After a fifth-place finish in their inaugural season, the Diamondbacks made several off-season acquisitions, including future Hall of Fame pitcher Randy Johnson, who won four consecutive Cy Young Awards in his first four seasons with the team. In 1999, Arizona won 100 games and their first division championship. In 2001, they won the World Series over the three-time defending champion New York Yankees, becoming the fastest expansion team in major league history to win the World Series and the first and only men's major professional sports team in the State of Arizona to win a championship. 22 years later, they would return to the World Series, only to lose to the Texas Rangers in five games, thus earning the Diamondbacks their first World Series loss in team history.
From 1998 to 2024, the Diamondbacks had an overall record of 2,087–2,185 (.489).[8]
On March 9, 1995, Phoenix was awarded an expansion franchise to begin play for the 1998 season. A $130 million franchise fee was paid to Major League Baseball and on January 16, 1997, the Diamondbacks were voted into the National League.[9] The Diamondbacks' first major league game was played against the Colorado Rockies on March 31, 1998, at Bank One Ballpark. The ballpark was renamed Chase Field in 2005, as a result of Bank One Corporation's merger with JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Since their debut, the Diamondbacks have won two Wild Card Series, five NL West division titles, two NL pennants, and the 2001 World Series.
They later became the fastest expansion franchise in baseball history to win a World Series. The Diamondbacks defeated the Yankees in Game 7 during the 2001 postseason.
After beating the Philadelphia Phillies 4–2 in Game 7 of the 2023 NLCS at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, the Arizona Diamondbacks returned to the World Series for the first time since 2001 – against the Texas Rangers on October 27, 2023.[10]
They lost the series 4–1 at home in Arizona on November 1, 2023.
Logos and uniforms
1998–2006
Uniform design from late 1990s through mid-2000s
The Diamondbacks' original colors were purple, black, teal and copper.[11] Their logo was an italicized block letter "A" with a diamond pattern, with the crossbar represented by a snake's tongue. This period saw the Diamondbacks wear several uniform combinations.
At home, the Diamondbacks wore cream uniforms with purple pinstripes. The primary sleeved uniform, worn from 1998 to 2000, featured the full team name ("Diamond" and "Backs" stacked together) in front and chest numbers. The alternate sleeveless version contained the "A" logo on the right chest, and was paired with purple undershirts. Before the 2001 season, the sleeved uniform was changed to feature the "A" logo. In all three uniforms, player names were teal with purple trim, and numbers were purple with white with teal trim.
The Diamondbacks' primary road gray uniform also had purple pinstripes. The first version featured "Arizona" in purple with white and teal trim along with black drop shadows, with chest numbers added. Player names were in purple with white trim, and numbers were teal with white and purple trim. In 2001, the uniform became sleeveless with black undershirts, and the lettering scheme was changed to purple with white, copper and black accents.
The alternate home purple uniform featured "Arizona" in teal with white and copper trim and black drop shadows. The letters were rendered in teal with copper and white trim, but were changed to copper with teal and white trim after only one season. This set was worn until 2002.
The alternate road black uniform featured the "A" logo on the right chest, while letters were purple with white trim and numbers were teal with white and purple trim. A zigzag pattern of teal, copper and purple was featured on the sleeves. In 2001, the uniform was changed to feature "Arizona" in front. The letters became purple with white and copper trim.
The Diamondbacks initially wore four different cap versions. The primary home cap is all-purple, while the road cap is black with a teal brim. They also wore a cream cap with purple brim, and a teal cap with purple brim. All designs featured the primary "A" logo. In 1999, the road cap became all-black and contained the alternate "D-snake" logo rendered in copper. Also, the teal and cream alternate caps were dropped.
The left sleeve of all four uniforms contained the snake logo with the full team name until the 2004 season, when it became exclusive to the road black uniform.
