Diamondbacks restructure starting rotation ahead of Brewers series

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez (57) throws to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first inning at Chase Field in Phoenix on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024.

The Diamondbacks have restructured their starting rotation heading into the Brewers series. For the series, there are two notable changes. They’ve flipped Eduardo Rodríguez and Brandon Pfaadt, with the former getting the start in Friday’s series opener, and the other is the team skipping Ryne Nelson’s spot in the rotation and starting Zac Gallen in the series finale against Milwaukee.

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Assuming there are no further injuries or rotation shuffling in the final 16 games, here’s a projection of the Diamondbacks’ starting rotation for the rest of the 2024 season.

The decision to flip Rodríguez and Pfaadt has a significant impact, as it now potentially puts the veteran left-hander on track to start the season finale against San Diego on September 29. Had they stuck the course, that series would have featured Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, and Pfaadt as the starters in that series. Barring any more rotation shuffling, the projected three starters are Kelly, Nelson, and Rodríguez.

The other major rotation decision with Nelson has a lot to do with an increasing workload. Due to better efficiency at retiring batters this season, the pitch counts per start and the number of innings pitched have gone up. In 2023, he threw 2,467 pitches in 150 1/3 innings between the regular and postseason. In 2024, he’s at 2,369 pitches and 147 1/3 innings. With three projected starts left in the season, he’ll finish with another 280-300 pitches and another 16-18 innings under his belt. Throw in any postseason innings on top of that, and it’s likely he’ll have a significant jump compared to last season.

The rotation has been one of the reasons the Diamondbacks haven’t been able to close out the Wild Card race, but they stand in a great position to secure the No. 4 seed in the postseason. They lead all their competition in the loss column, one ahead of San Diego, and their magic number to clinch a postseason berth sits at 14 with 16 games to play.

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