Diamondbacks History

In April 2000, Randy Johnson pitched the best first month in baseball history, going 6-0 with a 0.91 ERA, including 3complete games and a pair of shutouts and went on to win his 2nd straight Cy Young award. He also recorded his 3,000th career strike out. In May 2000, the Diamonbacks set a club record by winning nine consecutive games The D-Backs finished the season in 3rd Place with an 85-77 record, which was an utter disappointment for the team. As a result, Manager Buck Showalter was fired, and broadcaster Bob Brenley was hired. In 2001, Curt Schilling along with Randy Johnson dominated the NL all season finishing 1-2 in almost every major pitching category. The twosome went on to finish 1-2 n the Cy Young voting with Johnson earning his 3rd straight Cy Young award. For the season, the team’s offense was anchored by newly acquired Mark Grace. His hitting helped the D-Backs to reach the playoffs. The Diamondbacks bested the Brewers, by 5-0, to clinch at least a tie for the NL West crown.

The D-Backs won their second division title in three years. In the NLDS the Diamondbacks faced the St. Louis Cardinals. Schilling dominated the Cardinals. In the NLCS the Diamondbacks would face the Atlanta Braves. With Johns, and Schilling winning a total of 3 games the D-backs would take the series in 5 games. In the World Series the Diamondbacks faced the 26-time World Champion New York Yankees. In one of the most exciting series ever, they bested the perennial champions, the New York Yankees by 4 – 3. Randy Johnson became the first pitcher to win 3 World Series game in 33 years. After the victory, duo of Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling became unhitable. They once again helped the D-backs to win their third NL West title in 4 years. However in the NLDS, the D-backs fell in 3 games by the St. Louis Cardinals. In 2003, the D-backs signed Luis Gonzalez to a three-year contract extension through the 2006 season and Randy Johnson to a two-year contract extension through the 2005 season. 6the D-backs finished the season in 3rd place with a record of 84-78. In 2004, the performance of D-Backs became miserable. They dropped to a record of 51-111. For the team’s poor performance, Manager Bob Brenly was fired and was replaced by Al Pedrique on provisional basis. The team’s new acquisition Richie Sexson would get off to a good start but was sidelined due to a shoulder injury. Even Luis Ginzalez was also sidelined later due to elbow injury. Johnson became the highlight of the season by pitching a perfect game striking out 13 and at becoming the oldest to accomplish this feat at the age of 40. In November 2004, Wally Backman was hired as the new manager of the team but was immediately replaced by D-Backs bench coach and Seattle manager Bob Melvin.

The Diamondbacks became a major league franchise on March 9, 1995 when Major League Baseball (MLB) awarded the franchise to an investment group headed by Jerry Colangelo belonging to Phoenix. Roland Hemond was named the club’s vice president of baseball operations. The D-Backs started playing in 19981998 under the direction of former New York Yankees manager Buck Showalter. Prior to that, the team filled its roster. The team signed several free agents, including shortstop Jay Bell and pitcher Andy Benes, third baseman Matt Williams and center fielder Devon White. The team in its inaugural season finished last in its division with a win-loss record of 65-97. The following season the records of the team improved due to the outstanding playing abilities of the raw and young talent and the veteran players. Before the 1999 season, the team acquired Randy Johnson as a free agent. He helped the team to register 100-62 record and earn their first West Division title. Johnson earned the NL Cy Young Award. The D-backs play their home games in Bank One Ballpark. The logo of the team has an alphabet "A," which somehow suggests a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake. The team’s alternate logo is a letter "D" in the shape of a snake.