Friday, July 18

Welcome to the D-backs Beat Newsletter! I’m Steve Gilbert, and I’ve been writing about the D-backs since 1998. In today’s edition we preview the second half of the season. Let’s get right to it …

The best thing you can say about the first half of the season for the Diamondbacks is that it’s over.

It started with a ton of optimism after a strong 2024 season and the offseason addition of free agent right-hander Corbin Burnes, but injuries and struggles on the field kept the club from being able to build momentum.

Arizona finished the first half at 47-50, still in shouting distance of an NL Wild Card spot, but will need to get off to a quick start in the second half to prevent being a seller at the Trade Deadline.

Here’s a look ahead at the second half:

One second-half goal for the Diamondbacks: String together some wins and do it soon

Arizona has been unable to get on any kind of consistent run this season, hovering around the .500 mark. It was around this time last year that the club started to put everything together and found itself in control of its postseason destiny during the season’s final week. The D-backs need to do that again, and quickly, or they could force GM Mike Hazen to be a seller at the Trade Deadline.

Likely Trade Deadline strategy: Light seller

Unless something drastic changes in the week after the All-Star break, it’s hard to envision the Diamondbacks being buyers at the Trade Deadline. That doesn’t mean they will offload all their free-agents-to-be, though. They could move starters Zac Gallen or Merrill Kelly, but probably not both, because they simply don’t have enough pitching to finish out the season without one of them. First baseman Josh Naylor could be dealt, but third baseman Eugenio Suárez will only be traded if what they get back would be of more value than the Draft pick compensation they would get for him leaving via free agency.

Key player: RHP Zac Gallen

Some strong performances by Gallen out of the break could help his trade value should Arizona elect to move him. If he struggles, do the D-backs hang on to him and make him a qualifying offer to get a Draft pick for him? These are the questions Hazen must wrestle with.

Prospect to watch: SS Jordan Lawlar (D-backs No. 1 prospect; No. 13 in baseball)

Lawlar debuted in September 2023, but injuries and a lack of a clear path to playing time in the big leagues kept him from seeing time with Arizona in 2024. He got a brief look earlier this season and, like in 2023, he struggled at the plate. There’s not a lot more for Lawlar to prove in Triple-A, so it would behoove the club to get a long look at Lawlar in the second half to help determine if he is a big piece of the future going forward.

The D-backs have a fairly tough schedule in the second half of the season, especially in September, when they face some of the NL’s toughest teams in the Phillies, Dodgers, Padres and Giants, as well as the Red Sox, who figure to be battling for an AL postseason spot.

Games remaining: 65 (Home, 33; Away, 32)

Remaining strength of schedule: .498, 16th in MLB, eighth in NL, first in NL West

Key series

July 18-23: The six-game homestand right after the break against the Cardinals and Astros is the last chance to show Hazen they can turn the season around before the Trade Deadline.

Aug. 8-17: The seven games against the Rockies (three at home) and three games on road against the Rangers are a chance for the D-backs to make up ground if they’re still in the race.

Sept. 26-28: The final three games of the season, at San Diego, could be meaningful if Arizona is still in the race.

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