Is Jordan Montgomery pitching for his rotation spot vs. the Marlins?

Jul 23, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery (52) pitches during the first inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Diamondbacks (71-56) will go for the three-game sweep of the Miami Marlins (46-80). Taking the mound for Arizona will be left-hander Jordan Montgomery. Montgomery has made 18 starts on the season, with a record of 8-6 and pitching to a 6.25 ERA. The team faces a tough decision for their fifth starter, as they keep kicking that can down the road. However, another bad start from Montgomery could result in him getting demoted to the bullpen as a length guy.

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The reason it’s even a decision has been the improved pitching from Ryne Nelson. Since July 2, Nelson has a 2.73 ERA with 55 strikeouts and 11 walks in his last nine games (eight starts). The Diamondbacks could be waiting for Montgomery to put quality starts together to make them comfortable with leaving him in the rotation. However, the results haven’t been there yet. Montgomery has yet to put together back-to-back quality starts since his first two in an Arizona uniform.

He’ll face a lineup consisting of eight right-handed hitters and a switch hitter who will bat right-handed. Right-handed hitters have crushed Montgomery to the tune of a .321/.380/.518 slash with 10 home runs this season. The odds are stacked against the left-hander for making a quality start.

Starting Lineups

Luis Guillorme will get his first start for the Diamondbacks after officially signing with the team on Tuesday. The veteran infielder is a solid defender at three different spots on the infield and adds a left-handed bat to those spots.

Pavin Smith will also get his first start in left field since the 2021 season. He’s only had 11 starts in left field for his career, playing mostly first base and right field in order to stay on the same side of the diamond.

Miami is running the same 1-7 hitters as Tuesday vs. Eduardo Rodríguez. The big difference is Hensley is in for Stowers and Sanchez for Fortes in the final two spots in the order. Rodríguez allowed six hits and one walk in 5 1/3 innings in the second game of the series, a game Arizona won 3-1.

Bullpen Situation

Arizona continues to roll with a seven-man bullpen as they continue to kick the can down the road with the rotation. Joe Mantiply and Dylan Floro are the most rested relievers in the bullpen, both of whom have not pitched in the last two games. The late-inning guys have had to pitch a lot, with Justin Martinez, Ryan Thompson, Kevin Ginkel, and A.J. Puk each pitching at least twice in the last three days.

The main question with the bullpen will be who Lovullo turns to in a close game. Ryan Thompson is unavailable after pitching back-to-back games in the series. Paul Sewald did not pitch on Tuesday but had gone in two of the previous three days. We could see Mantiply and Floro being asked to get some big outs, especially the latter against this Marlins lineup.

With that in mind, it would not be a shock if right-hander Ryne Nelson was made available in long relief in the event of a short start from Montgomery. Nelson would be pitching on four days’ rest if he were to appear in this game, so it is still doable. The Diamondbacks experimented with that idea last week in the series finale against the Colorado Rockies.

Diamondbacks TV reporter Jody Jackson later confirmed this would be the case.

Just like in the last Monty start, Ryne N is available out of the pen today and if he’s not needed he will start Friday. Dbacks basically going w a 6 man rotation, at least for now.

— Jody Jackson (@Jody_Jackson) August 21, 2024

Pregame Notes

• The Diamondbacks have stacked their lineup with six left-handed hitters and two switch-hitters who will bat left-handed. Left-handers have crushed Roddery Muñoz to the tune of a .291/.376/.674 slash with 14 home runs.
• Corbin Carroll has reached base in each of his past 30 starts. It has translated into wins, with a 24-6 record in those games.
• Jake Burger has the longest track record against Montgomery, going 4-for-6 with a home run and a 2.083 OPS in eight plate appearances. He was 3-for-3 against Montgomery at Chase Field on May 25, a game the Diamondbacks won 3-2.

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Michael McDermott covers the Arizona Diamondbacks and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB