Torey Lovullo says Diamondbacks ‘probably’ have to make playoffs for him to be retained
The skipper is in his 10th year with the club and final year of his deal, and Arizona has made the postseason in just two of the previous nine seasons, including the run to the 2023 World Series.
Watch: What does the future hold for D-backs and Torey Lovullo? | 11 mins
The Arizona Diamondbacks would need a dramatic swing in the standings to sneak into the playoffs at this point, and whether they do may decide the fate of manager Torey Lovullo.
The skipper is in his 10th year with the club and final year of his deal, and Arizona has made the postseason in just two of the previous nine seasons, including the run to the 2023 World Series.
Does Lovullo think he needs to make the postseason to earn additional time as the Diamondbacks manager?
“Probably,” Lovullo told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo. “I mean, the realities of it, when I sit back and I think about it at night, like we got to get to this big dance. If we do, things will take care of itself. If it doesn’t, I’m in a totally different evaluation space.
“It’s not my job (to worry about it). I want to make sure that they know how hard I’m working. And I think the right people know what I’m about every single day.”
Lovullo said he’s trying to stay present for the players that are still fighting for a playoff spot with nine games to go and the final home series of the regular season beginning Friday night against the New York Yankees.
The Diamondbacks are four games back of the San Diego Padres for the final National League Wild Card spot entering Friday night’s action.
The two teams in front of the Padres, the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies, have fallen behind a bit to where they are only one game ahead of the Padres and could be in play to fall out.
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Comments
16 Comments
Look, I’m not a fan of TL. I think he relies too heavily on analytics and he’s too much of a players manager. Nothing wrong with being a players manager, but there’s a line. Look at all the best teams in baseball. They’re well oiled machines. The players know if they take a play off, don’t hustle, make mental mistakes, DONT SHOW UP TO THE BALLPARK, there is going to be hell to pay. The players do their jobs in the most crucial moments. That’s not how this team operates. They’re too loose. The team just needs a new set of eyeballs and a new voice in the room. Someone to look at it from a different perspective. Three years in a row now that have gone exactly the same way. And over 10 years of mediocrity. It’s time for a change. TL will probably get snatched up by a different team and might even have success. But he and the team just need a change
The analytics that I rely on say that he should be gone.
He seems like a great guy, but why he follows those analytics to a fault is a mystery to me.
Are you watching the same team? This pen has been excellent. They’re the only bright spot on the team besides Moreno and e-rod. It’s the only reason they’re over 500. Perdomo regression, Carroll going into massive slumps at several points this year, and Marte underperforming are the reason they’re in this position. Those guys perform like they should and they’d be in the playoffs.