The Diamondbacks “might” encourage the pitching prospect Yilber Diaz for his MLB debut next week, according to Steve Gilbert of MLB.com. The right-hander would get the ball to start Monday night’s series opener against the Braves. Diaz is not on the 40-man roster, but the Diamondbacks currently have 40-man cap space, so they won’t need to make a corresponding move to opt out of his contract.
Diaz made his professional debut for the D-backs organization in 2021. After pitching to a 4.17 ERA and 3.66 FIP in 14 starts at Double-A between 2023 and ’24, he earned a promotion to Triple-A this June. In four starts with the Reno Aces, he has a 3.27 ERA with 28 strikeouts in 22 innings of work. On the season, he has an impressive 33.2% strikeout rate in 15 outings between Double and Triple-A. The 23-year-old averaged just over five innings in the start.
Diaz is currently ranked as the #16 prospect in the Diamondbacks program, according to MLB Pipeline. Baseball America and The Athletic’s Keith Law both had him at #15 on their preseason rankings. Eric Longenhagen and Travis Ice of FanGraphs were slightly higher on Diaz, ranking him #6 and expressing more faith in both his breaking balls (slider and curve) to be potential coverage pitches. Ultimately, however, all four sources agreed that the righty’s future is most likely in the bullpen. He throws a mid-90s fastball that can touch the high-90s; if his speed can get out of the ‘pen, he can be a flame-throwing utility weapon.
For now, though, Diaz is still the starting pitcher, and he’ll face the biggest test of his career on Monday. The Braves offense struggled most of the time, especially against right field. Still, they’ll be tougher foes than the Triple-A club, and Diaz hasn’t faced much Triple-A opposition.
While the rookie may benefit from getting more seasoning in the minors, the Diamondbacks are desperate for starting pitching in the backfield. Jordan Montgomery went on the injured list last week. Rookie Cristian Mena he made his MLB debut in the Montgomery area on Wednesday, but the results were not good. He pitched only three innings, giving up four earned runs on four hits, three walks, and two home runs. Mena struck out just two of the 15 batters he faced, and has been optioned back to Triple-A. The only other healthy pitcher on Arizona’s 40-man roster remains unchanged Tommy Henrywho has a 7.04 ERA in 38 1/3 MLB innings this season.
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