👋 GOOD MORNING

Happy Tuesday! I’ll get into the Diamondbacks’ lingering questions below, but first, I just wanted to give a hearty welcome to all of our new Diehards! The PHNX family grew substantially last week, and it’s so amazing to see our community continue to prosper. Every one of us here is proud to bring you the very best in local coverage, and it’s also an absolute privilege to deliver this newsletter to your inbox each and every weekday morning.

If you missed last week’s sale, don’t fret! You ​can always sign up​ to become part of our incredible community, and gain access to incredible Diehard perks like free merch, our Discord server and exclusive deals/discounts for many of the events we put on throughout the year! Don’t forget about all of our Diehard-exclusive content, as well 🙂

Finally, I’ve had the privilege of connecting with so many of our longstanding Diehards, and I just hope you know how much you are appreciated. We’re so proud to have you as part of our PHNX family!

On to the show!

Diamondbacks Still Have Plenty of Questions as Opening Day Nears

Opening Day is 9 days away, but the Arizona Diamondbacks still have some significant questions to answer.

The D-backs are 13-12 for what it’s worth, though watching standings / records in Spring Training is a relatively futile exercise. Arizona’s roster is rounding into shape with few surprises, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t still questions hovering around the team and what things will look like when it opens its regular season schedule next Thursday against the Cubs at Chase Field.

Takeaways From Diamondbacks’ Spring Training

The rotation remains in question, the big bats have come out, and some of the club’s most prized prospects are developing pretty darn well. So what should you be watching out for in the Diamondbacks’ final eight Spring Training games?

• The rotation is anything but set. Ryne Nelson was rocked in his outing yesterday (8 earned runs in 3 innings pitched), and Jordan Montgomery had a spring debut to forget in his only appearance so far (5 earned runs in 1/3 of an inning on March 8).
• Brandon Pfaadt has a strong case, having compiled a 2-0 record with a 3.18 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 11.1 innings pitched.
• Josh Naylor (.471, 7 RBI in 34 at-bats), Eugenio Suárez (.297, 14 RBI in 37 at-bats) and Corbin Carroll (.387, 10 RBI in 31 at-bats) are already putting up stellar numbers, showing plenty of promise that Arizona will continue to be one of the league’s top offenses.
• Jordan Lawlar, the D-backs’ top prospect, has had a solid spring (.294, 4 RBI in 34 at-bats).

My take: Much like last season, the offense appears to be well on its way to domination, but the pitching remains suspect. Montgomery’s struggles continue to be especially concerning, however, he reportedly ​had a strong performance​ on one of the D-backs’ alternate fields at Salt River following his disastrous Spring Training debut. But, does it really matter? There’s not much wiggle room for Arizona with him because he cannot be optioned, unlike some of the other potential starters like Nelson and Pfaadt. The spring is almost complete, but this debate looks like it’s going to carry on well into the regular season.

Take a deeper dive: Derek looks at ​whether Eduardo Rodriguez is a lock​ for Arizona’s starting rotation.

Musings From Around (and Sometimes Beyond) The Valley

Sunny Side Up: The Suns dominated the Raptors 129-89 last night, but the big question remains … can they actually win two straight games? That’s something the team has not done since late January, but needs to do if it has any chance of catching Dallas for the final postseason play-in spot. They’re still five games under .500, but just one game behind Dallas for the final spot.

Miller Time?: The rumor mill is swirling that GCU’s Molly Miller is being strongly considered as the next head coach of the ASU women’s basketball team, which recently parted ways with Natasha Adair. Speculation (I cannot stress enough, true speculation) indicates Arizona State, Arkansas and Missouri are the top schools vying for Miller’s services, however, nothing will be decided until GCU’s NCAA Tournament run comes to an end.

🧢 Tip of the Hat

A win 16 years in the making. Now go do it again!