2007–2015
The franchise unveiled new uniforms and colors of Sedona red, Sonoran sand and black on November 8, 2006.[12] The red shade is named for the sandstonecanyon at Red Rock State Park near Sedona, while the beige (sand) shade is named for the Sonoran Desert.[11] A sleeve patch was added featuring a lowercase "d" and "b" configured to look like a snake's head.[11] The team also kept the "D" logo, which was slightly altered and put on an all-red cap to be used as their game cap. They kept the "A" logo with the new colors applied to it, with a solid black cap used as the alternate cap. Arizona's updated color scheme bore a striking resemblance to the Houston Astros' color scheme (brick red, sand and black) that the Astros used until 2012, as well as the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes, whose adoption of those colors predated the Diamondbacks by four years.
The white home uniform featured "D-Backs" in red with sand and black trim. The road gray uniform featured "Arizona" in red with sand and black trim. Player names were red with black trim while numbers were black with red trim.
The alternate red uniform contained "D-Backs" in sand with red and black trim, with player names in sand with black trim and numbers in black with sand trim.
There were two versions of the alternate black uniform. One design has the alternate "A" logo on the right chest, while the other has "Arizona" written in red with black and sand trim. The latter was introduced in 2013 as a tribute to the victims of the Yarnell Hill Fire. On both uniforms, player names were sand with red trim, and numbers in red with sand trim.
Tony Peña (left) in the 2007–2015 home uniform; Chris Burke (2nd from left) in the 2007–2015 road uniform; A. J. Pollock (2nd from right) in the 2007–2015 red alternate uniform with home pants; Bob Melvin (right) in the 2007–2015 red alternate uniform with road pants.
2016–2023
Alternate road uniform design from 2016 to 2019
Before the 2016 season, the Diamondbacks reincorporated teal into its color scheme while keeping Sedona Red, Sonoran Sand and black. They also unveiled eight different uniform combinations, including two separate home white and away grey uniforms. One major difference between the two sets is that the non-teal uniforms feature a snakeskin pattern on the shoulders, while the teal-trimmed uniforms include a charcoal/grey snakeskin pattern on the back. Arizona also kept the throwback pinstriped sleeveless uniforms from their 2001 championship season for use during Thursday home games.[13][14][15]
Starting with the 2020 season, the Diamondbacks made slight redesigns to their uniforms. The snakeskin patterns were removed while the teal-trimmed grey uniforms were retired. The team also reverted to a standard grey uniform after wearing a darker shade on the previous set. Two home white uniforms remain in use: the primary Sedona Red and the alternate teal. They would also wear two black uniforms: one with the primary "A" logo on the left chest and the other with "Los D-Backs" trimmed in teal. Three cap designs were also unveiled, all with a black base: the primary "A" cap, the teal-trimmed "snake" cap (paired exclusively on the teal alternates), and the sand-trimmed "snake" cap with red brim (paired exclusively on the Sedona Red alternates). The Nike swoosh logo is also placed on the right chest near the shoulder.[16] In 2022, the Diamondbacks introduced a red "A" cap with black brim.
