Diary of a Diehard

Everywhere you turn these days it seems like someone is talking about the social network Twitter. What began as a social experiment for many to keep track of what their friends were doing is now becoming a paradigm shift in communications.

I've personally been playing with Twitter for a little over a year trying to evaluate where it makes sense and what it can be used for. As an Information Technologist I am paid to attempt to look into the future and see where emerging technology can be used.

I have a long list of potential uses for business and personal communications but I have to admit; there is no way I envisioned this technology would become a tool to be used by Major League Baseball for their first year player draft.

Today was one of those games that makes you want to go out and buy Rogaine in bulk to fill in the bald spots you've suddenly developed after pulling hair out by the handfuls. On paper this looked like an easy Diamondbacks victory.

Dan Haren with is miniscule ERA was on the mound to face the team with the worst batting average in Major League Baseball. You would think this would have win written all over it. But if this season has taught me anything it has taught me that no opponent is too bad and no lead is too big that the Diamondbacks can't find a way to lose.

With the conclusion of yesterday's game the Arizona Diamondbacks completed a seven game home stand. The team left Chase Field and caught a plane to Los Angeles where they will open a three game series with the Dodgers followed by a four game set with the San Diego Padres at Petco Park.
That means that it is time once again for another installment of the State of the Home Stand Address where I attempt to give you an update of how the latest home stand went for the Arizona Diamondbacks from a fan's perspective. As a friendly reminder, the viewpoints and opinions expressed here are my own and in no way are they indicative of how others might view the team or Chase Field. This entry covers the three game series against the San Diego Padres and the four game series with the Atlanta Braves.

As I sat and watched the Arizona Diamondbacks be dismantled by the Atlanta Braves in the final game of the series I couldn't help but wonder why the friendly confines of Chase Field were not so friendly this year to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Over the first 31 games at Chase Field the Diamondbacks have only managed a record of 12-19 and have not won a single series this year.
This is quite different than the past couple of years when Arizona has dominated opponents in the desert. Last season for example the Diamondbacks went a respectable 48-33 at home and during their NL West winning season in 2007 Arizona posted a remarkable 50-31 mark at home.

After an exciting game at Chase Field, my family and I gathered up our Stephen Drew bobble head dolls and began to make our way to the exit. As we walked past the Diamondbacks dugout I happened to notice a large number of fans who remained seated in those sections. Besides the fans there, others were filtering down from other sections to find an empty seat above the dugout.
After 11 innings I was curious what could be going on that these people were staying in their seats. I asked an usher if he knew what was going on and he replied that there was going to be a town hall meeting for a small number of Diamondbacks season ticket holders where they would be allowed to talk to Diamondbacks CEO/President Derrick Hall and manager AJ Hinch. So while I was not invited I decided I needed to crash this meeting.

There were some questions going into the 2008 off-season with regards to the Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitching. The front of the rotation was set with co-aces Brandon Webb and Dan Haren. The back-end of the rotation was also likely set with Doug Davis and rookie sensation Max Scherzer.
The big question was what Arizona would do with the number 3 spot in the rotation. Would they attempt to re-sign Randy Johnson and allow him to complete his quest for 300 games or would they try to find another option that gave them more flexibility?

Rarely does a player come along that is the complete package. Usually they arrive with positives and negatives and the manager does the best to accentuate the player's strengths while mitigating or hiding the weaknesses. That is the sign of a good manager to make the best of the talent that he is given. This is not a new or foreign concept, every manager at every level of baseball has to go through this. Whether that player is a child that can't figure out which hand his mitt goes on or if he is Manny Ramirez. Wait, that example is redundant. New Diamondbacks manager AJ Hinch faces a similar problem with this team. Not specifically the confusion as to which hand to wear your mitt on but rather how to manage a player's strengths and weaknesses.

Every season as Spring Training comes to a close the Diamondbacks players all get together and decide on one pitcher that they will withhold all support from whether it be offensively, defensively, or from a bullpen perspective. I'm of course being facetious or at least I think I am. Historically if we look back you could probably make a strong case that my comment was a fact. How else do you explain the lack of support that the team gave to Randy Johnson or before that Brian Anderson? This year's candidate for most unloved would have to be Max Scherzer.

The first year player draft is quickly approaching. I have already noted my picks participating in various mock drafts that are taking place around the Internet. This is a very important draft for the Arizona Diamondbacks. With the team having seven of the first 64 picks in the draft this is a great opportunity to rebuild the farm system which has become depleted as of late due to the promotion of players and through trades to get much needed pieces at the Major League level. This draft is going to be especially interesting for the Diamondbacks given that they recently completed a major overhaul of the player development staff with AJ Hinch moving from Director of Player Personnel to manager and the subsequent moves of Jack Howell and Mel Stottlemyre Jr. to Hinch's staff. I'm not sure I can ever remember a time when a Major League franchise made decisions such as these so close to the draft. It will be interesting to see what impact that might have on draft decisions or philosophies.