-0.1
TOTAL	4.0	TOTAL	-0.7

Ugh. I hope those trades work out better for us in the long-term than they did this season, because they provided absolutely nothing of value to the 2009 team. While it would be simple just to say that we would have approached five wins better, simply by hanging on to the players with whom we started the season, it probably isn't as simple as that, because of the positional changes. The replacement at second for Lopez was mostly Rusty Ryal, who was a credible +0.6 WAR in his time here. While still well short of F-Lo, who hit .320 for the Brewers over 66 games, it's enough to make me reduce the overall impact to four wins.

Almost as significant a weakening were the Peña and Rauch deals, not just for what they would have done in the 'pen but the negative impact of the players received in return. After the way Allen tore up AAA pitching, an OPS+ of 70 in more than thirty games was still disappointing. I think we'll be taking Reno numbers with a larger pinch of salt next season. Mulvey lacked control, issuing 14 free passes (a dozen walks and two hit batters) and five home-runs in only 23 innings. He'll need to do better than that, if he wants even to be our sixth starter next year - a spot at which, as noted above, Arizona blew chunks. We'll discuss the moves more in due course, I think; both Mulvey and Allen will only be 24 on Opening Day 2010, so that's in their favor.

"Bad luck"
Yeah, this may sound like a Cubs-esque cop-out, but there's some evidence to suggest the team was unlucky, and I don't just mean the lodging of fungal sports in the lungs of one of our best 2008 hitters. Baseball is a chaotic, in mathematical terms, game - in the sense that a tiny change in circumstances can have a massive effect on results. For example, a couple of millimeters difference on where the ball hits the bat, far beyond what any hitter can control consciously, may be the difference between a grand-slam and an inning-ending can of corn to the outfield. However, that requires a good deal more space, and this piece has already gone on long enough, so I'll carry any detailed analysis there forward for another day... But it's probably worth at least another three wins.

Conclusions
That brings us to a total of 19 wins lost to the Diamondbacks by factors more or less outside their control - the trades would likely not have happened had the team still been in contention, which in turn was the result of a combination of factors, including injuries and the whims of the baseball gods. It's enough to explain the entire gulf between performance and expectations, and then some.

This does not absolve the front-office from responsibility for their part in the disappointing season. Given the known issue with Webb's shoulder - which was apparently a big enough concern to stop the two sides from agreeing on a contract extension - it was particularly reckless to have no credible backup available in our pitching rotation. First-base continues to be a major black-hole of offensive production, and with the honorable exception of Dan Haren, the contract extensions awarded over the past few years have yet to bear fruit (and that's putting it mildly). Those outside the lines certainly have their share of blame.

However, even with all the self-inflicted wounds, the Diamondbacks as formulated on Opening Day 2009 would, if fully healthy and getting anything approaching normal luck, have been over .500, at the very least. Indeed, thanks to a number of everyday players surpassing expectations (Montero, Upton, Reynolds), 90 wins could conceivably have been achieved had the breaks gone minorly our way. Again, I'll analyze our actual performances more in the coming weeks, but you might find some surprises there too [here's a tidbit - the 2009 bullpen was, by at least one advanced measure, better than in 2008].

Make Your Pitch: The NL playoff teams want YOU...

Jim McLennan — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 05:56:50 -0000

The regular season is over, and we now move on to the playoffs. Well, the Diamondbacks don't, but most fans will still be watching with interest as things progress in the post-season. We all have our own loyalties, but in order to decide who gets the Official AZ SnakePit Playoff Endorsements, I reached out to all the SB Nation blogs that are taking part, and asked them to make a pitch for the support of the post-season neutrals here in Arizona. The AL version will follow, just as soon as the league gets their act together and decides who'll be taking part out of the Central division. But after the jump, you'll find what the National League contenders had to say for themselves.

[Update] I have now added a sixth option to the poll, since I suspect a significant number of those voting may not actually be Diamondbacks fans at all...

First up, Dan Moore, from Viva El Birdos, through his hat into the ring with a pitch for the Cardinals.

Thanks for the opportunity to win your fanbase. I thought I'd express my love for the Cardinals in the same way Shakespeare would have, if he were still alive to tell us how much he loved the Cardinals.

THE CARDINALS

A SONNET

by Dan Moore (feat. Albert Pujols)

There on the edge of plausibility,

a figure stalks across beisbol fields—

his swing a picture of agility;

against his accent "G" and "T" yield.

Behind him saunters a standing army,

players we guessed would be lying in traction.

Carpenter's shoulder—lost years, it harmed me—

somehow surviving two seasons' inaction.

A team of destiny and Mozeliak:

Injuries conquered and outfield acquired,

Shortstop still saved with Khalil out of whack,

Unlikely heroes and guns that are hired.

If after all that I still don't have you caring,

"It's our faulg your teang has gongtrol of Dag Hareng."

