Josh Booty threw 28 pitches in his Spring debut. Joe Cavaretta, Associated Press)

Right now, there are no plans to have the 37-year old righty to pitch in a Cactus League game.  Pitching coach Charles Nagyattended the game and came away impressed with Booty’s performance:

“It knuckles. It’s just a matter of him commanding it,” Nagy said. “It’s huge for anybody who has never pitched on a mound in a game. It was a great opportunity in that environment, instead of sticking him on the mound in a stadium full of people. That’s progress. We’ll go from there.”

Ultimately, it will be up to Nagy and manager Kirk Gibson to determine if Booty will get another opportunity in a game setting, be it a regular exhibition contest or another “B” game.  Now that Opening Day is less than three weeks away, the team could decide to see more from the pitchers that actually have a shot to make the club out of Spring Training, limiting the chances Booty could receive.  At this point, the only scenarios that would have Booty enter a game is a blowout or a situation like March 24th when the D’backs have split squad contests against the Los Angeles Dodgers and Seattle Mariners.  Also if Booty wants to play this year even in the Minors , the Miami Marlins hold his draft rights and would have the first opportunity to sign him.  It is just another interesting storyline in a Spring full of upheaval in D’back land.

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Feb 24, 2012; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitching coach Charles Nagy (center) talks with pitchers including starting pitcher Josh Collmenter (55) and relief pitcher J.J. Putz (40) during a workout at Salt River Fields. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

There might not be a more important person in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization this season than pitching coach Charles Nagy. The 45 year-old is entering his third season as Arizona’s pitching coach and will have to manage a staff of relatively young arms. Whether it be the organization of a starting staff to repairing mechanics of each of his pitchers to being a makeshift psychologist, the pitching coach has to do it all for his group that he is in charge of. Luckily for the D’backs, Nagy is a great fit for their staff as both he and his staff try to continue to prove themselves in the big leagues.

Nagy was a professional pitcher before he turned to coaching. The sinker-ball throwing, right-handed pitcher pitched for two major league clubs (Cleveland, San Diego) over a career that spanned 14 seasons. The three-time All-Star finished his career with a 129-105 record, including a stretch from 1995-1999 where he averaged 15 wins a season, a feat only matched by future Hall of Fame pitcher Greg Maddux.

Nagy was a workhorse for the Cleveland Indians during his prime. He ate up innings with regularity and was arguably the Tribe’s best pitcher leading them to the World Series twice (1995, 1997) during his stint with the club. His playing career was eventually derailed by elbow issues.

After his playing career was over, Nagy worked for the Indians in thier front office before turning to coaching. He began his career at the professional level in Salt Lake City with the Class AAA Bees serving as their pitching coach in 2006-07.

He would then move on to Class AAA Columbus where he would hold the same role with the Clippers. In 2010, the Clippers won the Class AAA championship with Nagy at the controls of their staff. Shortly thereafter, he was hired by the D’backs.

In his brief tenure as D’backs pitching coach, Nagy has made marked improvements. In 2011, four pitchers won more than 10 games (Ian Kennedy, Daniel Hudson, Joe Saunders, Josh Collmenter). Kennedy won 21 games and Hudson 16 games which led the National League as a duo.  Also, in 2011, the D’backs staff ERA dropped 1.01 from the previous season (4.81 to 3.80), representing the biggest drop in all of Major League Baseball.

In 2012, a slight increase in the stats was seen as the D’backs underwent a number of changes. Hudson’s injury, the trade of Saunders and the introduction of a number of new pitchers into the rotation led to a slightly higher ERA (3.93) and a dip for the D’backs in their overall statistical output.

With the D’backs starting staff being relatively young (all under the age of 30), Nagy’s job is to formulate, teach and refine a staff, many of whom are still learning the game at the big league level.

Apr. 17, 2012; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Ian Kennedy throws in the first inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Chase Field.Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The oldest starting pitcher on the D’Backs is newly acquired Brandon McCarthy (29). Staff ace Ian Kennedy is 27 and coming off a sub-par year based on his expectations. Last season’s pleasant surprise and 2nd place finisher in the Rookie of the Year voting, Wade Miley, is 26. Daniel Hudson is 25, but not fully healthy as he is coming off of major elbow surgery (Tommy John). He is not slated to return until mid-July. Trevor Cahill is 24 and is looking to better his form from last year. Patrick Corbin is 23 and coming off of a season in which he recieved several opportunities to show what he had, with mixed results. Tyler Skaggs is the most hyped of all the D’backs prospects, but at the age of 21, he struggled at times at the major league level last season.

For Nagy, his job is to round up this group of eccletic pitchers and make each and every one better at their jobs. If the D’backs are going to have success this season, their starting pitching will have to be stellar. That job begins and ends with Charles Nagy.

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Mike Zagurski (49) pitches during the game against the Washington Nationals in the ninth inning at Chase Field. Image: Jennifer Stewart-US PRESSWIRE

Transactions: The Dbacks were forced to make a few moves over the weekend that saw Josh Collmenter head to the disabled list with ulcers and a recall of right hander Brad Bergeson from Triple-A Reno. They also had to place Willie Bloomquist on the DL with a back issue that has hampered him for a couple weeks now. To fill his roster spot they promoted infielder Jake Elmore to make his major league debut for the club. The other move was a matter of choice as they [finally] designated Mike Zagurski for assignment while recalling right hander Bryan Shaw.

