Pitcher Barry Enright is set to start tonight for the Arizona Diamondbacks against the Milwaukee Brewers in his return to the major leagues. He was called up to replace Zach Duke in the starting rotation, who was moved to the bullpen. Manager Kirk Gibson told the media in his pregame press conference that Enright, while in Reno, "got himself back on track to where he was last year."
It sounds as if Enright, barring complete and utter ineffectiveness, will be with the team for the long haul. "The organization has decided that this is the way we want to go," said Gibson. It is an interesting way to go if it is, in fact, the story during a fairly tight NL West race.
Of course, it would make sense, coming on the heels of what Gibby talked about on Monday. He noted that one of the things that Enright went through last year was pressing some when things got a little rough, and that it is something common for players who start worrying about whether or not they will be sent back down to the minor leagues if they play anything less than what is expected.
To make room for Enright on the roster, the team released reliever Aaron Heilman, who had struggled this season with a 6.88 ERA in 32 appearances. While fans are mostly cheering for this move, it was a very tough move for Gibson.
"I remember what Aaron did for us last year as well as the effort he put in this year," he explained. "He threw over his head, I believe over 70 appearances last year, and it was hard at times last year to find someone who could throw the ball."
Gibson recalled how he was released in 1992 and bounced back to have "three great years after that." He is confident that there will be interest and that he will be successful.
There has been a little bit of noise that right-handed reliever Ryan Cook, currently in AA Mobile, was going to be called up. A teammate tweeted it out, but that tweet has since been deleted. Cook, who previous to this season was a starter in the farm system, has collected 13 saves in 34 appearances. He has an ERA of 2.25 and strikes out more than 10 per nine innings, while walking less than three.
As for the rumor, Gibson really would not comment. All he would say is that "he's not on my lineup card tonight."
Arizona is facing Milwaukee's Yovani Gallardo tonight and will attempt to win its fourth straight game. The game begins at 6:40 PM AZT and will be televised on FSN AZ.
For more Arizona Diamondbacks coverage, visit AZ Snakepit.