ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS
| Brian Anderson (29, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 ARI 12 13 32 32 2 1 0 208 221 24 95 433 1999 ARI 8 2 31 19 2 1 1 130 144 28 75 457 2000 ARI 11 7 33 32 2 0 0 213 226 39 104 405 |
| Anderson is a left-handed pitcher who has excellent control and gives up home runs. Last year, for example, he gave up 38 home runs. In his career, Anderson has walked only 175 batters, but has given up 149 home runs. I wonder if his walk/homer ratio is a record or something? More of the same in 2001. |
| Rod Barajas (CA, 26, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 A 113 442 134 26 0 23 67 81 25 81 303 345 518 1 1 1999 AA 127 510 162 41 2 14 77 95 24 73 318 354 488 2 0 2000 AAA 110 416 94 25 0 13 43 75 14 65 226 253 380 4 3 |
| Barajas' first season at Tucson was a disaster. He's a big catcher who might be able to hit a little bit... but right now it seems unlikely that he will win a roster spot with the Diamondbacks anytime soon. |
| Miguel Batista (30, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 MON 3 5 56 13 0 0 0 135 141 65 92 380 1999 MON 8 7 39 17 2 1 1 135 146 58 95 488 2000 MON-KC 2 7 18 9 0 0 0 65 85 37 37 854 |
| He's getting progressively worse, and there's no evidence that this trend will be reversed. Both the Expos and the Royals gave up on Batista last year... and if you can't make it with those clubs, who's left? |
| Danny Bautista (OF, 29, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 ATL 82 144 36 11 0 3 17 17 7 21 250 281 389 1 0 1999 FLO 70 205 59 10 1 5 32 24 4 30 288 303 420 3 0 2000 FLO-ARI 131 351 100 20 7 11 54 59 25 50 285 333 476 6 2 |
| Bautista had a dreadful start to the season with Florida; he was dealt to Arizona in June, where he was outstanding. As soon as he joined the Diamondbacks, he started doing stuff he had never done before, like drawing walks (Danny now has 68 career walks in 8 seasons... 20 of them with Arizona last year). Bautista is a good fourth outfielder, and he played well enough last season to deserve the 300+ at bats he received. |
| Jay Bell (2B, 35, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 ARI 155 549 138 29 5 20 79 67 81 129 251 353 432 3 5 1999 ARI 151 589 170 32 6 38 132 112 82 132 289 374 557 7 4 2000 ARI 149 565 151 30 6 18 87 68 70 88 267 348 437 7 3 |
| He came back to Earth and had his typical season. He's had a remarkable career, has now been in the league for 15 seasons. Bell has been an incredibly durable and consistent player for most of his career, a fine player but not a star, and he has one fantastic fluke season under his belt. He's getting close to 2000 career hits; he also has 180 career home runs, a remarkable total for a player who also has 150 career sacrifice bunts. |
| Alex Cabrera (1B/OF, 29, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 2000 AA 53 212 81 19 2 35 56 82 25 52 382 452 986 3 2 |
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Cabrera probably had the most spectacular two months of any player in professional baseball last season. After struggling for four years in the lower minors, Cabrera was promoted to El Paso, and did a Babe Ruth number on pitchers in the Texas League. Granted, El Paso is a pretty good place to hit (I seem to recall Dave Nilsson hitting .418 there one year), but even still, that was some kind of performance. The El Paso team hit only 114 homers all season, and Cabrera had 30% of those - in only 53 games. This raises the question: is this guy for real? Can Cabrera hit major league pitching? I don't know the answer, and it doesn't matter, because he has signed to play in Japan in 2001. I doubt we'll ever see him play in North America again... but the folks in El Paso will remember those two months for a long time. |
| Greg Colbrunn (1B, 32, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 COL-ATL 90 166 51 11 2 3 18 23 10 34 307 361 452 4 3 1999 ARI 67 135 44 5 3 5 20 24 12 23 326 392 519 1 1 2000 ARI 116 329 103 22 1 15 48 57 43 45 313 405 523 0 1 |