In 2021, the Diamondbacks were one of seven teams to wear Nike "City Connect" uniforms. The design is primarily sand and has "Serpientes" in black script lettering emblazoned in front. The first "S" in "Serpientes" was shaped to resemble a rattlesnake. The right sleeve has the flag of Arizona patch recolored to the Diamondbacks' red, sand and black scheme, and the left sleeve has the "A" logo recolored to black and sand. Numerals are in red. The cap is primarily sand with black brim and has the "A" logo in black and sand; the regular batting helmet is used with the uniform. Initially, the Diamondbacks wore white pants with this uniform, but has since switched to sand pants.[17]
Before the 2023 season, the Diamondbacks promoted the alternate white uniform with teal accents to its primary home uniform and retired the previous Sedona Red white uniform. This is due to a new Nike rule that limits teams to four regular uniforms plus the "City Connect" uniform.[18]
Since 2024
Coming off their second World Series appearance in 2023, the Diamondbacks unveiled refreshed uniform designs starting in 2024. Turquoise returned full-time as an accent color on all uniforms along with Sedona red and black, but sand was removed except on the "City Connect" uniform. The home uniform is now a cream base with black piping, featuring the "A" logo on the left chest. The road grey uniform with black piping featured "Arizona" in Sedona red with teal and black outlines. The alternate black uniform with teal piping shared the same features as the home uniform. The alternate Sedona red uniform incorporated the full "Diamondbacks" wordmark in black with teal and Sedona red outlines, along with teal numbers trimmed in black on the left chest. All uniforms featured the snake head alternate logo on either sleeve, with the sponsor logo (Avnet since 2023) on the other sleeve. The home cap is Sedona red with black brim and featured the "A" logo, and its all-black counterpart is worn with both the home and black alternate uniform. The road cap is black with Sedona red trim and featured the return of the "D-snake" logo and is worn with both the road and alternate Sedona red uniform. The all-Sedona red alternate cap shared the same features as the road cap and is worn with the Sedona red uniform.[1][19]
On July 18, 2023, a federal bankruptcy court granted Bally Sports' parent company Diamond Sports Group a motion to decline its contract with the Diamondbacks as part of its chapter 11 bankruptcy. As a result, Major League Baseball assumed production of the Diamondbacks' regional telecasts (maintaining staff such as commentators), and distributed them via local television providers and MLB.tv. As of 2024, these games are branded as DBacks.TV. Games air on the following cable providers and networks:[21][22]
The primary television play-by-play voice for the team's first nine seasons of play was Thom Brennaman, who also broadcast baseball and college football games nationally for Fox Television. Brennaman was the TV announcer for the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds (along with his father Marty Brennaman) before being hired by Diamondbacks founder Jerry Colangelo in 1996, two years before the team would begin play.
In October 2006, Brennaman left the Diamondbacks to call games with his father for the Reds beginning in 2007, signing a four-year deal.
On November 1, 2006, the team announced that the TV voice of the Milwaukee Brewers since 2002, Daron Sutton, would be hired as the Diamondbacks primary TV play-by-play voice. Sutton was signed to a five-year contract with a team option for three more years. Sutton's signature chants included "let's get some runs" when the D-backs trail in late innings.[23]
Former Diamondbacks and Chicago Cubs first baseman Mark Grace and knuckleballerTom Candiotti were the Diamondbacks primary color analysts for the 2006 and 2007 seasons. Former Diamondbacks third baseman Matt Williams also did color commentary on occasion, as did Cardinals and NBC broadcast legend Joe Garagiola, a longtime Phoenix-area resident and father of Joe Garagiola Jr., the first GM of the Diamondbacks.
The Diamondbacks announced in July 2007[24] that for the 2008 season, all regionally broadcast Diamondbacks TV games would be shown exclusively on Fox Sports Arizona (now Bally Sports Arizona) and a few could possibly be shown on the national MLB on Fox telecasts. Bally Sports Arizona is seen in 2.8 million households in Arizona and New Mexico. The previous flagship station since the inaugural 1998 season was KTVK (Channel 3), a popular over-the-air independent station (and former longtime ABC affiliate) in Phoenix.
From 2009 to 2012, Grace and Sutton were tagged as the main broadcasters of the Diamondbacks with pre-game and postgame shows on Fox Sports Arizona, being hosted by Joe Borowski.
