Diamondbacks will not make a trade that leads to luxury tax penalties

The Arizona Diamondbacks have multiple roster needs going into the trade deadline on Monday, but money could become a restriction.

The Diamondbacks are only $6-7 million away from facing luxury tax penalties for the first time in franchise history, Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro reported.

The club will not set off those penalties, which include an increasing tax rate and the loss of money it receives from redistribution.

Ok let's cut to the chase. If you are expecting the Diamondbacks to be big buyers at the deadline and go get a bat, starting pitcher and closer you will be extremely disappointed. They will absolutely rely more on the quality players coming back from injury like Justin Martinez,…

— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) July 29, 2026

The luxury tax threshold is at $244 million this season.

What that means is the Diamondbacks will have to explore the trade market for players not making the money of a Robbie Ray or Christian Walker, for example, unless they can clear some of their own payroll in trades.

The Diamondbacks went into the offseason in a difficult position, having to build a roster with nearly $60 million in payroll to open the season on the injured list: Corbin Burnes, A.J. Puk, Justin Martinez and Lourdes Gurriel Jr.

Despite this, the D-backs spent substantially to bring back Merrill Kelly, trade for Nolan Arenado, sign Michael Soroka, sign Carlos Santana and make some modest investments in relievers.

A big deal looming over their deadline possibilities was the decision to retain Zac Gallen, which pushed the payroll to team record highs.

Gallen signed a one-year, $22.05 million contract with deferrals to lower the average annual value to $18.6 million, which is what counts for the competitive balance tax hit.

That move looks brutal on multiple fronts looking back on it. The most apparent is that Gallen’s return has not panned out so far, considering he owns a 6.34 ERA and is on the injured list with elbow inflammation.

Secondly, his contract acts as a roadblock to add payroll at the trade deadline.

This was part of the calculus when the team signed him.

It was an ambitious move to bring back one of the most important Diamondbacks pitchers in team history, someone who felt he had unfinished business. But it came with a high price.

“We have some room beyond where we are, but we don’t have a ton of room,” managing partner Ken Kendrick said at the time.

Injured list doubles as the trade block

Diamondbacks leadership has consistently pointed toward players coming off the injured list as notable “additions.”

“I believe we still have guys that are going to be coming back that are like acquisitions for our roster,” president and CEO Derrick Hall told Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta last week. “I think there’s a lot to look forward to in a positive way for our roster building.”

“I’m hopeful that group is all coming back to us at some point … that’s going to change our profile dramatically without us doing anything at the deadline,” general manager Mike Hazen told Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke on July 15. “But I would love to be able to add to this team.”

The Diamondbacks are looking toward getting Soroka, Ryne Nelson, Martinez, Jordan Lawlar, Tommy Troy, Gallen, Gurriel and Burnes off the injured list during the final two months of the year. They also have a young core getting opportunities (Ryan Waldschmidt, Tim Tawa and Mitch Bratt, for example) with some depth in Triple-A.

That does not mean they cannot make any trades.

Whom could the Diamondbacks target at the trade deadline?

There are pitchers with controllable years remaining who do not make enough to push the D-backs into the tax penalties, such as Reid Detmers ($2.6 million) and Jose Soriano ($2.9 million) of the Angels or Emerson Hancock ($793,300) of the Mariners. Foster Griffin is an impending free agent who makes $5.5 million, although his Washington Nationals are in the thick of the race. Detroit’s Casey Mize makes $6.1 million as an aggressive rental option.

The D-backs could also use a left-handed bat. First baseman Nathaniel Lowe, outfielder Lars Nootbaar, first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, outfielder JJ Bleday and outfielder Mickey Moniak each make less than $6 million, for example.

Arizona could look for a dance partner to offload certain contracts, like it did last season in trading Jordan Montgomery and Shelby Miller to the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Diamondbacks won two of three games in Pittsburgh this week and are tied for the second NL Wild Card spot with the Philadelphia Phillies. Despite all the ups and downs, the club is in position to play meaningful baseball throughout the second half of the year. Buying to any degree is a show of confidence in a ballclub, but a blockbuster does not seem to be in the cards.

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