Arizona Diamondbacks Miss out On Ziegler, Hudson
The Arizona Diamondbacks have made their bullpen their biggest priority to fix this off-season, but have missed out on a reunion with Ziegler and Hudson.
The Arizona Diamondbacks went into the Winter Meetings seeking bullpen help.
They left with a new relief arm in veteran closer Fernando Rodney, who right now seems to slide into the closer’s role without much competition.
New general manager Mike Hazen made it clear that he intended to add multiple relievers over the course of the off-season, but so far has only managed to snag one.
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Former Diamondbacks Brad Ziegler and Daniel Hudson just inked multi-year deals; Ziegler with the Marlins and Hudson with the Pirates. Ziegler was traded to Boston in July, but was with the Diamondbacks since 2011. He served as a solid closer every single year, recording 30 saves in ’15, as well as a career-low 1.85 ERA.
Hudson has been with the Diamondbacks since 2010, and became a free agent this fall. He posted an ugly 5.22 ERA last season in 70 games, but owns a 3.94 ERA over his eight year career.
As the bullpen seems to be the team’s focal point, Ziegler and Hudson would have been good fits in the revamped process. Both have spent a majority of their careers in the desert, and have done exceptionally well. Plus, both served as cost-efficient options that would have provided some consistency to go along with Rodney in the later innings.
It was blatantly obvious that Hazen and the Diamondbacks were not in play for studs like Mark Melancon, Aroldis Chapman, or Kenley Jansen. But just because upgrading the bullpen is a priority doesn’t mean they would have to go and spend all that money on a big free agent.
And they didn’t, but what they should begin to do is look into more cost-efficient arms. Ziegler and Hudson are gone, and so is left-handed reliever Mike Dunn.
Like it was mentioned earlier, the Diamondbacks weren’t going to make some huge splash like they did a season ago by signing Zack Greinke. Instead, they’d target second-tier guys like Dunn, Boone Logan, and Jerry Blevins. Going after Ziegler and Hudson wouldn’t have been bad, either.
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But now Ziegler, Hudson, and Dunn are off the market. Although Opening Day is roughly three and a half months away, the clock is already ticking for Hazen and his Diamondbacks to strike on any remaining free agent relievers.