Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher John Curtiss said it’s the goal of the team “to convince (general manager) Mike Hazen today not to get rid of someone tomorrow.” (Photo by Truitt Robinson/Cronkite News)

PHOENIX – For fans of professional sports, the trade deadline is a stop on the timeline of a season that can deliver optimism and entertainment. For athletes, it’s a different story.

Arizona Diamondbacks players are very aware that July 31 is approaching.

That knowledge can get in a player’s head. After a win, Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suarez said he thinks, “We got a chance to make the playoffs.” But after a loss, he wonders if his time in Arizona is over.

“Every time we lose, maybe something like that pops in my mind, which is not good for me,” he said. “I don’t want to get traded.”

Suarez is among those players with expiring contracts that will attract attention from other teams. Others in the same boat include Josh Naylor and pitchers Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly.

With so much speculation, how do players deal with the noise?

For pitcher John Curtiss, playing the guitar is his getaway. It’s a hobby he started after suffering a Tommy John injury (damage to the ulnar collateral ligament) to his right elbow while at the University of Texas in 2013. He’ll often bring his Dreadnought guitar on road trips and work on his song-writing.

And he knows not to get too caught up in trade speculation.

“This is my eighth major league team and I’m always trying to take it day-by-day,” he said. “Me individually, I’m just trying to earn my spot on the team tomorrow, today. As a team we got to convince (general manager) Mike Hazen today not to get rid of someone tomorrow.”

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo has seen how speculation can get in a player’s head. He knows he’s responsible not only for play on the field but also guiding the players off it.

“I’m here for the players every single day to answer the questions they want, to have the conversations they want to have, but to also be present,” Lovullo said. “I want to be present for them, and I want them to be present for me every single day.”

Even at 47-50, the Diamondbacks remain in the wild card race at 5½ games back, which is why general manager Mike Hazen hopes to be active in the trade market as the July 31 deadline approaches.

“I’m hopeful this is going to turn around and we put (ourselves) in the conversation to be buying,” Hazen told MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert.

Lovullo understands the pressure of the trade deadline, but he would like his locker room to stick together through it all.

“We can’t worry about the black noise,” he said. “The trade deadline is imminent. It’s a hard date, these players know it, but I want us to have a room full of guys that stay instead of a room full of guys that leave. And it’s my belief that it will be the case.”

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