Offseason Review: The Arizona Diamondbacks

King Grit himself, manager Kirk Gibson

After winning the NL West in 2011 the Diamondbacks followed up with a disappointing .500 season in 2012, finishing at exactly 81-81.  Restless and aggravated with their inability to repeat their success; they engaged in possibly the busiest offseason of all teams in baseball, completely overhauling their lineup.  In an effort to rebuild not only their roster, but their entire image as a team, manager Kirk Gibson and general manager Kevin Towers went as far as to unload their young superstar Justin Upton for the "gritty" Martin Prado, as well as prospects.  The acquisition and unloading of players doesn't even come close to ending at Upton.  2010 All-Star outfielder Chris Young was traded off, as were third basemen Chris Johnson and Ryan Wheeler and excellent young pitching prospect Trevor Bauer.  In exchange for the above mentioned players; the Diamondbacks acquired shortstops Didi Gregorius and Cliff Pennington, as well as former closer Heath Bell and young pitcher Randall Delgado.  Even more talent was tacked on to the loaded Diamondbacks roster by way of free agency.  Cody Ross, Brandon McCarthy, Eric Hinske and more will all be wearing Arizona's colors in 2013.

So what does this mean? You'd think rapid-fire moves like Arizona is making would have some sort of discernible logic to it, but then things like the Justin Upton trade occur and make you question exactly where this team is going.  It's granted that after running his name through the rumor mill for more than a year that Justin Upton needed to be moved; but if a team is trying to win now by way of mass acquisition then why are they even discussing moving talent with such enormous potential as Upton's in the first place?  The apparent logic in the Diamondbacks front office rests on an intangible, and that is "grit".  Apparently players like Justin Upton and Trevor Bauer don't carry the gritty, dirty style of play that players like Martin Prado and Cliff Pennington do.  My tone is less based on bitter sarcasm and more on utter confusion. I can't manifest a logical scenario in my head that make a controlled contract of a fan favorite, major talent like Upton's a commodity.

Kevin Towers:
Fickle and restless maniac or strategic mastermind?

The D-Backs are in a division with last years World Series champion Giants and a new look Dodgers team that is striking a legitimate fear in every other team's heart, so some manic behavior isn't surprising.  The most befuddling element is that, despite the whirlwind activity on behalf of the Diamondbacks, I'm not sure they are any better than they were last year.  Trading Justin Upton to acquire Martin Prado and some promising but not fully developed talent doesn't exactly compute to definite winning, especially given their immediate competition. Still, I generally like how Towers manages the Diamondbacks roster, and sensible or not, players like Delgado and Gregorius are exciting and promising adds. I don't think the D-Backs make the playoffs in 2013, but they are also not to be dismissed.

TRADED! Justin Upton

To the Braves with Chris Johnson for five players.

I'm glad that a mutually beneficial Justin Upton trade happened because I was beginning to think it was impossible. The Diamondbacks acquire third basemen Martin Prado, right handed pitcher Randall Delgado, shortstop prospect Nick Ahmed, minor league first basemen Brandon Drury and another right handed prospect in Zeke Spruill in exchange for Justin Upton and Chris Johnson. Justin will be joining his older brother B.J. in the Braves outfield that also contains the slugger Jason Heyward, providing quite a formidable core of young starters who project to be good for a long time.

Justin Upton had previously been "traded" to the Seattle Mariners for a huge package headlined by excellent pitching prospect Taijuan Walker. Upton rejected this trade as per the limited no-trade clause in his contract, and in my opinion saved Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik's job by doing so. Upton is by no means anything besides a very good player, but their is a lot of hype in his name. His defense is at best slightly above average, and while his offensive numbers suggest the potential of superstar status, they aren't definite. His stats took a bit of a dive from his 2011 to 2012 campaigns, devolving from a .281/.369/.529 line to a .280/.355/.430 line.  At 25 years of age wavering numbers are no necessary cause for immediate alarm; but they do make players like Randall Delgado, who is older and has a lower ceiling, more of an appropriate trade target than Seattle's Walker.

As soon as news of Upton's trade and subsequent rejection-of-trade to the Mariners broke, it pretty much became necessity to move him. There was probably no better place for the former Diamondback to land than Turner Field. The team is young and competitive and it's been described by both brothers as a "dream come true" to be on the same team. I think the Braves got the better deal in the situation, adding a mix of youth and experience to an already exciting team. The D-Backs let Upton go for a good, not great package, and did so to build a team of "gritty" players. I think intangibles like that are totally inane, and I don't see why a "gritty" Cody Ross is going to be better than Justin Upton, but I'll save that critique for the Diamondbacks offseason review. I don't think this trade will put the Braves on the Nationals level, but it will make them that much more of a brutal contender.