The Diamondbacks surprise signing of further crowded a rotation that had at least six starters in the mix. While theres been talk of a po sible six-man rotation in Arizona since that Burnes deal, manager Torey Lovullo said at D-backs camp this week that team is not considering that at this point ( ). That leaves the Diamondbacks with seven starters for five spots: Burnes, , , , , and . The first four are largely locked into place. Burnes and Gallen are Cy Young-caliber arms when healthy. Kelly has been a steady midrotation arm for the Snakes since signing out of the KBO in the 2018-19 offseason. Rodriguezs first year in Arizona was marred by injury, but hes signed three more years and has a lengthy track record. Montgomerys status in Arizona has been a talking point throughout the winter. The Diamondbacks signed him to a one-year, $25MM contract with a vesting $20MM player option for the 2025 season. The left-hander pitched enough to trigger that option but nowhere near well enough to decline it in favor of a return to the open market. Signing just days before Opening Day last season, Montgomery mi sed spring training, rushed through an accelerated Denzel Curry Jersey ramp-up in Triple-A and never appeared to be himself. He pitched 117 innings but was rocked for a 6.23 earned run average with career-worst walk and strikeout rates. D-backs owner Ken Kendrick called Montgomerys performance out late in the season, publicly lamenting the role that hed played in bringing the left-hander to his organization. I brought it to (the front offices) attention. I pushed for it, Kendrick said in September. They agreed to it. It wasnt in our game plan. And looking back, in hindsight, a horrible decision to have invested that money in a guy that performed as poorly as he did. Pfaadt, 26, would give the D-backs an upside arm at the back of the staff. The former top prospect hasnt yet found his stride over a full big league season but has shown glimpses of the potential that made him so well regarded. He looked to have found his stride last year, logging a 3.98 ERA, 23% strikeout rate and 4.9% walk rate through his first 24 starts, but Pfaadt was hit hard in late August and for much of September. He mixed in one late-season gem seven innings, one run, 12 strikeouts in Milwaukee but even with that showing still posted an ERA north of 7.00 over his final eight starts. He finished the year at a 4.71 mark but did pile up 181 2/3 innings. Nelson, who turned 27 in December, made 27 appearances this past season 25 of them starts and recorded 150 2/3 innings of 4.24 ERA ball. His 20% strikeout rate and 8.4% swinging-strike rate were below average (well below, with regard to the latter), but Nelsons 5.4% walk rate was outstanding. There are other options on the 40-man roster, but theyre likely to be viewed as depth candidates, barring a spring breakout. , , and are all on the 40-man roster and have all made their big league debuts, but theyd likely only be called upon in the event of multiple injuries at least with the current roster construction. Kendricks comments on Montgomery led to plenty of speculation about a potential trade of this winter, but no such deal has come to fruition. Its still po sible the D-backs could find a taker for a portion of the contract or swap him out for a comparably priced veteran on an underwater deal (e.g. , ), but for now, Montgomery will get a full spring buildup and look to bounce back from a dismal 2024 season. If the D-backs can find some kind of trade that sheds a portion of the Montgomery money, any savings could be reallocated to other needs. Most notably, theyve been in the market for a closer throughout the winter but have yet to add an established ninth-inning arm. Arizonas payroll is projected for a franchise-record $195MM, per RosterResource. Its not clear whether Kendrick is willing to push things further after already ponying up to sign Burnes (six years, $210MM), acquire in a trade (one year, $10.9MM) and re-sign (one year, $5MM). Barring the signing of a veteran like or , the D-backs will look inward and lean on , and as their top late-inning arms. Max Strus Jersey
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