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With 11 wins in their last 16 games, the Diamondbacks now have a 50-48 record and sit just percentage points behind the Mets for the final NL wild card berth. Plenty of teams remain in the mix in the crowded National League, yet this hot stretch of play indicates that the reigning NL champions are finding their form despite weathering multiple injuries within their starting rotation.
Arizona GM Mike Hazen said on July 1 that he was hoping his club would be in a position to add rather than subtract at the trade deadline, and the Diamondbacks’ strong play in the last three weeks has paid off their general manager’s belief. With the D’Backs now more firmly looking like contenders, Hazen told reporters (including MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert and Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic) yesterday that “as of now, the calls we’re making, we’re looking to add talent to the team.”
Where exactly the D’Backs might focus their shopping has yet to be determined, as Hazen said he would “love to be able to target down the needs to bullpen, position-player fit somewhere, and just go with that.” A more limited list of needs would hinge, of course, on how healthy the rotation is looking by the July 30 deadline, as Jordan Montgomery, Eduardo Rodriguez, and Merrill Kelly all remain on the injured list.
Montgomery is the closest to returning, as he threw 56 pitches over three innings of a simulated game on Thursday. This lines the southpaw up to be activated from the 15-day injured list during Arizona’s series in Kansas City that begins on Monday, though manager Torey Lovullo didn’t officially state this was the team’s plan. Montgomery hasn’t pitched since June 27 due to right knee inflammation, and is looking to return from this IL stint and turn around a rough season, as the lefty has a 6.44 ERA in his first 65 2/3 innings and 13 starts in a D’Backs uniform.
Rodriguez and Kelly are both tentatively set to return at some point in August, and both hurlers are set for bullpen sessions today. Hazen said “everything has been good” with the duo as of late, and they could advance to facing hitters after both Saturday’s bullpen and then another throwing session next week.
Assuming Montgomery is indeed back for the Royals series, he’d rejoin a D’Backs rotation that also features ace Zac Gallen, Brandon Pfaadt, Ryne Nelson, and rookie Yilber Diaz. Nelson has pitched increasingly well as the season has gone on and Diaz has looked sharp in his first two career MLB starts, and thus Arizona might go from a lack of rotation depth to perhaps a surplus later in the season if everyone comes back healthy and effective. These are the decisions Hazen must weigh as the deadline approaches, since on paper, trading for another starter seems like a logical hedge against the uncertainty that the Diamondbacks still face with their starter mix.
“Long-term starting pitching is still going to be something I’m going to explore no matter what if it’s multiple years of control because I feel like we have to,” Hazen said. “We always have to look out for our rotation a couple of years down the line. I think if I feel very confident when Monty comes back and then [Kelly and Rodriguez] are right around the corner, I probably would not place as much emphasis on it. But I don’t know. It obviously depends on if Nelly and Yilber keep throwing the ball really well, that’s going to impact how this goes.”
Hazen also announced that the D’Backs would be moving Slade Cecconi into a bullpen role for the rest of the season, which is probably less a sign of Arizona’s confidence in its forthcoming rotation depth than it is a reflection of Cecconi’s unimpressive results as a starter. Cecconi has started 13 of his 14 Major League games this season, posting a 6.14 ERA over 66 innings.
It isn’t necessarily surprising that a rookie is having a tough time in his first extended look against big league hitters, and if nothing else, Cecconi has eaten some innings for a D’Backs team that was often scrambling to fill rotation holes. His new role will also be about covering innings in some sense, as Hazen said that if Cecconi is recalled from Triple-A, the right-hander will work in a long man role to help give the bullpen some respite.
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