It's time the owner takes some blame for the disappointing Diamondbacks
If Diamondbacks managing general partner Ken Kendrick wants to fire everyone in his front office, that is his prerogative. He could even justify such an upheaval, considering some of the questionable decisions made by chief baseball officer Tony La Russa, general manager Dave Stewart and Co. over the past two years.
But Kendrick, too, bears responsibility.
Kendrick and team president and CEO Derrick Hall hired La Russa, who in turn hired Stewart. Kendrick made the call to sign free-agent right-hander Zack Greinke, changing the direction of the organization. Kendrick balked recently at a trade of right-hander Shelby Miller and even the firing of manager Chip Hale, according to USA Today, and also declined to give final approval on a deal for Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier in Dec. 2014, as reported then by FOX Sports.
Those who know Kendrick say that he cares deeply and signs off on most decisions. At times, however, he also shows an emotional, impetuous side. The D-backs have changed general managers twice since 2010, firing Josh Byrnes, then Kevin Towers. A third change would lead to the usual organizational disruption – personnel changes, new philosophies, the works.
Kendrick should not be shocked that La Russa and Stewart have made their share of mistakes. La Russa, a Hall of Fame manager, had never worked in a front office. Stewart, a former pitcher and agent, had last worked in one in 2001. The D-backs supported them by hiring more experienced executives such as De Jon Watson and Bryan Minniti, but there is no escaping that their two principal decision-makers had to learn on the job.
Hall, who is on the verge of an eight-year extension, according to The Arizona Republic, accepted his share of blame, telling the newspaper, “I’m obviously just as guilty with approvals or disapprovals and all the meetings I’m part of. I think we all have to look in the mirror right now when it comes to baseball and really turn the page and start to produce.”
That goes as well for Kendrick, but naturally it’s La Russa, Stewart and Hale who are in limbo, with Hall saying the team will hold off decisions on all of them until the season is over. The management team got off to a reasonably encouraging start with a 79-83 finish in 2015, but the D-backs are 53-75 after an offseason acquisition spree, so anything is possible.
Kendrick rarely speaks to the media and was not an option to be interviewed, according to a team spokesman.
Hall, as usual, spoke for the organization.
“Absolutely we understand and want stability,” Hall told FOX Sports. “Decisions have not been made, but we obviously need to evaluate everything after the results we have had. We just want to get it right.”
Fair enough, but what exactly is the next move?
If the D-backs keep La Russa and Stewart, they should commit to them publicly beyond 2017; otherwise, the two would be perceived as lame ducks, fueling continued speculation about their respective statuses.
Even if Kendrick makes a change, the D-backs will be in a weird spot. A young, analytically-minded GM would not necessarily be the right fit; if La Russa and Stewart could not manage “up” and work cohesively with Kendrick, a GM lacking experience might get steamrolled.
It’s difficult to defend many of the D-backs’ decisions, from the misguided signing of Cuban right-hander Yoan Lopez to the $68.5 million investment in Cuban slugger Yasmany Tomas, from the bungling of the 2015 draft to the infamous Miller trade with the Braves. Still, it’s not as if every move the front office made was a mistake.
The trade for second baseman Jean Segura last offseason was a clear winner, as was the purge of catcher Miguel Montero’s remaining $40 million obligation in Dec. 2014. Left-hander Robbie Ray and Double-A infield prospect Domingo Leyba amounted to a solid return for shortstop Didi Gregorius. Catcher Wellington Castillo, who arrived in a six-player trade that cost the D-backs outfielder Mark Trumbo, also was a good acquisition; Trumbo was similar to Tomas and not yet the monster he is today, and the deal saved the team $3.25 million.
The D-backs frequently make deals to trim payroll, presumably at the behest of ownership. They also frequently add prospects in trades. While their system is not highly regarded, it appears in better shape than when the current front office took over. As many as eight of Stewart’s acquisitions could be added to the 40-man roster this offseason, sources say.
The big issue, as I wrote in March, is that the D-backs value players differently than other clubs – not a little differently, a lot differently.
Sure, injuries to Greinke, center fielder A.J. Pollock, outfielder David Peralta and others have contributed to the team’s problems. But the criticism of the Miller trade, from the very beginning, revolved around the D-backs’ decision to part with shortstop Dansby Swanson, outfielder Ender Inciarte and right-hander Aaron Blair not for an ace, but a pitcher who most view, at best, as a mid-rotation starter. Perhaps Kendrick should have vetoed that one, particularly after giving Swanson, the No. 1 pick in the 2015 draft, a $6.5 million signing bonus.
Process and evaluation matter greatly in today’s game, particularly with so much money at stake. Yet, the act that defined the D-backs’ occasional penchant for rash decision-making – the signing of Greinke as a $206.5 million free agent – was authored not by La Russa or Stewart, but by Kendrick.
Full disclosure: The story of how the D-backs reached an agreement with Greinke just 5½ hours after informing his agent of their interest was one of my all-time favorites to write; as La Russa put it, “truth was stranger than fiction.”
I was stunned to learn how the deal went down from Hall and other D-backs execs, and so were a lot of other people in baseball. Rival execs began contacting me almost immediately after I posted the story on FOXsports.com, asking if it really was true.
As I wrote, if Kendrick was acting on impulse, it was calculated impulse; he didn’t just wake up last Dec. 4 and decide, “I’m signing Greinke.” He had mulled the possibility with Hall for a good week before finally coming up with a structure of deferred payments that could make such a deal work. But suffice it to say that almost every other team would have taken a more deliberate approach. The D-backs did not even speak with Greinke until after the deal was done.
The trade for Miller followed, with the D-backs believing that they needed one more quality starter to contend. But the season did not develop as club officials expected, even as bright spots such as Segura, third baseman Jake Lamb and infielder/outfielder Brandon Drury emerged. It was one thing after another – All-Star first baseman Paul Goldschmidt struggled early, as did Greinke.
So now what? The dismissals of La Russa and Stewart would amount to another abrupt turn, even if Kendrick determines that the moves are justified. Again: Kendrick is the owner; he can do whatever he wants. I’d just like to hear him explain how he is going to make the D-backs to a more efficient, coherent organization.
Starting at the top.
