The Diamondbacks have decided Paul Sewald won’t be handling the ninth inning for now.
Manager Torey Lovullo said Arizona is shifting to a closer-by-committee setup, with Sewald moving into lower-leverage spots. Sewald has collected 24 of the club’s 28 saves, but the recent results have pushed the team to make a change.
The numbers tell the story. Sewald owns a 5.26 ERA on the season, and that mark jumps to 7.16 across 18 appearances since June 1.
He’s given up runs in four of his last five outings and in eight of his last 13. He also shares the MLB lead among relievers with 11 home runs allowed, tied with the A’s Justin Sterner.
Arizona’s bullpen almost unraveled in Pittsburgh last night, and Sewald was at the center of it. Brandon Pfaadt had spun seven scoreless innings before leaving with a 6-0 lead.
Ryan Thompson then allowed three runs in the eighth, turning the ninth into a save chance for Sewald. What looked like a manageable spot quickly went sideways: a leadoff double, then back-to-back homers from Brandon Lowe and Bryan Reynolds tied the game.
Sewald got one out before Lovullo pulled him for Juan Morillo.
Morillo got out of the inning, and the Diamondbacks eventually pulled out an 8-7 win in 12 innings. The comeback kept the night from becoming a total disaster, but it also meant Arizona had to burn through three extra relievers. Eduardo Rodriguez helped steady things in the series finale this afternoon, throwing eight scoreless innings, and rookie left-hander Brandyn Garcia worked the ninth with a 3-0 lead, walking one but earning his second career save.
Garcia has been excellent, posting a 2.17 ERA with a 32% strikeout rate over 29 innings. Still, the Diamondbacks aren’t planning to pin the role on him, especially with him as their only healthy left-hander. Morillo and Jonathan Loáisiga have also recorded saves this season, and Kevin Ginkel could be in the mix as well.
Even with Sewald struggling, Arizona’s relief corps has hung around. The bullpen sits in the middle of the pack in ERA and blown saves, ranks 23rd in strikeout rate, and has done a solid job keeping the ball in the park with a top-10 ground-ball percentage. For a group that looked like the roster’s weakest link on paper, that’s been enough to keep the Diamondbacks in a Wild Card spot as the trade deadline nears.
There’s also an internal solution on the horizon. Justin Martinez is throwing and still appears on track for a late-season return from last June’s elbow surgery.
If he gets back and settles things down, Arizona may not need to chase a proven closer. The bigger bullpen need may be another lefty, since A.J.
Puk remains a question mark after a shoulder capsule sprain last month.
The Diamondbacks have other holes to fill too, including first base, the outfield and the back of the rotation. A lower-cost bullpen addition seems more likely than a major splash.
Arizona’s luxury tax number sits around $232.72MM, a little more than $11MM under the $244MM base threshold, and John Gambadoro of 98.7 FM said this afternoon they’re not likely to go into CBT territory. Because any trade pickup would only count for roughly 30% of the remaining schedule, the club would still have some room for a few mid-level moves if it chooses to stay near the line.
Brennan Bernardino, Sam Moll and Brooks Raley are among the names in that tier.
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