Eric Stephen, of True Blue LA, bravely takes up the tough job of canvassing on behalf of the Dodgers:

Here's why the AZ Snake Pit members should throw their support to the Dodgers:

Phoenix for years was Dodger territory, with broadcast affiliates in Arizona dating back for God knows how long. Now that you have your own team, obviously it's different, but ask your parents. I bet a lot of them were Dodger fans. You don't want to disappoint your parents, do you?

Speaking of broadcasting, the Dodgers have Vin Scully, in his 60th season behind the microphone. He will be broadcasting the games on radio during the postseason. Who better to be associated with the World Series than Mr. Scully?

Stay within the NL West! A victory for the Dodgers is a win for the division, in the never ending struggle for national respect. I realize the Rockies are also in the NL West, but George Frazier is one of their broadcasters. Why reward Frazier, on of the worst announcers in baseball, over Scully?

The longer the Dodgers last in the postseason, the more highlights we will see of Kirk Gibson's home run in Game One of the 1988 World Series. With each viewing, the announcers might mention Gibson is currently a coach with Arizona. Getting the name "Diamondbacks" into a postseason broadcast is a good thing.

Rooting for the Dodgers can only bring good karma, and you owe us for Rusty Ryal's line drive that nearly ended Hiroki Kuroda.

If the Dodgers win the World Series, it is a lock that Ned Colletti will be given a long-term extension as general manager. He has given a combined $127.2 million to Andruw Jones, Jason Schmidt, and Juan Pierre during his Dodger tenure. This is a good thing for D-Backs fans.

WholeCamels out of The Good Phight, opted to get his pitch in early, creating a Fanpost for the Phillies. But in the interests of completeness, here's what he had to say:

As your Philadelphia Phillies blogger, here's my pitch:

Because red is good (different hues, but so what?).

Because you're as sick of hearing about the National League's inferiority as I am. A repeat World Series Championship for a National League team would benefit the league. "A rising tide raises all ships."

Because we're not the Dodgers or the Rockies, those guys can eat it hard.

Because we sent you Curt Schilling, in exchange for some crap and that sociopath Vicente Padilla. And Schilling begat a World Championship. Show some gratitude.

And lastly, because I am a former short-time Arizonan. I lived in Tucson for a year, and that year happened to be 2001. I went to Game One of the NLDS -- the Curt Schilling/Matt Morris pitchers' duel. I cheered like a crazy person after that Luis Gonzalez blooper in Game Seven, and jumped in the pool at my apartment to celebrate. I'll admit that it helped that there were about a dozen lightly-clothed UofA coeds in there too, but it was still a beautiful, pure moment. I have a Tucson Sidewinders t-shirt that I still wear to this day. I spent a couple nights in Summerhaven just a year or so before the big fire. I miss Eegee's, I used to work at the Speedway Bookman's and acquired about half of my record collection there, saw a bunch of shows at the Rialto and Club Congress, and I got my dog there! He just turned eight years old.

Okay, I realize that most of you are probably Maricopa County folks, but c'mon. Was that a shameless pitch or what?

Go Phillies!

Finally, Russ from Purple Row, adopted the straightforward and to the point approach in support of the Rockies: "We welcome you with open arms over at Purple Row. We had such great fun with those of you who came over during the 2007 postseason, we'd love you to come over again." [Update: RockiesMagicNumber has now provided something a little more detailed]

Here’s why the AZ Snake Pit members should support the Colorado Rockies:

    * Rivalry. It sounds absurd, but after 2007, both teams looked to have a strong presence within the division and the two of us would be beating up on each other with our homegrown rosters for years. As it stands, the gods of regression hit you guys in a disproportionate manner as compared to us, which terrifies me for next season. I hate seeing teams hit by injury and regression, because I know that if we beat them, we’re not saying we bested Brandon Webb and Conor Jackson, we’re beating up on a massively regressed Chris Young and AAA players. It sounds arrogant, but I want to see these two teams embody excellence in building a homegrown team and fight each other to the top of the NL West for years to come. Respect your opponent.
    * Speaking of broadcasting, the Dodgers may have Vin Scully, but since his talents have been wasted on television, Jeff Kingery and Jack Corrigan have been painting the picture of the games over the airwaves for Colorado better than nearly anyone in baseball for the past forever, especially Kingery, who is in his final season. He’s been there since the inception.
    * Stay within the NL West! I agree with Eric, but why reward the Yankees West? I sure wish I could throw an entire payroll at 2 players who aren’t even playing for the team (Schmidt and Jones), don’t you? Then account for Manny and Pierre, and that is just a pile of misappropriated funds. Reward the wise fiscal organization.
    * You don’t want to root for Joe Torre. Or Manny.
    * The Cardinals wouldn’t even be where they were they not able to trade for Holliday at the deadline. The Rockies have been essentially the same club since day 1, adding only a few supplementary pieces here and there.
    * The American League is made of evil and gimmicky rules. "I believe there ought to be a constitutional amendment outlawing Astroturf and the designated hitter."
    * Much as we “eat it hard” do you really want the entire NL to be centered around Philadelphia even more than it already is? PHILLIES PHILLIES PHILLIES OMG OMG OMG!!! Give me a break. More power to the unappreciated teams in terms of media markets.