| Colbrunn got a few more at bats last season, thanks to Durazo's injury and Lee's ineffectiveness. He was great; I never thought that Colbrunn would be a good regular, but he has improved so much as a hitter that I'm not sure not. At his age, however, it is unlikely he's going to get 500 at bats in a season; he'll just have to settle for being one of the best reserve hitters in the league. |
| Jason Conti (OF, 26, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AA 130 530 167 31 12 15 125 67 63 96 315 396 504 19 13 1999 AAA 133 520 151 23 8 9 100 57 55 89 290 360 417 22 8 2000 AAA 93 383 117 20 5 11 75 57 23 57 305 349 470 11 3 |
| Conti didn't impress anyone with the Diamondbacks last year, and spent the bulk of the season at Tucson. He's not ever going to be a regular, but Conti could be a useful bench player; he's a left-handed hitter who has some line drive power and decent speed. It doesn't help that the Diamondbacks seem to intensely dislike young players; my guess is that Conti is due to spend a third year at Tucson. |
| Craig Counsell (IF, 31, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 FLO 107 335 84 19 5 4 43 40 51 47 251 355 373 3 0 1999 FLO-LA 87 174 38 7 0 0 24 11 14 24 218 274 259 1 0 2000 ARI 67 152 48 8 1 2 23 11 20 18 316 400 421 3 3 |
| After a miserable 1999 season, Counsell had to go back to the minors to re-establish himself. He began the year with a hot streak at Tucson; Arizona called him up in May, and he stayed hot the rest of the season. Counsell is a good, versatile bench player who can get on base; as long as he can avoid more disasters like the one he had in 1999, he should be around several more years. |
| Midre Cummings (OF, 29, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 BOS 67 120 34 8 0 5 20 15 17 19 283 381 475 3 3 1999 MIN 16 38 10 0 0 1 1 9 3 7 263 310 342 2 0 2000 MIN-BOS 98 206 57 10 0 4 29 24 17 28 277 341 383 0 0 |
| Cummings got a chance to help out as an extra outfielder, and was okay. But he doesn't have much power, last season didn't show any speed, and he doesn't draw many walks. He has to improve in at least one of those areas to be a good player. |
| Dave Dellucci (OF, 27, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 2000 AAA 33 122 28 6 3 3 16 17 13 15 230 301 402 4 0 |
| Dellucci is probably destined to spend the rest of his career as a fourth outfielder. It's a good role for him; he doesn't put enough runs on the board to be a good regular, but a left-handed line drive hitter who hits lots of triples should be valuable in backup role. |
| Erubiel Durazo (1B, 27, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1999 AA-AAA 94 344 139 25 3 24 80 83 58 55 404 490 703 3 1 |
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Big things were expected of Durazo in 2001, but he tore some cartilage in his right wrist in May, then reinjured the same wrist in June. He didn't play badly when he was in the lineup, and there is good reason to believe that he can have a big year if he's healthy. He could hit 40 homers. The Diamondbacks, however, seem to have given up on him. They've signed Mike Grace to play first and Reggie Sanders to play in the outfield, and that doesn't leave much room for Durazo. |
| Steve Finley (CF, 36, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 SD 159 619 154 40 6 14 92 67 45 103 249 301 401 12 3 1999 ARI 156 590 156 32 10 34 100 103 63 94 264 336 525 8 4 2000 ARI 152 539 151 27 5 35 100 96 65 87 280 361 544 12 6 |
| Finley had one of his best seasons, in what has been a strange and surprising career. He is now almost certain to reach several milestones, including 200 home runs and 2000 hits (he already has 254 stolen bases). He's also a Gold Glove outfielder. At age 36, I would expect his production to begin to drop; he does, however, love to hit in front of the home fans, posting a .335 average in Arizona last season. |
