PHOENIX -- As he heads into baseball's version of the holiday shopping season, D-backs general manager Josh Byrnes has a very short list of needs.

Unfortunately for the D-backs, what they're in search of seems to be the same thing that just about every team in baseball has in its sights: pitching.

With a starting rotation that was inconsistent outside of Brandon Webb, the D-backs need to add at least one top-end starter, which in this year's marketplace could be tough. Few top-flight pitchers are out there, and thanks to the overall health of the industry, most teams have at least some money to spend in search of it.

That was one of the reasons the D-backs acquired Livan Hernandez in early August. Not only did they view him as a help down the stretch as they battled for a Wild Card spot, but the veteran right-hander was under contract for the 2007 season at a relatively inexpensive rate of $7 million.

Miguel Batista was the club's No. 3 starter last year, but he is a free agent himself and seems likely to sign elsewhere. That would leave the D-backs with three spots to fill in their rotation from a list of internal candidates that at times looked very good, and at others looked very bad.

"I'd say pitching," Byrnes said when asked about his chief target. "I say that even though we finished sixth in the league in ERA and finished the year pitching very well."

Byrnes points to what he calls the organization's "pitching inventory" as one of the ways to fill out the rotation. The inventory includes young pitchers like Edgar and Enrique Gonzalez, Ross Ohlendorf, Dustin Nippert, Micah Owings and Steven Jackson.

Then the D-backs have some candidates with more experience like Juan Cruz and Claudio Vargas.

"What we'd like to do is find one or two pitchers that help take us to another level," Byrnes said. "And that's not easy to do these days."

Assuming they keep their payroll near $60 million again this year, the D-backs could have around $10 million to spend. That could be good enough to land one of the non-top-tier pitchers on the market this year, but the D-backs will have to determine if those pitchers are appreciably better than what they have, given what they will cost.

"We're not going to be haphazard in free agency," Byrnes said. "But I think there are a few guys that we would pursue hard."

Expect the D-backs to kick the tires on a guy like Jason Schmidt, and make a push for Mark Mulder, if they can sign the injured lefty to an incentive-laden deal. Given their research into the subject, though, they are weary of players that would require big dollars for a lot of years.

"Really, over the last 10 to 15 years, there have been a lot of misses when it comes to free agents," Byrnes said. "Sometimes the risk of giving a guy a big, lucrative contract for what he used to be can sink a franchise."

So Arizona's biggest efforts will likely come in the trade market, where the club could acquire a player still on the upswing before he reaches free agency. With a booming farm system, expect the D-backs to call the Indians about Jake Westbrook, the Marlins about Dontrelle Willis and the White Sox and Tigers, who both seem to have starting pitching to spare.

A true leadoff hitter or a bona fide No. 4 hitter would be nice, but the D-backs' everyday lineup is pretty well set with young players such as Stephen Drew, Conor Jackson and Carlos Quentin at nearly every position.

"When you look at position players, we're maybe more stable not just next year, but for a few years," Byrnes said. "It's a matter of how quickly our young players progress. Now, it's a matter of selectively adding to the foundation."