Diamondbacks ace Corbin Burnes exits win over Nationals with elbow discomfort

PHOENIX — Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Corbin Burnes exited Sunday’s game against the Washington Nationals with right elbow discomfort and will undergo imaging on Monday, manager Torey Lovullo said after a 3-1 win.

Burnes will stay back for his MRI as the team hits the road.

The right-hander said he never felt anything pop, just that his elbow became tighter until he had to come out of the game.

“Just got to the point where the tightness was just too much,” Burnes said. “Didn’t feel like we needed to push any farther. So, hopefully we caught it early. Hopefully it’s not bad, but we’ll see.”

D-backs starting pitcher Corbin Burnes on how he felt before exiting early against the Nationals on Sunday:

"Just got to the point where the tightness was too much" pic.twitter.com/gKcDwmyeWD

— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) June 1, 2025

Burnes started with 4.2 scoreless innings, but something was evidently wrong after he gave up a two-out single to CJ Abrams. His cutter velocity was down into the low 90s mph during the fifth inning.

Burnes let out a sigh as he walked back toward the dugout. He had only thrown 70 pitches, as the D-backs led 3-0 while looking to snap a four-game losing streak.

“It’s a gut punch, for sure,” Lovullo said. “He is tough. He rarely complains about anything. So when you see him wave the trainer and the coaches out there, you’re holding your breath.

“We’re with Corbin, we’ll be as positive as possible. If it is the worst-case news, we have guys that are ready to step in and are very capable.”

D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said Corbin Burnes will have an MRI done for "right elbow discomfort" tomorrow in Phoenix.

"We're gonna remain as optimistic as possible" pic.twitter.com/AUmgcQuFgD

— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) June 1, 2025

When asked for a concern level, Lovullo said, “I know sometimes I tell you guys I’m minimally concerned. I am more than that.”

Burnes added: “ I’ve never had anything like it before. I really have nothing to compare it to. My body does a pretty good job of telling me when I need to not do things and when I can push things, and it was telling me not to push it. Hopefully it was me shutting things down before it got too bad. I won’t really know until we look at it.”

Left-hander Jalen Beeks quickly got ready to enter the game, while Cristian Mena — called up from Triple-A Reno on Sunday — started warming up in the bullpen. Beeks allowed the inherited runner to score, tagging Burnes with one earned run. The bullpen from there was nails, as the Diamondbacks held on for a win.

Burnes has been terrific since missing a start in early May with right shoulder inflammation. In five appearances since then, he has thrown 31.2 innings with six earned runs for an ERA of 1.71.

Arizona signed Burnes, a four-time All-Star, to a six-year contract worth $210 million over the winter to spearhead the rotation. He has an opt-out after Year 2 of the deal.

“It stinks because I’ve been throwing the ball really well,” Burnes said. “It felt like it was starting to get really good, too, especially those first couple innings. The stuff was starting to really be where we wanted it to be. So obviously that’s tough, but we’ll see what happens.”

If Burnes needs to miss time, the Diamondbacks are set to get Eduardo Rodriguez back off the injured list during the upcoming road trip. Ryne Nelson was expected to return to a bullpen role, but there’s a lot of moving pieces regarding this latest development.

“We are in a very fluid situation right now, so it’s gonna involve Mena and (Nelson), for sure,” Lovullo said.

Diamondbacks beat Nationals

The Diamondbacks jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning, as Ketel Marte led off with a single against Nationals lefty Mitchell Parker.

Marte tagged up on a Geraldo Perdomo deep fly out and took second, scoring on a Lourdes Gurriel Jr. RBI double.

“It was a statement base running move, in my opinion, by Marte,” Lovullo said. “Told told me enough of the story that our guys were ready to play.”

Eugenio Suarez then launched a 466-foot home run to take a 3-0, the longest home run by a D-backs player since 2022. That was it for the offense, as Arizona did not record another hit. It loaded the bases in the sixth inning on an error and a couple walks, but Ildemaro Vargas struck out to end the threat.

With Burnes out of the game, the D-backs turned to Mena, who came up for bullpen coverage just in case something happened.

Mena threw two scoreless innings, Shelby Miller followed with a 1-2-3 eighth and Justin Martinez struck out back-to-back hitters for the save in the ninth.

“ Taking the W is big time for us after the last few games, everybody knows it has been tough for us,” Suarez said. “Today was different. Today I feel we brought a new energy.”

The Diamondbacks (28-31) get Monday off after a 2-4 homestand and will start a three-game series at the Atlanta Braves (27-31) on Tuesday.

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