According to a tweet from AZ Sports 620, Arizona Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson has named his starting rotation for the upcoming season. As it stands now, those pitchers are Ian Kennedy, Daniel Hudson, Josh Collmenter, Trevor Cahill and Joe Saunders.
Kennedy finished 21-4 with a 2.88 ERA last season in 33 starts, improving from a nine win season the year prior. He was last season's opening day starter and will be again this year.
Hudson finished 16-12 with a 3.49 ERA last season in 33 starts, ending the season second on the team in wins behind Kennedy.
In 31 games (24 starts) in his first full season in the majors last season, Collmenter went 10-10 with a 3.38 ERA. He'll get another shot to improve on those numbers as part of the rotation again this season.
Cahill spent the past three seasons with the Oakland Athletics with mixed results. His 2010 season was his breakout year with an 18-8 record and a 2.97 ERA but he regressed last season into a disappointing 12-14 record with a 4.16 ERA. The Diamondbacks are obviously hoping for the 2010 version.
Saunders will fill in the fifth spot in the rotation as the veteran back-end. Gibson said the Diamondbacks won't be skipping the 5th spot in the rotation this season since they have a veteran like Saunders filling the spot. In his first season with the Diamondbacks last season, Saunders went 12-13 with a 3.69 ERA in 33 starts.