Pfaadt giving his 'best shot' at 5th spot in D-backs rotation

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- In his case to be part of the D-backs’ Opening Day rotation, Brandon Pfaadt made an effective opening statement.

Pfaadt tossed two scoreless innings Thursday in the D-backs’ 3-3 tie against the Reds at Goodyear Ballpark, allowing one hit while striking out two.

“For that to be my first outing in Spring Training, I’m pleased with how I felt physically and location-wise on all the pitches,” Pfaadt said. “I feel like we're right on track.”

Where that track leads come Opening Day remains one of the biggest question marks facing the D-backs this spring.

With Corbin Burnes, Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly and Eduardo Rodriguez seemingly locked in as the top four starters, Pfaadt is battling Jordan Montgomery and Ryne Nelson for the fifth spot.

“The fact that we’re even discussing who our five is is crazy,” reliever Ryan Thompson said. “You can pick any five of the seven and I think we’ll be happy.”

Manager Torey Lovullo acknowledged that the idea of using a six-man rotation has been “thrown around the office,” but that’s not something being considered at the moment.

“I agonize over those things, so I don't want anybody to think this is an easy decision that I'm going to need to make,” Lovullo said. “I’m reading things where there's other teams that just don't have that type of depth and they're getting ready to lean on somebody that doesn't have a year of service time as one of their five. We're grateful to not be in that position.”

Pfaadt was one of the few constants in the D-backs rotation last season, leading the team in starts (32) and innings pitched (181 2/3) while going 11-10 with a 4.71 ERA.

“We know what Brandon Pfaadt does every single time he takes the mound; he’s been very consistent,” Lovullo said. “What I told Brandon is block out all the black noise, go out there and do what you do best and things will be OK.”

Pfaadt appeared to have little trouble doing just that on Thursday, looking calm and confident in his spring debut. Although he knows the reality of the situation, Pfaadt isn’t spending much time thinking about where he might fit in four weeks from now.

“I'm just going to control what I can control and see where we're at the end of Spring Training,” Pfaadt said. “At the end of the day, I just have to go out there and do what I can to keep that spot.”

Following a perfect first inning that ended with a strikeout of Elly De La Cruz, Pfaadt gave up a hard-hit double to Jeimer Candelario with two outs in the second. He followed that with an inning-ending punchout of Spencer Steer, finishing his day on a high note.

“Every starting pitcher at this point in time when they're just getting their feet on the ground is going to make mistakes and get clipped,” Lovullo said before the game. “I want to know what they look like after that.”

Pfaadt and Nelson threw more innings than any other starters on the club in 2024, and while Montgomery struggled through a dismal year (6.23 ERA in 117 innings), the veteran lefty is set to earn $22.5 million this year, complicating the situation as the D-backs contemplate their season-opening rotation options.

Both Pfaadt and Nelson have Minor League options, allowing the D-backs to send them to Triple-A Reno if they so choose, but whatever the ultimate decision is, Lovullo knows he has some tough conversations ahead.

“I don't know that answer right now,” Lovullo said when asked how Montgomery’s salary could play into the decision. “What I told them was, ‘There's so much uncertainty and I'm not going to lie to you; I can't sit here and tell you today what's going to happen. But we have some tough decisions to make.’

“We're going to bring the five best pitchers that we possibly can that we believe are going to help us win as many games as possible. Do we get it right on Day 1? I don't know that answer, and that's what I said to them. We may or may not.”

Given the state of the rotation race, Pfaadt knows these questions won’t be going away anytime soon. If he continues to pitch the way he did Thursday, he will have done everything he can to make his case to Lovullo.

“We'll see at the end of Spring Training where everybody settles,” Pfaadt said. “In the meantime, I'm just going to give it my best shot.”