Poll

Which NL team will you be rooting for the in the playoffs?

Cardinals

387 votes

Dodgers

80 votes

Phillies

56 votes

Rockies

118 votes

Who cares?

25 votes

I'm not actually an AZ fan, but am here to stuff the ballot-box for my real team.

116 votes

782 votes | Poll has closed

Cubs, Gorzelanny Lose Ugly To Diamondbacks, 12-3

Al — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 22:05:49 -0000

More photos » by Paul Beaty - AP

"Oh, brother," says Gorz, "I should have asked to start last night."

Browse more photos »

If you missed the FanShot I posted, the Cubs announced this afternoon the policy for refunds for yesterday's rainout:

All paid tickets for the Oct. 1 game are eligible for a refund. Refunds are available by sending the tickets to the Wrigley Field Ticket Office at 1060 West Addison Street, Chicago, IL, 60613. All refunds must be requested before Dec. 31, 2009. Tickets will not be eligible for exchange for 2010 or any future seasons.

Refunds will be made by check. Please allow four weeks for delivery. The original purchaser of the ticket or tickets will receive a refund to his/her credit card instead of a check if that was the original method of payment.

Also, word around the ballpark today was that the reason the umpires waited so long to call last night's game was some sort of edict that had come to teams from the MLB offices that they wanted "all games" to be played this season if at all possible. Only a call directly from Bud Selig finally got the game to be cancelled.

That's about the only good news I can bring you from Wrigley Field today; certainly, the Cubs' depressing 12-3 loss to the Diamondbacks didn't have any. Tom Gorzelanny got hit, in fine Chicago fashion, early and often; Chris Young, who seems to have hit about half of his career homers against the Cubs (in reality, only five of 70), smashed a ball that the wind carried onto Waveland with two runners on in the first inning. By the time Rusty Ryal hit a three-run double off Gorzelanny in the fourth, it was 7-0 and if the umpires or the MLB offices had had any sympathy for the (approximately) 15,000 who showed up today (tickets sold: 33,786), they'd have called it after the fifth inning with the score still 7-0 and the Cubs with only three singles.

Instead, a parade of five Cub relievers gave the visitors from Arizona (who had some very chilly-looking fans wearing their garb walking around outside Wrigley this morning) five more runs. Only Justin Berg, who threw two very nice innings, and John Grabow, who struck out two in a scoreless frame of his own, pitched well. I can't imagine we'll see Jeff Stevens back next year -- he got hit hard -- nor should David Patton, a waste of a roster spot, return in 2010. Aaron Heilman, who had actually gotten his season ERA under 4 (3.97) before today's game, gave up a HR to Eric Byrnes, his second of the game, a two-run shot, and Heilman's (perhaps) farewell to Cubs fans shows him with a season ERA of 4.16. I like Berg, incidentally, a lot, and I think he will be a significant contributor to the 2010 bullpen in middle relief.

The Cubs managed three consolation runs off Billy Buckner and reliever Blaine Boyer in the seventh, but that was all on a day when some off-and-on showers that didn't even show up on radar screens dotted the ballpark. It seemed a fitting way to say farewell to a rainy season. Rain may dot the area tomorrow, so be prepared for another postponement. It'd somehow feel appropriate.

Diamondbacks 10, Giants 8: Cain is Un-Abel to restrain Arizona

Jim McLennan — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 15:20:09 -0000

More photos » by Ross D. Franklin - AP

Pablo Sandoval asks Mark how he stays so thin. "Not eating so freakin' much," seems like a plausible response.

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Record: 66-86. Pace: 70-92. Change on last season: -10

Sprankton was working till 1am and then his home internet went out, so apologies for the delay in the recap - it did, however, allow me to use one of the crap puns we came up with in the thread. The Diamondbacks pounded Matt Cain for seven runs in 2.1 innings, and it's a good thing too, because we needed every one of them and more. For Doug Davis didn't have one of his better outings, and a wobbly ninth inning brought the Giants rather closer than we'd have liked.

In other news, Mark Reynolds became the first Diamondback in six years to drive in 100 runs and also broke his own single-season K record. Asked about the latter, his response was, "So what?" When a follow question was then asked on it, his response was, "So what?" Good for you, Mark. Full recap has now been posted, and can be found in the usual post-jump location.

