Tuesday saw another Arizona Diamondbacks<\/a> spring training workout in the morning. In the afternoon, the team played a 1 pm exhibition game against the San Diego Padres<\/a>, whom they also faced in a B-game in the morning. Luke Weaver took the hill in the afternoon game for his second start of the spring. He faced Padres southpaw Blake Snell.<\/p>\n Manager Torey Lovullo said that Taylor Widener, Oliver Perez, and Matt Peacock all \u201cthrew the ball really well\u201d in the B-game.<\/p>\n The roster is getting trimmed down more and more as Opening Day rapidly approaches. On Thursday, the team made five moves: lefty Caleb Baragar, infielder Drew Ellis, and right-hander Luis Frias were optioned to Triple-A Reno, while right-handed reliever Keynan Middleton and outfielder Alek Thomas were reassigned to minor league camp. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to make some tough decisions,\u201d Lovullo said. He also acknowledged that the team is seeing more options with the pitching staff than they have going into recent seasons. \u201cThe ones that remain, we feel like, are very good options, and we still have some tough decisions to make.\u201d There are some traits that the team always looks for, but the overriding one is \u201cguys who control the zone.\u201d<\/p>\n With the teams carrying 28-man rosters through May 1, Lovullo said that he\u2019ll be fine with either 13 position players and 15 pitchers or 14 of each.<\/p>\n Luke Weaver had to leave the game after facing one batter in the top of the fourth, giving him 12 for the game. He allowed no runs on two hits and two walks while striking out three. As far as the game, Weaver felt \u201cpretty good about the day.\u201d<\/p>\n But the early departure was the bigger story. After his departure, Weaver showed reporters why he left. It was a small gash between the two knuckles of his right thumb, something Weaver called \u201ca deep nail wound.\u201d The wound resembled a broken blood blister and results from the nail in his index finger jamming into his thumb after he releases his fastball.<\/p>\n This is something he\u2019s dealt with before, but not for a while. \u201cCollege, off and on, and a little bit in the minor leagues,\u201d he recalled. \u201cOnce in a blue moon it\u2019s happened in Arizona, but it\u2019s a random thing.\u201d<\/p>\n Typically, he keeps his nails cut short enough to avoid it, but the nail wasn\u2019t short enough during his recent live BP. The wound was \u201cclose to healing\u201d and didn\u2019t affect Weaver during his last start, but it reopened during Thursday\u2019s game. \u201cDuring the first (Luke) Voit at-bat, I ripped it pretty good,\u201d Weaver said, \u201cspewing blood pretty bad.\u201d He said he just had to wipe it up, and between innings, the trainer put something on it to \u201cadd a layer of (protection).\u201d It tore open again in the third, Weaver said, and after pitching to Jake Cronenworth in the fourth, \u201cit became hard to pitch with it. I wasn\u2019t getting the control I needed. (My pitches were) missing pretty bad.\u201d<\/p>\n Weaver does not seem to think the wound is all that serious. Four days \u201cgives us plenty of time to figure out a plan. This one’s pretty bad, because when you (add) a layer of something sticky, the rip is pulling the skin with it. So you’re fighting against the help.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen it first happened, I got through it for the (first) start and didn’t really have an issue. It was almost close to healing \u2014 a teeny little scab ready to be healed. And that first inning ripped it off, like a kid being ignorant on the playground and having to deal with it.\u201d<\/p>\n Lovullo agreed with Weaver about the thumb after the game, saying, \u201cI think it\u2019ll be okay. My gut instinct is telling me that he\u2019ll come in tomorrow, resume his throwing program, and keep everything in shape. It might be one of those things that\u2019s nagging, (but) we\u2019ll monitor that.<\/p>\n \u201cAs far as the stuff, he had a good day. Luke threw the ball really, really well. He was executing pitches. His velocity was anywhere between 91 and 95-96 miles an hour. He’s backing it up with a changeup and a couple of really nice breaking balls. One that stood out was a 3\u20132 breaking ball that ended up getting fouled off. But it shows confidence that he’s developing in that pitch to throw it in a crucial time with that count.\u201d<\/p>\n One sequence in the top of the third inning was especially important. After two hard-luck singles by the Padres with one out, including one that glanced off the glove off diving shortstop Geraldo Perdomo, Weaver got Manny Machado to hit a hard grounder to short. Perdomo dove again, making the play this time. He fired to Jake Hager at second for one. Hager\u2019s relay beat Machado on a close play, ending the frame with a slick 6\u20134\u20133 double play.<\/p>\n Weaver said, \u201cThat was definitely a huge play there by Perdomo. Great snag.\u201d Lovullo added, \u201cThose are the types of plays that I’m expecting us to make. It was a great, great play by Perdomo to get that double play started. Those are the little things that we missed out on doing last year. Last year we might have gotten one out on that play. But we really stressed the importance of getting the defense off the field. The great play was something that gave us a little bit of energy. I’m sure it gave Luke a good boost. And it’s pretty demoralizing to the opposition. Those were plays we did not make last year that used to really frustrate me, so we worked hard on that this spring training.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe continue to pile up really good at-bats,\u201d Lovullo said of the 8\u20132 exhibition victory. \u201cNot necessarily the results. I love the home runs\u2026but just the way we’re controlling the zone and controlling the at-bats. When you look up there and see we’ve got a lot of walks and a lot of hits, that means there’s a lot of run scoring opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n After the game but before press time, the Diamondbacks acquired Listher Sosa from the Pittsburgh Pirates. He is a 21-year-old right-handed pitcher that pitched in a rookie league in 2021. In return, the Diamondbacks sent recently DFAed infielder Josh VanMeter, who hit the walk-off home run<\/a> that ended the Diamondbacks’ 2021 season.<\/p>\n Diamondbacks spring training continues Friday, April 1. They will hold camp in the morning before splitting up for a pair of split-squad games. One squad will host the Chicago Cubs<\/a> at 1:10 pm, while the other will head to Goodyear to face the newly named Cleveland Guardians<\/a> in an evening affair. First pitch will be at 6:05. Madison Bumgarner will start against the Cubs; Tyler Gilbert will start against the Guardians.<\/p>\nTorey Lovullo<\/strong> Pre-game<\/h3>\n
Luke Weaver<\/h3>\n
Moving Ahead<\/h4>\n
Torey Lovullo Postgame<\/h3>\n
Defense<\/h4>\n
Hitting<\/h4>\n
Trade News<\/h3>\n
Looking Ahead<\/h3>\n
Main Photo:<\/h4>\n