PHOENIX -- In a wild 24-hour stretch just prior to Thursday's Trade Deadline, the Diamondbacks traded away a pair of veterans to continue their selloff while attempting to rebuild their pitching staff on the fly.
First it was third baseman Eugenio Suárez, who was dealt late Wednesday night to the Mariners for a trio of prospects and then about an hour before the Deadline, Arizona traded Merrill Kelly to the Rangers for three of Texas’ best pitching prospects -- left-handers Kohl Drake (Rangers' No. 5 prospect) and Mitch Bratt (No. 9), and right-hander David Hagaman (No. 13).
TRADE DETAILS
D-backs get: LHP Kohl Drake (Rangers' No. 5 prospect), LHP Mitch Bratt (No. 9), RHP David Hagaman (No. 13)
Rangers get: RHP Merrill Kelly
The moves of Suárez and Kelly, both of whom will be free agents at season’s end, came during the same week that other soon-to-be free agents, first baseman Josh Naylor (to Seattle) and outfielder Randal Grichuk (to the Royals), were dealt.
Then just minutes before the Deadline, the Diamondbacks sent veteran reliever Shelby Miller and lefty Jordan Montgomery to the Brewers for a player to be named or cash considerations. Both of those pitchers are currently on the IL with Montgomery out for the year after having Tommy John surgery and Miller coming back from a forearm strain.
TRADE DETAILS
D-backs get: A player to be named or cash considerations.
Brewers get: RHP Shelby Miller and LHP Jordan Montgomery.
As part of the deal, the Brewers will pick up $2 million of what is left of Montgomery’s contract, which expires at the end of the season.
The arms from the Rangers were particularly intriguing as the Diamondbacks look to shore up that part of their team and compete for a postseason berth in 2026.
Drake, 25, was 4-3 with a 2.44 ERA and 0.98 WHIP in 12 starts for Double-A Frisco before being promoted to Triple-A Round Rock, where in four games (three starts) he was 1-1 with a 5.19 ERA.
Bratt, 22, has spent the season at Frisco, where in 18 games (17 starts) he was 6-3 with a 3.18 ERA. He struck out 106 and walked just 16 in 90 2/3 innings.
Hagaman, 22, was the Rangers’ fourth-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. He made his pro debut this year in the Arizona Complex League, where he made three starts before being promoted to Single-A Hickory. He had a 3.52 ERA in five starts at the higher level.
“We brought back a lot of arms, something that I felt like was important as we went forward here,” GM Mike Hazen said. “Felt like we were able to do that. It’s an unfortunate situation, not something that we had intended when we started this season.”
Indeed, the Diamondbacks opened the year with a club-record payroll of around $195 million fully expecting to compete for a playoff spot after going to the World Series in 2023 and missing out on the postseason by virtue of a three-team tiebreaker last year.
Instead, they played sloppy baseball early in the season and injuries began to take their toll, including prized free-agent signing Corbin Burnes being lost to Tommy John surgery.
Hazen and team ownership hated the idea of selling at the Deadline and waited as long as they could before making a decision. When the Diamondbacks came out of the All-Star break and swept the Cardinals to get back to .500, it looked like they may have been able to avoid it.
But they promptly were swept by the Astros and then dropped two of three to the Pirates, a series in which they scored just one run in 29 innings.
“I have to face the reality of where our feet are, how we're playing -- we just didn't play well enough -- and where we were in relation to those teams we were chasing,” Hazen said. “I don't do that lightly. It's very complicated to make that decision, given how all in we went in at the beginning of the season.”
The Diamondbacks still have 53 games to play this year. Another veteran on an expiring deal, right-hander Zac Gallen, will head up the rotation after Hazen did not receive an offer he felt would be better than the Draft pick Arizona will get for giving Gallen a qualifying offer.
Anthony DeSclafani will step into Kelly’s spot in the rotation and Tyler Locklear, who was acquired in the Suárez deal, will replace Naylor at first base.
As for who replaces Suárez at third, top prospect Jordan Lawlar is due to finish up his rehab from a hamstring injury soon and could be called up. Tim Tawa, who was up earlier during the season, is another possibility as is Blaze Alexander, who is currently on the big league roster.