27-year old lefty swinging Kelly Johnson was signed as a free agent to take over as the D-Backs’ starting 2B in 2010. Johnson played in 106 games for the Braves last season and he was 68 for 303 (.224 avg, .692 OPS) with 47 runs scored, 8 homers, 29 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. The Diamondbacks are hoping that Johnson can hit to his career norms of .264 with a .776 OPS. The D-Backs will need Johnson to hit as he is not a good defender at 2B as he is a converted outfielder. Johnson made 10 errors in only 84 games at 2B for the Braves last season but he did show good range.

29-year old righty swinging Ryan Roberts will likely be the D-Backs top utility man in 2010. He played in 110 games for the D-Backs last season and he was 85 for 305 (.279 avg, .783 OPS) with 41 runs scored, 7 homers, 25 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. It’s possible that Roberts could work himself into a platoon with Johnson. Roberts made 2 errors while playing in 57 games for the D-Backs at 2B while showing average range. He can play all over the field so he will likely get his fair share of P.T. in 2010.

25-year old switch-hitting Tony Abreu will also battle for a job on the bench for the Diamondbacks in 2010. He came over from the Dodgers in the Jon Garland trade last season. He played in 6 games for the Dodgers last season and he was 2 for 8 (.250 avg, .705 OPS) with 1 RBI. He didn’t make any errors while showing outstanding range in his only game at 2B for the Dodgers last season. Abreu has a nice upside as his minor league numbers showed last season. He played in 77 games in AA+AAA ball last season and he was 103 for 307 (.336 avg, .902 OPS) with 47 runs scored, 11 homers, 53 RBIs and 3 stolen bases.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2B IN 2010: C

If it wasn’t for teammate Randy Johnson, Curt Schilling would have won the Cy Young Award in 2001 and 2002 (he finished 2nd both years). Schilling pitched in 108 games (107 starts) in his four years with the D-Backs and he was 58-28 with a 3.14 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. He was also awesome in the post season for the D-Backs. He pitched in 7 games (all starts) in the playoffs and World Series for the D-Backs and he was 4-0 with a 1.14 ERA and a 0.70 WHIP. He only gave up 32 hits while whiffing 63 batters in 55 1/3 innings in the post-season for the D-Backs. Despite only playing 4 years for the D-Backs, Schilling is all over the teams’ record books. Schilling is #5 in D-Backs’ history in games started (107), #3 in wins (58), #2 in ERA (3.14), #2 in complete games (18), #3 in shutouts (5), #4 in innings pitched (781 2/3) and he is #3 in strikeouts (875). Although Schilling was only on the Diamodbacks for four years he made a huge mark in team history.

The Diamondbacks went out and signed 30-year old lefty swinging Adam LaRoche to handle first base for them in 2010. He played in 150 games last season with the Red Sox, Braves and Pirates in which he was 154 for 555 (.277 avg, .843 OPS) with 78 runs scored, 25 homers and 83 RBIs. LaRoche is a slow starter and the D-Backs can’t afford that to happen again in 2010. LaRoche is also a very underrated fielder as he only made 2 errors in 148 games at 1B last season. That’s good news for the rest of the infield.

31-year old Jeff Bailey might have a decent shot at making the D-Backs this spring. He played in 26 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 16 for 77 (.208 avg, .746 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 3 homers and 9 RBIs. Bailey made 2 errors in 23 games at 1B last season so he will need to improve if he’s going to make the team out of spring training.

23-year old lefty swinging Bradon Allen will likely start the year in AAA because the D-Backs will want him playing everyday somewhere. He played in 32 games for the D-Backs last season and he was 21 for 104 (.202 avg, .669 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 4 homers and 14 RBIs. Allen often looked overmatched by major league pitchers who whiffed him 40 times last season. Allen made 2 errors in 32 games at 1B so he has room for improvement on defense.

27-year old righty swinger Conor Jackson will be likely the starting LF for the D-Backs so he won’t have much time to play his old position. He played in 6 games for the D-Backs at 1B last season making 1 error.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 1B IN 2010: B

The best move the D-Backs ever made was when they brought in The Big Unit. Johnson pitched in 233 games (232 starts) in his 8 years with the D-Backs and he was 118-62 with a 2.83 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. Johnson won 4 straight Cy Young Awards from 1999-2002. During those four seasons, Johnson pitched in 140 games (139 starts) in which he was 81-27 with a 2.48 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. He also whiffed a stunning 1,417 batters those four years. Randy Johnson is the D-Backs all-time leader in games started (232), wins (118), ERA (2.83), strikeouts (2,077), innings pitched (1630 1/3), complete games (38) and shutouts (14). But, the Big Unit will be remembered the most for his post season pitching especially the 2001 World Series in which he won game #6 as a starter and game #7 as a reliever. He pitched in 3 games (2 starts) for the D-Backs against the Yankees and he was 3-0 with a 1.04 ERA and a 0.69 WHIP. He whiffed 19 Yankee hitters allowing only 9 hits in 17 1/3 innings in that series. Overall, the Big Unit pitched in 8 games (7 starts) in the post-season for the D-Backs and he was 5-3 with a 3.07 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP. The Big Unit should go into the Hall of Fame as a D-Back instead of a Mariner because his best work was done with them.

26-year old lefty swinging Miguel Montero took full advantage of Chris Snyder’s injury last season and he established himself as the starter for 2010 and beyond. He played in 128 games for the D-Backs last season and he was 125 for 425 (.294 avg, .833 OPS) with 61 runs scored, 16 homers and 59 RBIs. Montero gives the D-Backs another solid bat when he is in the line-up. He is not the best defensive catcher around however as he made 9 errors and had 4 passed balls in 111 games behind the plate. He did throw out 21% of the runners trying to steal against him but D-Backs’ pitchers had a 4.11 ERA with him behind the plate so they like to throw to him.

The D-Backs have been trying to trade 28-year old righty swinging Chris Snyder but they have had no luck as of yet due to his bad back. He played in 61 games for the D-Backs last season and he was 33 for 165 (.200 avg, .685 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 6 homers and 22 RBIs. The Diamondbacks are really hoping that he hits more like his career norms of .233 with a .731 OPS in 2010. Snyder didn’t make any errors in 56 games behind the plate last season for the D-Backs but he did have 3 passed balls. Snyder only threw out 16% of runners trying to steal on him last season and pitchers had a 4.62 ERA with him behind the plate.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CATCHERS IN 2010: B