30-year old lefty starting pitcher Joe Saunders is having a rough time so far in August for the D-Backs.  Saunders has started 4 games so far in August and he is 0-3 with a 6.56 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP.  The Diamondbacks hope that Saunders will be better in September, because they are going to need all hands on the deck to hold off the Giants in the N.L. West.  Saunders has now pitched in 26 games (all starts) for the Diamondbacks so far this year and he is 8-11 with a 3.98 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP.  He needs to tighten up his control a tad as he has walked 58 batters in his first 165 innings pitched this year, but that’s nitpicking.

Veteran righty reliever Aaron Heilman almost won the #5 job in the starting rotation this spring for the Diamondbacks. Heilman has pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the D-Backs so far this year and he is 1-0 with a 12.15 ERA and a 2.25 WHIP. He has given up 13 hits in his first 6 2/3 inings this season (3 of which were homers). On the bright side of things, he has whiffed 7 batters while only walking 2 of them. I’ve always sided with the guys who think that Heilman is overrated, but the Diamondbacks need him to turn things around soon or they’re going to have to ditch him.

Last season 31-year old Chad Qualls and 26-year old righty Juan Gutierrez were solid performing late in games but this season they have both stunk it up. Qualls has pitched in 28 games (0 starts) for the D-Backs this year and he is 1-3 with 12 saves, a 8.46 ERA and a 2.19 WHIP. He has given up 39 hits and walked 10 batters in only 22 1/3 innings this year as he has been truly awful. Juan Gutierrez replaced Qualls as the closer last season when he injured himself but the D-Backs won’t let him anywhere near the 9th inning this year. He has pitched in 23 games (0 starts) for the D-Backs this year and he is 0-5 with 1 save, a 9.28 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP. Gutierrez has given up 27 hits (10 homers) and he has walked 10 batters in only 21 1/3 innings so far this year. It’s time for the Diamondbacks to give 31-year old righty Aaron Heilman a job that he has always wanted and let him close. He has been by far the best pitcher in the D-Backs’ pen this season working in 29 games (0 starts) in which he is 2-1 with a 2.83 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP.

The Diamondbacks need to make some changes in the bullpen before the season goes down the drain. The D-Backs’ bullpen is 4-8 with 7 saves, a 7.55 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP! Aaron Heilman is the only pitcher in the D-Backs’ pen with a ERA under 6.00 and that speaks volumes about how bad the pen has been this year. Heilman has pitched in 16 games (0 starts) for the D-Backs this season and he is 0-1 with a 4.05 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. A bad bullpen is the quickest way to crush a team’s confidence so the D-Backs can’t wait around to fix it.

26-year old righty starting pitcher Billy Buckner has been truly pathetic for the D-Backs this season. He has pitched in 14 games (11 starts) for the D-Backs this season and he is 2-6 with a 6.75 ERA and a 1.69 WHIP. He has allowed 85 hits (11 of them homers) in only 64 innings this season. He better miss more bats if he wants to have a future with the D-Backs.