Gibson will continue to evaluate prospects

The D-backs made their
first round of cuts Thursday, in an effort to trim their roster and get players in camp more consistent appearances.

Meanwhile, the club’s buzzworthy pitching prospects remain in camp.

“We’ve kept Skaggs and Bauer and Corbin and Brewer — which are mostly starting pitchers,” D-backs manager Kirk Gibson explained. “So we are going to have less innings for relievers. Positionally, we had nine outfielders so we put two of those back.”

Gibson acknowledged that he and General Manager Kevin Towers believe it’s important to be upfront and honest with the players who were getting cut, knowing very well these prospects could be back up with the team at some point this season if a need arises.

“Some guys maybe don’t think they have gotten a good enough opportunity, but I understand that,” Gibson said. “But it’s just the way it is. It’s a long season and if you get sent down you’ve got a chance to play well down there and we have a good idea. I mean the season’s not over and we sent people down before and they end up coming up and having a huge impact and that’s what we are looking for, guys that are dedicated to having an influence on a good outcome for us this year.”

Gibson explained that the small sample size of at-bats or innings he’s seen from some of his prospects may have not been enough, but that he’ll continue to be diligent in gauging their progress.

“I think we have interest in evaluating them more beyond what’s going to happen with our 25-man roster,” Gibson said. “I think we have great interest in what happens after that, as well. Whether we have injuries or whether we decide to make a move — you just want to spend some more time with them and see how they respond to certain things.”

Young players who have off-the-charts make-up often ascend to the Big Leagues faster than their peers. For Gibson, he’s interested in seeing how his prospects can handle aspects of the game that aren’t purely physical.

“Any young kid, though, I think you’re interested in the consistency and the level they go about their business every day,” Gibson explained. “We think of the game as physical a lot, the reality of it is if you go through a game and you don’t have a hit or you don’t have a ball hit to you, you should still be exhausted physically or mentally exhausted. It’s just a little different commitment. We try to see how they do with that.”

The D-backs have utilized their farm system well over recent years and know just when to tap into their pool of talent.

In 2011, Paul Goldschmidt and Josh Collmenter both received call-ups to the Diamondbacks and their presence left an indelible mark on the team’s playoff push.

Goldschmidt was a non-roster invitee a year ago and was not expected to make the D-backs roster in 2011. Still, he worked hard the first few months of the season at Double-A Mobile and earned a promotion to the Bigs on August 1. Goldschmidt ended up being a spark plug for the D-backs down the stretch with his often late-game heroics.

Collmenter started 24 games and went 10-10 with a 3.38 ERA after his April call-up. While he doesn’t possess overwhelming stuff, Collmenter’s command was excellent last season and he played a pivotal role in the D-backs’ rotation during the final months of the year.

This year appears to be no different as the D-backs will not hesitate to call on their prospects when the opportunity presents itself.

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