Even though any chance of the Diamondbacks making the playoffs evaporated a long time ago, it's still nice to be able to play spoiler, and hurt someone else's chances. Last night, we hit the Giants' hopes hard, halving their chances as a result of the defeat. Almost all of the damage occurring in the third, as their Win Probability slumped from 64.4% when they took a 4-3 lead, to only 7.7%, after Chris Young walked to load the bases with one out, part of a six-run Arizona inning. Surprisingly, we have scored five-plus runs in a frame more often (16 times) than we've had it inflicted on us (15). Doesn't feel like that.

Good to inflict the shortest start in Matt Cain's career, not caused by a line drive. Didn't seem like that in the first, as we went down in order on a dozen pitches, but after being staked to a 3-0 lead by the second, he coughed it up on RBIs from Reynolds, Gerardo Parra and Brandon Allen. The first-named became the ninth Diamondbacks in franchise history, and the first since Luis Gonzalez in 2003, to drive in a hundred runs during a season. He needs four more to end the year in the top six, which is quite plausible with ten games to go.

Things got a lot better for the Diamondbacks in the third, though not until after the Giants had retaken the lead. We sent 12 men to the plate and eight of the first nine reached safely, on six hits and two walks. Miguel Montero turned the deficit around with a two-run single, and further runs were then driven in by Parra, Allen, a wild pitch and Stephen Drew. The most unusual was Parra, who hit a ball off the outfield fence with a loud clang, which was originally called a home-run. However, it was reversed (correctly) on appeal, and turned into an RBI double - during the review, Cain was spirited off the mound by his manager,

His replacement failed to retire any of the four batters faced, as well as throwing the wild-pitch. Finally, the amusingly-named Bumgarner ended things, probably because the Diamondbacks' hitters were distracted by sniggering at his name. That was the end of the scoring until the seventh-inning stretch: Doug Davis had settled down after a wobbly start, posting zeros from the fourth through the seventh, and ended with a line of five runs on ten hits and four walks in 7.1 innings, though he still got the W

The bottom of the seventh saw Randy Johnson take the field, in his first relief appearance in our park since Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. He got a warm reaction from the crowd, perhaps sensing that it might be the last appearance ever in Phoenix for the 46-year old. He struck out the side, albeit around a home-run by Rusty Ryal, who finished the night. a double short of the cycle and walked. Every starter got a hit for us, as we had sixteen in total: Montero also had a three-hit game, while Allen, Justin Upton and Davis each got a pair, Upton getting a BB too.

Turns out we needed almost all the hits. Davis loaded the bases with one out in the eight before being relieved by Juan Gutierrez. With the aid of a fine grab by Allen, damage was limited to one run, but the ninth began for Gutierrez with the Giants going single, single, triple, and the tying run was suddenly on-deck, with nobody out. While we fans began to look around for things to throw, our reliever buckled down to retire the next three hitters, though a line of three runs in 1.2 innings of work is not one of which to be proud. Still, we won - it was the fourth victory this year while allowing eight or more runs, something we didn't do at all in 2008.

Audio from a number of sources. I've got AJ Hinch talking before the game about how defense will be a focus between now and next Opening Day, Doug Davis discussing his outing, and Mark Reynolds taking "Things that don't start with a K for $200, please, Alex."

Audio courtesy of KTAR 620

[Click to enlarge at fangraphs.com]
Master of his domain: Brandon Allen, +18.0%
Honorable mention: Upton, +11.5%; Montero, +11.2%; Reynolds, +10.6%
God-emperor of suck: Doug Davis, -17.8%

NASCARbernet led the way in the Gameday Thread, which reached 342 comments. kishi and piratedan7 cracked fifty too, and also present were AcucracK, 4 Corners Fan, pygalgia, victor frankenstein, katers, Turambar, nargel, Wailord, RockiesMagicNumber, soco, venomfan, Azreous, coolopotamous, emilylovesthedbacks, jonny-yuma, and the late-breaking Wimb.

Dodgers Win, Dodgers Lose

Eric Stephen — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 05:59:01 -0000

More photos » by Danny Moloshok - AP

Browse more photos »

On the field, the Dodgers fell in extra innings to the Arizona Diamondbacks, 5-3, to shave a half game off their division lead. But that wasn't the story tonight.

The Dodgers added, admittedly somewhat shockingly, Jim Thome and Jon Garland in a pair of trades just before the waiver trading deadline. Garland got to execute the classic "say goodbye to teammates in one dugout, say hello to new teammates in other dugout" move. Garland was scheduled to start Thursday for Arizona at Dodger Stadium.

On the field, the Dodgers carried a 3-2 lead into the 8th on the strength of three solo home runs. The first was by Ronnie Belliard, in his first at-bat as a Dodger. Belliard almost literally seems like yesterday's news now with tonight's trades. The last Dodger to homer in his first plate appearance with the team was Garey Ingram, who took Mike Muñoz deep on August 19, 1994.

Manny Ramirez and Matt Kemp went back-to-back in the sixth inning to give the Dodgers the lead. Matt Kemp has now homered in four of his last five games.