| Luis Gonzalez (LF, 34, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 DET 154 547 146 35 5 23 84 71 57 62 267 340 475 12 7 1999 ARI 153 614 206 45 4 26 112 111 66 63 336 403 549 9 5 2000 ARI 162 618 192 47 2 31 106 114 78 85 311 392 544 2 4 |
| Gonzalez followed up his surprising 1999 season with another astonishingly good year. Now, if he had started hitting like this when he was 24, instead of 34, he might have had a heck of a career. For now, he's one of the better players in the league. |
| Mark Grace (1B, 37, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CHC 158 595 184 39 3 17 92 89 93 56 309 401 471 4 7 1999 CHC 161 593 183 44 5 16 107 91 83 44 309 390 481 3 4 2000 CHC 143 510 143 41 1 11 75 82 95 28 280 394 429 1 2 |
| One of the most consistent players in baseball, Grace had a bit of an off-season in 2000, though he still managed to get on base quite a lot. He's at the age where you would expect his decline to continue; however, he is moving to a team, where the park should (theoretically) be suited to his style of hitting. I think he has at least one more good year in him. |
| Geraldo Guzman (28, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 2000 AA 3 3 17 7 0 0 3 50 47 22 53 375 2000 AAA 4 1 6 6 1 1 0 38 23 10 44 142 |
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In case you missed the story on this guy, Guzman was a prospect with the Expos more than a decade ago, but hurt his arm in 1990. He spent seven years working as a carpenter before getting back into pro ball. Last year he performed well with both El Paso and Tucson, and made a sensational debut with Arizona, dominating his first two starts. He struggled a bit after that, but on the whole he had a promising season. Besides, he doesn't have to be great; a fifth starter in baseball can make a lot more money than the average carpenter. |
| Randy Johnson (38, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 SEA-HOU 19 11 34 34 10 6 0 244 203 86 329 328 1999 ARI 17 9 35 35 12 2 0 272 207 70 364 248 2000 ARI 19 7 35 35 8 3 0 249 202 76 347 264 |
| Johnson has spent two seasons in Arizona, and has won two Cy Young Awards. He will turn 38 this season, but he may as well be ten years younger; there is nothing in his record to suggest an imminent decline. Johnson now has 179 career wins, and over 3000 strikeouts; I have to think that he is now a lock for the Hall Of Fame. |
| Byung-Hyun Kim (22, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1999 AA-AAA 6 0 21 3 0 0 1 51 27 24 72 228 |
| Kim is a very, very young pitcher who last year struck out over 14 men per game. He's far from being a refined pitcher, but his long-term potential boggles the mind. |
| Danny Klassen (IF, 26, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1999 AAA 64 245 66 16 3 6 38 33 20 51 269 325 433 5 3 2000 AAA 28 97 31 7 2 2 25 14 19 23 320 436 495 1 2 |
| Klassen is a mediocre prospect, not so young anymore; he didn't perform too badly with Arizona last season, but a summer toe injury forced him out of the Diamondbacks' lineup. If he doesn't soon establish himself as a dependable utility player, his career will end quickly. |
| Matt Mantei (28, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 FLO 3 4 42 0 0 0 9 54 38 23 63 296 1999 FLO-ARI 1 3 65 0 0 0 32 65 44 44 99 276 2000 ARI 1 1 47 0 0 0 17 45 31 35 53 457 |
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Mantei is an overpowering pitcher who entered the season as Arizona's closer, but he had a disappointing season. He went on the DL in April with 'right biceps tendinitis', and again in May with a 'weakness' in his right shoulder. It wasn't a terrible year; he blew only three saves all season. But obviously something is wrong with his arm. If he recovers, I think Mantei can turn into a dominating Robb Nen-type pitcher. |
