Any concerns about Robbie Ray's velocity? Or did he take a while to get his velocity up last year also?
Ricardo, Enid, Okla.
Ray's velocity was higher in his first start of the year in 2017, but it was not down dramatically Friday night, so I don't think there's any reason for concern. The biggest issue for him seemed to be command with his pitches -- missing up and away with his fastball to righties. That strikes me as more of a mechanical adjustment that probably needs to be made and not something to do with his health.
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Jake Lamb is playing well to start the season again. Any reason to hope that he won't be just a first-half wonder like last year?
Chris, Waddell, Ariz.
I think as he continues to gain experience, Lamb will continue to improve and learn what he needs to do to maintain his consistency throughout a whole season. That's part of the growth process with any young player. Lamb has shown how extremely talented he is, and the next steps for him are to improve his numbers against left-handed pitching and be consistent over an entire season.

Love your articles! I know this is still a long way off, but given the current roster, what do you see the D-backs doing at the Trade Deadline? What sort of holes need to be filled? Thanks!
RC Paez, Nogales, Ariz.
Thank you. Wow, it's really early to be looking at that. It's so hard to say, because we don't know what injuries could pop up or what guys might struggle. If I had to pick an area right now, it would be pitching, because over the course of 162 games, very rarely does a team find itself with enough pitching.
What's your level of concern with Goldy not having a hit in the first three games of the season?
Peter C., Los Angeles
On a scale of 1-10, I would say negative one. Seriously, though, when a player has the kind of track record that Paul Goldschmidt has, there is absolutely no reason to worry three games into a season. I'm sure we'll look up in the next few weeks and find him doing just fine. If it were to last a couple of months into the season, then maybe it would be something to keep an eye on.