Loss of Gonzo puts more pressure on Schilling, Big Unit

D-Backs lose but clinch playoff berth

Just because Arizona outfielder Luis Gonzalez's numbers are significantly down from the monster season he produced in 2001 doesn't mean his loss isn't a crushing -- and, potentially, crippling -- blow to the defending world champions.

Arizona will have to find somebody to fill Luis Gonzalez's missing bat in the lineup.(AP)

Gonzalez, who is out for the postseason after suffering a separated shoulder in a collision with shortstop Tony Womack in St. Louis on Monday night, is the heart and soul of a loose, veteran Diamondbacks clubhouse.

Worse, he is one of the main weapons of a solid but vulnerable Arizona offense.

Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling will string up their share of zeroes when the lights go on and the playoffs get under way next week.

But without Gonzalez, the Diamondbacks are going to have to win a whole lot of games 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 if they are to return to -- and win -- another World Series.

Even before the fateful collision between Gonzalez and Womack that might be a defining moment not only for this season, but possibly for this current group of Diamondbacks, Arizona's offense wasn't as potent as it was a year ago even though the Diamondbacks are leading the National League in runs scored.

Outfielder Reggie Sanders now is playing for San Francisco. Outfielder Danny Bautista, who was big for Arizona last fall, has been out since late May with a shoulder injury. Infielder Craig Counsell, who was in the middle of seemingly every big play last postseason, has been lost for the season with a neck injury.

Until this week, the Diamondbacks have been able to rise above all that. But then came a sweep by Colorado in Coors Field over the weekend, the broken foot suffered by left-hander Brian Anderson that will sideline him for the postseason, another loss Monday in St. Louis and with it, possibly the biggest loss of all.

Arizona manager Bob Brenly shuffled his rotation so neither Johnson nor Schilling would face the Cardinals until the start of the playoffs Tuesday. Now, however, the Diamondbacks not only are just two games ahead of the Cardinals for the home-field advantage in their opening-round series next week, but they have yet to clinch the NL West.

The importance of Gonzalez to the Diamondbacks cannot be overstated. His absence hurts them badly in at least three different areas:

1. The absence of his bat takes away Arizona's best hitter. His 28 home runs are a team high, as are his 103 RBI. The way opposing pitchers attack the Arizona lineup is totally different without Gonzalez as opposed to when he is in there.
2. The absence of his spirit detracts from the overall package in this veteran team. The distinct advantage Arizona has over most other playoff clubs is in its overall experience and character, of which Gonzalez is the spine.
3. The absence of his name in the lineup further depletes a bench that already wasn't as strong as what the Diamondbacks had a year ago. The choice apparently facing Brenly now is to insert David Dellucci into Gonzalez's spot in left field, or to move Erubiel Durazo back to the outfield and return to the Mark Grace/Greg Colbrunn platoon at first.

Neither of those choices is particularly appealing. Dellucci is a nice player to keep in reserve off the bench, while Durazo's outfield skills aren't exactly gilded in gold.

The challenges facing Johnson and Schilling a year ago were daunting enough.

Now, in light of this latest development in Arizona, the challenges facing the Diamondbacks' Dynamic Duo are even greater.

And that seems very difficult to imagine.