They lost that lead in the eighth inning, when George Sherrill gave up his first run as a Dodger, a home run to Justin Upton. Much like manager Joe Torre's use of Jonathan Broxton in the eighth inning against the Cubs nine days ago, tonight would have been a perfect time to try that move again, given that Arizona's two best hitters -- Justin Upton and Mark Reynolds -- were both due up, and both bat righthanded. But Sherrill was brought in instead and gave up the lead.

The Dodgers lost in the tenth inning, thanks to a home run by Rusty Ryal and a bases loaded walk, all allowed by James McDonald, who took the loss one day after gaining the win.

Vicente Padilla is scheduled to start tomorrow against Yusmeiro Petit. Get those bleacher seats ready.

WP - Esmerling Vazquez (3-2): 1.1 IP, 1 strikeout

LP - James McDonald (4-4): 1 IP, 2 hits, 2 runs (1 earned), 2 walks, 1 strikeout

Sv - Juan Gutierrez (2): a 1-2-3 inning

Box Score

Diamondbacks 3, Giants 4: Dir...er, Filthy Sanchez

Azreous — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 07:18:27 -0000

More photos » by Ben Margot - AP

There he is. The master of the universe. We should be so lucky as to witness our destruction at his hands.

Browse more photos »

Record 55-72. Pace: 70-90. Change on last season: -12.

Tonight, the Diamondbacks faced a lofty task: finding a way to beat the best pitcher in major-league history. That's right, the D-backs were up against Jonathan Sanchez, a first-ballot hall-of-famer with a heart of gold, and had to rely on lowly Doug Davis to get the job done.

The word for the games I recap is usually "interesting." Granted, interesting is such a generic adjective that it's hard not to find a way for every game to fit it somehow, but this was a prime example of legitimate "interesting." As in, it's interesting how we managed to blow a three-run lead late and lose another one-run decision.

An attempt to differentiate this loss from all the others after the jump...

This was one of those games that the 2007 team would have won somehow. Maybe this team isn't that much worse than that one, and luck played a bigger factor than we'll ever know. It doesn't really matter, though, because the bottom line is Doug Davis came up short of a victory (despite a quality start) for what seems like the 40th time this season. And he doesn't even have that many starts.

To think, it started so well. Sanchez started the game off against Ryan Roberts, and threw him two fastballs to get ahead 0-2 quickly. He got a little bit too cute with the third delivery though, and Roberts yanked a home run to left that put Arizona up 1-0 early. The rest of the inning was a series of misadventures on both sides -- Eli Whiteside had two errors, the Diamondbacks got four outs, etc. -- but nothing came of it.

The D-backs threatened again early in the second. Rusty Ryal and Gerardo Parra opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Alex Romero beat out a grounder to avoid the double play, leaving a runner at third and only one out...but Davis was up next. Roberts ended the inning with a groundout of his own. In the third, Justin Upton (making his first start back with the big league club) cranked a two-out double, but was left stranded.

From there, Sanchez locked in for the next couple innings, setting down the side in order in the fourth and fifth. In the sixth, though, the Diamondbacks must've appealed to the correct baseball gods, because they were permitted to score a couple more runs against the San Francisco great. Upton drew a one-out walk and moved to second on a wild pitch. After a Miguel Montero strikeout, Sanchez intentionally walked Ryal to get to Parra, who faced a conundrum: he's been great with runners in scoring position, but struggled mightily against lefties. For the second time, though, he was successful against Sanchez, lining an opposite-field single to make it 2-0. Romero followed with a base hit of his own to drive in Ryal, and both runners moved over on the throw in. But that left two men in scoring position for Doug Davis, and...well.

Unfortunately, that was the end of the offense for the night, as the Diamondbacks once again seemed pacified by a decent-sized lead. Only one Arizona player reached base in the final three innings (a single by Montero in the eighth), and as we'll get to in a moment, that simply wasn't getting the job done.

One has to wonder if Doug Davis is reconsidering his potential future in Arizona. Once again, he pitched a great game, working around his usual handful of baserunners and lulling viewers to sleep with his slow pace, yet came away with a no-decision. Going into the eighth, Davis was working on a four-hitter (along with three walks), but somewhere between the second and third out of the inning, things went horribly wrong.

Davis started out very strong, setting down the side in order in the first and getting a quick double play after a walk in the second. He left runners on the corners in the third, but cruised through the middle frames (just one batter over the minimum on a walk). In the seventh, Davis lost hold of the shutout thanks to the second home run of the series by Juan Uribe (yes, he of the .682 OPS in 2008), a solo shot that made it 3-1. But then that dastardly eighth inning struck again, and we were all very sad.

