Arizona Diamondbacks: Five questions coming into spring training

Several questions face GM Mike Hazen and field manager Torey Lovullo of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Like all teams coming into spring training, club officials of the Arizona Diamondbacks face decisions. Though assessments made in camp may not fully impact the season ahead, those judgments could offer clues into the thinking of field manager Torey Lovullo, general manager Mike Hazen and Ken Kendrick, the team’s general managing partner. Kendrick is the man with the checkbook.

With the first pitcher and catcher workouts slated for this coming Wednesday at Salt River, here are five questions, in no particular order, facing Lovullo, Hazen and other decision-makers.

First, there is the specter of winning and maintaining a positive clubhouse

One of the major results of last season was the way Lovullo turned over the clubhouse and instated a culture of winning and respect.

From Day One of training camp, players bought into his method of communications. When Lovullo was named manager in October, 2016, one of the first things he told Call to the Pen, “what matters to the players, matters to me.” Many times, Lovullo approached players and talked about matters outside of baseball, which gathered further respect for his methods.

Immediately taking over the reigns at field level, Lovullo encouraged an open clubhouse, untapped beer kegs after games and players responded all season.

During their brief post-season run, pitcher Archie Bradley told Call to the Pen, “I would rather play for Lovullo than any other manager.” Players pointed to Lovullo’s positive culture as a significant factor for winning and creating an environment conducive to winning.

Second, who will emerge as the Arizona Diamondbacks number one starter?

Though he faltered down the stretch and into the post-season, right-hander Zack Greinke remained Lovullo’s titular head of the class. At no point during the season was Greinke’s stature as “number one” at the top of the rotation threatened.

Now, lefty Robbie Ray, after a breakout season of 15-5 and a 2.89 ERA, emerged as one of the lethal arms in the National League and Greinke’s status could be in jeopardy.

Though Lovullo may have a difficult time wrestling the belt from Greinke, his performances over the opening weeks of the season may force the manager’s hand.  Still, the prospect of running Greinke and Ray out on back-to-backs nights remain a strong approach to the opposition.

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Third, who will be the closer?

For a team to truly be competitive down the stretch and stay in any post-season picture, a closer should save around 45 games. Last season, Fernando Rodney picked up 39, and Lovullo, through Rodney’s often rocky season, constantly said the Diamondbacks would not have been a playoff team without the native of Santo Domingo, Dominion Republic.

Not perusing Rodney aggressively in the off-season, Hazen and Lovullo likely felt his value was exhausted. Without much fanfare nor encouragement to stay in the desert, Rodney packed his bags and inked a two-year deal with the Minnesota Towns.

Coming into camp, Hazen told Call to the Pen the Arizona Diamondbacks do not have a closer, but one will be declared by commencement of the regular season.

The two likely candidates are Brad Boxberger, acquired from the Rays in an off-season deal, and Japanese reliver Yoshihisa Hirano. That’s the current scenario, but the situation remains fluid. That does not mean Archie Bradley can slip, occasionally, into the closer role, but seem likely to retain his signature slot as the set-up reliever.

Among lefties, there are not a plethora of candidates to emerge as a closer, and Andrew Chafin, T. J. McFarland and Jared Miller remain on the bubble as middle relievers.

If the Diamondbacks expect to stay in the NL West division race, the efficiency of the closer must be pronounced. Because of the uncertainty, this could likely be an open-ended question from the start of the season and going forward.

Fourth – construction of a productive batting order

While Paul Goldschmidt is penciled in the number three hole in Lovullo’s line-up, the rest of the order is uncertain. More importantly, several positions remain open to competition, and until these decisions are made, the batting order will likely remain a work in progress.

At the least, Lovullo needs to find an everyday lead-off hitter and also a durable, reliable hitter for the two hole. Goldschmidt would then follow and likely Jake Lamb will hit fourth. That may be by default,and until Lamb proves he can hit left-handed pitching, the middle of the line-up could be weak.

Fifth – NL West competition as a roadblock to the next level

While pundits believe the NL West is one of the strongest divisions in the majors, that was proven last season. Three of the five National League playoff teams came out of the West and two, the Giants and Padres who did not, appear improved.

It is likely the nature of emotion of playing in the NL West which could be enough to motivate the Diamondbacks and provide a heighten energy level. Any slip on their part could be mean disaster and dramatic fall from grace.

Finishing just ahead of the Rockies in second place was not an accident. Fueled by a franchise-best 13 game winning streak, the Diamondbacks proved they can be competitive. At the same time, they will likely lose J. D. Martinez, who was important on the field as was his character and personality in the clubhouse.

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Coming off NL manager-of-the-year, Lovullo will have to pull some magic from his sleeves and continue to keep his team focused and on task. Given the competitive nature of the division, the Arizona Diamondbacks cannot afford to look over their shoulder.