When camp first opened, Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo and general manager Mike Hazen both talked about raising the standards. They were both careful to avoid the word expectations, choosing rather to emphasize the need to raise the bar in order for the team to get back to the postseason and the World Series.
Said Lovullo on February 17th, "We have set a standard here, and what that means to be an Arizona Diamondback. We all want to raise that bar and move it north. We're going to talk about achieving that standard, and working hard to get to that standard that we have set up. We're only going one way, and that comes with a lot of hard work and determination."
It's been evident for most of Spring Training that raising that bar has also meant a lower tolerance for sloppy play, either on the mound, on defense, or in the quality of at-bats. In fact, Lovullo showed his displeasure and frustration quite openly just 10 days later after a particularly sloppy game against the Rangers in which they lost 10-3.
Known as a player's manager, Lovullo has not hesitated to push harder with a firmer approach and a greater sense of urgency this spring. Addressing the matter, Lovullo was straightforward.
"It would be fair to say that. I am very fearful of complacency and I think it has to start with me. So I've probably been getting after it a little bit harder, coaching the coaches a little bit more and expecting them to go out and coach the players a little harder. You are definitely reading that right. It's something we talked about and it's a very conscious effort by me to not be satisfied with what happened last year and keep getting after it."
The players appear to be responding well to this approach. Setting any spring training game results aside, the effort and seriousness around workouts and drills in camp have been obvious. Watching the team work on bunt plays today yet again one could see the intensity of the effort and concentration the players were putting in. Lovullo acknowledged that.
"I think [the players] have been great......have been giving an unbelievable effort. We tediously worked through some bunt plays today, it's like the third or fourth time. That can get boring. I think everybody kept the energy up."
Lovullo made sure to bring up general manager Mike Hazen, who has been there pushing the manager and holding him accountable as well. Revisiting the standards part of the discussion, he said "We have definitely raised the bar here. The standard is at a certain level. If we feel like we're not getting up to that, we're holding one another accountable. It's been very powerful here."
More must-reads: