Makes no sense on its own, and even less sense in the wake of the Willingham and Beltran deals.

Ron Gardenhire obviously has pictures of Kirk Gibson dressed as Little Bo Peep, and he chose this offseason to share them with Kubel's agent.

You guys can't figure anything out.

Ron Gardenhire obviously has pictures of Kirk Gibson dressed as Little Bo Peep

Meh. Gibson could pull that off.

Ron Gardenhire obviously has pictures of Kirk Gibson dressed as Little Bo Peep

I don't believe what I just saw!

It’s possible that the Diamondbacks know something that we don’t know. 

It's quite possible (quite likely in fact) that 2011 aside, that Kubel is a significantly better hitter than Parra...

OTOH Parra is most definitely younger, cheaper and a better defender...

Isn't it probably at least partially the case that the Diamondbacks would prefer an OF of Upton, Young, Kubel, Parra to an OF of Upton, Young, Parra, Winfree and/or Gillespie? Yeah, if everyone's healthy all year it seems like a waste to sign Kubel and have him cutting into Parra's playing time, but how often does a team get through the season healthy?

Isn't it probably at least partially the case that the Diamondbacks would prefer an OF of Upton, Young, Kubel, Parra to an OF of Upton, Young, Parra, Winfree and/or Gillespie? Yeah, if everyone's healthy all year it seems like a waste to sign Kubel and have him cutting into Parra's playing time, but how often does a team get through the season healthy?

The problem is Young and Upton are young and will hopefully play 150+ Gs each, and Parra and Kubael are both LH. If Parra were RH, there could be a nice platoon using Kubel at 1B and LF. But as is, 2/15 is a high price for OF depth.

I bet there's another move coming with Parra. Otherwise, I don't get it.

I didn't understand the deal, either. Kubel is a LF/DH with more emphasis on DH. He is an AL player.

However, equating Kubel's and Parra's hitting ability is a little far-fetched. This was the first year Parra was a better than average hitter so we can't be sure this is a true reflection of Parra's abilities. Kubel has five straight seasons at better than average with 2009 garnering him MVP consideration. Plus, Kubel was hurt last year.

Parra is the better defender but looks more like a 4th OF. Of course, Kubel is better off as the left-handed half of a DH platoon. Kubel will play against RHP being pulled for defense. Parra gets time against RHP in center as Young struggles against them.

Why Kubel is still a bit strange.

It's quite possible (quite likely in fact) that 2011 aside, that Kubel is a significantly better hitter than Parra...

Parra will still be 24 at the start of this season. While it's likely Kubel will be the more valuable hitter the new two years, probably not by a great deal.

And it's almost a lock that forcing Kubel to play full time outfield for the first time ever in his career will mean his glove will give back more extra runs than his bat creates (over Parra).

eah, if everyone's healthy all year it seems like a waste to sign Kubel and have him cutting into Parra's playing time, but how often does a team get through the season healthy?

Rarely, but signing a DH with creaky knees who has never played more than half a season in the field for $15M is nearly the worst possible solution to that problem.