Arizona Diamondbacks: Humidor added to Chase Field
Pitcher Zack Greinke of the Arizona Diamondbacks said there is a difference in his pitches away from Chase Field.
Whether this was the influence of right-hander Zack Greinke or simply the nature of Chase Field, the Arizona Diamondbacks are adding a humidor for the coming season.
After discussion and reluctance, that decision was made during the off-season, but the results are unknown. What is certain remains Greinke’s observation that his ball has more movement away from Chase Field. Commenting on the installation of the humidor, Greinke told Call to the Pen he definitely sees a difference away from the dry environment of the desert.
“I’ll have to see what happens here,” Greinke said. “I wish every park was neutral and everyone deal with the same circumstances. Then, you would not have to deal with any of that stuff. My ball moves more than in most places than in Arizona. That goes for my two-seamer and change-up, too.”
Following Coors Field in Denver, Chase Field is now the second ballpark in the majors to use a humidor. Because the humidity during the summer in Phoenix remains low, the effect of the dry air is evident. Known as a launching pad, the number of homers tends to be highest in the majors in Chase Field and, at times, offers unique challenges to pitchers.
Recent studies have shown the difference. As a result of installing a humidor, Alan Nathan, a retired University of Illinois physics professor, argues that there could be a 50 percent reduction in homers at Chase.
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Humidity inside a humidor is kept between 68 and 72 percent, and average humidity in Phoenix for June is 19 percent, July is 31 percent, and for August 36 percent. The dynamics of the heat, which averages a day-time high of 106 in July, exacerbates the nature of the climate.
The humidor then plays well in a dry climate. While in use in Coors, Rockies’ manager Bud Black told Call to the Pen, that while he was not the Rox skipper with the humidor was installed in Coors, he quickly gained an appreciation.
“Being a visiting team coming into Coors, I was all for it,” Black said Saturday before the Rockies workout. “I’m all in on the humidor, and it’s a good thing. All of what I know is what I read. The moisture, some of the coefficients, the physics all play a part, and a long story short, I’m in on it.”
The goal remains reduction in home runs and according to Black, there was a reduction in Coors. Yet, he cautions, “time will tell,” and wants to reserve judgment.
“The people who study these things seem to think that the case,” he said in reference to the reduction in homers. “Maybe this is a question for the people who crunch numbers.”
In a physical location like Phoenix and dry conditions, the ball tends to be slick, difficult to grip and pitchers cannot gain any moisture. Black asserts, “there is a difference.”
In camp news …
With pitcher Randall Delgado coming off a flexor strain and PRP injection, the Diamondbacks are cautious about his process.
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After workouts on Saturday, manager Torey Lovullo told Call to the Pen that Delgado came out of a Friday bullpen session with no issues. Still, the organization is taking all precautions with their long reliever and spot starter.
One of the dimensions of the organization, Lovullo reiterated Saturday, is depth. For that reason, the club plans to stretch out reliever Albert Suarez, who was selected from the Giants last December in the Rule 5 draft.
While Suarez made it known he would like to start, the Diamondbacks have no plans to consider him for a such a role. Because the rotation is essentially etched in stone with Zack Greinke, Robbie Ray, Patrick Corbin, Taijuan Walker and Zack Godley, plans call for Suarez to remain in the bullpen.
Should Delgado not progress at the level the Diamondbacks would like, then Suarez could fill the role as long reliever.
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Elsewhere … Lovullo reported that position players will be in camp for the first full-squad workout on Monday. Still missing are pitchers Neftali Feliz and Antonio Bastardo, both addressing paperwork issues in the Dominican Republic.