Davis started the eighth by getting two pretty quick groundouts, and at 90 pitches on the nose, he seemed poised to easily finish off the inning and maybe go the distance. Instead, he danced around Edgar Renteria and gave up a seven-pitch walk, then watched as Randy Winn lined a cut fastball to right for a base hit. Suddenly the go-ahead run was up next, and Davis was pulled in favor of Chad Qualls. Qualls isn't exactly known for going beyond his assigned inning -- he's done it just four other times in 49 appearances, although each was relatively successful. Instead of having to get four outs, though, Qualls needed just one, for after a three-run jack by pinch-hitter Bengie Molina, his services weren't even required for the ninth.

Master of his Domain: Doug Davis (pitching), +36.7%
Honorable Mention: Gerardo Parra, +13.9%
God-Emperor of Suck: Chad Qualls, -66.8%
Dishonorable Mention: Doug Davis (hitting), -11.2%

Let me just go ahead and put that in perspective: Chad Qualls had a negative sixty-six point eight percent impact on our chances of winning. Sure, Davis put the first two runners on base, but his pitching up to that point gets him off the hook for most of that blame. Parra had a good game against a lefty for once, and Davis struggled with runners in scoring position like he does every time I recap one of his starts. Seriously, it's baffling.

The Diamondbacks had just seven hits and two walks, and that's not going to get the job done very often (case in point: even with a good outing from the starter, we still lost). Upton and Ryal each reached base twice on a hit and a walk, and Parra added a couple of hits. For the Giants, Renteria walked twice, and Uribe added a base on balls to his home run.

A...robust GameDay Thread tonight, with almost 500 posts. Unsurprisingly, Skins led the way with three times as many posts as anybody else. The attendance sheet is as follows: BattleMoses, kishi, DbacksSkins, Clefo, IHateSouthBend, Jim McLennan, pygalgia, katers, victor frankenstein, pierzynskirules, Wailord, hotclaws, 4 Corners Fan, Diamondhacks, soco, Muu, piratedan7 and Azreous. Whoever that is.

After a couple of one-run losses, the Diamondbacks will try to avoid being swept tomorrow night by sending out Yusmeiro Peti--oh dear.

Signing deadline looms for NL West teams

Poseidon's Fist — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Marcio Jose Sanchez - AP

Anyone this good joining the division this year via the draft? Hopefully, but hopefully not for that white and black team.

Browse more photos »

In case, you've missed it, the signing deadline for players selected in June's draft is 10pm MDT tonight. The Rockies remain the least likely in the division to sign their top pick, but as it stands now, only three divisional first rounders have been inked. This is how we're looking this morning:

Arizona

The Diamondbacks made quick work of signing 17th overall pick AJ Pollack, agreeing to terms nearly two months ago. Arizona also had the 16th overall pick. They selected and have now signed HS infielder Bobby Borchering. Jim McLennan includes an audio interview with Borchering in that last link. The deal means Arizona has successfully reached agreement with their first 11 picks and 28 of their top 29. That's getting down to business.

Los Angeles

The Dodgers didn't have a first round pick once they signed Orlando Hudson, but they did recently strike a deal with second-round pick Garrett Gould. Los Angeles also has inked sandwich pick Aaron Miller and have deals with their first 11 picks and 18 of 19.

San Diego

Donovan Tate, a HS outfielder and 3rd overall pick, has yet to sign with San Diego. Corey Brock reported that Kevin Goldstein at Baseball Prospectus believes he will sign for about a $6.5million bonus by tonight's deadline. Tate had been given a dorm room at Chapel Hill (sound familiar?), where he planned on played baseball and football. Despite that, the Padres remain confident they'll sign pick Tate.

The Padres also have yet to sign 2nd-rounder Everett Williams or 4th-rounder Keyvius Sampson. Corey Brock says "Williams could be tricky to sign since he was perceived as a first round pick that slid into the second round." Here's the draft database for the Padres.

San Francisco

Sixth overall pick Zack Wheeler remains unsigned, but the Giants are moving forward with talks. Brain Sabean said he "thinks we'll get it done" and those in the know seem to expect Wheeler to sign by the deadline. The Giants also signed their second round pick, high school catch Tommy Joseph, to the most lucrative 2nd round bonus so far this year: $712. San Francisco gave Buster Posey a $6.2mil bonus last year. Picks 2-17 have been signed.

Jim Callis at Baseball America put together a chart of unsigned picks and what their contract demands are. The details are quite vague, but it's still handy.

And now for your weekly divisional report, but first, my apologies for all the red links. I'm writing on a new computer and it seems to be having formatting issues...

NL West Report

Arizona (54-64, 4th, L1, 16 GB)

Last Week: 4-2. 2-1 vs. Mets. 2-1 vs. Dodgers. D-Backs fans brought brooms to the final game of each series, but Arizona failed to allow them to wave each time.

Pace: 74-88.

Divisional Change: Gained 1.0 game.

This Week: 1 make-up game @ Atlanta, 3 game road series @ Phillies, 3 game road series @ Astros.

