Even though it seemed as if the Arizona Diamondbacks were set in terms of position players, D-backs GM Kevin Towers surprised some people with his signing of free agent outfielder Jason Kubel to a two-year deal worth more than $15 million. Towers explained the club's thought process today to the Arizona Republic's Nick Piecoro.
"We still want to improve our club instead of sitting on our hands," Towers said. "We didn't want to miss out on all the good players that are out there. We saw (Kubel) was still out there and we went after him."
The big reason for the surprise in the signing was that Kubel's signing now more than likely moves current left fielder Gerardo Parra into a fourth outfielder role. Parra won a Golden Glove award last season. Towers sees Kubel's addition as adding more talent and flexibility to the ball club.
"As you well know, nobody is given a job here," Towers said. "Parra is still very much a part of this club and was a big part last year. You can't have enough good players. You have to have depth. We did that with the infield, too. We'll see how things play out in spring training and how they go along. As of right now, adding Kubel adds another corner bat. Parra is still somebody we think a lot of."