Arizona Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen sees great value in their six-game streak of quality starts entering Wednesday.
The D-backs are 5-1 in this stretch, and the success from the starting rotation paired with better defense has improved the crispness of their games.
That trickles down to all aspects of the club, Hazen explained to Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke on Wednesday, noting the Diamondbacks have looked like two different teams.
“We’ve been behind a decent amount lately, even in some of these starts, we’ve given up some runs early,” Hazen said. “I think (Zac) Gallen gave up a bomb, Merrill gave up a bomb, but they settled in and gave us six innings. And when the position players see that over time, they walk onto the field every night being like we need to get three or four runs and we’re going to win this game.
“So I think it’s very important from that standpoint mentally. The second piece is the amount of consistency it gives to the manager and the pitching coach in deploying the bullpen. The amount of innings your bullpen throws over the course of 162 games matters a lot. That gives a lot of help so you’re not running Shelby (Miller) and (A.J.) Puk and (Justin Martinez) out there every single day or every other day. All these things are interrelated, that’s why that becomes so important. It’s not about having six shutouts. Getting into the sixth and seventh inning is critically important over the course of a long season.”
On Tuesday, Kelly allowed a run in the second inning but cruised from there. He finished with six frames and one earned run as the offense zoomed past the Miami Marlins to take a 10-1 lead.
On Sunday, Gallen surrendered a two-run home run in the first inning against Milwaukee, but by pitching five scoreless innings to end his outing, he allowed the offense to chip away.
Before this six-game stretch, Diamondbacks starters owned an ERA of 6.27 through 11 games, a tiny sample size impacted by a defense that did not do a great job getting its pitchers off the field.
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In the last six games, the D-backs have not been throwing anything close to complete-game shutouts, but a 2.48 ERA will suffice. Hazen mentioned that so long as the defense continues to play clean, he expects consistency from that group of starters. Corbin Burnes, Brandon Pfaadt and Eduardo Rodriguez are all coming off starts to build off of.
“Going into the year, I think on paper, I would put our rotation up against anybody in the league,” Kelly told Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta on Wednesday. “Obviously the beginning of the season, the numbers can look a little deceiving when I look up and I have a seven something ERA. Other than the Yankees game, I don’t feel I’ve thrown that bad.
“We didn’t get off to the start that everyone thought we were going to and probably not the start we really wanted, but I think as we get more into the season and keep racking up quality starts, we start settling into the rhythm of the games and the rhythm of the season. I think we’re going to be just fine.”
The Diamondbacks leaned heavily on their top relievers last season due to starting pitching woes and depth concerns. So far, the Diamondbacks have had one of the top bullpens in the league in many respects. They lead MLB with an 0.92 WHIP and 5.55 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
And depth has been a strength, as Justin Martinez, A.J. Puk, Jalen Beeks, Shelby Miller and Ryan Thompson in particular have started strong with Ryne Nelson providing valuable length. Kevin Ginkel and Kendall Graveman are working their way back from the injured list, as well.
“In the short run of April, you can figure out using three to four pitchers,” Hazen said. “Over the long haul of the season, you can end up burning some of them out. I like the way that’s going.”
Diamondbacks pitchers marvel at Justin Martinez
Martinez has yet to give up a run through 5.2 innings with nine strikeouts. He’s yet to walk a batter after command improvements were a focus coming into the season.
The Diamondbacks bet on Martinez continuing to make strides after an impressive rookie year with a contract extension, and in a short sample size he’s looked like one of the dominant relievers in baseball. His splitter, slider and fastball have all drawn a 50% whiff rate so far.
Justin Martinez's RIDICULOUS 90MPH Splitter. ?
WTF pic.twitter.com/Mj5B8bKRxN
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 5, 2025
Gallen and Kelly have been with the Diamondbacks since 2019, but what they’re seeing from the 23-year-old Martinez is unique.
“I marvel at him every day,” Kelly said. “If he’s in the strike zone with his fastball, he’s dang-near unhittable. … As far as arms go, he’s one of the more freakish velocity and movement that I’ve ever come across in my career.”
“You talk about one of the guys who probably had the biggest jump over the last two years,” Gallen told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo. “From when he came up, you could see the potential was through the roof. He had to refine some things, mainly the command. To see his growth over the last 18 months, now being one of the premier relievers in the big leagues has been really cool. He works really hard. He’s a guy who really cares about getting better.”
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