Enter Matt Bowman…
Roster moves
The Arizona Diamondbacks made the following roster moves. The D-backs’ 40-man roster is at 40.
- Acquired from Minnesota for cash considerations: RHP Matt Bowman (No. 55)
- Optioned to Triple-A Reno: LHP Blake Walston
- Transferred to the 60-day injured list: RHP Merrill Kelly (right shoulder strain)
Bowman goes into the bullpen, having allowed a 2.35 ERA across 7.2 innings for the Twins this year, and a career 4.06 ERA across 193 innings since his debut in 2016. He had Tommy John surgery in September 2020, and ended up missing all of the next two seasons, as his recovery took longer than expected. He did appear 49 times in 2023 for the Yankees’ AAA affiliate, so health-wise, he seems to be okay. Bowman profiles as a groundball-heavy pitcher, so may well be used by Torey Lovullo to come in when there’s already traffic on the basebaths, and hopefully dial up a double-play ball.
Walston looked pretty decent during his brief MLB debut, and did nothing to give the team concern, should he need to be called on again. The news of Kelly’s transfer to the 60-day IL is not surprising, but still will remain a disappointment, locking down that he won’t be seen on a major-league roster until the last week in June at the earliest. Given he averaged over 30 starts a (full) season since his return to MLB in 2019, and had improved significant in that time, Merrill’s loss will be sorely felt. However, the rotational stand-ins have done their job of late, keeping the D-backs in games more often than not. The offense? Well, last time we got hypothetical tacos was April 23. Since then? 2 runs per game and a collective .197 average.