PHOENIX — It was unrealistic to imagine the Arizona Diamondbacks would play this season without a starting pitcher going on the injured list, but they are equipped to handle their latest ailment.
Eduardo Rodriguez landed on the injured list on Friday, as an MRI showed left shoulder inflammation. Ryne Nelson, who has remained mostly stretched out as a long reliever this year, is primed to slide into the rotation for the time being.
Nelson has made one spot start this season while Corbin Burnes rested a sore shoulder, and manager Torey Lovullo said his pitch count will be similar. Nelson threw 70 pitches that game, a season high. He just threw 56 in relief on Wednesday.
RELATED STORIES
D-backs starter Eduardo Rodriguez heads to IL with shoulder issue
D-backs' Hall: Something is off with pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez
D-backs' Hall: Something is off with pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez
“We wanna be really careful with this situation. He’s built up to 45, 50 no problem,” Lovullo said. “He went as much as 70. We’re gonna sit in that range for a couple and just be extra cautious. We’ve learned very hard lessons. We go back to Randall Delgado in the 2017 or 2018 season, we were toggling, he was able to give us whatever we wanted and we thought it was magic, but in the end, we ended up hurting the athlete.
“We’re just gonna sit in a certain range for a little while before we start to climb into that 90, 100 range. It’d probably be 65, 70 for a couple starts.”
Rodriguez’s spot in the rotation comes back up on Tuesday at the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Nelson owns a 5.17 ERA with a more favorable 3.70 FIP and 3.93 xERA in 26.1 innings. He tossed a career-high 150.2 innings last year, breaking out in the second half with a 3.05 ERA in 14 games after July 1.
“ He was so strong last year that we pushed Jordan Montgomery to the bullpen in favor of him starting the remaining two months of the season, so we know what he’s built on,” Lovullo told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo. “I have a real strong feeling he is gonna go out there and do his job for us until Eduardo gets healthy.”
How long will Eduardo Rodriguez be on the injured list?
Lovullo said he was made aware of Rodriguez feeling shoulder fatigue after his start at the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday. Rodriguez only lasted four innings and allowed four runs, as he underwent a brutal stretch before hitting the shelf with 21 earned runs over his last 16 innings.
Lovullo did not have a clear timeline as of yet, nor did he want to speculate whether Rodriguez’s shoulder issue has been impacting his performances.
“We’ve talked about what it looks like on the 16th day,” Lovullo said.
“We’ve also built it out a little bit, so we don’t know. We gotta just make sure that he’s healthy, feels good, he’s in the right frame of mind to say ‘I’m feeling a 100%, I’m not feeling this fatigue’ and we get that inflammation outta there. I don’t know what it’ll be, but I’m always optimistic.”
Rodriguez is in Year 2 of a four-year, $80 million contract, and this is his second IL stint. Last year, he missed the first three-plus months due to a left shoulder strain.
Lovullo said at this point in the season, removing Rodriguez from the rotation for performance reasons has not been considered.
Justin Martinez update
Reliever Justin Martinez is scheduled to pitch in an Arizona Complex League game on Friday. He previously faced live hitters on Wednesday back at Salt River Fields.
Martinez landed on the 15-day IL on May 1 with right shoulder inflammation after his velocity dropped during his previous three outings. Typical 101 mph sinkers were landing in the 95-96 mph range.
“He is up back up to 97, 98, I think he touched 99,” Lovullo said. “The velo is back and we’re just anticipating that if he gets into a game, a little more competition mindset, that he’s gonna be exactly where he was.
“We wanna make sure he’s got the right mindset, as well. You’re always worried about mechanical changes. Was he protecting something? Was the arm dropping? … We’ve examined all that stuff and it’s getting very close.”
When asked whether Martinez could return for Arizona’s series at Dodger Stadium, which starts Monday, Lovullo said there is a Plan A and a Plan B.
A.J. Puk, meanwhile, is expected to begin his throwing program early next week.
Adrian Del Castillo to resume playing
Diamondbacks catching prospect Adrian Del Castillo — who started his major league career on fire last season — has yet to play a game this season. A shoulder strain has cost him the early slate of the 2025 campaign, but he is on the road back.
D-backs farm director Chris Slivka told Arizona Sports that Del Castillo has started his throwing program. The plan is for him to begin a rehab stint in the complex league next week.
Diamondbacks prospect to undergo Tommy John
Mason Marriott, a right-handed pitching prospect and 2024 sixth-round pick out of Baylor, will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the remainder of the season, Slivka said. Marriott was an early standout having thrown four starts with High-A Hillsboro to a 2.29 ERA.
Follow @alexjweiner
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Diamondbacks notebook: Ryne Nelson primed to rejoin rotation with Rodriguez on IL )
Also on site :