The 2019 season isn’t likely to end in the playoffs for the Arizona Diamondbacks, but the team rewarded general manager Mike Hazen for steady growth on Friday, announcing that it has given Hazen a contract extension.
Terms of the deal weren’t released, but it’s clear Arizona would like Hazen to continue building the team. The Diamondbacks were in the midst of a surprising second-half surge despite trading Zack Greinke on July 31, but they’ve lost six in a row to fall 4.5 games behind in the NL wild-card race.
Still, Hazen was given the vote of confidence.
#Dbacks have reached an agreement on a contract extension with GM Mike Hazen. It had been in the works for 10 days. Length and terms were not announced.
— Steve Gilbert (@SteveGilbertMLB) September 14, 2019
Good timing
According to reports, the Diamondbacks had been working on the extension with Hazen for 10 days.
That’s significant because the Boston Red Sox abruptly fired Dave Dombrowski, their president of baseball operations, earlier this week. Hazen came up with Red Sox organization, starting in 2006, before the Diamondbacks hired him away in 2016.
With the extension, Arizona can be confident Hazen won’t leave for Boston.
Hazen out of running as next @RedSox head of baseball ops. Extends @Dbacks contract. My latest @ForbesSports column https://t.co/VrTUGwU9nJ
— Barry M. Bloom (@Boomskie) September 14, 2019
A slow build
Hazen has made several significant moves since coming to Arizona. He traded away Jean Segura and Mitch Haniger to Seattle for Ketel Marte and Taijuan Walker; while Walker has been unable to stay healthy and Haniger became a productive player, Marte has turned into a star.
He also traded Paul Goldschmidt to the St. Louis Cardinals before he could leave in free agency and swung the Greinke deal.
Hazen’s most noteworthy accomplishment? Remaining competitive — even making the playoffs as a wild card in 2017 — while improving the farm system from one of baseball’s worst to one of its best.
The baseball future seems bright in Phoenix, and Mike Hazen will remain a part of it.
This is the best Arizona sports news we’ve had in a long, long time.
The Dbacks are in very good hands. Mike Hazen might be the best GM in baseball right now. https://t.co/MVmC4V7Z9D
— Zona Sports (@AZSportsZone) September 14, 2019
