Diamondbacks' Torey Lovullo Talks Juan Soto, Golden At-Bat Rule

The D-backs' manager weighed in on some of MLB's leading narratives.

Diamondbacks head coach Torey Lovullo speaks to the media the day after the team was eliminated from playoff contention at Chase Field in Phoenix on Oct. 1, 2024. / Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The MLB Winter Meetings are in full swing, and Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo spoke with members of the media, discussing a wide range of topics.

Of course, the manager did address important D-backs-related topics in great detail. Those details will be presented by Diamondbacks ON SI soon.

But Lovullo also weighed in on some of the more noteworthy stories across the baseball world, including the signing of a major superstar, and a potential game-changing rule.

Juan Soto

Superstar outfielder Juan Soto signed a monstrous 15-year, $765 million deal with the New York Mets on Sunday. It's the largest contract in sports history, surpassing even Shohei Ohtani.

Lovullo is, of course, familiar with both Soto and the Mets, with Soto playing for Arizona's NL West rival San Diego Padres for a season and a half from 2022-2023. Lovullo had high praise for one of the game's biggest stars, and noted what makes the outfielder so great.

"I think it's his bat-to-ball skills, the balance that he shows, and the ability to control the zone and not swing at bad pitches. He's a tough out," Lovullo said.

"He's willing to sacrifice his strike to get into the at-bat. He understands what the at-bat is asking
for. The first time I saw him, he was 20 years old. I could not believe he was 20 years old. He carried himself like he was 30. ...

"If you're going to ask me one thing, it's the hand-eye bat-to-ball skill. It's elite. He knows where the ball is going, and he knows where the barrel is going to find the baseball," the skipper said.

The D-backs have already had to face Soto many times in his young career. In fact, they've managed to limit him. In 44 games and 192 plate appearances against Arizona, Soto has a mere .193 batting average.

But it's hard to keep a hitter like Soto down. Perhaps the D-backs' consistent struggle with the Mets could spell a dangerous 15 years.

Regardless, Lovullo said that Soto's skill would be sustainable for the duration of the lengthy contract, citing names like Ted Williams and Barry Bonds - elite company to be compared to. With Soto back in the NL, the D-backs will have to be quite wary.

Golden At-bat

It's been the buzz of the baseball streets lately: MLB commissioner Rob Manfred discussed a potential rule change last month.

The rule, known as a "Golden At-bat," would allow teams to insert any hitter in their lineup into a one-time at-bat during a game, regardless of batting order.

Teams would potentially be able to utilize their best hitter in any amount of crucial moments, without having to make changes to their lineup or wait for it to be that hitter's turn.

Of course, Manfred did say that the rule is a long way from potentially being implemented, and that he isn't personally in favor of it. But it's a potential nonetheless.

Lovullo weighed in on the rule, and was quite emphatic about it.

"You know, I always say it, I'll support what the commissioner says and what the commissioner is talking about and what Major League Baseball is willing to do. But, you know, I don't think it would work very well for me," he said.

Even with the thought of being able to use the rule in his favor - for example, using All-Star second baseman Ketel Marte back-to-back, Lovullo said that he'd support whatever MLB decided, but wasn't a fan of the idea by itself.

"I think it's changing the DNA of a lineup and the construction of a lineup. It would change
the way you could attack a lineup. It just doesn't seem like it's fair," Lovullo said.