| Matt Mieske (OF, 33, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CHC 77 97 29 7 0 1 16 12 11 17 299 373 402 0 0 1999 SEA-HOU 78 150 46 5 0 9 24 29 8 31 307 338 520 0 0 2000 HOU-ARI 73 89 16 1 2 2 10 7 8 18 180 253 303 0 0 |
| Mieske is yet another veteran outfielder whom the Diamondbacks managed to collect last season. He had a disastrous season; he suffered a lower back strain early in the season, struggled at the plate and was released by Houston in August. He's a decent fourth outfielder, can help a team out in a limited role. If he's released again, it will probably be for the last time, |
| Damian Miller (CA, 31, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 ARI 57 168 48 14 2 3 17 14 11 43 286 337 446 1 0 1999 ARI 86 296 80 19 0 11 35 47 19 78 270 316 446 0 0 2000 ARI 100 324 89 24 0 10 43 44 36 74 275 347 441 2 2 |
| Miller is a solid, consistent catcher whom the Diamondbacks have been giving increased playing time the past three seasons. He probably strikes out more than they would like, but he hits for a decent average and has some power, and his plate discipline has been improving. |
| Chad Moeller (CA, 26, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AA 58 187 44 10 0 6 21 23 24 41 235 332 385 2 1 1999 AA 89 250 62 11 3 4 29 24 21 44 248 317 364 0 0 2000 AAA 47 167 48 13 1 5 30 20 9 45 287 322 467 0 1 |
| There's no evidence that Moeller can hit, and he also made 6 errors in the field in limited playing time. Catchers with weak bats are quite common, but most of them can hang onto the ball. |
| Mike Morgan (41, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 MIN-CHC 4 3 23 22 0 0 0 121 138 39 60 418 1999 TEX 13 10 34 25 1 0 0 140 184 48 61 624 2000 ARI 5 5 60 4 0 0 5 102 123 40 56 487 |
| Morgan now has 139 career wins, and 185 losses. But you know, he wasn't the worst pitcher in the league, and he even picked up five saves. Obviously, I expect Morgan's career to end... but I've been expecting that for about 15 years now. |
| Armando Reynoso (35, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 NYM 7 3 11 11 0 0 0 68 64 32 40 382 1999 ARI 10 6 31 27 0 0 0 167 178 67 79 437 2000 ARI 11 12 31 30 2 0 0 171 179 52 89 527 |
| The Diamondbacks have decided to invest another season in Reynoso. He's a status-quo pitcher; his only upside is that he might go 12-11 instead of 11-12. |
| Johnny Ruffin (30, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 2000 AAA 5 3 45 0 0 0 20 57 48 25 66 298 |
| Ruffin pitched with Cincinnati from 1993-96, but hadn't been seen in the majors for three years. He pitched well at Tucson last season, was called up by the Diamondbacks in July, and shortly afterwards went on the DL with a groin injury. He was a pretty good pitcher with Cincy, before injuries took their toll; if he is healthy, he might be good. |
| Rob Ryan (OF, 28, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AAA 116 394 125 18 2 17 71 66 63 61 317 419 503 9 3 1999 AAA 117 414 120 30 5 19 72 88 56 70 290 386 524 4 3 2000 AAA 92 332 102 19 1 8 56 55 45 35 307 405 442 1 1 |
| Ryan has been in the Diamondbacks organization for five years. His batting averages, starting in rookie ball, have been .303, .314, .317, .290, .307. His on-base percentages have been .421, .431, .419, .386, .405. Maybe I'm a little slow, but there has to be a general manager somewhere who needs an inexpensive left-handed hitter to come off the bench and hit the ball. I don't think Ryan has much left to prove at Tucson. |
| Reggie Sanders (OF, 33, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CIN 135 481 129 18 6 14 83 59 51 137 268 346 418 20 9 1999 SD 133 478 136 24 7 26 92 72 65 108 285 376 527 36 13 2000 ATL 103 340 79 23 1 11 43 37 32 78 232 302 403 21 4 |
