The Arizona Diamondbacks signed Nelson Figueroa this week. Figueroa played with Houston last season and bolsters the pitching depth for the D’backs

Every week on Sunday, Venom Strikes will look at the transaction report to see what movement has been made by the Arizona Diamondbacks that might go unnoticed by many fans. Here is the first edition of the Wacky Wire.

The D’backs signed three pitchers over the past couple of weeks.

On December 12th, Arizona signed 38 year-old right handed pitcher Nelson Figueroa. Some Diamondback fans might remember Figueroa from his first stint with the club. He was initially acquired by the organization in 1998 as part of the deal with the New York Mets that brought Bernard Gilkey to Arizona. He pitched in the minor leagues for a couple of seasons before making his major league debut for the club in 2000. He started three games for the D’backs posting an 0-1 record with a 7.47 ERA in 15+ innings pitched.

In 2000, he was part of the monumental deal that shipped he, Travis Lee, Vicente Padilla and Omar Daal to Philadelphia and brought Curt Schilling to the desert.

Figueroa has bounced around the major and minor leagues since then. In nine major league seasons with six different teams (Arizona, Philadelphia, Milwaukee,  Pittsburgh, New York Mets, Houston), he has amassed a 20-35 record with a 4.55 ERA.

Arizona also signed free agent Warner Madrigal on Monday. The 28 year-old right handed pitcher from the Dominican Republic will look to win a position in the bullpen during Spring Training.

Madrigal last pitched in the majors in 2009 with the Texas Rangers. He appeared in 13 games out of the bullpen and posted a 0-0 record with a 9.95 ERA in 12.2 IP. In 2008, he also pitched with Texas and posted better statistics, compiling an 0-2 record with a 4.75 ERA in 36 IP.

Madrigal has 10 years of minor league experience. Last season, he was with the New York Yankees organization in Class AA Trenton in the Eastern League. In two games for Trenton, he racked up a 20.25 ERA before he was released. During his minor league career, Madrigal is 15-9 with a 2.96 ERA in more than 200 innings of work. It is this type of production  that the D’backs are hoping to get from Madrigal this season.

Finally, the D’backs came to terms with free agent Alexis Lara on Tuesday. The 25 year-old right handed pitcher has pitched the last five seasons in the minor leagues.

The Arizona Diamondbacks signed pitcher Alexis Lara this week. Lara has played in the minors for the last five seasons with the Padres organization

Last season, Lara played at four different levels in the minors with the Padres organization (Low A, High A, Class AA, Class AAA). Over the four levels, Lara posted a 1-1 record with a 4.31 ERA in 31 innings pitching out of the bullpen.

He just finished pitching in the Dominican Winter League where he compiled a 0-0 record with a 2.08 ERA in 8 appearances. Those are solid numbers in a highly regarded Winter League.

All three men who were signed this week did not have their contract’s disclosed to the press at the time of publication.

September 20, 2012; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox right fielder Cody Ross (7) at bat against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Diamondbacks continued to stay busy this off-season signing outfielder Cody Ross to a three-year deal worth $26 million. The 32 year-old comes to Arizona after playing last season in Boston, where he hit .267 with 22 home runs and 81 RBI’s. Ross is a career .262 hitter in nine major league seasons. The versatile Ross has played all three outfield positions during his career and has catalogued time as a designated hitter which could help Arizona during Interleague play.

Ross has bounced around during his major league career. Boston was his sixth stop (Detroit, L.A., Cincinnati, Florida, San Francisco) as Ross now will stop the carousel for at least three seasons by joining the D’backs.  Many Diamondbacks fans know Ross from his days with the San Francisco Giants, in which his heroics, helped the Giants win the 2010 World Series.

Ross’ signing creates a crowded outfield in Arizona, as this move has lead to rumors that other Arizona outfielder’s might be traded.  With six outfielders expected to compete for playing time (Upton, Kubel, Parra, Eaton, Pollock, Ross), the Diamondbacks will have to address this situation sooner than later. Both Justin Upton’s and Jason Kubel’s names have resurfaced as potential trade options for the D’backs following the signing of Ross.

Ian Kennedy is one of a number of talented pitchers that the Arizona Diamondbacks have stockpiled. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

When general managers seek out each other during this time of year to discuss roster movement, the GM with the better pitching prospects tends to hold the cards when it comes to a potential bargain. Every GM seeks out better pitching and luckily for the Arizona Diamondbacks, pitching is one thing they have in abundance.  If a deal is going to happen with the D’Backs in which they get back a major league ready position player (namely, a shortstop), rest assured that one or more of Arizona’s young arms will be included in the deal.

With the signing of former Oakland A’s pitcher Brandon McCarthy on Saturday, the Diamondbacks now have a starting rotation that will almost certainly feature Ian Kennedy, Wade Miley, Trevor Cahill and McCarthy. At the beginning of the season, it looks like four men will battle for the fifth spot in the rotation: Josh Collmenter, Trevor Bauer, Tyler Skaggs and Patrick Corbin.

Jul. 3, 2012; Phoenix, AZ, USA: Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Trevor Bauer did not endear himself with teammates, like catcher Miguel Montero, when he was called up during last season. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Collmenter is the longest tenured of the four and has the most experience of the group, but has had his issues as a full-time starter (5-3, 3.69 ERA in 90.1 innings pitched in 2012). Bauer’s brief tenure in the big leagues last year was marked by poor pitching performances (1-2, 6.06 ERA in 16.1 IP in 2012) and the fact that his routine and demeanor caused waves in the dressing room. Skaggs had the opportunity to start a few games late in the season with some mixed results (1-3, 5.83 ERA in 29.1 IP in 2012), but showed promise. Corbin was somewhat effective as a starter, which earned him multiple call-ups throughout the season (6-8, 4.54 ERA in 107 IP in 2012).

If you add in two more young pitchers in Archie Bradley (12-6, 3.84 ERA in Class-A South Bend last season) and David Holmberg (11-8, 3.32 ERA between Class A Visalia and Class AA Mobile last season), Arizona has a minor league pitching system that has to be the envy of many organizations. General Manager Kevin Towers has an trunk full of riches to deal from.

The situation becomes a little easier to predict if the D’Backs use their pitching strength to deal one or a number of the young starting pitchers for an upgrade at shortstop. Towers says that he is open to listening for deals that include other positions on the field, but the one glowing weakness appears to be at shortstop.

Even if a deal is not struck between the D’Backs and potential suitors, they can always position themselves to be in the discussions near the trade deadline with the pitching that they have. Daniel Hudson will return (most likely in July) and that could bump one of the aforementioned pitchers from the rotation.

Whichever one of the six young arms does win the 5th spot in the rotation, he will have earned it. The competition for that spot will be one of the most hotly contested throughout all the big leagues during training camp. Those that do not win the job, will be on the market. Even if one of those pitchers wins the 5th spot, Towers could see it as an audition for other teams to look at what we have and then replace them with another young, capable arm if the right deal comes around.

With the addition of Brandon McCarthy, the Arizona Diamondbacks are sitting pretty when it comes to the future of their pitching staff and do not be surprised if the patient and strategic general manager of the D’Backs uses this strength to his advantage in future deals.