Major League Baseball

D-backs' Tomas gets his chance

Published Apr. 22, 2015 2:28 a.m. ET

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PHOENIX -- The door is open for Yasmany Tomas. 

How he makes use of it is an open question and the Diamondbacks are as anxious as anyone to see what happens next.

"His opportunity is here for him to play and get some at-bats. Let's see how he does," manager Chip Hale said.

Tomas will not start every game at third base, Hale said before the D-backs' 7-1 loss to Texas, now that Jake Lamb on Tuesday was placed on the disabled list with a stress reaction in his left foot. But with Lamb expected to miss at least three weeks, the D-backs have the chance to take a long look at their six-year, $68.5 million investment, even though, as Hale said in echoing general manager Dave Stewart's sentiment this spring, Tomas still projects as an outfielder in the long term.

Tomas had an up-and-down first start at third -- similar to his spring training, when he played third almost exclusively before losing the starting job to Lamb. He had two hits and scored the D-backs' only run, singling to right field with one out in the second inning before taking third on a single by Tuffy Gosewisch and scoring on Nick Ahmed's chopper.

His infield single into the hole at shortstop loaded the bases with two outs in the sixth inning, after which Cliff Pennington pinch-ran for him and stayed in at third. Ironically, it was Pennington error that opened the door for the Rangers to four runs against Daniel Hudson in the eighth. 

Tomas has three hits in his first seven at-bats since he was recalled Wednesday, but all were singles. Hale said he was pleased with Tomas' approach on Tuesday.

"He had three good at-bats," Hale said. "Put the ball in play. We know what we have. We know he can hit. Just need to find some at-bats for him."

Tomas, who was force-fed third base in spring training, had three chances in the field. He made a nice play on a short-hop grounder in the second inning before committing an error when he failed to back-hand a grounder when he did not move his feet in the third.

He said he feels no pressure to perform in the absence of Lamb, whose loss he considers a blow.

"The injury Lamb has is not good. He is really important to the team," Tomas said through D-backs coach Ariel Prieto.

"I'm going to be ready for any responsibility they give to me. My goal that I believe is to try to do the best I can."

Tomas also could spend some time in the outfield, although with the four D-backs already there playing well, that might be more problematic.

Lamb, who was hitting .414 with nine RBI in 10 games, said he first felt his injury last weekend in San Francisco. He was heavily taped during starts Friday and Saturday and was worse Sunday morning, so the D-backs opted for discretion. An MRI showed no stress fracture, Hale said, "but it was going that way. That's why we got it early." Mark Trumbo missed about 11 weeks last season with a stress fracture in his left foot.

Lamb is in a walking boot he will wear for two weeks, and the D-backs hope he can return in three weeks. 

"It's frustrating, because I don't know what caused it," Lamb said.

Meanwhile, Tomas will get some but not all of the time at third base, Hale said, saying that Aaron Hill, Pennington and Jordan Pacheco could play there. Hill has made five starts at third this season.

"We'll match it up with our pitchers, their pitchers," Hale said.

Losing Lamb is "tough, but that's what the other guys on the team are for," Hale said. "You always are making adjustments. You can't feel sorry for yourself. You move on. He'll be back in some point. He'll be productive again. We just have to find some production from other guys."

Tomas is expected to be one of those guys.

Tomas played more than third base Tuesday; he shifted into a defensive position just to the right of second base for pull-hitter Prince Fielder's at-bat in the sixth inning, and he fielded a ground ball and made a routine throw to first to retire Fielder.

7 -- quality starts in the last 10 games by the D-backs rotation

* Chase Anderson permitted only one run and four base runners in seven innings in arguably the best start of his short career. He gave up three hits, including doubles to two of the first three batters for the Rangers' lone run against him, and retired the final 12 he faced after Adrian Beltre's leadoff single in the fourth. "I want to give the team a chance to win, and I felt I did my job tonight," said Anderson, whose seven innings tied a career high. He had command of both the two- and four-seam fastballs, and kept the Rangers off balance with his changeup.

* Patrick Corbin threw 20 pitches off the mound in a simulated game at Chase Field early Tuesday afternoon, facing hitters for the first time since his Tommy John surgery in March, 2014. Cliff Pennington and Danny Dorn hit against Corbin, who used all of his pitches in the short session. "He was filthy," said Pennington, who also faced David Hernandez. "That's going to be a huge lift. We still have some time before we are going to get them, so we have to keep going. We have to put ourselves in position when those two guys join the club, we are in position to make a move." Corbin is to throw again next Tuesday before possibly making an appearance in an extended spring training game. "It looked like he could go out there and pitch tonight," said Hale, who watched Corbin and Hernandez.

* Hernandez threw 25 pitches and next will throw in an extended spring training game Saturday if he recovers as expected. "Nervous. Anxious. It was a hurdle I needed to clear," Hernandez said of his first simulated game since his Tommy John surgery on April 1, 2014. "It felt good coming out," Hernandez said. A soft target for his return is mid-May. "The slider looked like the old David slider," Pennington said.

* Gerald Laird, who had back surgery Monday, was placed on the 60-day disabled list to make room for Danny Dorn on the 40-man roster.

* Daniel Hudson, who had not given up a run in his first four appearances of the season, was charged with the loss when the Rangers scored four runs in the eighth inning to break a 1-1 tie. Two errors helped set up the rally that was capped by Prince Fielder's two-run homer. "It wasn't the defense's fault. I couldn't command anything tonight," Hudson said. "Just one of those nights."

The D-backs were 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position, leaving the bases loaded in the sixth inning and two runners on in the seventh. Tomas' infield single with runners on first and second that loaded the bases in the sixth was their only hit. "We laid an egg tonight," Hale said, speaking generally.

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