Major League Baseball

Enright relishing rotation competition

Published Feb. 15, 2011 10:12 p.m. ET

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Barry Enright had the kind of start to his career baseball players everywhere dream about, ringing up wins and respect over the first two months after being called up.

The final month didn't go quite as well.

Fighting physical and mental fatigue, the right-hander had an uneven finish, losing his final five starts to put a damper on what had been such a promising season.

Disappointed? Sure, who wouldn't be the way he started off.

In a way, though, it could end up helping Enright, let him know what he needs to do to prepare for the long haul of a season, that it's not always going to be so easy.

''It was a learning process,'' Enright said Tuesday. ''It was frustrating because you never like to lose, you never like to fail, but for me it's always about getting better, improving on every start, every year. It teaches me how to pace myself through a year, kind of what I have to do for the season, but those games in those later months as well.''

Those early months were great last season. Called up in late June, Enright started off his career by allowing three earned runs or less his first 12 starts.

After that, though, he started wearing down.

Fatigue took away some of the life of his pitches, causing a slight dip in velocity and cheating him of the late break non-power pitchers rely on to get hitters out.

The mental strain came from not being able to right himself.

Pitchers expect to have a bad start here and there, knowing the stuff is going to be there every time they take the hill. Enright's one bad start turned into several and he couldn't figure out why he couldn't shake it, ending September 1-5 with a 6.89 ERA in his six starts.

''It was tough to kind of go through that, to struggle, and the mental part of why can't I get out of this, why's it two starts, three starts instead of just one?'' the 25-year-old said. ''There's always going to be hiccups, always a bad start here and there, and you find yourself in those starts who you really are. Anyone can pitch when you feel great or you're throwing perfect, but when you get that confidence hit a little bit or that little tough patch it's how you handle it.''

Enright spent the offseason trying to make sure it doesn't happen again.

Teaming with left-hander Joe Saunders, another member of Arizona's rotation, he went through a rigorous winter workout program with a trainer who typically works with NFL players. Instead of the usual agility-type workouts baseball players go through, Enright and Saunders hit the weights hard in a more traditional style power-building program.

Now bulked up going into the season, Enright hopes it'll carry through to help him at the end, when his body has worn down and the rigors of the season have caused him to lose weight.

''We did anything you can really think of,'' Enright said. ''We did a lot of lower body stuff, a lot of squats, lunge stuff, weight-vest stuff. It was to put that strength on and have it carry on through the season.''

Enright may need it early, too.

Once considered a sure bet to break spring in Arizona's rotation in 2011, he now finds himself in a tight battle for the final two spots behind Saunders, Daniel Hudson and Ian Kennedy. That's because Arizona spent the offseason acquiring arms, adding Zach Duke, Armando Galarraga and Aaron Heilman to create competition.

Enright, for his part, relishes the competition, figuring even if he doesn't earn one of the spots, it will push the guy ahead of him to be better, in turn making the team better.

His hard work and attitude have already caught the attention of Arizona's brass.

''He understands and that's the way it should be,'' Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson said. ''You earn it, appreciate it, stay humble so you don't have to go back to the start of the line.''

The finish is what Enright's eyeing.

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