Get used to it: A set lineup unlikely for the 2015 Arizona Diamondbacks
Apr 8, 2015, 11:35 PM | Updated: 11:35 pm
PHOENIX — Having a deep roster should never be considered a bad thing, but it can make a head coach’s job — or in the case of the Arizona Diamondbacks, a manager’s job — difficult in terms of trying to find playing time for everyone who wears a uniform.
The D-backs like to say they have four starting outfielders for three spots and five starting infielders for four spots.
So, it’s no wonder then that the team rolled out its third different lineup in as many games for the series finale against the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday, with Cliff Pennington and Gerald Laird getting their first starts of 2015 at shortstop and catcher, respectively.
Jordan Pacheco, who can play both the infield and catcher, now becomes the lone position player yet to see his name in the starting lineup.
“Well, you know what, we’ve got a lot of guys who are starters on this team, so I have to figure out a way to get them all at-bats,” first-year manager Chip Hale said. “We don’t have a DH in this league, so I have to mix-and-match. It’s going to be tough on them at times.
“We’ve already made that clear to them that if they’re not starting, they’re going to get a chance to play late in the game and win the game for us.”
Only two players, first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and right fielder Mark Trumbo, have started each of the first three games.
A year ago, the D-backs used 105 different lineups, not including that day’s starting pitcher. Much of that, however, was due to the high number of injuries the team suffered, which forced them to dip into their minor league system for a healthy body more than anticipated.
Of course, health is every team’s concern heading into a season.
The D-backs, if they can stay healthy, may still employ their share of different lineups, but it may have more to do with the youth on the roster. According to STATS LLC, the D-backs’ 25-man Opening Day roster was the second-youngest (28.04) in all of baseball behind only the Texas Rangers (27.92).
By comparison, in 2014, the D-backs opened the season with the sixth-oldest roster.
For Hale, the last thing he wants is for a young player to do too much watching and not enough playing.
“I think it’s important they get their at-bats,” he said.
