#18. The Arizona Diamondbacks
Team Ace: Ian Kennedy
Most Valuable Position Player: Aaron Hill
Breakout Candidate: Paul Goldschmidt
Notable Offseason Additions: Martin Prado, Heath Bell, Cody Ross, Randall Delgado
Notable Offseason Losses: Justin Upton, Chris Young, Trevor Bauer
Biggest Team Weakness: Shortstop
The Arizona Diamondbacks had an active offseason, shipping away Justin Upton for a nice chunk of player from the Braves. Upton might not be the team’s biggest loss. The biggest loss, however, could be that of their prospect ace Trevor Bauer who’s now on the Indians. Arizona was expecting him to be their superstar pitcher of the future, ad with him out of the picture they’ll have to rely on the same staff from last season. Even though his first 3 or 4 career starts were underwhelming, I can’t imagine a team would just give up on a player that had been hyped up to the extent of Bauer. My guess is that the team saw something that troubled them, like a flaw in his mechanics of personality issues, when he came up for a few weeks last year and concealed it from the rest of the league.
Ian Kennedy will once again lead the rotation, with Wade Miley in the number two spot after his fantastic rookie campaign. Brandon McCarthy could be a huge addition, replacing Daniel Hudson while he’s recovering from injury. McCarthy has had injury problems in the past but always puts up great numbers when he plays. Promising young pitcher Randall Delgado, who they acquired in the Upton deal, will be fighting for the final spot in the rotation and should get it early in the season. Arizona’s bullpen is also filled with talent. J.J. Putz will return to the closer role. David Hernandez and Heath Bell should solidify the 7th and 8th innings.
Martin Prado improves the infield immensely, and their only real hole now is Shortstop. The outfield is a little less exciting, but Upton wasn’t very good last season, and Cody Ross should at least be able to replace his 2012 numbers.
Fresh Out The Deli 