The Arizona Diamondbacks must be one of the most enigmatic and puzzling teams heading into the 2016 MLB season. After being far more competitive than what anyone would’ve expected this past season thanks to a 79-83 record, the management felt they were ready to compete and they made several upgrades to their rotation looking to make an impact in a crowded NL West.
Even though the Diamondbacks lost several players in free agency – most notably Ender Inciarte who was traded to the Atlanta Braves – they still have some nice pieces on the offensive side of the ball. Paul Goldschmidt is one of the best first basemen in all of baseball, Yasmany Tomas should improve after getting used to the life in the US another year and A.J. Pollock is one of the best outfielders on both sides of the ball.
There are some questions in the middle infield with Jean Segura and Chris Owings but if the former Milwaukee Brewers star can re-discover the form he had only a few years he can be a viable contributor. Segura was recently acquired in a trade where the Dbacks sent Chase Anderson, Aaron Hill and Isan Diaz to the NL Central side.
There might be some questions marks in the offense but Arizona’s biggest strength is arguably their pitching – and we all know a competent staff can be a difference maker when facing tough teams. Arizona swung and missed in the Johnny Cueto sweepstakes but they bounced back nicely to sign Zach Greinke – arguably the biggest prize in the free agent market – and to trade for Shelby Miller who was coming off solid years with both the Braves and the St. Louis Cardinals.
Greinke will have a huge load on his shoulders both due to his contract – six years and $206.5 million – and due to his 2015 performance where he had a historically good year with Los Angeles Dodgers but the 32-year-old has enough stuff to be a true ace. Greinke compiled a 1.66 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 200 Ks while registering a 19-3 record in 32 starts with Los Angeles. He finished second in the 2015 Cy Young voting and while expecting these numbers would be a stretch he is definitively talented enough to be one of the top five pitchers in the NL once again.
Let’s be honest: Greinke, Miller and Patrick Corbin make a pretty solid trio to frontline the staff and that should be enough to compete with anyone in a three-game series. The bullpen should be quite solid as well, with arms like Tyler Clippard, Daniel Hudson, Josh Collmenter and closer Brad Ziegler.
The Diamondbacks will have a tough time to compete with the Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants in a very tough NL West that will also feature the Colorado Rockies (who are always tough in Coors Field) and the San Diego Padres – who are a bit of a wildcard coming into 2016. Arizona might not be the best team in the division but they certainly have a deep enough team to make a run at a Wild Card spot or possibly better if some individuals exceed expectations.
Whatever the case is, no one should sleep on the Diamondbacks. They have some question marks on both sides of the ball but there’s enough talent to make them one of the biggest sleepers in the National League come 2016.