Tony Clark Returns Home to the Arizona Diamondbacks

Glenn Darby by Columnist Written on July 17, 2008
Dbacks7_feature

In what appears to be a sign that Connor Jackson will be the permanent left fielder for the Dbacks, they have made a trade for Tony Clark.  The long-time Dback first baseman and clubhouse leader has been sorely missed this season as the rookies have struggled to break out of their slumps. 

With Eric Byrnes off chasing the fountain of youth and Orlando Hudson chasing dollar signs, the leadership role had fallen on guys like Jackson and Chris Snyder, neither of whom has been effective.

With the Padres, Clark had 88 at bats, hitting .239 with just one home run.  While the Dbacks probably believe Clark's bat will return at Chase Field, he was not brought on simply for his hitting prowess. 

The Dbacks have been playing Connor Jackson, the team's best hitter, in left field over his usual position of first base.  This has caused Bob Melvin to play Chad Tracy, a lefty, at first.  Tracy struggles against right handed pitchers which has caused Melvin to sit Tracy and move Jackson back to first, placing either Alex Romero or Chris Burke in the outfield. 

In order to get Jackson more consistent playing time in left, a right-handed platoon option was needed for first base.  Due to his history with the team, Clark seemed like a perfect fit.

The Dbacks sent minor league pitcher, Evan Scribner, to the Padres to complete the deal.

(0)
...
Share This  
Crop_45x45
or to post this comment

0 Comments

There are no comments yet. Get the conversation started by leaving the first comment

Loading more comments...
posted just now
  • Loading...
  • Nobody has liked this comment yet
Cancel

This comment and all replies have been deleted This comment has been deleted Undo delete

279
reads

0
comments

written on July 17, 2008 Breaking News

The best Diamondbacks newsletter on the web

Subscribe Now

We will never share your email address