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Sanders' only season in Atlanta was a big disappointment. He had a dreadful start to the year, and trips to the DL for both a strained hamstring and sprained ankle didn't help. He has been signed by the Diamondbacks, and will likely have a better year. He's a good hitter, and he still runs very well. He even managed to steal third base 9 times, which led the league. His biggest problem is injuries, and it has been that way ever since he was a rookie. |
| Curt Schilling (34, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 PHI 15 14 35 35 15 2 0 268 236 61 300 325 1999 PHI 15 6 24 24 8 1 0 180 159 44 152 354 2000 PHI-ARI 11 12 29 29 8 2 0 210 204 45 168 381 |
| Last year probably won't be remembered as being a very successful season for Schilling. He began the year on the DL, ended it with a losing record, and failed to deliver a playoff berth to the Diamondbacks. All that being said, he's still a bloody marvelous pitcher, and if his arm doesn't fall off he's capable of being back on top in 2001. |
| Russ Springer (32, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 ARI-ATL 5 4 48 0 0 0 0 52 51 30 56 410 1999 ATL 2 1 49 0 0 0 1 47 31 22 49 342 2000 ARI 2 4 52 0 0 0 0 62 63 34 59 508 |
| Springer's return to Arizona was crappy. He's been an extremely mediocre pitcher for most of his career; his days wearing an Atlanta uniform were really his only good ones. I expect that he will be on the move before too long. |
| Todd Stottlemyre (36, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 STL-TEX 14 13 33 33 3 0 0 221 214 81 204 374 1999 ARI 6 3 17 17 0 0 0 101 106 40 74 409 2000 ARI 9 6 18 18 0 0 0 95 98 36 76 491 |
| He went on the DL in May with soreness in his right elbow, and a month later went on the 60-day DL with tendinitis in his right elbow. Obviously, someone's been messing with his right elbow... and at age 36, a bid comeback is probably not in the cards. |
| Greg Swindell (36, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 MIN-BOS 5 6 81 0 0 0 2 90 92 31 63 359 1999 ARI 4 0 63 0 0 0 1 65 54 21 51 251 2000 ARI 2 6 64 0 0 0 1 76 71 20 64 320 |
| Swindell had another outstanding year in the bullpen. He should pitch well again in 2001, though the Diamondbacks may want to think about gradually reducing his role. Swindell held left-handers to a .157 average last year, while righties hit .300 off him. |
| Turner Ward (OF, 36, S/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 PIT 123 282 74 13 3 9 33 46 27 40 262 328 426 5 4 1999 PIT-ARI 59 114 27 3 0 2 8 15 15 15 237 326 316 2 2 2000 ARI 15 52 9 4 0 0 5 4 5 7 173 241 250 1 1 |
| Ward is a survivor, if nothing else. A .173 batting average doesn't necessarily mean his career is over; he also hit .179 in 1996 and .192 in 1993. But I wouldn't get too excited if he hits .350, because he also did that in 1997, 1992 and 1990. |
| Matt Williams (3B, 35, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 ARI 135 510 136 26 1 20 72 71 43 102 267 327 439 5 1 1999 ARI 154 627 190 37 2 35 98 142 41 93 303 344 536 2 0 2000 ARI 96 371 102 18 2 12 43 47 20 51 275 315 431 1 2 |
| My guess is that 1999 was the last big year of his career. Three of the past four years have been pretty mediocre; Williams is a .260 range hitter who is not likely going to hit 30 homers again. He is also 35 years old, and last year made two trips to the disabled list. |
| Tony Womack (SS, 32, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 PIT 159 655 185 26 7 3 85 45 38 94 282 319 357 58 8 1999 ARI 144 614 170 25 10 4 111 41 52 68 277 332 370 72 13 2000 ARI 146 617 167 21 14 7 95 57 30 74 271 307 384 45 11 |
| Womack is a durable, consistent player, and he is a very good base stealer. But eventually the Diamondbacks are going to have to realize that he is, at best, an ordinary player. He rarely gets on base, and he has little power. He's not a good defensive shortstop, and he doesn't hit enough to play in the outfield. I think Tony's speed, versatility and experience could make him a valuable role player... but giving him 600 at bats every year is a losing proposition. |