SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Zack Greinke is known almost as well for developing a game plan to attack opposing hitters as he is for executing it. He had both aspects on display in his Diamondbacks debut on Friday.
It was two innings. In a Cactus League game. Against an American League lineup featuring just a handful of big-league starters. But Greinke's first spring start went as well as could have been expected.
The D-backs new ace started the game with a curveball to Billy Burns and proceeded to face the minimum in two innings against a split-squad A's team at Salt River Fields.
THREE TAKEAWAYS: D-backs 6, A's 3
* Jean Segura continued his strong start with a leadoff home run to left field and is hitting .833 this spring. Segura was at the top of the order in both his Cactus League starts and would be the best option to bat leadoff ahead of A.J. Pollock and Paul Goldschmidt.
"It's very important (to start well), especially when you're in a fight, when you're fighting for a position to play," Segura said.
Segura is battling Chris Owings and Nick Ahmed for playing time in the middle infield. Segura on Friday played second base for the first time in a Major League game, while Owings was at shortstop. Ahmed will start at short on Saturday, with Phil Gosselin at second.
* Pollock made his spring debut after he was held out of an exhibition and the first two games with a sore right arm. Pollock walked his first plate appearance and finished 0 for 2.
* Tyler Wagner, acquired with Segura from the Brewers, often is mentioned as in contention for the fifth starter's spot. He didn't make a great first impression. The righty gave up two runs on three straight hits and a walk in the third. The sinker baller bounced back with three groundouts in the fourth.
-- Chris Gabel, FOX Sports Arizona
"That guy swings at the first pitch more than anyone in baseball, I think," Greinke said after the D-backs wrapped up a 6-3 victory. "He's famous for it. I mean, you never want to get hit."
Greinke relied primarily on his fastball -- both two- and four-seam -- but mixed in his slider, curve and change-up as well. He struck out a pair and the only hit he allowed, a bloop single to Yonder Alonso, was quickly erased when Alonso tried to take second base when Yasmany Tomas initially bobbled the ball.
"I had some good pitches and some not quite as good. But overall pretty good," Greinke said. "Ideally, I'd like to have pitches sort of do what I want them to, and that's kind of what I did."
Manager Chip Hale before the game said Greinke would get up to 40 pitches to get through two innings. The right-hander needed just 25, 16 of which were strikes.
"He worked hard, which is what he wanted to do," Hale said. "He wanted to push himself. ... It was a really good outing for him."
Greinke struck out Sam Fuld on a change-up in the first inning and froze Andrew Lambo on a slider to end the second. He said his change-up was the best it's been this spring.
The $206.5 million pitcher also received some help from his defense when first baseman Paul Goldschmidt snared a bounding ball down the first base line and fed Greinke at the bag to end the first.
"I kind of stopped running because I thought it was going to be by him," Greinke said. "And then he caught it so I had to start moving again."
Greinke's primary goal at this point, he said, is to stay healthy. He is scheduled to make five more starts this spring -- some could come on the back fields against minor leaguers -- before taking the ball on April 4 for Opening Day.
"I try to get to where in the last two starts of spring I'm feeling really good," he said. "Try to build up to that. ... Usually, if I'm not really close to that (with) three or four starts left in spring, I get really nervous."
