Well, folks, it’s over. The Dbacks season has come to an unceremonious end as they lose to the Texas Rangers in the World Series with the Rangers winning 4 games to 1. It was an unfortunate ending as the Dbacks could not muster any runs going 0-9 with runners in scoring position.
A frustrating loss, indeed but there’s no need to be all doom and gloom about it with Free Agency coming up within the next week. You may be wondering who the best targets could be for the Diamondbacks. You may think it’s someone like Shohei Ohtani but sadly he’s out of the Dbacks price range.
First, let’s look at fixing the cracks within the Dbacks lineup which starts at third base. The Dbacks need an everyday third baseman, and a good fit for the Dbacks would be Matt Chapman who had a BA of .240 during the regular season with 17 home runs and 54 RBIs. He’s also stellar defensively as he posted up a .968 fielding percentage in his 137 games played with the Blue Jays in 2023.
Moving over, the Dbacks also need a DH as they have yet to really stick with one. Two suggestions for this role are JD Martinez and Jorge Soler if he is to decline his player option. Soler hit .250 on the season with 36 home runs and a .853 OPS, a good fit for a Diamondbacks team that somewhat lacks right-handed power. Martinez, on the other hand, is considered a sleeper option and he’s been hitting .271 on the season with 33 home runs and a .893 OPS which isn’t too bad either. But something that is a true necessity is starting pitching.
The Dbacks had starting pitching to start the year but it was bolstered when Ryne Nelson was moved to the bullpen and both Drey Jameson and Tommy Henry were on the IL. A target I would suggest is Japanese phenom Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but given that he’s been extremely dominant, it’s no question that he’d be looking to go to a big-market team such as the Yankees or the Red Sox.
But a more realistic option would be Eduardo Rodriguez who posted a 3.30 ERA, or Sonny Gray who posted a 2.79 ERA. On the bullpen side of things, a guy like Jordan Hicks is not too far out of the Dbacks’ price range. He has good velocity in his fastball and can be used in a variety of ways.
Another great bullpen target would be Shintaro Fujinami whose fastball reportedly maxes out at 103 MPH. The Dbacks also need lefties in their bullpen which is why I suggest Matt Moore who posted up a 2.56 ERA and Brent Suter who posted up a 3.38 ERA. Now you may be thinking that these players aren’t really that good on paper, but the Dbacks have an excellent pitching coach in Brent Strom who was also the main part in Brandon Pfaadt’s spectacular postseason success.
Moving away from all the free agency madness, even if they don’t get the suggested targets like Matt Chapman, they still have Jordan Lawler who can play third base and though he hasn’t proved much yet, he’s still just a rookie and hasn’t really shown what he can do due to the fact that he’s been playing in limited games. In fact, they have a whole bunch of talent in the farm system and I wouldn’t be surprised if some guys like Blake Walston make their debut this year. Regardless of how this season ended, the future for the franchise is extremely bright and the championship window has just opened.
So get ready, baseball fans. Because the Snakes are ready to dominate.
