Players who you forgot were Arizona Diamondbacks
These are players you may have forgotten about in the Arizona Diamondbacks' history.
Mike Hampton
Mike Hampton is best remembered for two things. The first was his tenure in Houston. From 1995 through 1999, Hampton pitched 984.2 innings to the tune of 124 ERA+, 3.85 FIP, and 1.34 WHIP. In Hampton’s final season in Houston, he finished second in Cy Young voting and made the All-Star game.
The second thing Hampton is known for is his disastrous contract with the Colorado Rockies. After spending the 2000 season with the NY Mets, he signed an eight-year contract worth $121 million. At the time, this was a record-setting deal. But he registered just a 78 ERA+ between his two seasons in Colorado. Ironically, he provided more value as a hitter than he did as a pitcher. He was salary dumped to the Atlanta Braves, where he rebounded and was a solid pitcher from 2003 to 2005.
But injuries would keep Hampton out of the game for two years. He finished off his eight-year contract in 2008 and returned to Houston in 2009. He didn’t pitch well there, with a 78 ERA+ once again. Hampton’s final hurrah in the Majors would be with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2010.
Hampton’s stint in Arizona lasted all of ten games and 4.1 innings in September 2010. Hampton went scoreless in all of his appearances for the D-Backs, striking out three and only walking one batter, but it was an intentional walk. However, the former All-Star would retire in May 2011.
Rickie Weeks
Rickie Weeks is best known for his days with the Milwaukee Brewers. From 2005 through 2014, Weeks appeared in 1135 games for the Brew Crew, batting .249/.347/.425. Weeks was consistently a power-speed threat in the line-up, as he had a .176 isolated slugging percentage and stole double-digit bases on six different occasions. Overall, he had a 108 wRC+ for Milwaukee.
Weeks’ tenure with the Brewers came to an end after the 2014 season. Over the next three seasons, the second baseman would bounce around from team to team. In 2015, he had a brief stint with the Seattle Mariners, where he transitioned from second base to left field. This brings us to 2016, Weeks’ lone season with the Diamondbacks.
Weeks provided a solid bench bat. In 205 plate appearances, Weeks slashed .239/.327/.450 with nine home runs. Weeks drew walks at a solid 9.8% rate with an isolated slugging percentage above .200 at .211. When Weeks played the field, he mostly played left field, but struggled defensively. He was worth -7 defensive runs saved and -8 outs above average in just 215.2 innings.
However, these were the only games Weeks would appear in for the D-Backs. After that, he signed a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Rays, where he struggled as a 1B/DH, and retired following the season.
Michael Bourn
Michael Bourn was an extremely fast defensive first outfielder who made two all-star games in the early 2010s. From 2009 through 2013, Bourn batted .277/.342/.375 with a wRC+ of just 97. Overall, this was slightly below league-average production. But his decent OBP helped him get on base enough to make his speed extremely valuable. He averaged 48 stolen bases a season through these five years. He was also an astounding defensive CF with +64 defensive runs saved and two Gold Gloves.
Bourn wasn’t really known for just one team. He was an All-Star for both the Houston Astros (2010) and Atlanta Braves (2012). He also appeared in parts of three seasons with Cleveland. However, the last team you probably think of when you see him is the Arizona Diamondbacks, the second to last team he would play for in the Majors.
Bourn had come off what was easily the worst year of his career in 2015. The speedy outfielder had to settle for a minor league contract with Arizona, and he mostly served as the team’s center fielder. Bourn appeared in 89 games with the D-Backs, batting .261/.307/.362. He did swipe 13 bags in 18 attempts, and his defense up the middle was still decent. He had +2 DRS in just 604.2 innings.
But with the Diamondbacks 20 games under .500 at the August deadline, they shipped him to the Baltimore Orioles for minor league outfielder Jason Heinrich. Although Bourn would have a quality month of September, this would be his final appearance in the Show. He signed another contract with the O’s in April of 2017 but was released by the end of May. Bourn was then signed by the LA Angels at the start of June but was released a month later.