Diamondbacks call up RHP Dennis Santana, DFA LHP Philip Abner

The Arizona Diamondbacks called up right-handed pitcher Dennis Santana from Triple-A Reno Sunday ahead of their series finale with the Atlanta Braves, the team announced.

In a corresponding move, Arizona designated left-handed pitcher Philip Abner for assignment. Abner held a 6.28 ERA across 14.1 innings pitched this season.

Santana, 30, has been a journeyman throughout his nine-year career, pitching for five teams before the Diamondbacks signed him to a minor-league deal on Aug. 5.

The relief pitcher put together the best season of his career in 2025 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, pitching to a 2.18 ERA across 70.1 innings with 16 saves. Santana took over as the Pirates’ closer after David Bednar was traded to the New York Yankees.

However, 2026 was not kind to the 30-year-old, to the point that Pittsburgh DFA’d him in late July.

Santana had a 6.05 ERA in 44 games before the Pirates let him go. His predictive stats were not pretty, either (5.30 xERA and 5.47 FIP).

Across the board, his numbers tumbled in the wrong direction this year:

• Walk rate up from 6.3% to 11.3%
• Home run rate up from 1.9% to 4.3%
• Strikeouts down from 22.2% to 19.9%
• Ground balls down 38.9% to 29.4%

However, even with the awful 2026 numbers, Santana had a 0.69 ERA through his first 13 outings.

Why are the Diamondbacks giving Santana a chance?

The veteran reliever has multiple connections to the D-backs. Arizona’s assistant general manager, Jeremy Bleich, was part of the Pirates staff from 2020-25, and worked with Santana during his time in Pittsburgh.

Santana also pitched for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic before the season started, working with Diamondbacks bullpen coach Wellington Cepeda, who was Team D.R.’s pitching coach. D-backs infielders Ketel Marte and Geraldo Perdomo were on the national team, as well.

Arizona Sports’ Alex Weiner contributed to this story.

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