News: For the second straight year, the Diamondbacks have a veteran lefty with underwhelming stuff attempting to battle unthinkable battles off the field. After Doug Davis went through treatments for cancer last year, Scott Schoeneweis has had to cope with the surprise of his wife being found dead. None of us want to even imagine the horror ourselves, yet Schoeneweis took two weeks off to cope and be with his four children.

Scott Schoeneweis

#60 / Pitcher / Arizona Diamondbacks

Height:6-0

Weight:190

Bats:L

Throws:L

Born:Oct 02, 1973

That apparently was not enough time, as the lefty was scored on in six of his past seven outings, allowing 11 runs in 5 innings in that span, including a .462 opponent batting average. He was placed on the DL with depression last week. Sad sad story.

Brandon Webb plans to pitch "somewhere" next spring after rehabilitating his surgically repaired shoulder. Arizona is still unsure whether to pick up his $8.5 million option for next season. Webb prefers to stay in Arizona.

Nick Piecoro looks into the payroll going forward to 2010.

Doug Davis was claimed on waivers by the Brewers, but Arizona retracted him and he remains in the desert. We went on to beat the Dodgers Saturday.

Davis wants to be signed to a 3-year extension, but the Diamondbacks are non-committal at this point.

After having a terrible start to the season, Jon Rauch has turned his season around in a big way. Jim McLennan explores in his story: The Raucherrection of Jon.

Transactions: Called up IF Rusty Ryal from AAA and optioned OF Chris Young to AAA. Released RHP Tom Gordon and recalled LHP Daniel Schlereth.

Injuries: Placed LHP Scott Schoeneweis on the 15-day DL Tuesday with depression. Eric Byrnes has started a rehab assignment in AAA in an effort to return this month from his broken hand. Justin Upton hit off a tee yesterday and is in line to return in September. Top prospect Jarrod Parker might need surgery, but Arizona won't pull the trigger on that yet. He will be re-evaluated next month.

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS INJURIES

15-DAY

PLAYER	INJURY TYPE	INJURY DATE
Eric Byrnes	hand	06/26/2009
Scott Schoeneweis	other-excused	08/10/2009
Justin Upton	oblique	08/06/2009

60 DAY DL / OUT FOR THE SEASON

PLAYER	INJURY TYPE	INJURY DATE
Conor Jackson	pneumonia	05/12/2009
Brandon Webb	shoulder	04/07/2009

News on the other three divisional teams after the jump.

Los Angeles (70-48, 1st, W1)

Last Week: 3-3. 2-1 @ Giants. 1-2 @ Diamondbacks.

Pace: 96-66.

Divisional Change: Lost 0.5 game lead to COL.

This Week: 3 game home series vs Cardinals, 4 game road series vs Cubs. The Dodgers' week before their visit to Coors is filled with games against the top two teams in the NL Central.

News: Hiroki Kuroda said he is "lucky to be alive" after being struck in the head by a line drive by Arizona rookie infielder Rusty Ryal. It was the second time a pitcher was felled by a line drive to the head at Chase Field (the first being in 1998), and Ryal was credited with a double after the ball ricocheted into the stands.

Hiroki Kuroda

#18 / Pitcher / Los Angeles Dodgers

Height: 6-1

Weight: 210

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Feb 10, 1975

Kuroda is quoted as saying that his wife thought he was dead when he was carted off. He is apparently okay now, will miss Thursday's start as a precaution but will remain in the rotation.

Randy Wolf had a heck of a game yesterday, taking a one-hit shutout into the eighth, striking out a season high 10 while falling a triple shy of the cycle at the plate. He was the sixth Dodger pitch ever to hit a home run during a three-hit night in franchise history. I blame Yumeiro Petit for everything.

Snoop Dogg takes Ticket Truck for spin | dodgers.com: News
On Tuesday, the Dodgers announced the launch of the club's first mobile ticketing unit with local rap icon Snoop Dogg taking the truck on its inaugural voyage.

Rookie knuckleballer Charlie Haeger was called up and will start tonight.

Joe Torre is confident Los Angeles will add an arm if they need it. Two options are John Smoltz and Vicente Padilla.

Transactions: Optioned LHP Eric Stults to AAA and called up RHP Charlie Haeger.

Injuries: Chad Billingsley threw 85 pitches in a bullpen session and reported no pain. He's set to tomorrow. Hiroki Kuroda is reportedly "feeling good" but will likely miss his Thursday start vs. Chicago. No replacement has been announced.

