Derrick Hall says Godley DFA sends a message to D-backs

Zack Godley and Greg Holland being designated for assignment this past week saw two key contributors of this year’s Arizona Diamondbacks team, in addition to past teams, ushered out the door.

The polarizing decision was one that needed to be made, according to D-backs president and CEO Derrick Hall.

“What that does: It sends the message. It does send the right message to the clubhouse,” he told 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station’s Doug & Wolf. “Like, ‘Guys, we’re here to do a job and you’re not just going to stay on this roster because of your salary or service time or because you’re a fan favorite or coach favorite. That’s not what we’re doing here.'”

The moves gave others in the organization a huge chance.

“Secondly, we now have talent and we have depth throughout our system where we need to give guys a chance, and if someone’s not cutting it, you can’t continue to do the same thing over and over again,” Hall said.

Godley pitched five seasons with the D-backs, posting a 4.70 ERA and a 94 ERA+ during his time with the team.

“[It was] terribly tough. He was so important to us,” Hall said. “A couple years back, this guy really saved our bacon, and he’s fun. He’s a character. He struggled this year. We know that. He had some struggles last year. But again, that’s management and that’s Torey [Lovullo] deciding what’s best for the team. And he’s going to figure it out.

“You can’t hold onto a guy and fear that it’s going to come back around when it’s not coming around at a time when you need it.”

Emotions weren’t just high for upper management of the D-backs, but for teammates as well.

“He’s not hanging his head. He’s not upset. He’s not questioning,” Hall said of D-backs reliever Andrew Chafin. Chafin and Godley were best friends on the team.

“These guys are on a mission together and they can’t feel sorry for one another,” Hall said. “They can’t worry about losing a best friend. They’ve got to figure out a way to win and quite honestly, a way to stay on this roster.”

But the D-backs so far haven’t been bothered by the news. They’ve won four of their last five games, all against NL Wild Card contenders in the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies.

“Those are tough, tough decisions, and they’re guys who are very, very likable that have done a nice job leadership wise in the clubhouse,” Hall said. “But at some point, you’ve got others in that room looking around going, ‘OK, what about him? We all have to pitch in here, and we all have to be effective for us to win.’ I think we’ve seen on this homestand that the players are responding well to that and it sends the right message.”