Arizona Diamondbacks All-Time Roster

Via Chase Stevens of the Las Vegas Journal

The D-Backs came into the league in 1998, and are therefor the youngest MLB franchise alongside their ‘98 expansion mates, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. They play their games at Chase Field in downtown Pheonix. The team has had 6 postseason appearances, winning the NL Pennant and World Series in 2001. Despite their moderate success in their short existence, this All-Time roster still has some holes. There is no doubt that some of these spots will be replaced in the future. However, there is a few names that will likely never be replaced…

Listen to our discussion about our All-Time D-Backs Roster Here:

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All-Time Arizona Diamondbacks Roster:

Let’s start it out with starting rotation, as they are the home team after-all.

OUR VERY IMPORTANT NOTE/RULE: Players can only appear on ONE All-Time roster. Example: Max Scherzer is not in this D-Backs rotation because he has been placed on our All-Time Nationals roster.

Starting Pitchers:

#1 Randy Johnson

Talk about a no brainer. Though he spent 10 years in Seattle vs his 8 years in Arizona, the numbers are indisputable. RJ spent the prime of his career in a D-Backs uniform. From 1999-2002, Randy Johnson won 4 straight Cy Young Awards, led the league in strikeouts and K/9 all 4 years, won a World Series, WS MVP, and a Triple Crown. He also won the ERA title 3 times in that time. In 2015, the 10x All Star, 5x Cy Young winner went into the Hall of Fame; rocking an Arizona Diamondbacks hat on his plaque.

#2 Curt Schilling

Similar to Johnson, Schilling spent the bulk of his career with other teams. HOWEVER, his best years came from the D-Backs. In the 2001 WS season and 2002, Schilling finished second in Cy Young voting to his teammate Randy Johnson, forming potentially the best 1-2 punch in baseball history. 2 of his 6 All-Star appearances came with the Diamondbacks, and he finished his Arizona career with a 3.14 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 10.1 K/9, and a 58-28 Win-Loss record.

#3 Brandon Webb

Brandon Webb had one of those unfortunate careers that was shortened by injuries. During his 7 year career (all with AZ), Webb was insanely underrated. From 2006-2008, Webb had 3 All-Star appearances, a Cy Young, and 2 second place Cy Young finishes. He also finished his career with a 3.27 ERA and a 87-62 record. Webb was very much on pace for a Hall of Fame career, so please pay your respects by appreciating his success.

#4 Dan Haren

This is where the rotation starts to thin out and will potentially be replaced in the coming years. Regardless, Dan Haren is a worthy #4 in this rotation for the time being. Haren spent 2.5 seasons with the D-Backs, the first two being the notable ones. He was an All-Star both years, leading the league in WHIP (1.00) in 2009. He’d finish 5th in Cy Young voting that year.

#5 Patrick Corbin

Corbin was with the Diamondbacks from 2012-2018, with All-Star appearances in 2013 and 2018. Corbin was more good than bad in his 6 years in the desert, with an ERA of 3.91, 945.2 IP, and 897 strikeouts. He also finished 5th in Cy Young voting in 2018.

Defensive Alignment:

Catcher - Miguel Montero

As is the trend with the majority of our All-Time rosters, catcher is not a position of great depth and notable names. Montero is however the most worthy for this team. Miguel spent 9 years behind the dish for AZ, earning 2 All-Star nods. He had 3 seasons with an OPS over .800, and a .763 for his Diamondbacks career. He was also a solid defensive presence, leading the league in CS% in 2011 (40%).

First Base - Paul Goldschmidt

Goldy was the heart and soul of the Diamondbacks from 2011-2018. He’s now playing the back end of his career with the Cardinals, but he seems to have played his prime in the desert. His 6 AS appearances, 4 Silver Slugger awards, and 3 Gold Gloves all came with Arizona. He finished top 3 in MVP voting 3 times but has not yet won the award. His best season came in 2013 when he led the NL in homers (36), RBI (125), SLG (.551), OPS (.952), OPS+ (160), and total bases (332). For his D-Backs career he had a .297/.398/.532 slash line, 209 homers, 267 doubles, and 124 stolen bases.

Second Base - Orlando Hudson

We had the O-Dog slightly edging out 2001 WS second baseman Jay Bell simply based on numbers and accolades. It was a close race though, and not all of the Diamond Gems hosts agreed on this one. In 99 Jay Bell hit 38 homers but was otherwise unexciting - especially in the 2001 season. Orlando Hudson on the other hand, was a steady contributor offensively and defensively in his time with Arizona. Hudson slashed .294/.365/.448 with 23 swiped bags. He also earned 2 of his 4 Gold Gloves and 1 of his 2 All-Star appearances with the Diamondbacks.

