SCOTTSDALE, Ariz -- When Merrill Kelly walked off the mound after five innings against the Giants at Scottsdale Stadium on Saturday, it marked the unofficial end of Spring Training for the veteran right-hander.
Though Corbin Burnes -- whom the D-backs signed to a six-year, $210 million contract this past offseason to form a triumvirate atop Arizona¡¯s starting rotation with Zac Gallen and Kelly -- surrendered eight runs (seven earned) over 2 2/3 innings on Friday night against the Brewers before Kelly allowed back-to-back-to-back homers in Saturday¡¯s 7-7 tie, spring isn¡¯t about numbers.
It¡¯s about tuning up for the real deal, which begins on Thursday when the D-backs host the Cubs in their season opener at Chase Field.
On that front, Kelly, like Burnes and Gallen, feels good.
¡°It was really good, really encouraging being the last one going into the regular season,¡± Kelly said of his outing. ¡°Definitely the best I¡¯ve felt all camp so far. Everything with the way my body felt, the rhythm of it, the way the ball was moving, it was definitely the most encouraging start I¡¯ve had so far.
¡° ¡ The results, for me, as far as runs go -- it doesn¡¯t really matter.¡±
Next up for Kelly: games that do matter. And coming off an injury-plagued 2024 campaign, in which he was limited to 13 starts over which he posted a 4.03 ERA, he¡¯ll look to show that he¡¯s still the guy who turned in a 3.33 ERA over 63 starts from 2022-23.
¡°He made a couple of mistakes,¡± manager Torey Lovullo said. ¡°But the beauty of Merrill is that it¡¯s so identifiable. He realizes it as soon as he comes in the dugout. Then he goes out there and self-corrects and starts to fill it up and just make quality pitch after quality pitch.
¡°He¡¯s extremely ready.¡±
As for the rotation order to begin the season, Lovullo said he¡¯s still finalizing that. Given that Burnes said he might make another spring start in some form, the only thing that is certain about the rotation order is that Gallen will start on Opening Day.
¡°We haven¡¯t had a chance to talk to everybody about where they¡¯re slotting and what¡¯s going on, so I don¡¯t want to go any further than that,¡± Lovullo said. ¡°So it¡¯ll make sense once I¡¯m able to talk [with them] about what I need to talk about.¡±
Miller puts finishing touches on bullpen audition
Shelby Miller is not the pitcher he was when the D-backs acquired him in the trade that sent Dansby Swanson -- the No. 1 pick in the 2015 Draft -- to the Braves a decade ago. And for Arizona, that¡¯s a good thing.
Miller struggled in his brief, injury-ravaged tenure with the D-backs from 2016-18, when he had a 6.35 ERA over 139 innings. The right-hander became a journeyman, and from 2019-24, he was released by five organizations.
The D-backs signed Miller to a Minor League contract with an invitation to Spring Training this past offseason. And all the 34-year-old has done is post a 2.70 ERA in six spring appearances, striking out 11 and walking none over 6 2/3 innings. That includes 1 1/3 scoreless frames with four strikeouts on Saturday.
Miller¡¯s case for making the Opening Day roster as a reliever is a strong one. If he does, it would be a full-circle moment for him and the franchise, to say the least.
¡°I knew him as a youngster,¡± Lovullo said. ¡°He was all about being aggressive with his fastball. He could challenge hitters with the fastball. Now he¡¯s a little bit more of a pitcher, understanding that you¡¯ve got to change speeds side to side and front to back. He¡¯s got a lot of weapons.
¡°It¡¯s been seven or eight years since I¡¯ve seen him, and he really has matured into what we really, really like at this point.¡±
Vargas making final decision on bench tough
Ildemaro Vargas, who is vying for a utility role on the Opening Day club, continued to make his case on Saturday. He went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles, an RBI and two runs scored and is hitting .375 with a 1.059 OPS this spring.
¡°I¡¯ve seen him on some heaters before,¡± Lovullo said. ¡°And when he gets hot, he gets real, real hot. ¡ He¡¯s in one of those areas of competition where we¡¯re trying to make that decision. And he¡¯s making it very difficult on us, for sure.¡±