An unofficial Arizona Diamondbacks community and blog
Surprise! No, really: Surprise. That’s where the D-backs are playing once again today, returning to the scene of the recent victory over the Texas Rangers, to play the other inhabitants of the complex, the Kansas City Royals. Never mind, it’s at Salt River Fields. The D-backs pitching has still left a bit to be desired, […]
Time to stare in the mirror, I guess! I’ve been part of the Diamondbacks’ fanbase, more or less since I came out to Arizona in November 2000. Initially, casually, but then steadily more actively, opening up this site just before the 2005 season. Since then I’ve been through the highs of a National League pennant, […]
Introduction When the expansion franchise Colorado Rockies first came into existence in the early 1990s, it could be forgiven if a team didn’t have a dedicated analytics department and instead relied on the traditional old school way of running a baseball team. It has been over 20 years since Michael Lewis’s 2003 book Moneyball popularized […]
Record: 2-4. Change on 2025: 0. 5-inning record: 1-5 And it was going so well, too… The D-backs jumped on the Dodgers’ Roki Sasaki in the bottom of the first. Nolan Arenado doubled in Geraldo Perdomo, and Ildemaro Vargas then doubled in a pair for a quick 3-0 lead. But it was more or less […]
The Evil Empire arrives at Salt River Fields, and the run they had last post-season is ongoing. The Dodgers have won their first four games, outscoring their opponents by a whopping 34-6 margin so far. So let’s hope this is not an omen of things to come in the regular season. But we are sending […]
In the responses to our last question, it seemed that people were generally expecting there to be a lockout at the end of this season, when the current Collective Bargaining Agreement expires. The duration and impact of that lockout is considerably less certain. But to follow up on that, today I wanted to get your […]
[Dbacks.com] Soroka fans 3 in D-backs debut with World Baseball Classic approaching – Soroka allowed one run on two hits over two innings while walking one and striking out three in the D-backs’ 6-4 win. “Felt good for the most part,” Soroka said. “Just a little bit stiff early, trying a little bit too hard […]
First things first: the Dbacks Dispatch crew and I will put in our two cents on games and their outcomes, but like any seasoned Spring Training vet knows, the numbers on the scoreboard are like the $7 churros at the Phoenix Zoo – I ain’t buying it. Let’s focus on the players. Whether it’s the […]
Record: 2-3. Change on 2025: +1. 5-inning record: 1-4. That was satisfactory – and it didn’t look like it would be initially. Michael Soroka, in his debut for Arizona, pitched his team into a deficit before he recorded an out, opening up by allowing a triple and RBI single. But he gave up just a […]
The D-backs haven’t had the best start to spring, winning just one of four games, and that victory coming by a single run in the opener. They’ve lost three in a row since, and have conceded an average of ten runs per game in that time. The offense has been doing a reasonable job, its […]
What are the expectations? FanGraph Depth Chart projections show two Diamondback outfielders with above average power: Corbin Carroll and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (proj-SLG>.404 and proj-HR/PA>.031). Because they are injured, their above-average power is not assumed. What is assumed is they will play on the outfield corners when they return from the injured list. The biggest […]
Diamondbacks News Mitch Bratt, Kohl Drake of Merrill Kelly trade make Diamondbacks spring debuts by Alex Weiner [Arizona Sports] The D-backs received strong value from trading Kelly on an expiring deal to the Texas Rangers for Bratt, Drake and David Hagaman, who are considered three of Arizona’s better pitching prospects, paired with Kelly’s eventual return […]
The current Collective Bargaining Agreement between the players (through their union) and the owners expires at the end of this season – technically, at 11:59 p.m. ET on December 1, 2026. The last time the agreement had to be renegotiated, it lead to a 99-day lockout which only narrowly avoided losing games from the 2022 […]
Record: 1-3. Change on 2025: 0. 5-inning record: 0-4. Once again, the D-backs waited until late for their offense to show up, only getting their first run on the board when they were already down by seven. That put a thin veneer of respectability on a score which was never really in doubt. Though after […]
The Diamondbacks will be hopping on the team bus, and whizzing on the 101 and 10, for the drive to Goodyear for today’s game. Probably a toss-up whether that or Camelback Ranch is the furthest ballpark from Salt River Fields, but either way, forty miles isn’t bad. It’s one way the Cactus League is definitely […]
Team news [Dbacks.com] D-backs confident in rotation depth as they await results of Kelly’s MRI – “One of the huge benefits of doing this, not only having a talent the caliber of Zac, but also it builds out another really good starting pitcher in our rotation,” general manager Mike Hazen said. “I don’t know how […]
Record: 1-2. Change on 2025: +1. 5-inning record: 0-3 Kohl Drake got the start, and it was a bit bumpy initially, as he walked the first two batters he faced. One of those came around to score, but Drake settled down nicely. He retired the next six men he faced, including strikeouts of established major-leaguers […]
Well, at least it’s not the Rockies! We will be seeing them again later in the preseason, but for now we move outside of the complex, and welcome the Angels as the first team to visit Salt River Fields this spring. Like the D-backs, they had a bit of a rough day yesterday om their […]
We enter the last week of these questions, and the theme over the final seven days is, loosely, “Labor Fear, Future Bets & Community.” So you can expect a fairly diverse set of issues to be covered as we head down the stretch. But we start with something fairly straightforward. Make one 2026 prediction that […]
Team News Kelly slowed by back injury at D-backs camp“I don’t have a concern level [yet],” Kelly said. “Because we don’t know, at the end of the day, what it is. I mean, the last week and a half, I’ve been throwing, been doing everything normal, and it didn’t kind of rear its head until […]
Introduction One of the many reasons for the disappointing D-Backs’ 2025 season? Their dismayingly ugly defense. It felt like a constant refrain throughout the season’s broadcasts when either Steve Berthiaume or Bob Brenly would remark on how defensive errors or miscues drive a manager like Torey Lovullo crazy. That ugliness caught my eye early and […]
Record: 1-1. Change on 2025: +1. 5-inning record: 0-2. Yeah, after yesterday’s well-pitched endeavor, this was very much the opposite. It was probably worse than the score actually indicates, since the Diamondbacks put up a crooked number in both the eighth and ninth innings, to leave the final tallies looking more respectable than they deserved […]
Well, the D-backs are already off to a better spring start than they were in 2025. Last year, they lost their first three games, conceding a total of 32 runs in the process. So it was nice to see them put together a well-pitched game right out of the gate. On the other hand, opening […]
This piece was originally planned for the end of January. However, the Diamondbacks were still deep into the offseason rumours, so I gave them until the beginning of spring training to make their final moves before weighing in. As the 2025 season rolled to a close, the Diamondbacks found themselves in a somewhat unexpected position. […]
Diamondbacks News Lawlar Gets Center Field NodOnce the team takes the field today, Jordan Lawlar will begin to make his case for or against all the faith that has been placed in him over the last few years. Arenado Discusses Full Circle Home RunJake McCarthy was wearing Colorado purple and Nolan Arenado was wearing Arizona […]