Shortstop - Stephen Drew

Welcome to the D-Backs shallowest position. Drew slashed .266/.328/.436 in his 7 year D-Backs career. Drew is also the franchise leader in triples. Nick Ahmed can have an honourable mention here for his sparkling defensive metrics. Next.

Third Base - Mark Reynolds

Matt Williams is obviously the best 3B to ever dawn a Diamondbacks uniform, but he finds himself on another All-Time roster. That left us to choose between, Jake Lamb, Eduardo Escobar, Troy Glaus and the man we ultimately chose… Mark Reynolds. Reynolds spent 4 seasons in AZ, amassing 121 homers and an .817 OPS over that span. All of those homers help you look past the fact that he struck out more than anyone in the league 3/4 years in Arizona.

Outfield - Steve Finley

We typically don’t do a LF, CF, RF alignment, just 3 outfield spots. You can shift guys around out there as needed when making an All-Time roster. Steve Finley, however, played the majority of his career as a centerfielder. In his 5.5 seasons, he had an AS appearance and 3 Gold Gloves. He also put up a .278/.351/.500 slash line, 153 homers, 70 swiped bags, and 150 doubles. He was also clutch, putting up big numbers in the 2001 World Series run. He probably could have been the WS MVP if not for Randy Johnsons exceptional performance.

Outfield - Ketel Marte

We’re often hesitant to put active players on these lists for fear of a massive drop off. However, even if that were to happen to Ketel, the numbers he’s already put up are enough to earn him this spot. His positioning however, came into question in our podcast. The fact is, most of his games have been played on the infield (365 games 2B, SS, 3B vs 155 games OF). However, this season he’s played all but 2 games in the outfield, so it seems as though that is the way he’s trending. Either way, his batting does all the talking, compiling .297/.360/.494 slash that has been building over the last 3 years. In 2019 he was an All-Star and fourth in MVP voting… a season where he hit 32 homers and batted .329.

For arguments sake, you could put AJ Pollock here and move Ketel to the infield. This would likely send Stephen Drew to a bench role, with Ketel slotting in at shortstop.

Outfield - Luis Gonzalez

The Diamondbacks top 3 players no doubt consist of Randy Johnson, Paul Goldschmidt, and this man (in no particular order). Luis Gonzalez spent 8 seasons with the team, racking up a .298/.391/.529 slash line, 224 homers, 310 doubles, 774 RBI, 780 Runs and a 130 OPS+. His 5 All-Star appearances all came with Arizona. He also put together the best single season in D-Backs history in 2001, helping to propel the team to their first and only World Series. In this year, he hit 57 Homers, 142 RBI, 128 Runs and slashed .325/.429/.688. He finished 3rd in MVP voting behind the ‘roided up Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa 73 and 64 homer seasons. Check out the 2001 MVP voting leaderboard… it was a wild year.

Bullpen

Because of the turnover and inconsistency we normally see in bullpens, we allocate 3 bullpen spots per team.

Reliever - Byung-Hyun Kim

Kim spent 6 seasons with the Diamondbacks, accumulating 70 saves, 10.6 K/9, and a 3.43 ERA over that span. The side armer was an All-Star in 2002, and got a WS ring in 2001. These 2 years were his best seasons, with 55 saves, 2.52 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP.

Reliever - Brad Ziegler

Ziegler was a trusted workhouse for the D-Backs from 2011-16, and came back to finish his career with the team in 2018. He appeared in 377 games, and led relief pitchers with 78 appearances in 2013. Despite the heavy workload, Ziegler was consistent and effective throughout his tenure. He finished with a 2.57 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 62 saves, and a 157 ERA+.

Reliever - José Valverde

José dealt with some inconsistencies in his 5 years in the desert, but despite this he still has a lifetime 3.29 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 11.5 K/9, and a franchise leading 98 saves. He also holds the franchise record for single season saves with 47. His best years came in 2003, 2005, 2007 - with ERA’s of 2.14, 2.44, and 2.66 across those years.

Honourable mention in the bullpen goes out to J.J Putz who is pretty much interchangeable with any of these guys. Putz had 83 saves and 2.45 ERA across his first 3 seasons with the team before ending his career on an abysmal note in 2014. Reasons we left him off compared to the others include innings pitched, and the fact that he saw a lot more action in a Mariners jersey. Archie Bradley also gets a nod for his successes and love-ability.

Potential Starting Lineup:

Steve Finley - RF
Paul Goldschmidt - 1B
Luis Gonzalez - LF
Mark Reynolds - 3B
Ketel Marte - CF
Orlando Hudson - 2B
Stephen Drew - SS
Miguel Montero - C
AJ Pollock - Pinch Hitter/Depth

Wrapping Up

Thanks for reading our All-Time Arizona Diamondbacks roster, let us know if you agree or disagree but DMing us on Instagram. If you liked this blog, you’d love our baseball podcast, Diamond Gems. If you want to stay up to date on all the latest blogs and more, join our newsletter: