(Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)
The Arizona Diamondbacks have the look of a postseason team.
As of Wednesday afternoon, they are 83-74 and own the second Wild Card spot in the National League.
Things are tight enough that they can lose their spot with a couple of losses, though, so they are not quite there yet.
Still, they are on the verge of playing in October for the first time since 2017.
To get there, they need solid pitching, and Zach Davies wasn’t exactly solid this year.
His 7.00 ERA for the year resulted in the team designating him for assignment, per Talkin’ Baseball via Nick Piecoro.
The Dbacks have designated Zach Davies for assignment, per @nickpiecoro pic.twitter.com/lsmBWNzp61
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) September 27, 2023
A playoff team can’t be giving starts to a pitcher with a 7.00 ERA in 82.1 innings pitched.
Since Davies wasn’t going to make more appearances this year, the team is waiving him and saving some dollars while bringing up a fresher, better arm in case they need it for the remaining games of the regular season.
Davies has been strong in the past: we actually don’t have to go too far to see that he had a perfectly solid 4.09 ERA in 134.1 frames with the team last year.
Things have really gone south this year, though, even if his Fielding Independent Pitching (a more accurate way to evaluate pitching performance because it removes defense from the equation) is a more decent 4.58.
It’s likely that he has to settle for a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training in the offseason after his poor 2023 showing.
The post Diamondbacks Make A Late-Season Roster Cut appeared first on The Cold Wire.