On June 21, 2012, Sutton was suspended indefinitely amid rumors of insubordination.[25] On August 24, the team announced that Grace had requested an indefinite leave of absence after being arrested for his second DUI in less than two years.[26] Grace was later indicted on four DUI counts.[27]) For the remainder of the 2012 season, Sutton was replaced by Greg Schulte (Jeff Munn replaced Schulte on the radio broadcast) and Grace was replaced by Luis Gonzalez. At the end of the 2012 season, the team announced that neither Sutton nor Grace would return for the 2013 season.[28]
On October 18, 2012, the team announced that Bob Brenly would return as a broadcaster to replace Grace and that he would be joined by then-ESPN personality Steve Berthiaume.[29]
The English language flagship radio station is KTAR. Greg Schulte was the regular radio play-by-play voice, a 25-year veteran of sports radio in the Phoenix market, also well known for his previous work on Phoenix Suns, Arizona Cardinals and Arizona State University (ASU) broadcasts. It was announced in February 2023 that he would be retiring after the 2023 MLB season.[30] He would call games with analyst Tom Candiotti.[31]
Jeff Munn served as a backup radio play-by-play announcer until 2016; he served as the regular public address announcer at Chase Field in the early days of the franchise. He previously served as the public address announcer for the Suns in the 1990s at what became Footprint Center. He is also the play-by-play radio voice for ASU women's basketball.[32] Mike Ferrin served in the same role for six years before parting ways with the team, and he was replaced by Chris Garagiola in December 2021.[33]
Spanish broadcasts
The flagship Spanish language radio station is KHOV-FM 105.1 with Oscar Soria, Rodrigo López, and Richard Saenz.[31]
Games were televised in Spanish on KPHE-LP—with Oscar Soria and Jerry Romo as the announcers, but this arrangement ended prior to the 2009 season due to the team switching fully to Fox Sports Arizona and the lack of carriage of KPHE-LP on the Cox cable system.[34]
Achievements
Baseball Hall of Famers
Randy Johnson (Hall of Famer) pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Arizona Diamondbacks Hall of Famers
Affiliation according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The rivalry between the Diamondbacks and the Los Angeles Dodgers has been one of the fiercest divisional matchups for several years.[36] Animosity between the two teams began to escalate during the 2010s in multiple incidents involving either team throwing pitches at one another or instigating into large-scale brawls between both benches. After eliminating the Diamondbacks and clinching the division on September 19, 2013, multiple Dodgers players celebrated the win by jumping into the pool at Chase Field.[37] The two sides met during the 2017 National League Division Series as the Diamondbacks were swept 3–0 by the Dodgers en route to their appearance in the World Series that season. The Dodgers led the series 257–191 with a 3–0 lead in the postseason.[38] After clinching the 2023 NL Wild Card berth and defeating the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Wild Card Series, the Diamondbacks played the Dodgers again in the 2023 NLDS.[39][40] There, the Diamondbacks emphatically swept the Dodgers to even the all-time postseason record between the two clubs at 3–3.
^ ab"D-backs unveil new uniform designs for 2024". Dbacks.com. MLB Advanced Media. November 17, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023. Fresh off the 2023 postseason, the chaos continues for the National League Champion Arizona Diamondbacks as they unveil four new uniform designs for the 2024 season, featuring Sedona Red and fan favorite, Teal as primary colors; and the return of the Off-White color scheme for the Home Uniform, the original "D" logo and the "Diamondbacks" wordmark. The uniforms reimagine tradition, while introducing a new age of Diamondbacks baseball.
news|last=Park|first=Do-Hyoung|title=First rule of '23 World Series: No lead is safe|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/rangers-d-backs-feature-resilience-in-world-series%7Cpublisher=MLB Advanced Media|website=MLB.com|date=October 28, 2023|access-date=November 18, 2023|quote=ARLINGTON -- The group from Arizona proudly calls itself the “Answerbacks,” and after that Game 1, the Rangers might have to come up with something thematically catchy of their own.}}
^Gilbert, Steve (November 8, 2019). "D-backs unveil 'cleaner' uniforms for 2020". DBacks.com. MLB Advanced Media. Archived from the original on April 5, 2023. Retrieved July 31, 2023. "Again, talking about brand, our primary colors are Sedona Red, Sonoran Sand and black," Maxey said.
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