LOS ANGELES DODGERS INJURIES

PROBABLE

PLAYER INJURY TYPE INJURY DATE

Chad Billingsley hamstring 08/16/2009

15-DAY

PLAYER INJURY TYPE INJURY DATE

Will Ohman shoulder 05/28/2009

Jason Schmidt shoulder 08/06/2009

60 DAY DL / OUT FOR THE SEASON

PLAYER INJURY TYPE INJURY DATE

Doug Mientkiewicz shoulder 04/17/2009

Xavier Paul ankle 05/21/2009

PLAYER	INJURY TYPE	INJURY DATE
Chad Billingsley	hamstring	08/16/2009

PLAYER	INJURY TYPE	INJURY DATE
Will Ohman	shoulder	05/28/2009
Jason Schmidt	shoulder	08/06/2009

PLAYER	INJURY TYPE	INJURY DATE
Doug Mientkiewicz	shoulder	04/17/2009
Xavier Paul	ankle	05/21/2009

San Diego (49-70, 5th, L4, 21.5 GB)

Last Week: 2-4. 2-1 @ Brewers, 0-3 @ Cardinals.

Pace: 67-95.

Divisonal change: Lost 1.0 game.

This Week: 3 game home series vs Cubs, 4 game home series vs Cardinals.

News: Heath Bell actually blew a save last night, just his second of the season. That quietly puts Huston Street in the NL lead in save percentage, trailing only Mariano Rivera for the MLB lead. Bell and Adrian Gonzalez were placed on waivers over the weekend. The Angels are interested in Bell, but the Jake Peavy trade lessens the need for San Diego to unload their talent.

Heath Bell

#21 / Pitcher / San Diego Padres

Height: 6-3

Weight: 240

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Sep 29, 1977

Randy Read replaced Jim Lefebvre as hitting coach July 31, and the move has paid off so far. San Diego has hit over .300 under Read and are scoring over five runs a game.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia is injured for Texas. A potential replacement is Padre backup Henry Blanco.

Last year, an NL West shortstop injured his own hand. Actually, two of them did. One of them is now an elite player at his position, hitting cleanup for the NL Wild Card leaders. The other got traded and has spent most of the season on the disabled list due to anxiety. Am I ever glad we are proud owners of the former player. The Padres filed a grievance against Khalil Greene, attempting to recoup $1.7million in salary after Greene fractured his hand after "swiping a storage chest." San Diego privately resolved the case with Greene before they had to go to a hearing.

Transactions: Optioned C Eliezer Alfonzo to AAA. Signed RHP Matthew Lollis and assigned his to the AZL Padres. Optioned RHP Mike Ekstrom to AAA Portland and recalled RHP Cesar Carillo.

Injuries: Activated C Nick Hundley (forearm) from the 15-day DL.

San Diego Padres Injuries

15-Day

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Brian Giles	knee	06/19/2009
Edgar Gonzalez	concussion	07/19/2009

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Mark Worrell	elbow	03/27/2009
Cha Seung Baek	forearm	03/30/2009
Shawn Hill	elbow	04/26/2009
Chris Young	shoulder	06/15/2009

San Francisco (63-54, 3rd, L1, 6.5 GB)

Last Week: 2-4. 1-2 vs. Dodgers, 1-2 @ Mets.

Pace: 87-75.

Divisional Change: Lost 1.0 games in NL West. Lost 1.5 games in Wild Card.

This Week: Final game of a four game set @ Mets. 3 game road series @ Reds. First 3 games of 4 game road series @ Rockies.

News: Now that Alex Rios and his fat contract has headed south to Chicago, Andrew Baggarly at the San Jose Mercury News reminds (or informs) us that there was once talk of a Tim Lincecum for Alex Rios swap less than two years ago. The best trades are indeed the ones you don't make. Unless you're Toronto. Imagine that 1-2 punch.

Tim Lincecum

#55 / Pitcher / Toronto Blue Jays

Height: 5-11

Weight: 170

Bats: L

Throws: R

Born: Jun 15, 1984

Would you let Barry Zito go on a waiver claim? Henry Schulman at SFGate evaluates from all angles.

Ken Rosenthal has a Q and A with Giants GM Brian Sabean. Among the topics: how Sabean wanted to draft Lincecum so badly he refused to watch him in person, Barry Bonds, and the futures of the catching position, the Kung Fu Panda and Sabean himself.

Transactions: None.

Injuries: Activated Nate Schierholtz (hip) from the 15-Day DL and placed Rich Aurilia (ankle) on the 15-day DL.

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Rich Aurilia	ankle	08/12/2009
Andres Torres	hamstring	07/31/2009

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Randy Johnson	trapezius	07/06/2009
Noah Lowry	ribs	03/27/2009
Kelvin Pichardo	shoulder	06/28/2009
Henry Sosa	shoulder	08/05/2009

San Francisco Giants Injuries

15-Day

Player Injury Type Injury Date

Rich Aurilia ankle 08/12/2009

Andres Torres hamstring 07/31/2009

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player Injury Type Injury Date

Randy Johnson trapezius 07/06/2009

Noah Lowry ribs 03/27/2009

Kelvin Pichardo shoulder 06/28/2009

Henry Sosa shoulder 08/05/2009