The Diamondbacks’ Torey Lovullo says he would love to have the sort of stability afforded by a long-term contract, but he doesn’t seem too bothered by the possibility of entering a fourth consecutive year as a so-called lame-duck manager.
Lovullo, who on Saturday was given a one-year extension that runs through next season, sounded both willing to go year-to-year and content to take whatever the Diamondbacks wanted to give him considering that they stuck with him after the club’s 110- loss season two years ago.
“It’s great to have the long-term contracts, right? Everybody wants that,” Lovullo said. “Do I deserve that? I do not know. I do not know. I feel like I’ve got to prove myself every single day to people. That’s how I was raised. You honor what they give you and then at the end of the day, if they want you back, then you honor that, too.”
The Diamondbacks gave Lovullo one-year extensions in both 2021 and 2022, as well, but the circumstances have been different each year. In ’21, Lovullo appeared fortunate to have survived a season that would have cost most managers their job. His extension last year arrived as the club began to show signs of turning a corner.
And though this year’s deal comes as a surprise in that it wasn’t longer — particularly since the Diamondbacks entered Sunday tied for the most wins in the National League — there appears to be a good reason for that, something General Manager Mike Hazen spelled out when asked if there was consideration given to a multi-year pact.
“I think in aggregate with where we’re all at, it just seemed to make a lot of sense for us,” Hazen said. “You know, where we in the front office are at, too, and the whole entire piece to that, this seemed to make the most sense for everybody.”
Translated: Hazen and others in the Diamondbacks’ baseball operations department are not signed beyond 2024, either. It is rare for a manager to be signed to a longer deal than the GM.
It could work the other way, too: Though Lovullo might have had leverage for a longer deal — and might have been able to get one with another team after the season — he might have felt committed to stick it out with Hazen after Hazen did the same for him two years ago.
“It would be great to get a lifetime contract, but that just doesn’t happen in sports,” Lovullo said. “I have, for whatever reason, been able to work through some very tough times here, and I’m more grateful for that than any new contract that I’m getting. They stuck with me, and I owe this organization my absolute best effort.”
Said Hazen: “We’re trying to, together, get through to the other side here to have a consistent, winning team for this organization. We want to do that together. This is a continuation of that.”
There is also an obvious connection between Lovullo, who is known for his ability to communicate and develop relationships, and the players on his roster, many of whom he has known since they were fresh out of the draft.
“The investments that he has made into our players, I want to make sure that those investments can be made back,” Hazen said in explaining the extension. “I think that’s an important piece of the young club that we have and where we’re looking to get to. I think he’s a very, very good game manager. … But I think what he does outside of that is even more impressive and more important for us.”
Lovullo said he thinks back often on the club’s dismal 2021 season. He recalls the constant support from his wife, Kristen. He remembers thinking about the talented young players the organization had coming up in its system and being hopeful he would still be around when they arrived in the majors.
“I have never stopped thinking about the ’21 season, even as we are coming out the other end,” Lovullo said. “It is extremely motivating for me. I think about standing on top of the mountain with this group and what that will feel like a lot, and I will remember what ’21 felt like and it will make it even sweeter.”
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: D-Backs’ Torey Lovullo grateful to come back another year