Diamondback’s pitching staff gets hit, but you should see the other one

Diamondback’s pitching staff takes a hard hit, but you should see the other one.

In a move that certainly won’t be a big hit with fans, the Arizona Diamond Shields suffered a broken hand.

That injury wasn’t sustained at an actual baseball game, but from “hitting something he shouldn’t have hit,” according to manager Torey Lovullo.

Lovullo has expressed frustration with Smith, Tell Steve Gilbert about it MLB.com that Smith sustained the injury after coming out of Saturday’s game against the Phillies.

Diamondbacks: Caleb Smith has broken hand, will miss time

In the game against Philly, Smith relieved starting pitcher Corbin Martin in the fifth inning and ended up putting up two innings of relief, allowing for two earned runs thanks to an Eddie Rosario RBI triple and an Orlando Arcia RBI single two batters later.

The last two seasons have not been good for Smith so his frustration is somewhat understandable but the move is certainly a selfish one as this injury has effectively removed him from all games in the near future.

After spending the first few seasons of his now six-year MLB career purely as a starting pitcher, Smith has spent the last two seasons primarily as a reliever in a Diamondbacks uniform.

Last year he made 45 appearances (13 starts) and went 4-9 with a 4.83 ERA and a terrible 5.10 FIP, hitting 20 homers and giving up 63 walks in just 113 innings.

So far, 2022 hasn’t been much kinder for him. In 31 games (one start), Smith is 1-1 with a 4.66 ERA and a shockingly poor 6.04 FIP. FIP is essentially ERA without considering the fielders behind the pitcher. This means his 4.66 ERA is as low as he is thanks to the defense behind him and would be over 6.00 were it not for the superior defenders behind him.

The 31-year-old southpaw has just 88 ERA+s this season, hitting 11 homers in 48 innings while averaging a whopping 5.4 BB/9. It could be argued that Smith’s absence from the Diamondbacks pen could actually be better for the club. He won’t go free until 2024, so Arizona is sticking with him for now.