Arizona Diamondbacks NL West Championship Came from Unlikely Sources

During spring training, no one would have thought that the Diamondbacks would be able to capture the title of NL West Division Champions. Arizona had one of the worst records during spring training of any team, and Kirk Gibson waited until the final week before even announcing that Joe Saunders would be in the rotation and not in the bullpen.

Meanwhile, down the road in Old Town Scottsdale, the San Francisco Giants looked sharp, together and poised to defend their World Series title.

No one expected that five months later it would be the Diamondbacks that would be on their way to the MLB postseason.

And why would they? The Diamondbacks' key offseason acquisitions consisted of Geoff Blum and Willie Bloomquist.

They had no legitimate corner infielder, relying on Melvin Mora at third and whoever was starting at first between Juan Miranda and Russell Branyan.

Arizona didn't appear to have a legitimate number one or two starter in the rotation. Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson would most likely, at best, be number-three man in most teams’ rotations.

As if the pitching wasn’t suspect enough, they were entering the 2011 season without the two players who had provided the most power for them in 2010—Mark Reynolds and Adam LaRoche.

No, the Diamondbacks did not live up to their expectations at the start of the season. In fact, they shattered them—something they could not have done without two players who had spent the previous season in the minor leagues.

Ryan Roberts was a 30-year-old who had spent the majority of his baseball career in the minor leagues. He took over third base after Melvin Mora proved to be a failure. While Roberts had some success in 2008, but spent most of 2009 in Reno.

He would have to act as a stop gap until Geoff Blum and Melvin Mora returned from injury.

Thankfully for the Diamondbacks, Roberts was destined for more than just a temporary solution. He continually contributed with timely hitting and solid defense, and proving himself more than worthy of an everyday spot in the lineup.   

He’s a player who has proven much more valuable than his pedestrian numbers would suggest.

Perhaps even more surprising than Roberts was a triple-A call up from Homer, Michigan that took a spot in the rotation after Armando Galarraga fizzled out.

Many suspected that Josh Collmenter's early success in the big leagues was due to his unorthodox overhand delivery—something he attributed to throwing hatchets in the woods while growing up. Hitters just weren't used to seeing the ball from that angle, but once Collmenter faced teams a second and third time, they would easily hit his less-than-overpowering pitches.

Twenty-four starts later, Collmenter is showing that his success is not just from his delivery, currently holding a 3.38 ERA and a 10-10 record.

Truly, the Diamondbacks is a team whose whole is greater than the sum of its parts.