Record Notes: The team is playing .500 ball lately and still sits one game above .500 on the season at 58-57 but lost a game to the first place Giants and now trail them by five games. They have won three series, lost three series, and split three [four game] series in the second half of the season.

*With their 9-1 loss on Friday night, the team fell to 1-39 in games in which they scored two or fewer runs.

*With their 6-5 loss on Saturday night the team dropped to a major league worst 8-17 in one run games on the year and have lost five straight one run affairs.

GOOD: Patrick Corbin put together another impressive start on Sunday working seven innings while allowing just four hits and two earned runs. He didn’t walk a batter, collected seven strikeouts and at one point retired sixteen straight Nationals hitters. The 23 year old rookie has been excellent in August posting an ERA of 1.89 and a 2-0 record in nineteen innings of work.

*Bryan Shaw returned to the Diamondbacks bullpen Saturday night after being demoted on July 20^th and he didn’t disappoint striking out the side in the seventh inning. J.J. Putz came in during the ninth on Sunday and retired the final two hitters to record his 13^th consecutive save and 22^nd overall.

*Aaron Hill’s bat livened over the weekend as he collected a pair of doubles and his first homerun in 20 games. He also drove in his first run in the month of August.

BAD: Trevor Cahill was mediocre yet again on Friday as he surrendered two homeruns and four earned runs over six innings of work. Cahill has failed to win consecutive starts in nine consecutive appearances now dating back to June 3^rd. He has given up at least three runs in seven of those nine starts.

*Paul Goldschmidt began the series 0 for 9 on Friday and Saturday before finally breaking through with a clutch performance on Sunday as he went 2 for 4 with three RBI’s and a stolen base. Goldie is mired in a 3 for 20 mini-slump right now but hopefully Sunday’s effort will get the first baseman rolling again. His eleventh stolen base on the year leads all National League first baseman and is tied for the most in MLB at his position.

UGLY: Takashi Saito suffered another abbreviated outing on Sunday lasting just 1/3 of an inning while giving up three hits and a pair of runs before being pulled. In his last three outings the right hander has working just 1 1/3 innings while allowing six hits and four earned runs including a homerun. His ERA has skyrocketed over 6.00 (6.14) and his struggles are coming at an inconvenient time as the team is making a “push” for a playoff spot.

*Mike Zagurski was again hit hard on Friday night allowing four earned runs on four hits- three doubles- as pitching coach Charles Nagy and Gibby let the left hander grind his way through one of the worst innings he’s thrown all season- he allowed four earned runs in 2/3 inning on June 20^th. With the game virtually out of reach everyone was forced to watch the 29 year old painfully battle hitter after hitter and without a reliever warming up. The outing sent Zagurski’s ERA over 6.00 on the year (6.18) and prompted his demotion to Triple-A Reno the following day. The Dbacks now have zero left handed relievers in their bullpen with Zagurski’s demotion and the Craig Breslow trade at the deadline.

*Chris Johnson came back to reality during his first series at the friendly confines of Chase Field. He collected just one hit in eleven at bats and misplayed a couple balls being credited with his 16^th & 17^th errors on the year. Since he blasted a pair of homeruns against the Pirates last Tuesday, the third baseman is just 4 for 20 (.200) with six strikeouts. He did still knock in two runs over the weekend pushing his RBI total as a Diamondback to 18 in just 13 games. While the offensive downfall isn’t concerning considering how well he has been, the defensive mishaps are something the defense [and pitching staff] cannot afford. He has already committed four errors in his time as a Diamondback.

*Team Defense. What a horrible display of fielding once again this weekend as the club tacked on another three error game Saturday night on their way to committing five errors over the three games. It was their second consecutive series with five errors and they now have eleven errors in just their last eight games. Still, even with their recent struggles on the field the defense sports the tenth best fielding percentage in all of baseball at .984- the MLB leading Mariners have a .990 percentage.

NOTES: *Arizona State alumni Jake Elmore made his major league debut on Saturday night as a pinch hitter coming to the plate with runners on first and second and one out. It was a quality at bat as he saw four pitches before flying out to right field for the second out.

*The Dbacks have seen some difficult opponents in their last five series with the Mets, Dodgers, Phillies, Pirates and Nationals finishing 9-8 during that span. All but the Phillies are either the division leader or contending for at least a playoff spot with under 50 games to go. In the Phillies series the team was dealt the hand of Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee in the final two matchups, two of the toughest starters in baseball when they are hitting their spots. As the team travels to St. Louis to start a three game set Tuesday night, they will be faced with yet another tough opponent that has fared very well against the Dbacks as of late.

*Ian Kennedy will take the hill tomorrow evening to try to rectify his poor outing against the Pirates and take game one that will kick off their nine game road trip. In Kennedy’s first start against the Cardinals earlier this summer he was hit hard in the first two innings allowing six earned runs on two homeruns but was able to shut down their offense after the second to throw seven complete innings.

Now bring on the Cardinals!!

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 Sidenote: This awesomeness kicks off Wednesday in Long Beach, CA: http://vimeo.com/40057950