PHOENIX - Arizona’s trade deadline haul was light enough to draw a D+ from The Athletic, and the reaction underscored just how little the Diamondbacks managed to do with a postseason race still in front of them.
The Athletic listed the Diamondbacks as the 17th overall buyer, putting them in the middle of a deadline market that clearly expected more from a team sitting in the second National League Wild Card spot. Arizona had been tied to starting pitchers and impact infield help, but as Monday’s 3 p.m. deadline approached, it became apparent the front office wasn’t going to land the kind of upgrades it was chasing.
In the end, the Diamondbacks added only one player: outfielder Lars Nootbaar from the St. Louis Cardinals. Arizona sent right-handed pitcher Daniel Eagen, left-handed pitcher Sandro Santana and a player to be named later in the deal.
Nootbaar gives the club the left-handed power bat it wanted, but the move did not solve the biggest issue on the roster. The Diamondbacks still came away without a pitcher, which left the deadline looking incomplete for a team trying to hold its place in the playoff picture.
That makes the timing of the evaluation especially sharp. Arizona has a series going against the San Diego Padres and then faces the Los Angeles Dodgers this weekend, a stretch that won’t make life any easier in the wild-card chase.
General manager Mike Hazen told reporters after the deadline that he wished there was more that could have been done. That line fits the grade The Athletic handed out, which was built less on what Arizona added than on what it failed to finish.
The Diamondbacks did take a swing at balancing the roster with injured players and deadline help, but the front office only got part of the job done. Now the club will lean on those injured players and Nootbaar as it tries to finish the regular season strong enough to secure a postseason berth.
The D+ reflects the gap between what Arizona wanted and what it actually walked away with.
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