2008 Arizona Diamondbacks

The 2007 MLB season was surprisingly good for the Arizona Diamondbacks, so good that they took not only the top spot in the National League West division, they finished the regular season with 90 wins and 72 losses – the best record in the league. The biggest news of the off season is the acquisition of Dan Haren, one of the best pitchers in the league, and GM Josh Byrnes is betting that Haren will be enough to get the D-Backs back to the playoffs. Haren will be joining a truly stellar young line up, including Brandon Webb, Stephen Drew, Chris B. Young and Conor Jackson, and though the Diamondbacks are front runners for the NL West title, they’re going to need all the help they can get to battle in this brutal division. Any true baseball fan knows the only way to watch a game is live and in person – so get your tickets to Chase Field now and cheer the Arizona Diamondbacks on to a winning season in 2008!

Early Years

The Arizona Diamondbacks were created as part of the 1998 expansion that also saw baseball arrive in Tampa Bay. Even though they are one of the youngest teams in all of baseball, the Diamondbacks quickly established themselves as a contender. After capturing the NL West title in 1999 they made it all the way to the World Series in 2001 where they defeated the New York Yankees in a thrilling 7 game series.

The 2001 World Series winning team was stocked with veterans such as pitchers Curt Schilling and Randy Johnson, and hitters such as Luis Gonzalez, Steve Finley, and Mark Grace. After winning the division again the following year the team got old quickly and lost 111 games in 2004.

A Younger Roster

The Diamondbacks turned over their roster and now field a younger and hungrier team. Much to the surprise of the experts the young Diamondbacks won the West division for the 4th time in 2007. With a solid young team and a beautiful ballpark, the fans of Phoenix will be entertained for years to come. The stadium, formerly Bank One Ballpark, but now called Chase Field, features many new amenities sure to delight fans including a swimming pool in deep centerfield and a retractable roof that lets fans watch the game in air conditioned comfort regardless of the scorching temperatures outside.

The Phoenix area is home to each of the 4 major American Sports leagues. The NBA’s Phoenix Suns play at US Airways Center and the NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes’ home court is the Jobing.com Arena, right down the street from the Diamondbacks. The Arizona Cardinals of the NFL recently opened the brand new University of Phoenix Stadium just outside Phoenix which features a retractable field that can be rolled outside for natural sunlight.