The Diamondbacks introduced this afternoon that they’ve positioned right-hander Paul Sewald on the 15-day injured checklist with discomfort in his neck, retroactive to September 12. In a corresponding transfer, catcher Gabriel Moreno was activated from the 10-day injured checklist. The information comes as one thing of a shock, notably given the truth that Arizona introduced that they’ve designated right-hander Dylan Floro for task to make room for Blake Walston on the membership’s energetic roster lower than two hours earlier than making this second collection of roster strikes.
Sewald, 34, has pitched simply as soon as since September 2 and has struggled in latest weeks, with a 7.71 ERA and 4.89 FIP in seven innings of labor since August 19. These struggles when on the mound and his prolonged stretches with out pitching in any respect might be defined to an extent by the damage, but when Sewald has been harm it’s shocking that the Diamondbacks have stored him on the roster fairly than opening a spot of their bullpen for a contemporary arm. Sewald will likely be eligible to return earlier than the tip of the common season because of the back-dated nature of his placement on the IL, though no timetable for his return has been introduced at this level.
Acquired from the Mariners on the commerce deadline final yr, Sewald was among the many most coveted closers within the recreation on the time with a 2.88 ERA and three.34 FIP in 171 2/3 innings of labor for the Mariners since he landed with the membership previous to the 2021 season. Issues haven’t gone properly for him since shifting to the desert, nevertheless, as he walked 12.5% of batters confronted down the stretch with Arizona final yr and has two blow-up outings within the World Sequence towards the Rangers, though these tough appearances had been preceded by eight dominant outings all through the postseason previous to that. Headed into 2024, Sewald retained his position as nearer for the Diamondbacks and regarded dominant early within the yr earlier than ultimately dropping that distinction again in August after a brutal month of July the place he surrendered 12 runs in ten innings of labor throughout 12 appearances.
Given Sewald’s deep struggles within the second half this yr and his obvious damage troubles, it’s not clear the place he stands within the Arizona bullpen because the membership seems to be forward in direction of what they hope will likely be their second consecutive playoff push. A return to kind within the postseason could be an enormous enhance for not solely the Diamondbacks but additionally Sewald’s personal fortunes, because the 34-year-old is scheduled to succeed in free company this winter in a free agent class that figures to be pretty deep when it comes to relievers with late-inning expertise.
In Sewald’s place, Moreno returns to the roster a bit sooner than anticipated. The teen was described earlier this weekend as “very shut” to returning alongside Lourdes Gurriel Jr. however appeared prone to be focusing on a return to motion later this week. With the 24-year-old now seemingly able to step again into his common position behind the plate, the Diamondbacks will now get to make the most of his two-way expertise fairly than having to decide on between a powerful defender with lackluster hitting skill in Jose Herrera and a powerful bat with defensive query marks behind the plate in Adrian Del Castillo. Moreno was within the midst of a positive season previous to his damage, slashing .262/.344/.385 slash line with a 105 wRC+ in 314 journeys to the plate this yr.
