Wil Nieves went 2 for 3 with an RBI in the D’backs 5-3 loss to the Pirates on Monday. Image: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

Which meant it was the first start for Wil Nieves this season. 

This is an occasion that is not to be taken lightly.  After all, Miggy barring any injuries will catch his usual 130 games.  That means Nieves will have to at least hold his own during a tough day game after a night contest.  If Monday is any indication, then the team will not miss many beats.  The 35-year old Nieves went 2 for 3 with an RBI single.  Now we don’t expect his current .500 batting average to continue much longer but what he can not become is an automatic out.  His career average of .230 indicates that might be tough to do considering the limited number of plate appearances he is bound to receive.  However, he did hit .301 in 2012 (83 at-bats) splitting his time between the D’backs and the Colorado Rockies.  He won’t hit for power as he has only seven home runs in 838 at-bats.  The best thing Nieves can do if he hits eighth is to extend an inning so the pitcher does not have to lead off.  On defense, he will have to improve on his 23% rate of throwing out baserunners to compliment the strong play behind the plate of Montero.

For one game, Wil Nieves was the hitting star for the D’backs.  Too bad it had to come in a loss.

Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @venomstrikes

Follow me on Twitter @ltj41 and at www.clearthebases.net

Image: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

Spring isn’t all sunshine when it comes to battling for a spot on a 25-man roster for players, either.

The D’backs starting lineup is pretty much set heading into 2013 meaning the battles will be in the back end of the rotation, the bullpen and on the bench.

Miguel Montero, Paul Goldschmidt, Aaron Hill, Martin Prado, Chad Pennington, Gerardo Parra, Jason Kubel, Adam Eaton, Cody Ross and Willie Bloomquist are locks along with Ian Kennedy, Trevor Cahill, Brandon McCarthy and Wade Miley in the rotation. In the bullpen, JJ Putz, Heath Bell, David Hernandez and Brad Ziegler are also pretty much assured spots.

With the D’backs likely to carry 12 pitchers that leaves one starter, three reliever spots and three bench spots open.

Starting spot battle: Tyler Skaggs vs. Randall Delgado

Delgado was acquired in the Justin Upton trade along with Martin Prado. Delgado is probably projected for a back-end starter for his career and has solid stretches throughout his career so far. He owns a career 3.95 ERA over 127.2 innings in the majors. Skaggs has been a top-tier pitching prospect for a few years and appears to be ready to pitch a full season in the bigs. Skaggs owns a career 2.98 minor-league ERA. He did struggle a bit in his brief appearance with the D’backs last season with a 5.83 ERA over 29.1 innings.

Edge: Skaggs

Three bullpen spots: Patrick Corbin vs. Tony Sipp vs. Matt Reynolds vs. Josh Collmenter

Sipp and Reynolds have each spent quality time in the majors with solid results. Sipp has thrown 220.1 innings over the past four seasons with a 3.68 ERA and Reynolds has thrown 126 innings over the past three seasons with a 3.93 ERA. Reynolds and Sipp, both lefties, are solid bets to make the bullpen.

That leaves the final spot for Corbin and Collmenter to battle it out. Corbin is also a leftie and was effective over long stretches in the beginning of last season but then struggled down the stretch. Collmenter on the other hand, struggled mightily early and then picked it up as the season progressed. Edge: Collmenter

Bench Spots:

Back up catcher – Wil Nieves vs. Rod Barajas

Nieves was productive in limited time with both the D’backs and Rockies last season, hitting .301/.330/.410 over 89 plate appearances. On the other hand, Barajas was pretty awful in 321 plate appearances for the Pirates in 2012. He hit .206/.283/.343 for the season.

Edge: Nieves

With an outfielder and a utility player in Bloomquist on the bench already, the D’backs have some flexibility in the two remaining bench spots: Eric Chavez vs. John McDonald vs. Tony Campana vs. A.J. Pollock vs. Matthew Davidson

Edge: Chavez and McDonald

Eric Chavez is going to be looked at to provide some innings at the corner positions for the Diamondbacks this season.  Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Diamondbacks stayed busy at the 2012 Winter Meetings inking corner infielder Eric Chavez and catcher Wil Nieves to one-year deals.

The 35 year-old Chavez agreed to a one-year, $3 million deal pending a physical according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. He played last season in New York and put up impressive numbers in limited time with the Yankees. The left-handed slugger hit .281 with 16 home runs and 37 RBI’s in 113 games last season while being deployed at both first and third base. During his career, Chavez has provided stellar defense at the corner positions. Chavez is a six-time gold glove winner at third base in his 15-year major league career.

In his younger years, Chavez put together some stellar seasons while with the Oakland A’s. For a six year stretch between 2000-06, he hit 22 or more home runs a season for the Athletics. His career has been somewhat derailed by injuries in recent years (primarily back problems), but last season stayed healthy and produced during the regular season for the perennial American League powerhouse.

Chavez provides the D’Backs with a left-handed bat in the lineup with some pop. He looks to split time at third base with Chris Johnson and can provide spot duty at first base to spell Paul Goldschmidt. He also provides the organization with a designated hitter option during Interleague play.

Wil Nieves is going to be looked at to provide backup catching duties this season to Miguel Montero.  Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Hilderbrand-USA TODAY Sports

The D’Backs also re-signed catcher Wil Nieves to a one-year deal. Terms were not disclosed. The 35 year-old Nieves was not offered arbitration last week by the club as they felt he would command too much money, but the sides came together this week and came to a contract agreement. Nieves will spell Miguel Montero when Manager Kirk Gibson feels he needs a break.

Last season after signing with Arizona, Nieves hit. 306 in 16 appearances with the club, according to ESPN.com. He hit .301 with two home runs and eight RBI’s in 32 games last season (split between Colorado and Arizona).

For his career, Nieves is a .229 hitter in 314 games with six major league franchises (Arizona, San Diego, Milwaukee, Washington, Colorado, New York Yankees).

Bergesen leaves the team after only part of one season.

In other team news, relief pitcher Brad Bergesen was released on November 30th. After clearing waivers, Bergesen’s contract was sold to the Chunichi Dragons of the Central League in Japan. Bergesen departs Arizona after being acquired off of waivers last season from Baltimore. He recorded a 2-1 record in 19 relief appearances, posting a 3.64 ERA while with the Diamondbacks.

Like this, follow us on Facebook @venomstrikes

Follow me on Twitter @mikejenkins_99