Diamondbacks: Evaluating The Tony La Russa Era

Jun 27, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Jeremy Hellickson (58) pitches during the first inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

SENDING ANDREW VELAZQUEZ AND JUSTIN WILLIAMS TO TAMPA BAY RAYS FOR RHP JEREMY HELLICKSON

It was a good omen. Stewart and La Russa saw the problem and started addressing it quickly by sining a former Rookie of the Year pitcher to a simple 1-year deal and barely gave up anything in the process. But 2015 hasn’t re-kindled the old magic for Hellickson and he is now the odd man out in the starting rotation. Hellickson has suffered from simple mediocrity. He can’t dominate batters with any single pitch and he has continuously struggled to get deep into ball games. Here are his stats this year:

6-5 , 5.06 ERA, 16 starts, 76 K’s, 1.35 WHIP

Both Velazquez and Williams were middling Single-A prospects for the Diamondbacks and are still in the Rays farm system as we speak. Velazquez is hitting .288 in 19 games. Williams has been more successful compiling a .286 AVG with 6 HR and 29 RBI in 67 games with the Rays.

So the first major move for La Russa and Stewart can easily be considered a wash. They only gave up $4.275 million and will be eligible for arbitration heading into the offseason. So if their first move will ultimately be forgettable, how did their second turn out?