First base has been a disaster for the Diamondbacks – What can they do to salvage it?

LOS ANGELES — The Arizona Diamondbacks entered the season with a plan to lean on veteran free agent addition Carlos Santana and returnee Pavin Smith at first base, piecing together a position where the club enjoyed over a decade of stability with Paul Goldschmidt and Christian Walker.

By the All-Star break, both Santana and Smith have been designated for assignment, leaving the Diamondbacks with the same situation they faced at the position last September. Utility players Tim Tawa and Ildemaro Vargas will get the bulk of playing time without a first baseman by trade on the team, with Tawa operating as the hot hand — or King of the Court, in manager Torey Lovullo’s terms.

The Diamondbacks’ first basemen this year have produced historically woeful numbers.

The position group’s .549 OPS entering Friday — before Tawa’s big weekend — was the lowest in the major leagues since 1920, when baseball was coming out of the Dead Ball Era.

That was Babe Ruth’s first season on the New York Yankees. Ty Cobb was still playing for the Detroit Tigers. Baseball was still nearly three decades away from Jackie Robinson debuting.

That number increased over the weekend to .590, still the lowest in baseball by a decent margin but no longer the worst in a century, for what that is worth.

The next lowest first basemen OPS in baseball this season is .646 from the New York Mets.

Arizona first basemen have hit nine home runs this year (four from Vargas, three from Tawa and one each from Smith and LuJames Groover). Only Toronto has fewer (six).

“I have no idea,” general manager Mike Hazen told Arizona Sports when asked what first base will look like for the rest of the season. “We have a number of guys that have the ability to play the position. I’m hopeful that guys (are) gonna get going and start moving in the right direction. But if not, then we’re gonna be looking at it externally.”

So, what are the paths forward for a Diamondbacks team that is missing a run producer that had been so consistently present from their first basemen before last year’s trade deadline?

Diamondbacks’ 1st base plan in interim

The plan for the immediate term is to play Tawa and Vargas and ride whomever can heat up a bit. Tawa was stellar at Dodger Stadium with seven hits and seven RBIs in three games, as he will look for more consistency than he’s shown at the big league level.

“I put a good foot forward,” Tawa said. “I think, just try to come out and be the same guy every day. Be as consistent as I possibly can. Not every night is gonna be 3-for-4. But, if I can put together quality at-bats and execute … being a consistent at-bat is something I really want to continue to do better.”

Vargas was amazing to watch in April and won National League Player of the Month, but since then he has been among the least successful hitters in baseball.

“I’m looking for somebody to take control of it, I don’t know who it is,” Lovullo said before Friday’s game. “We’re in a situation now where we need offense from a couple spots, DH being another one, and we’re looking for a little consistency out of those two places.”

Who could be on the trade market?

The trade deadline is on Aug. 3, and the Diamondbacks still have to play their way into being buyers. If they can, first base is a clear need, especially with Tawa and Vargas able to play elsewhere.

The trade block is in a tricky spot, as the American League playoff picture is not letting anyone off the hook. Twelve of the 15 teams are within 3.5 games of a playoff spot, so early mock trade targets like Boston’s Willson Contreras or Houston’s Walker look less acquirable.

San Francisco’s Luis Arraez will be a popular name.

He is an All-Star left-handed hitter who is competing for the batting title while the Giants have gone through a brutal season. Arraez has first base experience, although he is enjoying a breakout defensive season at second base.

Cincinnati’s Nathaniel Lowe is another left-handed bat who is playing well for a team that is falling in the standings.

Both Arraez and Lowe are on one-year deals.

There is also the possibility the Diamondbacks could look at players with controllable years remaining, although those trades can be more complicated or expensive. Detroit’s Spencer Torkelson has been brought up in the media as a change-of-scenery candidate with two 31-home run seasons but inconsistent results since the Tigers took him first overall out of Arizona State in 2020.

Who is in the pipeline?

Groover and Jose Fernandez have positional versatility and are back in Reno getting further development after their first looks in the majors. Fernandez especially provided a spark early, but he did not hit as well when playing first base or DH.

Tyler Locklear is healthy and has been getting consistent run in Triple-A. Locklear has slashed .304/.388/.493 in Reno entering Sunday, which accounts for a 113 wRC+ (100 is average). His strikeouts are down from last year, and while he has not hit with quite the absurd power he showed with Triple-A Tacoma last year in the Mariners’ system, he has heated up with 11 RBIs in the past week.

A name to watch is Manuel Peña, who led all of baseball in home runs before getting promoted from Double-A to Triple-A on June 16. Peña is a left-handed hitter who is getting opportunities to play all over the diamond, spending time at first base, second base and left field this season.

Since getting to Reno, Peña has hit .342/.379/.481, entering Sunday.

Groover, Fernandez and Locklear are on the 40-man roster, while Peña is not but will be Rule 5 Draft eligible next offseason.

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