Pitchers(bullpen and rotation)

[Jonas_steven]

We have many ravenous fans here on the hoop that root for the snakes. With pitchers and catchers reporting yesterday, it is only befitting that we do several installments of our season outlook. We can discuss the pitching(bullpen and starters) along with each position starter. Sound good? Alright, begin!

 

[Jonas_steven]

The rotation is obviously still our weak point. There was a lot of fanfare about going out and getting a preemie guy but in the end, we were left with secondary alternatives. We ultimately have 7 guys competing for the 5 available spots. This is what I foresee shaking out:

Corby, Cahill, Miley, mccrapy and arroyo with del gato delegated to the pen or AAA.

I am very optimistic about the bullpen. Addison reed was a nice addition if he can produce the kind of numbers he had last season. I expect Hernandez to have his head on straight and jj to stop putzing the ball into the bleachers. I expect the rotation to look like this:

Stites, Barrett, collmentor, thatcher, zigs/putz(7th), hernandez(8th) and reed(9th).

 

[Arizona_Sting]

SP1- Patrick Corbin
SP2- Bronson Arroyo
SP3- Wade Miley
SP4- Trevor Cahill
SP5- Brandon McCarthy

Delgado and Bradley get seasoning in the minors and serve as depth for the time being. Delgado could be an option out of the pen but with Collmenter as our long reliever we may opt to not go that route.


CL- Addison Reed
SU- Brad Ziegler/David Hernandez
RP- JJ Putz
LHP- Joe Thatcher
RP- Will Harris
RP- Jake Barrett/Matt Stites
LR- Josh Collmenter

I hope one of Barrett/Stites makes it right out of ST. Not sure how Reynolds is coming along in rehab.

These are my predictions for now.

 

[Jonas_steven]

SP1- Patrick Corbin
SP2- Bronson Arroyo
SP3- Wade Miley
SP4- Trevor Cahill
SP5- Brandon McCarthy

Delgado and Bradley get seasoning in the minors and serve as depth for the time being. Delgado could be an option out of the pen but with Collmenter as our long reliever we may opt to not go that route.


CL- Addison Reed
SU- Brad Ziegler/David Hernandez
RP- JJ Putz
LHP- Joe Thatcher
RP- Will Harris
RP- Jake Barrett/Matt Stites
LR- Josh Collmenter

I hope one of Barrett/Stites makes it right out of ST. Not sure how Reynolds is coming along in rehab.

These are my predictions for now.

I forgot about Harris. I wonder if anyone as new about Reynolds. I am thinking at least one of the two will make it out of spring training.

 

[Davis_Mike]

Reynolds won't be ready till late in the season. He didn't have TJ till September & just recently started soft tossing a baseball in the last few weeks.

Rotation:
-Corbin
-Cahill
-Arroyo
-McCarthy
-Miley

Barring Bradley being an absolute beast in spring training & Delgado showing he has dramatically improved, this will be the rotation to start the season. This allows the team not to rush Bradley & let him refine his pitches in AAA Reno, the top hitters league outside of the MLB. If Delgado shows he is ready, I can see a trade before the end of spring for either Cahill or McCarthy. McCarthy is gone after this season anyways, so trading him now or at the break is likely. Cahill's 2015 number is $12+ mil, so he is likely gone after this season unless he shows he can be consistent. Adding Arroyo to the mix gives the team options & a safety net for 2015.

The bullpen:
-Reed
-Hernandez
-Zeigler
-Thatcher
-Harris
-Stites
-Collmenter

This is the way I think the BP will shake out in the Spring. I think Putz will be traded after a good showing in the spring. There are plenty of teams that could still use late inning BP arms & if the Dbacks eat half of his $7 mil salary, there will be more than a few teams that will want him. Stites would have been a September call-up if he had not had the appendectomy surgery. Barrett will be kept in the minors till a BP arm is needed for ineffectiveness or injury. The rest of the BP is pretty much set. That leaves plenty arms in the minors & they also have Reynolds & Hudson as late season additions.

All in all, I think both the rotation & BP are good enough to take the NL west. Sure we don't have a top end ace like LA, but outside of Kershaw, who in the NLW does. But we have a solid rotation, top to bottom with a future ace & another guy with potential upside waiting in the wings.

The only question marks coming into the 2014 season were can we get a thumper behind Goldy(check), fix the back end of the BP(check), solidify the rotation(check), & find an ace for the rotation(uncheck). The last one is the hardest one to accomplish & only a third of the MLB have this one checked off.

 

[tuffydahog]

Any team that has Trevor Cahill is not going anywhere. I have zero faith this team will do anything good with him on the team. Whatever team has him is always bad.

These are the statistics of a Trevor Cahill team:

Oakland Athletics records with Cahill:
2009: 75-87
2010: 81-81
2011: 74-88

Arizona Diamondbacks records with Cahill:
2012: 81-81
2013: 81-81

In three of the last five seasons, a Trevor Cahill team finished exactly 81-81. That is unfathomable. The epitome of average.

What is even worse is this statistic: In 2011, the D'backs finished the season 94-68 and made the playoffs, then acquired Cahill and have gone 162-162 in two years since. In 2011, the Athletics went 74-88 and then got rid of Cahill. Without Cahill, they went 94-68 in 2012 and made the playoffs, and they went 96-66 in 2013 and made the playoffs.

Please get rid of Trevor Cahill!

 

[Orange602]

The starting rotation is by far the weakest part of the 2014 team. The group is average at best, even with the addition of Arroyo. The lack of a true number one pitcher will hurt the team if they are in contention down the stretch. There is no one in the rotation that I trust to stop losing streaks.